Ellington

Governor Haley Barbour: "Before I start trying to share some briefing with you… First, I'm pleased that the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker accompanied me to the coast today to meet with the President and tour some of the devastated parts of Biloxi, with him, Senator Lott, Senator Cochran, and Congressman Pickering. So before I have anything to say, I want to invite the Lieutenant Governor to say some remarks."

Lieutenant Governor Amy Tuck: "Thank you Governor, and thank each one of you for coming. When we arrived today, words cannot describe what we saw as we walked the streets and saw the devastation that occurred on our Gulf Coast. However, I will say this: today provided hope. It provided hope for those individuals when they saw the Governor, and they saw the President of the United States. They saw Homeland Security, the Red Cross, and the Salvation Army. When they saw these individuals—those individuals working with HUD to try to get housing—this provides hope for those who have lost almost everything. And at a time like this, people need something to hold on to. And they knew by today, that all efforts and all forces were coming behind to help them. Like I said, you cannot describe what we saw as we walked down the streets…the landmarks were all gone. It's hard to even get a sense of direction of where you were, because what you saw were just piles of rubble.

But the stories that were told to us by the individuals who were there, that came up to us and approached us, trying to get word to their loved ones that they're still alive…or 'can you get word to someone that my father or my loved one is missing?' It breaks your heart when you hear and see what we saw today. When you see little children walking around with no home, it's hard to grasp what that does to you. I saw a little girl—all she could do—she had lost everything she had--gathering up paper to make fans to hand out to those who were in need. Yet, she and her mom had lost everything they had.

There is a sense and spirit about Mississippi, a spirit of cooperation. What I saw were people that were proud that people were there to offer a hand. We saw the Salvation Army passing out food to those who needed it. In this time, as you can see here today, everyone has come here together. We're working together to do everything we can and get all the needs that we can, all the necessities to the coast, and to all the affected areas—Jones County, all across our state. I just appreciate all the individuals who were here today who are going to go back. Because after seeing it firsthand, they said it was hard to grasp the magnitude of the devastation that we have in our state. But when they were there firsthand, they said 'We've gotta go back. We've gotta take some fast, fast action.' And that means a lot in our state, and we are extremely grateful for that. And I thank the Governor and for all those who helped get all this together today. Like I said, hope was given to our victims on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and across our state today.

I think it's imperative and so important that we remember to keep all of our citizens in our prayers, those who have been affected. But it makes you feel good to be a Mississippian when you see the people coming together—the outpouring of support and people willing to lend a hand, but also from all over the world. People are coming to our state; they're calling, they're saying 'What can we do to help?' And they're stepping up to the plate. And I'm thankful for that and we will continue to work hard to provide any resources, for whatever we can do. Like I said today, to see it firsthand, it's hard to put into words the catastrophic effects this has had on our state. And I appreciate the opportunity to say a few words today. And I thank you for getting out the word about any information that we get out to Mississippi and across the state."

Governor Barbour: "Thank you Governor. I'd like to ask Speaker McCoy to say a few words."

Speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives, Billy McCoy: Thank you very much, Governor. Today was a most humbling day for me personally, and it's hard to be in a place we were today with the people we were with without being humble. I feel much better at this hour of the day than I did early this morning, and I'll tell you why. Again, today was an experience none of us will forget for several reasons—to see what nature can do at this magnitude is something you never forget. To see the toll of human suffering and misery, heartache…is something you never forget. But then we go past that just for a little bit. And we see optimism in their eyes and in their voices, the people that were there then and are there now. We see the possibility and we know the probability and actuality of a cooperative experience, like most of us have never been a part of. I'll start with the most important people. And that's the local people: their mayors, their board of supervisors, their sheriffs, their policemen, their chief of police, firemen—every person elected and appointed locally. And then they can start to know that they have help from the President of the United States, from the Governor of this state, from all of our elected and appointed officials at the state level, and from the state Legislature. The Legislature, of course, today was represented by several members, most especially by Governor Tuck and by the Speaker of the House. Again, to see this, what we know is going to be an absolute cooperative effort is most heartening. To be able to look there and see all of our forces coming together already to clean up and to make a difference is heartening. To hear again the optimistic voices is heartening. And so, from this will come a better day.

I'm a farmer, my friend and colleague of many years, Steve Holland, is sitting over here to my right. We're brother farmers. We know you start again. We've lost crops; nothing that compares with this. We've lost livestock; nothing that compares with this. But we always start again. We've always been farmers; we always will be. Things happen when you farm. Things happen in nature. You can't explain or describe. But we're going to start again. And today was especially meaningful to me to see the President of the United States, the Governor of this state, other major officials, walking with and genuinely sharing with the people who've lost so much and who have so far to come from this day. It's a day I'll never forget. And I can say this—the Lieutenant Governor touched on it. We were able to talk with Cabinet leaders, the Director of Homeland Security and others, about the great needs in the rest of the state. You know, again, Mr. Holland and I are farmers. When you lose part of a crop, it doesn't mean you neglect the rest of it. So we were able to talk to them about what they already know. We wanted to stress to them the great needs in agriculture, forestry, our poultry business, our cattle business, cotton, corn, beans, what's out there...and the things that have to be done to care for what we have left in the way of natural resources. We were able to talk about little businesses all over this state that have been affected, families that have been affected. Ladies and gentlemen, the great magnitude is on the southern end of the coast, but there's not a part of this state that hasn't already been affected and must react. There's not a part of this nation that won't be affected and must react. This is bigger than any of us could ever think about it. So with the Lord's help, it's not too big for us to find another crop. Thank you."

Governor Barbour: "Thank you, Speaker. I want to ask the Secretary of State whom I asked to be here to spend a minute to remind people that we're the most charitable and generous people in the world. That's literally a fact. Mississippians give more to charity based on per capita income more than any other state in America. But we also need to be careful that we don't get flim-flammed because somebody tried to take advantage of this situation and is pretending to raise money for charitable causes but is really scamming you. So the Secretary of State is the leader in the state about this, and I want to let Secretary of State Clark visit with you and the public about this."

