[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book II)]
[August 28, 2006]
[Pages 1557-1563]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks on Hurricane Katrina Recovery Efforts in Biloxi
August 28, 2006

    The President. Listen, thank you all for coming. I'm glad to be back 
here in Biloxi, and I'm glad Laura came with me. 
I've been in this neighborhood before. As a matter of fact, I was here a 
couple of days after Katrina hit. It's amazing, isn't it? It's amazing 
what the world looked like then and what it looks like now.
    I remember meeting Patrick Wright. 
Remember, Patrick? I don't know if you all remember the picture of me 
seeing this fellow sitting in what used to be his home, a pile of 
rubble. Patrick, it's good to see you.
    I also met Sandy and Lynn 
Patterson when I was walking down 
the street, your neighbor. They--well, just about everybody here, they'd 
lost everything they owned. People can't imagine what the world looked 
like then. I went by their home--just came out of their home. It's got 
air-conditioning--[laughter]--and electricity. You can see the 
reconstruction effort beginning here in this part of the world.
    It's a sense of renewal here. It may be hard for those of you who 
have endured the last year to really have that sense of change, but for 
a fellow who was here and now a year later comes back, things are 
changing. And I congratulate you for your courage and your perseverance.
    And there's still challenges. There's still more to be done. You can 
see it with the temporary trailers. I feel the quiet sense of 
determination that's going to shape the future of Mississippi. And so 
I've come back on this anniversary to thank you for your courage and to 
let you know, the Federal Government stands with you still. Laura and I really care for the people whose lives have been 
affected. We understand the trauma, and we thank you for your 
determination.
    I want to thank Governor Haley Barbour and 
Marsha for joining us today. I appreciate 
the Federal Coordinator of Gulf Coast Rebuilding, Don Powell. He's my friend from Texas. We've got two of the 
military who helped after the storm. I think they made an enormous 
difference in people's lives: General Russ Honore and Admiral Thad Allen. Thank 
you for joining us. You've got two fine United States Senators from 
Mississippi, Thad Cochran and Trent

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Lott. And I thank Tricia for joining us as well. I want to thank Congressman 
Chip Pickering who has 
joined us today. Congressman Pickering, like these two Senators, care a 
lot about the people of Mississippi.
    I remember walking the block here with A.J. Holloway, your mayor. He--A.J. obviously was upset and concerned, 
but he also made it clear to me that with the proper amount of help, 
Biloxi can rebuild. And Biloxi is rebuilding. You got a fine mayor in 
A.J. Holloway.
    I've had the pleasure of meeting some of the local officials up and 
down the coast--matter of fact, probably all of the local officials. One 
of the people that has intrigued me the most is Mayor Tommy Longo of Waveland. Mayor, good to see you, buddy. Thanks for 
coming. I'm always asking about you, Tommy.
    Mayor J. Thomas Longo. I'm always asking 
about you.
    The President. That's right. [Laughter] Check is in the mail. 
[Laughter]
    You know, one of the interesting people I met was Malcolm Jones; he's a city attorney of Pass Christian. 
Malcolm, thanks for coming. He helped design the plan that enabled us to 
expedite the debris removal, and I appreciate your contribution. I want 
to thank Chipper McDermott, who is 
the mayor--with us--he's Pass Christian's mayor. Rusty Quave is with us today. Mr. Mayor, thanks for coming. Billy 
Skellie is with us as well. These are all 
mayors trying to help their communities recover, doing the hard work to 
helping the people improve their lives. I want to thank my friend Brent 
Warr. He's the mayor of Gulfport. Brent, good to 
see you. Thanks for coming. I want to thank the Biloxi firefighters who 
have joined us today. Thank you for your work. Thank you for staying the 
job.
    When Katrina made landfall on August 29th at 6:10, it was one of the 
strongest hurricanes to ever hit America. The devastation and debris 
were unimaginable. You had to see it for yourself to fully understand 
the nature of this storm and the damage done. The terrible force of the 
storms tossed some of the giant casinos here onto the land. They twisted 
traffic lights. They ripped some of the beautiful trees from the ground. 
They stripped the cities of familiar landmarks and buildings.
    In the days that followed, the people of Mississippi worked together 
to save lives. People reached out to those who were trapped by rising 
waters. Three people were pulled through a window in that house right 
there, to save their lives. People opened their homes to help the 
suffering. The people of Mississippi said, ``We'll overcome this 
disaster,'' and worked together to do so.
    Since the days of heroism and bravery, the gulf coast has begun one 
of the largest rebuilding efforts in our Nation's history. This is my 
11th visit since the storm hit. You know, each visit you see progress. I 
was struck by the beauty of the beaches. The beaches were pretty rough 
after the storm, as you know. Today, they're pristine, and they're 
beautiful. They reflect a hopeful future, as far as I'm concerned.
    I appreciate the fact that the people down here have embraced this 
amazing challenge with determination and grit. And your 
Governor is leading the way. He says this: He 
says, ``With all its destruction, the storm gave birth to a renaissance 
in Mississippi that will surely result in building our State bigger and 
better than ever before.'' He believes that. A lot of the people in 
Mississippi believe that. And so do I.
    A year ago, I committed our Federal Government to help you. I said, 
we have a duty to help the local people recover and rebuild. And I meant 
what I said. Working with Thad and 
Trent Lott and other Members of the United 
States Congress, we have appropriated $110 billion to help rebuild this 
area. It is a strong Federal commitment that we will keep.
    We understand people are still anxious to get in their home. We 
understand people hear about help and wonder where it

