Date: 2005-09-15
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of H. Res. 437. establishing a select bipartisan committee to investigate the preparation and response for Humcane Katrina. We have all spent much of the past. two Weeks witnessing and examining the aftermath of this catastrophic disaster. It has become increasingly clear that local. State. and Federal Government agencies failed to meet the needs of the residents of Louisiana. Mississippi. and Alabama. Now its this Congresss job to figure out why. and to make sure we as a country are better prepared for the future. First and foremost. our thoughts and prayers go out to the hurricanes victims. their families. and their friends. The loss of life. of property. of livelihoods and dreams has been enormous. And we salute all Americans who have stepped to the plate to help in any way they can. Congress has a responsibility lo conduct oversight. but at this stage. the oversight needs to conduct oversight in a manner that does not interfere with rescue and relief efforts. Many questions need to wait. no one wants to take people away from the massive job at hand. But I also think some issues can and should be looked at now. Members want to begin doing oversight. and the American people are demanding it as well. The formation of a bipartisan select committee. composed of Members from the numerous House committees that bear responsibility for various aspects of our Nations failure to respond to this disaster. would enable this Congress to take a thoughtful. Whatever the threat. Katrina has forced officials across America to take another look at disaster plans that may not beas solid as they previously thought. It has forced officials across America to take another look at the laws and regulations governing disaster response to identify ways to cut bureaucratic red tape in order to respond as quickly as possible. This is not the time to attack or defend government entities for political purposes. This is a time to do the oversight were charged with doing. Our goal should be to investigate aggressively what went wrong and what went right. Well do it by the book. and let the chips fall where they may. Its hard not to point fingers and assign blame in the aftermath of tragedy. I understand human nature. and I understand politics. But I think most Americans want less carping and more compassion. I think most Americans want a rational. thoughtful. bipartisan review of what went wrong and what went right. I think most Americans want to know well be better prepared the next time. It remains difficult to understand how government could respond so ineffectively to a disaster that was predicted for years. and for which specific dire warnings. had been issued for days. If. this is what happens when we have advance warning. I shudder to imagine the consequences when we do not. If ever there were a time for leaders at all levels of government to come together and review and coordinate their emergency plans. its now. Some people -are suggesting that only an independent body could properly investigate the Katrina tragedy. I think that point of view diminishes this House and the Members of this House. The voters didnt send us here to appoint commissions to do our jobs for us. All over this country Americans are digging deep and making sacrifices. If we cant lead this Country then lets at least follow their lead and stand up and do our job.