Secretary of State Eric Clark: "Thank you, Governor, and thank you very much. We've had one of the worst national disasters in American history this week in Mississippi. And as the Governor said, we Mississippians will help, we want to help, because that's in our hearts. We've been raised to love our neighbor as ourself, and it's statistically proven that we do that year in and year out. That makes us an easy target a lot of times. Whenever there is a terrible disaster, there are vultures that descend on an area to victimize once again the people who have already been victimized by nature. And so, my purpose this afternoon briefly is to encourage the Mississippians to be who we are, which is the most generous people in the world and folks that believe in helping our neighbors, but as we do that, be wise. But my bottom line message is: give to people you know. Now that can start on your street. If your neighbor has a tree down or needs a bag of ice, start there. Work through your church. If you need to know who to help in your community, talk to your city officials, your mayor, your chief of police; in the county—your supervisors and sheriff. Give to people you know. Now beyond that—helping on a broad scale, there are a lot of folks that need a lot of money, but you need to give to people you know there too. Give to the Red Cross, give to the Salvation Army, but don't give to some outfit that you've never heard of. Night before last, somebody from South Dakota called me at my house and said 'We're raising money for the hurricane victims on the Gulf Coast,' and I've never heard of those folks. There are probably going to be dozens if not hundreds of outfits that spring up that are soliciting money and we know nothing about them. Now, for starters, call the Secretary of State's office. Our working number right now is 601-359-6367, if you're not sure somebody is legitimate. Now, there will be lots of folks that will try to steal our money and it won't get to the folks that need help. Just don't give people your money if you're not sure who they are. I would advise you don't respond at all to telephone solicitation—to a phone call that you didn't have anything to do with. Don't give cash. Don't give to somebody that comes knocking on your door if you don't know them. Don't give cash. For goodness sakes, don't give your credit card number! They might steal everything you've got and write you up a ten thousand dollar bill. Write a check, give it to a reputable organization that is recognized, that has a track record of being honest and efficient—again, somebody like the Salvation Army or the Red Cross. Let's be who were are; let's be the most generous people in the country. Let's help our neighbors as we've been taught all our lives we are supposed to do. But let's don't be ripped off, and let's don't be taken advantage of. Give to folks you know either locally or nationally. Give to people you have confidence in, and if you have a question, call us. Thank you. Thank you, Governor."

Governor Barbour: "Thank you, Eric, for that good admonition. I got asked yesterday at the news conference 'were state employees being paid?' There was apparently some rumor or issue on whether or not state employees were being paid. The answer is yes, but I want to get the head of the Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) who is in charge of issuing pay checks, Hoopy Stringer, to give us a little brief on that."

J.K. "Hoopy" Stringer, Director of DFA: "Thank you, Governor, and the short answer to the question is 'yes.' Payday ran as scheduled. Was it a normal payday? It was much more difficult than some, but we've done everything we can to push the checks and push the money out to the employees. We've been in contact with all the agencies and anyone who hasn't got their checks or their payday. The electronic transfer went as scheduled; the checks were mailed out as scheduled. Checks were handed out in very special ways that we set up for the agencies to come to the Woolfolk Building and pick up the checks. And if there are any employees out there who haven't received their checks, if they can just go through their agency and contact us, we will push that payout to that employee. I don't think there are very many that haven't. There may be some very special cases of lack of communication that we haven't heard about yet, but in those cases, payday went as scheduled and if there have been some exceptions, we will deal with them. Thank you, Governor."

Governor Barbour: "Thank you, Colonel. The second question I was asked yesterday that I couldn't answer was 'what are our plans in terms of mental health…Issues that arise out of the disaster?' I pass that to Randy Hendrix, who is the head of the Department of Mental Health (DMH), as he will respond to that. Doctor."

Dr. Randy Hendrix, Director of DMH: "Yesterday the question came up about the persons with mental illness and mental retardation. As soon as the hurricane subsided, we took a tour of the facilities in the State of Mississippi. All of our facilities in the southern part of the state sustained minor to moderate degrees of damage to their roofs. All of our physical plants suffered no major structural damage, with the exception of two buildings, which had trees fall on them. We were fortunate because several of our facilities are located in Harrison County. But when those facilities were built, they were built with architectural specifications that they be able to stand up to a hurricane force of level four. So the buildings are in good shape. All of our facilities from the time the storm started to it subsided, have had emergency power. They have had water either from their central storage tanks or water which we transported to those locations. All of the facilities with the exception of the South Mississippi Regional Center and South Mississippi State Hospital in Purvis currently have their regular patient load plus persons that have been evacuated to those areas. I'm proud to report that not any client, any patient, or any employee that was on duty has been injured or lost their life during this period of time. We unfortunately do have about 500 employees who were not on work duty at the time the storm hit. We have not yet heard from them, so we do not know what their situation is, although we believe most are okay, and have not communicated because there is no communication system on the Gulf Coast. The patients that were at the South Mississippi Regional Center—if they are non-ambulatory bed patients for the (inaudible) that are out there, have been relocated and are being relocated to the specialized treatment facility at Lyman, which is in the center of Harrison County. All of its facilities are operational, including air conditioning, which is vital to those type individuals, and they have ample supplies of food, water, and medical supplies. The patients that were at South Mississippi State Hospital in Purvis had to be evacuated because the local water system and sewage system had failed, and they have been evacuated to Mississippi State Hospital, which is located at Whitfield here in the Jackson area. Ambulatory residents from the South Mississippi Regional Center and the ones who lived in group homes along the Gulf Coast have been evacuated to either to the North Mississippi Regional Center in Oxford, the Boswell Regional Center at Magee, Ellisville State School at Ellisville, or to the Hudspeth Regional Center here at Whitfield. The children who were at the specialized treatment facility, which were adolescents, have been transferred out to the facility in Brookhaven, Mississippi. All the patients are doing well, and all the staff that are on duty are doing well. In addition to that, we have taken in hundreds of persons with mental illness or mental retardation who were living with their parents or in supervised apartments throughout the southern part of the state. Many of those are at Whitfield; some are at Hudspeth; some are at Boswell; some at are the Brookhaven facility. In addition to that, we've taken in a number of mentally ill people who lived in specialized facilities operated by counties or private individuals. Some of those are at Central Mississippi Residential Center in Newton or at the North Mississippi State hospital in Tupelo. All in all, all patients are being properly taken care of, receiving adequate food and adequate water.