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is. We know that. But the first thing is, is that this Federal 
Government has made a commitment to help, and it starts with a large 
check. It also means that in order for the rebuilding to be as strong as 
we want, there has to be a partnership with the Federal Government and 
the State and local governments.
    Here's my attitude about the partnership: You know better than the 
people in Washington the needs of your communities. I'd rather listen to 
local mayors and county commissioners than folks sitting in Washington, 
DC, about what this part of Mississippi wants.
    The first test of this partnership was to clear debris. You can't 
rebuild a community when the community is full of debris. We've now 
removed about 98 percent of the dry debris. I remember when we first 
came down here; the mayors weren't so happy with the debris removal. But 
we listened to them. We got the funding equations right. And we got 
after it, and the debris is basically gone, which is step one of making 
sure our partnership works, and step two about making sure we can 
rebuild this area bigger and better than before.
    We're also working together to make sure we're better prepared to 
handle the hurricanes. Every Department of my administration 
participated in a comprehensive study that looked at our response to 
last year's hurricanes. Each Department came up with practical reforms, 
ways to do things better. And so we've been reviewing plans. We've been 
working with the State and local folks.
    The people in Mississippi are prepared. And I want to thank Governor 
Barbour and the local folks for making 
impressive efforts to protect the people of Mississippi. The truth of 
the matter is, we can work together, and will, but when disaster 
strikes, the first people that you rely upon--the people that matter 
most--are your friends. It's friends helping friends that turns out to 
make an enormous difference in saving lives and helping to get by the 
trauma of the first days.
    We all have roles to play, but in every State hit by last year's 
storms, it was the bravery of the local citizens that meant the 
difference between life and death. It was the bravery of the first-
responders on the scenes. I'm here to thank you all for showing the 
country how to respond to natural disaster.
    See, there's a new Mississippi that's coming, and you're going to 
see it in the construction of homes and the return of local businesses. 
This requires a different kind of courage, but it's a courage, 
nevertheless, for people to take risk and to rebuild and to say, ``I'm 
not going to let the storm disrupt my life forever.''
    See, you got people here leading the reconstruction. We'll help you. 
We've committed more than $3 billion in housing grants, and that money 
is beginning to flow to the homeowners. And I know there's some 
frustration, but I want to appreciate the State working hard to make 
sure that when that money is spent, it's spent well and it goes to 
people who deserve it. That's what you expect, and that's what's going 
to happen. The checks have begun to roll; they're beginning to move. And 
the Governor and his staff are on top of it. 
It's a huge undertaking that's going to require cooperation with 
government agencies, insurance companies, volunteers, and community 
leaders.
    The folks right back here said they couldn't have rebuilt this house 
without the church, without volunteer organizations that have stepped up 
to help. Governor Barbour's Commission on 
Recovery, Rebuilding, and Renewal was an important step to bringing 
citizens together to develop a vision of how people can work together. 
It's a smart thing to have done.
    See, I said, you develop the plan. We're not going to do it for you 
because you know better the local needs, and Mississippi stepped up. The 
Commission brought together more than 500 volunteers.

