THE COUNTRY STANDS WITH YOU

Flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina in the New Orleans area is visible from Air Force One Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005, as President Bush was able to survey the ravages of the storm during his return from Crawford, Texas to Washington D.C.



President George W. Bush looks out over the devastation in New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina as he heads back to Washington D.C. Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005, aboard Air Force One.



President George W. Bush stands with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld; Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao and Mike Leavitt, Secretary of Health and Human Services, as he speaks to the media from the Rose Garden of the White House regarding the devastation along the Gulf Coast caused by Hurricane Katrina.


WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush pledged Wednesday to do "all in our power" to save lives and provide sustenance to uncounted victims of Hurricane Katrina but cautioned that recovery of the Gulf Coast will take years.

"We're dealing with one of the worst national disasters in our nation's history," he said at the White House after breaking off his Texas vacation to make an aerial tour of the devastation and return to Washington.

With a vast federal relief effort grinding into operation, Bush also cautioned that the effects of the storm will be felt far beyond Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.

He said he had ordered steps to cushion the impact on the storm on the nation's oil industry. At the same time, he conceded: "This will help take some pressure off of gas price, but our citizens must understand this storm has disrupted the capacity to make gasoline and distribute gasoline."

Flanked by senior members of his administration, Bush recited some of the actions already taken to help victims of the storm - more than 50 disaster medical assistance teams and more than 25 urban search and rescue teams, both from the Federal Emergency Management Administration.

He said the Transportation Department has provided trucks to convey 5.4 million ready-to-eat meals, 13.4 million liters of water, 10,400 tarps, 3.4 million pounds of ice, 144 generators, 20 containers of prepositioned disaster supplies, 135,000 blankets and 11,000 cots.

"And we're just starting," he added.

Transcript of the President's remarks

Hurricane Katrina is a disaster of Biblical proportions.

President Bush said, "[T]here's going to be a lot of rebuilding done. I can't tell you how devastating the sights were."

After thanking the efforts of neighboring states, the President thanked the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the Catholic Charities, and all other "members of the armies of compassion."

He concluded:

At this stage in the recovery efforts, it's important for those who want to contribute, to contribute cash. You can contribute cash to a charity of your choice, but make sure you designate that gift for hurricane relief. You can call 1-800-HELPNOW, or you can get on the Red Cross web page, RedCross.org. The Red Cross needs our help. I urge our fellow citizens to contribute.

The folks on the Gulf Coast are going to need the help of this country for a long time. This is going to be a difficult road. The challenges that we face on the ground are unprecedented. But there's no doubt in my mind we're going to succeed. Right now the days seem awfully dark for those affected -- I understand that. But I'm confident that, with time, you can get your life back in order, new communities will flourish, the great city of New Orleans will be back on its feet, and America will be a stronger place for it.

The country stands with you. We'll do all in our power to help you. May God bless you.

I pray that's the case.

I really don't want to hear people trying to score political points by exploiting this disaster.

I don't want to hear Robert Kennedy, Jr. blame Governor Haley Barbour for Katrina.

I don't want to hear Hillary Clinton giving President Bush orders on how best to deal with the crisis.

I don't want to hear the ramblings of Chuck Schumer. At a news conference today in Albany, he said that gas prices are "going to go up and up and our economy, which is moving along at an okay level right now, not great, but not horrible, is going to go down the tubes."

He added, "Unless we change our policies we're not going to get the price back down. And we are basically as a country, this country is sort of twiddling its thumbs while Rome burns."

I don't want to hear Frank Lautenberg blasting the President for not having troops and supplies on the ground in New Orleans on Monday. "President Bush's wake-up call came awfully late," he said.

I don't want to hear Germany's Environmental Minister Jürgen Trittin whine, "The Bush government rejects international climate protection goals by insisting that imposing them would negatively impact the American economy. The American president is closing his eyes to the economic and human costs his land and the world economy are suffering under natural catastrophes like Katrina and because of neglected environmental policies."

I don't want to hear these political opportunists spew their usual garbage.

I really don't want to hear it.

This is a time of crisis.

Their divisiveness will create an environment that breeds more hardship for the victims. Their political sniping blocks the cooperation that is needed to progress effectively in recovery efforts.

Working together to manage the disaster and to recover should be the goal, not gaining a political edge and furthering an agenda.

Alleviating the human suffering should be the foremost concern right now, nothing else.

The exploitation of the misery of Katrina's victims for political purposes is unconscionable.

Before we're Democrats or Republicans, liberals or conservatives, we're Americans.

Before we're Americans, we're human beings.