I would like to give you one sad example of what happened in the storm. We have one lady that works for us; she went to work on Sunday, worked through to Tuesday and hadn't heard from her husband or her one-year-old child. She walked home, which is about a mile and a half from the center where she worked. It was dark when she got there, but she noticed on a high shelf in her house. And when she checked it out, it was her dead, one-year-old daughter that had been placed up, trying to get her out of the flood water, and on the floor of the kitchen was her husband. On Wednesday, some of the staff went back to check on these family members because they had been reported as deceased, and they were both still in the house. That lady turned around and walked a mile and a half back to the facility to continue working. She said 'I can't be of use to my family, but I can be of use to these children with mental retardation.' That's the kind of people we have on the Gulf Coast. People are acting most unselfishly.

I want to compliment the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker, and Representative Holland. They have all been in contact with us. They've all asked us if they could help us with things. They have done everything possible to make it an easy transition for us during the storm. I do emphasize because the parents have been very concerned and called: all patients, and all clients, and all DMH facilities, and all DMH group homes and community service programs that were still with us at the time the storm hit, and had not gone home, are safe and being taken care of. All employees that were on duty at the time the storm struck, they're safe, and many of them are still on duty. Any department of mental health employee who has been able to recover at their home because I know some of them have problems at their home…they're badly needed to augment our staff, for some people have been on duty 24-hours a day the entire week.

Again, I thank the Governor for what he's done, and the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker. Before I step down, I would be remiss to report that we've had some good, cooperative efforts, which were always there but they've grown stronger. The University Medical Center, Psychiatric Department, is working with our community and mental health centers doing crisis counseling down at the Coliseum and other locations. The community mental health center in Meridian, which had a lot of damage and basically no electricity or power is still sending out crisis counselors. Region 9 here in Jackson is still sending out crisis counselors; Region 8, which is Rankin-Copiah-Lincoln, is still sending out crisis counselors. The mental health center in Jackson County is providing limited services wherever they can get electricity. So we appreciate all that these people are doing to see that the people are served. Thank you again, Governor, for having us here today."

Governor Barbour: "Thank you, Dr. Hendrix. Let me ask Robert Latham, the head of MEMA who has been on the coast the last three days, if he'd like to give us a brief report."

Robert Latham, Executive Director of MEMA: "Thank you, Governor. First thing to say, words cannot describe the devastation on the coast—none of the pictures you've seen or the words you've heard here today. Having been there for the last few days, since landfall, I can tell you words cannot describe the spirit that is on the coast either. The citizens, the first responders, the elected officials who have lost everything—not just their homes, but some their families, some their jobs—everything. But that community is pulling together and this state is pulling together. And I want to say how much I appreciate the elected officials that are here and the Governor and the support he's shown our agency. It will take time, it will take prayers, but Mississippi will come back."

Governor Barbour: "Let me just give you a couple of little reports here. We appreciate very much the President's coming. We have talked to him about things we thought needed some forethought—housing. We're going to have a massive housing need very soon. We discussed how many thousands of people on the Mississippi Gulf Coast will be displaced. Of course, thousands of them today are staying with family members somewhere else inland, or some of them stayed. There are some down there today who are staying in shelters, and don't have any place to go. But, there are in my opinion, tens of thousands of homes on the coast that are uninhabitable today. Many of them obliterated; others have been flooded or have had the roof blown off and simply are uninhabitable for some period of time. There is the coast that is going to take an enormous effort just to clean up the debris. We went places where the debris is head deep, chest deep, higher than that. And of course, the areas that we went to they had to clear off the roads so that we could go to them. More and more of that is getting done. We have an immediate shelter problem not just for the victims of the storm but also for all the people that are down there providing relief—5,000 utility linemen, tree cutters. 5,000 people down there working to get the electricity turned back on; people working to get the telephone system running. Before we ever mention the hundred-something highway patrol, Mississippi Bureau of Investigation (MBI), and Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics (MBN) agents we've pushed in there, and what will be 9,000 national guard by this weekend. We'll have 9,000 national guard on the coast primarily from other states, for which we're very grateful. But, we got to house them. So, the President brought the Secretary of HUD, as well as Secretary of Homeland Security; these are some of the things we talked about.

We talked about fuel. Fuel as I said yesterday is in many ways the most immediate, urgent issue. We've made progress on fuel: pipelines reopening, we've opened a tank farm in Collins. FEMA has now found for us a substantial supply of fuel that we can now tap into; however, we have a shortage of tanker trucks. So, let me right now ask anybody in Mississippi or in the neighborhood, who has a tanker truck that can carry gasoline or diesel fuel…I'm going to give you a telephone number—to call in, so that we can hire you—we're not asking you to give this away—to haul this fuel in so that it can be used in our communities. Two numbers for talking to FEMA: 703-669-7433. Once again, that's 703-669-7433.

Second thing that we're running out of is volunteers, particularly in the area of medical—nurses, health care workers, physicians, whatever. We need more medical volunteers. If we could get more medical volunteers, people who are willing to help, call 1-800-272-2707, that's 1-800-272-2707.

