Preview of the “Failure of Initiative” Report on Hurricane Katrina Disaster Response

The House of Representatives Select Bipartisan Committee report on disaster response from Hurricane Katrina, which has been described as “blistering” by the Washington Post, is due out tomorrow. But you can get a preview from the minority report issued by Democratic members on the Committee, Representatives Charles Melacon and William J. Jefferson. The minority report can be found on Representative Melacon’s web page. Here’s a fair sample of it, from the executive summary:

Overall, the majority report is a comprehensive, detailed recitation of the problems that occurred in responding to Hurricane Katrina. It is also a condemnation of the nation’s progress in responding to catastrophic events since 9/11. We concur with the report’s overarching conclusion that the response to Hurricane Katrina was “a national failure, an abdication of the most solemn obligation to provide for the common welfare.” We also agree that Hurricane Katrina was “a failure of leadership.”

For all it accomplished, however, the Select Committee adopted an approach that largely eschews direct accountability. The majority report rarely assesses how these problems occurred, why they were not corrected sooner, and who in particular was responsible. Instead, the report uses the passive voice to describe generic “institutional” failures, general “communications problems,” and vague “bureaucratic inertia.” It seldom holds anyone accountable for these failures.

“. . . a national failure, an abdication of the most solemn obligation to provide for the common welfare” is what the Republicans in Congress are saying about the Bush Administration’s response to Hurricane Katrina. One wonders how much more scathing the Democratic version is. Hopefully, this small taste will encourage you to go to Representative Melacon’s page, download the minority report and start reading. Hopefully, I’ll have a post up on the majority report tomorrow.