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Brown removed from fema

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   http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aU3u4JWIQvmA&refer=us

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aU3u4JWIQvmA&refer=us

FEMA's Brown Removed From Hurricane Katrina Recovery (Update1)

Sept. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Michael Brown, the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, was removed from on-scene oversight of the Hurricane Katrina recovery effort after lawmakers criticized his performance and qualifications.

Michael Chertoff, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, named Thad Allen, Coast Guard chief of staff, to replace Brown in overseeing the recovery from the worst natural disaster in U.S. history. Allen was named Brown's deputy four days ago. Brown, 50, will return to Washington, Chertoff said.

``I have directed Mike Brown to return to administering FEMA nationally,'' Chertoff said at a press conference in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. ``Mike Brown has done everything he possibly could to coordinate'' the federal response to the hurricane, he said.

ABC News reported that Brown is also expected to leave FEMA soon, citing people it didn't identify.

The administration of President George W. Bush has drawn fire from Louisiana officials and from congressional Democrats for a sluggish federal government response to the Aug. 29 storm that probably killed thousands and caused an estimated $100 billion in damage. Much of the criticism was aimed at Brown, who has little experience in crisis management.

`At Last'

``At last President Bush has recognized what I have been saying for more than a week -- the federal response to this disaster must be managed by a capable leader,'' House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said in a statement. Pelosi had urged Bush on Sept. 6 to fire Brown, saying he had ``absolutely no credentials.''

She called Allen ``an emergency response professional'' who faces a difficult job. ``But at least he brings to it years of experience,'' she said.

A Time magazine report questioned Brown's official biography, which claims he served as an assistant city manager in Edmond, Oklahoma, in the 1970s with ``emergency services oversight.''

A statement released by FEMA earlier today stated he was an ``assistant to the city manager,'' a job that one Edmond official said would be tantamount to an intern, according to the Time report.

Chertoff declined to answer questions about Brown's background and wouldn't allow Brown to respond.

`Weak, Inadequate'

Criticism of Brown wasn't confined to Democrats. ``It's very appropriate that Michael Brown step down,'' Representative Jim Kolbe, an Arizona Republican, said in an interview. ``Clearly, FEMA's response has been weak and inadequate.''

Kolbe, who heads the subcommittee that oversees Iraq reconstruction, is introducing legislation that would create a special inspector general to oversee spending for the rebuilding after Katrina.

Congress has approved more than $62 billion for Katrina relief, and more money will follow.

Removing Brown is only the fist step in fixing FEMA, Kolbe said. Separating the agency from the Department of Homeland Security also needs to be considered, he said.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan declined to defend Brown at two separate briefings earlier today and wouldn't say directly whether Bush had confidence in him. McClellan would only say the president ``appreciates the work of all those working around the clock.''

Last Updated: September 9, 2005 14:45 EDT



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