I think it's fair to say that we've made progress in the last 24 hours. I believe Tuesday we made progress on search-and-rescue, and Wednesday, and Thursday. And I think today, we've made more progress in opening the areas up, more search-and-rescue. By the way, I mentioned yesterday that the U.S. Coast Guard—their search-and-rescue people who were the first outsiders, the first non-Mississippi rescuers on the scene—in meeting with them today, I found out that they have logged more than 1,700 people; that they have rescued by hoist and helicopter. They've gone in and picked people up off the ground and put them in helicopters…1,700. But the fire departments from down on the coast, the emergency rescue people…a host came in from north Mississippi, from Senatobia, Batesville, and other places. And then within a day or so ago, they started coming in from Ohio, and just walking down the hall, I ran into a team from Camilla, Georgia. I wish I knew where Camilla, Georgia, is, except in Georgia, but we really appreciate it. They've made a huge difference for us.

We've made progress, but not enough, in terms of water, ice, and food. We don't have enough distribution centers. We're going to have more. We're pushing that out. I feel like we've made a ton of progress on the coast. Also, in Laurel and Hattiesburg, where we've pushed in some national guard, where there will be more national guard going in. I don't feel like I've got as good a hand as I want to on smaller counties, like Stone, George, Greene, Wayne, Marion, Jeff Davis, Covington… You know, everybody's got needs and we're trying to attend to those needs and we're trying to push more and more in rural areas and away from the coast. There's still—as Billy and Amy will tell you, as well as Travis Little who was with us—there's still so much to do on the coast. It's heart-wrenching to see the suffering, but it's breathtaking to think about what we have ahead of us. I told President Bush this as we were walking around. We ran into to people who were so upbeat and positive, it just made you want to cry. We went to this mission—where there had been—a mission for the homeless. An African-American preacher and his wife, three white guys who worked there and they were all there together—the place totally collapsed. There were twelve homeless in this church; six of them died, six survived. One of the workers who was in the building with us said he had no idea how he lived, he didn't know anything he had done that allowed him to survive but pray. And he had prayed and prayed and prayed for the other people, and he had survived. And all he wanted to talk about was how to help those homeless people that had survived. And all he wanted to talk about was rebuilding that mission. And all he wanted to talk about was what we're going to do to make this better. And it made me think we're going to have a new Biloxi. Biloxi is not ever going to be like Biloxi was. And if you see Waveland, and Bay St. Louis and Pass Christian and Long Beach...just the decimation is something you can't believe. But there's going to be a new Pass Christian, there's going to be a new coast. It's going to be hard. It's going to be a lot of baby steps along the way and a lot of corners to turn. We're going to do things wrong. We're going to make mistakes; we're going to things not as well as we should have. But there's going to be a new coast. There's going to be a total recovery in south Mississippi. This is going to take time. And I feel so much better about it today after seeing these people. These people at the homeless shelter didn't have anything before the hurricane, but they've got optimism about where we're going today. That gives me optimism.

Let's see—if anybody's got a question…"

Q&A

Question: "There has been some talk about the President appointing a high-ranking Cabinet member or someone like Rudy Giliuani or Tommy Franks to oversee the federal response to this disaster—what is your take on that?"

Answer: "Well, this is certainly an unprecedented disaster. The President's appointed the Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Cherthoff, to be the leader in the federal government for this. From what the federal government has done to help us, we couldn't ask for more. Is it perfect? No, it's not perfect. Nobody's ever had to deal with a disaster like that. All the systems are overwhelmed. And some of the infrastructure is not going to be back online for weeks or months. But the federal government has been a great partner to us—from the military to the coast guard to FEMA, the Energy Department who is trying to help us right now…I am not in the belief at this point that there's any need for that."

Question: "Did you speak to the President about allocating any additional relief funds?"

Answer: "One of the really good things is I didn't have to speak to the President on additional relief funds. Thad (Cochran) and Trent (Lott) were with me, and the first thing he said to them was congratulations on such immediate attention to passing this 10.5 billion dollar package for relief. He said, 'We all know that's just the start.' That's just the start. So, I didn't have to say that; he understands that as well or better. We spent a lot of time together. I met him at Mobile; we had a lot of time together there. We flew to the coast, spent a couple of hours together on the ground. I flew to New Orleans with him, where he met with the New Orleans people and Senator Lott and Senator Cochran; we all came back. He doesn't need anybody to take him to school on that. He understands that cold."

Question: "Other states have talked about suspending the gas tax--Have you thought about suspending the gas tax in Mississippi?"

Answer: "Hadn't considered it. I'm more worried about gas supply."

Question: "Governor, do you have any new numbers or statistics as far as the death toll in Mississippi goes? We have heard reports of a thousand…"

Answer: "Yeah, we've got some new numbers, Robert, do you know?—147 this morning and that number is going to go up. There's not any sort of credible evidence of the sort of number you're talking about, which doesn't mean that it isn't possible. If you see the devastation, you wonder why it didn't kill a million people. We flew over New Orleans; I'm going to tell you, Mississippi got hit much harder than they did, but what happened in the aftermath…It makes your stomach hurt to go miles and miles and miles and the houses are all underwater, up to the roof or half-way up. Cars parked on bridges, people lying down on the upper raised part of the interstate. I don't know what the death toll is over there. It could be 100,000—looked like it. Of course, I'm sure it's not going to be anything like that. I don't know what's it's gonna be. We are trying to give you what we think is verifiable. I suspect there are going to be fatalities that are yet undiscovered, as well as some that are as yet unreported."

Question: "For the people who stayed behind, are you seeing a lot of storm-borne illnesses?"

Answer: "Not at this point—surely a very big risk. There is still some standing water down there, and with the loss of life that's a possibility that there are bodies that are unrecovered or maybe animals…And you've got no electricity, and the possibility of food that has gone bad being eaten. There is certainly the opportunity for that. A lot of work is being done on that; the President and I spent some time on that. Dr. Amy, the head of the state Department of Health, is working on that. I think I mentioned that in yesterday's briefing. And the Center for Disease Control and the Department of Health and Human Services are all over it. At Keesler, there is a 500-man medical team from the federal government. That's what their job is, to try to deal with any sort of outbreaks of diseases that could result. But, to my knowledge, there has not been any such outbreak or any report of it."

