[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book I)]
[January 12, 2006]
[Pages 58-60]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks Prior to a Meeting of Small-Business Owners and Community 
Leaders in New Orleans, Louisiana
January 12, 2006

    Mr. Mayor, thank you. It's good to be back in your city. I 
appreciate the Lieutenant Governor and 
Members of the United States Congress for being here as well. I

[[Page 59]]

particularly want to thank the small-business owners of New Orleans. I'm 
looking forward to hearing what you have to say about your traditions 
and your hopes and your frustrations. We all share the same goal, and 
that's to have this great city rise again, to be a shining part of the 
South.
    It was in the past, and I think this can be a better city, and to 
this end, I've done a couple of things. One, I appointed my friend Don 
Powell to be down here to help implement 
the strategy developed by the mayor and the Governor and Lieutenant Governor. In other words, I believe the best strategy for the 
rebuilding of New Orleans and the revitalization of the parishes around 
New Orleans is for the local folks to design the strategy and to have 
the Federal Government become a partner.
    And I want to thank you for putting a committee together; I know you 
did as well, Mitch. Powell's job is to come down and help interface and 
interact. I've told the people down here that the Federal Government has 
got a major role to play. So far we've appropriated or made available 
$85 billion in reconstruction and relief along the gulf coast. About 25 
billion of that has been spent; there's $60 billion in the pipeline, 
thanks to the good work of the Members of the Congress and the United 
States Senate.
    One issue I do want to touch on is the levees. Now, the mayor made it very clear to me that we need a Federal 
policy, a strong Federal policy on the levees in order to encourage 
investors and investment in New Orleans. In other words, if there's any 
doubt about levees, people wouldn't be willing to reinvest in this city. 
If we couldn't get people to reinvest in this city, the recovery 
wouldn't be as strong as we hope it to be.
    Working with the Corps of Engineers, we've put forth a plan that 
said that the levee system will be stronger and better than the previous 
levee system. And we put a request in for $3.1 billion, plus money to 
study how possibly to make this system even better. Unfortunately, at 
the very last minute in the appropriations process, some Members of 
Congress moved 1.4 billion of that 3.1 billion to projects not directly 
related to New Orleans and the surrounding area. And so, in order to 
make sure that this city gets the money necessary to make sure that the 
levees are stronger and better, Congress needs to restore that 1.4 
billion directly into projects for New Orleans and the surrounding 
parishes. I'm looking forward to working with the Members of the 
Congress to make sure that that money is restored.
    Secondly, I understand that one of the keys to success is going to 
be private-sector initiatives. That's why we've got the small-business 
owners here and the man responsible for making 
sure New Orleans is well represented to the rest of the country, and 
that is Stephen, who is a part of the Chamber. One way to make sure that 
the private sector leads the recovery for New Orleans is to make sure 
the tax laws encourage investment. And I want to thank the Members of 
Congress for passing the GO Zone legislation which encourages 
investment. And that will be helpful for the folks here.
    And finally, I know housing is a particularly difficult issue, an 
important issue. You can't have a revitalized New Orleans unless people 
have a place to live. And we want to--we look forward to working with 
the mayor and the State on implementing the 
vision, but want to remind people that in the new appropriations bill I 
signed is $11.5 billion of CDBG money. In Mississippi, the 
Governor intends to use that money 
on uninsured housing--to pay for the uninsured folks who didn't have 
flood insurance. And the law is written so that the State, in working in 
conjunction with the local authorities, can spend that money in a way to 
help the recovery.
    We're aware of the issues here. I'm looking forward to hearing more 
from you all about how we can continue to work together. I will tell 
you, the contrast between when I was last here and today, 
Stephen,

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is pretty dramatic. It may be hard for you to see, but from when I first 
came here to today, New Orleans is reminding me of the city I used to 
come to visit. It's a heck of a place to bring your family. It's a great 
place to find some of the greatest food in the world and some wonderful 
fun. And I'm glad you got your infrastructure back on its feet. I know 
you're beginning to welcome citizens from all around the country here to 
New Orleans. And for folks around the country who are looking for a 
great place to have a convention or a great place to visit, I'd suggest 
coming here to the great New Orleans.
    Anyway, thank you all very much.

Note: The President spoke at 11:12 a.m. in the New Orleans Metropolitan 
Convention Center and Visitors Bureau, Inc. In his remarks, he referred 
to Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco and Lt. Gov. Mitchell J. Landrieu of 
Louisiana; Donald E. Powell, Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance 
Corporation, in his capacity as coodinator of Federal gulf coast relief 
efforts; Mayor C. Ray Nagin of New Orleans, LA; Stephen J. Perry, 
president and chief executive officer, New Orleans Metropolitan 
Convention and Visitors Bureau, Inc.; and Gov. Haley Barbour of 
Mississippi.