Question: "Some people have said that both the supplies and manpower that are in Iraq could be used here in the homeland to help aid Mississippi—what do you say to that?"

Answer: "Where are you from?"

Response: "I'm from the National Public Radio."

Answer: "I figured that. You know what? A reporter asked President Bush today, and said 'there's a lot of talk down here about Iraq, with resources going to Iraq.' Whereas, there's no talk about it with anyone I talk to—except reporters. I haven't heard the word Iraq mentioned one time—in Hattiesburg, Meridian, Laurel, Gulfport, Biloxi—not one time. But when I'm asked, I'll give you what the President, who was nicer about the question than I am, and who's nicer than I would have been to that guy. There's probably a lot of talk about it at the hotel where the press is staying. But, we can do more than one thing at once. We are a large country with tremendous capacity and amazing willingness to use that capacity when it needs to be used. I have not heard or seen anybody other than a reporter that has used the word 'Iraq' in the same sentence with the word 'hurricane.'"

Response: "Well, there was a Mississippi National Guard spokesman that used it."

Answer: "A Mississippi National Guard spokesman?"

Response: "Yes, sorry I don't have that story with me…"

Answer: "Yeah, well get that for me. I'd be interested in how that got interpreted."

Question: "On that issue of Iraq, what about soldiers over there who came from the coast? How are you contacting them or giving them information?"

Answer: "One of the most difficult things about the destruction of the communication system is that people in one county can't communicate with people of another county. You heard the lady from the Red Cross say yesterday that one of the things they're trying to do is come up with a list available to the public of who's in the shelters. In truth, it's easier to talk to people in Iraq sometimes during the day than in D'Iberville because of the collapse of the system, which is getting better and better. If somebody in Iraq has a loss of life in their family, it is, or has been, the policy of the military—whether national guard or regular duty—for them to come home. I'm unaware of any of that, but because the communication system is so bad, it would be very hard for people to know very much about what's happening on the coast, in Iraq or I'sola.

Question: "Governor, some state workers say they can't get to work for various reasons—trees down, no electricity, no gasoline—but are being docked pay. What's happening with these workers?"

Answer: "There are a variety of issues there, of course, Lee. Some state office buildings have been closed because of the lack of electricity, or at least the lack of regular electricity where they can have air conditioning. We have allowed department heads to tell people that they don't have to come, that they can take off time. So, I don't see any kind of issues there that won't be sorted out, because again, we've almost had a situation where non-essential workers in many departments and agencies—they've been told they don't have to come to work because of the storm."

Question: "Governor, you keep talking about the fuel coming to Collins. How much gas is actually coming from there, and will it be sufficient?"

Answer: "I think the gasoline situation is going to get better. The Colonial Pipeline which was down and then operated at 40%, is supposed to be up to 80% today. Plantation Pipeline is back open. As I mentioned earlier, we have identified a source that we are tapping into, for fuel for emergencies and that sort of stuff. We also had the Coast Guard yesterday make available supplies of fuel to run generators—they were going to take fuel to every hospital that didn't have power. So, in that sense, we are in better shape than we were. But there is a national shortage of fuel. The companies are cutting back allocations because there are distributors all over, because the stoppage of production of oil at the Gulf—which is a huge producer of petroleum in the United States—has had a big effect on supply. Also, refineries like Pascagoula's Chevron Texaco, which was producing 325,000 barrels a day, is offline right now. So whether you're in the hurricane area, like we are, or you're in Georgia, there is a shortage in fuel supply. And it's a serious problem, as we've talked about. We're working hard to address it with success as it relates to disaster relief and recovery. This weekend, there's going to be a whole lot less gas in the United States than there was last weekend. That's just a fact that we can't do anything about, except try to get more supply here in Mississippi for the work that we're doing right now. Thank y'all very much."

Time ended: 5:59 CST

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134216

Comment

Nice, Haley: Question: ìSome people have said that both the supplies and manpower that are in Iraq could be used here in the homeland to help aid Mississippiówhat do you say to that?î Answer: ìWhere are you from?î Response: ìIím from the National Public Radio.î Answer: ìI figured that. You know what? A reporter asked President Bush today, and said ëthereís a lot of talk down here about Iraq, with resources going to Iraq.í Whereas, thereís no talk about it with anyone I talk toóexcept reporters. I havenít heard the word Iraq mentioned one timeóin Hattiesburg, Meridian, Laurel, Gulfport, Biloxiónot one time. But when Iím asked, Iíll give you what the President, who was nicer about the question than I am, and whoís nicer than I would have been to that guy. Thereís probably a lot of talk about it at the hotel where the press is staying. But, we can do more than one thing at once. We are a large country with tremendous capacity and amazing willingness to use that capacity when it needs to be used. I have not heard or seen anybody other than a reporter that has used the word ëIraqí in the same sentence with the word ëhurricane.íî Response: ìWell, there was a Mississippi National Guard spokesman that used it.î _____ Whoa, doggy. It sounds like Mr. Barbour doesn't exactly have his ear to the ground if he thinks only media are saying this. And it's unbelievable that he would blame the media/the messinger at a time like this for asking a very vital question: Can we protect ourselves from natural disastersómore hurricanes will comeóif we have too many of our National Guard troops, and other resources, in Iraq? I know it's typical for these people to deflect hard questions by blaming the media, but it's not going to work this time. Our resources are stretched too thin; the federal government proved it this week. Not NPR, or the New York Times, or even Newt Gingrich. And we've got to talk about it, no matter who it makes uncomfortable. There are people dying in the street on the Coast and in New Orleans because we haven't talked about emergency preparedness resources enough already. This time, Mr. Barbour, it is Mississippians who you are directly insulting by trying to blame the media for asking the questions that need to be asked. Be careful with this attack-the-media tactics. You might find that the strategy's golden years are behind you.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-03T13:17:26-06:00

ID

134217

Comment

I've never understood why the attack-the-media strategy is supposed to work for politicians in the first place. I mean, why go out of your way to alienate the journalists who essentially act as intermediaries between you and the general public? If that isn't cutting off your nose to spite your face, I don't know what is. Granted that a frightening number of journalists whimper the second they're attacked and immediately start doing puff pieces--witness the coverage of the 2000 presidential campaign in the wake of the "liberal media" silliness, where the coverage of Bush was hagiographic and the coverage of Gore looked like it came from an old WWII propaganda film--but you can only bean the hitter so many times before the other team starts scoring. Cheers, TH

Author

Tom Head

Date

2005-09-03T14:40:00-06:00

ID

134218

Comment

(I should add here that, in Barbour's defense, I'm pretty sure this was not a calculated attack on the press. I think he probably really was frustrated. He has seen some genuinely awful stuff in the past few days, and I'm sure this isn't what he signed up for when he ran for governor. So I'm willing to cut him all the slack he needs right now, but if he's still doing this in a week or two, it's time to start giving him hell about it.)

Author

Tom Head

Date

2005-09-03T14:43:52-06:00

ID

134219

Comment

There's so much to comment on and so little reason to comment--everyone will believe what they want to believe about Katrina and the aftermath and their viewpoints won't be changed by any discussions. My feeling is that this event will become a wedge that will split this country even wider. In our state and in our community, I think we saw people of all races coming together as one to help others in this time of crisis. It has been an event that should lead to better race relationships in this state and in this country but I think the writing is already on the wall that the end result of Katrina will be a deteriation of racial harmony in America. It's interesting that one storm and one broken levee system has the potential to do so much harm in our modern society.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-09-03T16:22:30-06:00

ID

134220

Comment

Frank, I'm very proud of how Jackson has handled this. Folks at the coliseum and trade mart ostensibly have a surplus of food and water, friends volunteering there have been reporting that it's sometimes friggin' COLD over there from the wonderful air conditioning, etc. But I am heartbroken over the way this has been handled in New Orleans, and what that says about the role race still plays in American life. If there's anything good that comes of this, I hope it leads us to ask some very hard questions about what race still means in this country. It is time for sackcloth and ashes, and not just because of the slow FEMA response. I think you're wrong about the deterioration of racial harmony, BTW. African Americans by and large already know what the New Orleans situation is telling whites. It isn't really a new thing. The only issue is whether whites will have the moral courage to own up to what this society does to urban blacks, or if they'll go back to the comfortable victim-blaming pattern. We'll see. But not now. Now we need to address more immediate concerns. In a week or two, when the dust is settled, then will be the time to ask these hard questions and demand answers. I'm glad the Black Caucus has taken the first step. I'm glad Kanye West said what he did, even if it wasn't a very effective venue or a very appropriate time, and I would love to see more of these concerns brought up in a very aggressive way by members of the hip-hop community, who have a lot more political power (I suspect) than most people think. We do need to open this old wound. But in a week or two, or folks will just write it all off as grandstanding and opportunism. Peace, TH

Author

Tom Head

Date

2005-09-03T16:49:55-06:00

ID

134221

Comment

Tom, I'm pretty much in agreement with everything you said. I don't know if you're right, though, about waiting until "the dust is settled" in a couple weeks to have this conversation, though. In an ideal world that would be true. However, this is America, and Americans have short attention spansóespecially about issues that make us uncomfortable or feel powerless. And once the cameras have turned the other way, well. The riots of the 60s come to mind; so much was said then, and in the Kerner Commission report, about what was wrong in urban American, in the "ghettos," that led to the rioting and violence. Specific items were outlined by this federal commissionóand you read them now and very little of it has been done. You've got to have the conversation when it presents itself, albeit in as tactful and loving way as possible. If you don't, the same people who would label it as "grandstanding and opportunism" now will, within a couple weeks, have found a way to blame the liberals/commies/whatever-they're-calling-advocates-for-the-poor-that-day, the media, or any other excuse they can come up with for abdicating national responsibility. The people on the Coast, in the thick of itófrom the folks at Knight-Ritter's Sun-Herald to Ray Nagin in N.O.óare saying it best. Now. Deal with these problems now. Face them. Come up with a plan. Fix them. Look at what's in front of you. Party doesn't matter; neither do bullsh*t commentators and public officials out to make their man/selves look better by killing the meswinger. This is a teachable moment, an opportunity to vow to reverse damage, to re-affirm the idea that government matters. We don't kill the beast; we make it efficient; we improve it. But we need the damn government, and saying that does not make one the devil incarnate. Personally, I believe there is a whole lotta blame to go around, and it's got all parties written on it. It's got to do with big money trying to cripple government services and recourse and lawsuits. It's got to do with every president of the last 20 years, regardless of party. It's got to do with people being too damned afraid to stand and up and sing from the rooftops: "I CARE ABOUT PEOPLE. I CARE ABOUT THE POOR. AND ANYBODY WHO WOULD BELITTLE ME FOR THAT IS ONLY PART HUMAN. THIS COUNTRY IS ONLY AS STRONG AS ITS WEAKEST MEMBER. I CARE, AND I DON'T GIVE A DAMN WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT IT." That is, instead of going around apologizing and whispering about having loving, compassionate, progressive ideas about society. Deep breath. As for Barbour, don't give him too much credit. He, along with the late Lee Atwater, is the RNC head who perfected the art of attacking the "liberal media" whenever they're delivering something that makes them look bad. This is simply fact, and is well documented. The strategy is now used all over and, in its crudest forms, on these smear blogs that are only set up to attack the messenger and care little for fact. You don't have to hang him out for dry in the middle of a crisis, but don't let him get away with this little trick, either. Call him out on it. Mississippians deserve better than that.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-03T17:39:10-06:00

ID

134222

Comment

Another point to make here is about the incredible naivete and or cruelty of remarks some people are making that the people who did not evacuate bear the blame for what happened to them. Someone who would say such a thing clearly lives in some damn bubble where everyone has a car and can get around as easily as they can. They don't realize that many of the people performing the services so vital to their easy existence take buses, or walk, or get ridesóespecially when they're squished into a poor urban neighborhood. That is the most disgusting thing I've anyone say through this.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-03T17:46:01-06:00

ID

134223

Comment

Tom, I always appreciate your posts and I truly hope that you are right and I am wrong. Unfortunately, I truly feel that I'm right on this one. I don't think it would do any good to say any more and I guess we'll have to see what the next few months and years bring.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-09-03T17:49:02-06:00

ID

134224

Comment

It will only become a wedge if people on the strong side of the divide refuse to listen to the cries of help. It also has the potential to be a great bridge. It's up to the people. It's an important moment. Otherwise, these comments from Bush interesting to me: "I'm going to fly out of here in a minute, but I want you to know that I'm not going to forget what I've seen. I understand the devastation requires more than one day's attention," Bush said at New Orleans airport. "It's going to require the attention of this country for a long period of time. This is one of the worst natural disasters we have faced, with national consequences. And therefore, there will be a national response," he said. Read those last two sentences. It sounds like he's bending over backward to justify why the federal "national" government in in there helping ó because it will have "national consequences. Therefore, there will a national response." Huh? Are we really still stuck in a civil-war mentality here? Worrying about federalism at a time like this?!? Shouldn't the federal government help because Americans need help? These anti-government folk make no sense whatsoever to me. They want the government when they want it for themselves, but not when other people need it. That's the very definition of greed. Why would one even call oneself "American" if you don't want the "American" government to help "American" people in their times of need? Yuck.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-03T18:16:52-06:00

ID

134225

Comment

Capt. Terrence P. Ryan has made a career out of helping Americans dig out from storms up and down the Gulf Coast. But now, with his own house underwater, he is stuck at Camp Victory in Iraq waiting for a flight home. Captain Ryan and 4,200 other members of the National Guard from Louisiana have finished their yearlong tour of duty. Their replacements, from other states, began arriving last month. But the Louisiana guardsmen are not expecting to fly home for at least another week, maybe two, and the journey itself could take 4 to 10 days. "It's our turn to help our own, and we're not there," said Captain Ryan, 37. For some, the wait is excruciating. A handful of guardsmen have not been able to locate their families, and their fellow guardsmen in Louisiana have organized searches to track them down. Some critics have suggested that the military's use of National Guard troops in Iraq has slowed the relief effort on the Gulf Coast. Military officials in Iraq said they would try to speed the return of the Louisiana guardsmen. About 4,100 guardsmen from Mississippi are not scheduled to return until late fall. Read more.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-04T00:27:33-06:00

ID

134226

Comment

I agree that it can be a dividing or uniting issue. My fear is that it will be used by many segments as a dividing issue and as a means to gain influence and power. For example, use of the hurricane in the New York Times article to make an argument that we shouldn't have troops in Iraq. The finger pointing was immediate, it has subsided somewhat because it was so unseemly to be playing the blame game while so many were still in harms way, but it will pick up speed in the weeks to come. It will become very bitter and it will widen the chasms that already exist in America.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-09-05T08:45:43-06:00

ID

134227

Comment

Frank, there is always finger-pointing by ideologues. However, my suggestion is that you roll up your sleeves and put part of the solution by helping facilitate honest conversation especially those who are blinded by ideology on whatever side. With all due respect, I suggest your doomsday approach to it right now is going to be part of the problem. If people just assume "divisiveness," then the conversation isn't going to be very honestóthere's at least some denial of the situation in that very assumption, whether or not you mean it to be. Just have the conversation, and be willing to criticize where it's due -- not to blame, but to move this country forward. We've got to talk about poverty and race in this country, if we're ever going to fix the problems, and without people just trying to squelch the conversation before it starts by complaining that it will be "divisive." Guess what? We're already divided. Honest conversation can help bridge that divide. Denial and handwringing over divisiveness will not. There's a lot of work to do; people have two choices right nowóbe part of the solution or part of the problem.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-05T09:15:20-06:00

ID

134228

Comment

Also, notice what you're doing with your New York Times example. You're not having the conversation before declaring that it's wrong to have it. Truth is, it doesn't take an ideologue of any sort right now to see that President Bush's preferred approach to war in Iraq has left us stretched too thin to take care of our own needs here at home. We may well be facing some hard choices, especially since political spin cannot keep another hurricane from bearing down on us. There is also a discussion to be had about seeking and accepting help from other countries -- both here and in our wars abroad.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-05T09:17:43-06:00

ID

134229

Comment

I've just returned from the coast today, helping family and friends, and I have come back to read the JFP and I am absolutely OUTRAGED at what is taking place already. I am absolutely taken aback by some of the talk here- the politics, blaming, spoiled bratted comments- you all give commen sense progressives a bad name. I will never post here again.

Author

bluedog

Date

2005-09-05T10:25:43-06:00

ID

134230

Comment

Take care of yourself, bluedog. And prayers to your family. Let us know if we can help in some way.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-05T10:32:19-06:00

ID

134231

Comment

Donna, some would argue your statement of fact that, "President Bush's preferred approach to war in Iraq has left us stretched too thin to take care of our own needs here at home." I won't be one of those who argue for or against that point. Was it a question of lack of troops or a delay in deploying the ones who were available? I don't know. Was there confusion over who should call out the National Guard, the governors or the president? I don't know. Were there delays because of poor planning and communication between the local, state, and federal officials? I suspect that this was true to some extent but I don't know to what extent. I think people will believe what they want to believe based on how they thought about things before Katrina ever hit the coast. I don't exclude myself when I say that. In regards to the questions about race, I don't know if it is possible to have an honest discussion about race in this country. I tried to be honest on the ERK thread and at best I was labeled as naive, at worst I was simply a racist. I've learned that the call for an honest dialogue usually means something like, "let's discuss this issue so you can see why I'm right" and the discussion on race is probably the one where honesty is least allowed. I doubt that I'll be posting much on any of these issues. I'll continue to read with interest and there may be times when I just have to add a viewpoint, but mostly I'll stay on the sidelines. That being said, let me take this time to thank you and Todd and the many others who have provided our community with the JFP. I may not see eye-to-eye with the general JFP viewpoint on many issues, but I do appreciate the service you do to the community by creating the dialogue. Take care,

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-09-05T10:40:46-06:00

ID

134232

Comment

Donna, some would argue your statement of fact that, "President Bush's preferred approach to war in Iraq has left us stretched too thin to take care of our own needs here at home. So, argue it, Frank. Have the conversation. Open up a dialogue. So far, you and a few others just keep telling us that we shouldn't have the conversation. Or that we should wait a couple of weeks. I don't get it. Neither do folks at FOX News, CNN, the Times-Picayune, The Sun-Herald and many other media outlets, regardless of leaning. This is real. Frank, you can't just wait for problems to fix themselves. If you do, they fester. I believe that citizens must participate, even when they makes other people uncomfortable. And the real danger is that the worst among us will take advantage of the admirable quality of not wanting to be rude or disrespectful to people. The truth is, this is a MAJOR crisis that was exacerbated greatly by actions (or non-actions) by our current administration. We did a huge story on this a year ago, investigated by a coalition of alternative newsweeklies, and you just can't get Americans to pay attention until something major happens. And we can't control the hurricane timetable; it can happen again. We must hold our elected officials accountable for making the changes needed. For a start, Mr. Bush needs to fire the imcompetent cronies he has running these agences. For another, get disaster relief/FEMA out from under Homeland Security and stop draining its resources. This is a real conversation, and the people we elect need to have thick enough skin to engage in the dialogue, admit their errors and fix them. I don't give a damn what part they are. If you hadn't noticed, I'm not partisan, and I don't like either party right now. But it so happens that one of them is in charge of this Pottery Barn. Otherwise, thanks for the kind comments about the JFP. Trust us: We'll keep creating the dialogue. We wouldn't be here if we weren't willing to do that. We'll go do PR, or something.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-05T10:53:06-06:00

ID

134233

Comment

the response to Gov. Barbour's lashing of the media for daring to bring up Iraq. First, remember his remarks from the transcript above: A reporter asked President Bush today, and said ëthereís a lot of talk down here about Iraq, with resources going to Iraq.í Whereas, thereís no talk about it with anyone I talk toóexcept reporters. I havenít heard the word Iraq mentioned one timeóin Hattiesburg, Meridian, Laurel, Gulfport, Biloxiónot one time. Wrong, governor. From The Washington Post on Aug. 31 (link thanks to Wonkette.com More than 6,000 Guard members were mobilized in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida when the storm struck on Monday, with the number rising to 8,000 yesterday and hundreds more expected to be called to active duty, National Guard officials said yesterday. "Missing the personnel is the big thing in this particular event. We need our people," said Lt. Andy Thaggard, a spokesman for the Mississippi National Guard, which has a brigade of more than 4,000 troops in central Iraq. Louisiana also has about 3,000 Guard troops in Baghdad. Mississippi has about 40 percent of its Guard force deployed or preparing to deploy and has called up all remaining Guard units for hurricane relief, Thaggard said. Those include the Army band based in Jackson, Miss. "They are mustering transportation to move them south," he said. Soldiers who have lost their homes are exempt, he said.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-06T14:17:13-06:00

ID

134234

Comment

the response to Gov. Barbour's lashing of the media for daring to bring up Iraq. First, remember his remarks from the transcript above: A reporter asked President Bush today, and said ëthereís a lot of talk down here about Iraq, with resources going to Iraq.í Whereas, thereís no talk about it with anyone I talk toóexcept reporters. I havenít heard the word Iraq mentioned one timeóin Hattiesburg, Meridian, Laurel, Gulfport, Biloxiónot one time. Wrong, governor. From The Washington Post on Aug. 31 (link thanks to Wonkette's blog): More than 6,000 Guard members were mobilized in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida when the storm struck on Monday, with the number rising to 8,000 yesterday and hundreds more expected to be called to active duty, National Guard officials said yesterday. "Missing the personnel is the big thing in this particular event. We need our people," said Lt. Andy Thaggard, a spokesman for the Mississippi National Guard, which has a brigade of more than 4,000 troops in central Iraq. Louisiana also has about 3,000 Guard troops in Baghdad. Mississippi has about 40 percent of its Guard force deployed or preparing to deploy and has called up all remaining Guard units for hurricane relief, Thaggard said. Those include the Army band based in Jackson, Miss. "They are mustering transportation to move them south," he said. Soldiers who have lost their homes are exempt, he said.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-06T14:18:02-06:00

ID

134235

Comment

OK, here another refutation of Barbor's attempts to blame the media and say that the only people mentioning Iraq in context of Katrina are "reporters." Sun-Herald on Sept. 9 Lt. Gen. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, toured the city Friday and said the recovery was progressing well. He acknowledged the military response could have been quicker if Mississippi Guardsmen weren't deployed in Iraq. Blum told The Associated Press that about a day of response time was lost because the Mississippi National Guard's 155th Brigade Combat Team and Louisiana's 256th Infantry Brigade, both with thousands of troops, were in Iraq.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-11T21:45:10-06:00

ID

134236

Comment

Here is Lt. Gen. Blum's bio, in case anyone is curious about whether or not he is a "reporter." He's not.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-11T21:48:50-06:00