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The Commission held more than 50 public forums in 33 counties. They 
heard from thousands of citizens on how to rebuild, and as a result, the 
recovery efforts began with concrete recommendations on how to improve 
the infrastructure, on how to revamp zoning laws and building codes, and 
how to increase local cooperation in planning for future storms.
    It was a smart thing to do, Governor, and 
I appreciate you doing it. You have a strategy now to build smarter 
homes. You've got a strategy to have neighborhoods connected by parks 
and playgrounds. You've got a sound strategy.
    And I understand that rebuilding neighborhoods begins one house at a 
time, and that's what's happening here. When somebody goes back to their 
home, it helps renew the community, and so part of our efforts and part 
of our focus is to make sure that people can get back in their homes as 
quickly as possible.
    Sandy Patterson, she can tell you how 
important it is to feel reconnected. She says, ``My house is my home 
again, and it's good to be home.'' And that's what we want; people to 
help people here in this part of the world.
    Listen, the spirit is alive here in the small-business owners who 
are working hard to get their businesses open. One of the entrepreneurs, 
a fellow named Ernest Henley--he's here. He 
owns West End Cleaners. When Katrina hit, it blew out his windows, hurt 
his roof. Less than 2 weeks later, the windows were boarded up, but West 
End Cleaners was back in business. See, he wasn't going to let the storm 
stop him from realizing his dream, which is running his own business.
    Bobby Mahoney is with us. He showed the 
same spirit when he opened Mary Mahoney's. That's a restaurant he named 
for his mother. That's a smart thing to do if you have a restaurant. 
[Laughter] Within 2 months of Hurricane Katrina, Mary Mahoney's was once 
again serving its world-famous gourmet seafood gumbo. Inside the 
restaurant you can see where Bobby painted the lines to mark how high 
the waters were for Camille and then Katrina. He says this: ``The reason 
why Biloxi is going to get back real quick is because of businesses. You 
can come back and build a home with a job, but you can't come back and 
build a home without a job.''
    That's a smart man who understands that as this part of the world 
flourishes and businesses grow, people are going to find work and have 
the wherewithal to help rebuild the communities in their lives.
    I appreciate the spirit of Pass Christian. After the hurricanes 
leveled many of its buildings, the city responded by permitting 
businesses and community organizations to set up trailers in War 
Memorial Park. The idea started when Hancock Bank set up a shop in an 
RV. Today, the park has two banks, an insurance agent, a real estate 
business, a convenience store, a construction company, a takeout 
restaurant, and a town library. Scott Naugle, 
he's with us today; he's the president of the chamber. He says, ``We're 
going to do business even if we have to learn new ways to do it.''
    Optimism is the only option. We want to help. We want to help that 
optimism succeed. And so I signed legislation that creates what's called 
the Gulf Opportunity Zones. That means if you invest in this part of the 
world, you get tax breaks. In other words, they're using the Tax Code to 
say, come and invest your capital here. It's very important for the 
Congress to extend this legislation. It's important for planners and job 
creators to know that the incentive we created will still be there.
    And also, we've put out small-business loans. In other words, what 
we're trying do is just help you. The spirit is here. The people want to 
succeed. And our job at the Federal level is to help you succeed. That's 
what I've come to tell you.
    One of the remarkable things about this part of the world that was 
so affected by the storms was what happened to the

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schools. Laura has visited the gulf coast 13 times. She's carried the 
message that a lot of people in America feel, and that is, it's 
important to help children get back to school as quickly as possible. 
And you've done that.
    For children who lost everything--their homes, their belongings, and 
their friends--going to school can be a place where they find stability 
and a familiar routine. The people of Mississippi understood that well. 
Teachers and community leaders worked hard to get the children back into 
school as quickly as possible.
    Catch this: As a result of these efforts, in the past school year, 
every district closed after Katrina was reopened. It's a remarkable 
accomplishment by the good folks in this part of the world. Lizana 
Elementary School is a good example. In the days and weeks after 
Katrina, it first served as a Red Cross shelter. And to get school back 
on its feet, the citizens from Mississippi and all across the Nation 
helped it rebuild. They donated desks and file cabinets and even 
clothing and bookbags and pencils and paper. Vickie Williams is with us today. Here's what she said. She said, 
``None of the students had to purchase supplies. Through donation 
efforts across the country, everything got back to normal. It was a 
blessing from everywhere.'' Vickie, thanks for giving other people 
credit, but you and your staff deserve a lot of credit.
    Charles B. Murphy and Gulfview elementary schools are another 
inspiring story. When the schools were destroyed, the teachers had to 
adapt, and they began to hold their classes in trailers. Teachers helped 
with maintenance duties, and parents pitched in, and volunteers came as 
far away as Vermont and Canada. And they assembled furniture and hauled 
boxes and set up computers and planted trees. There was an outdoor 
classroom that served as a meeting place for science and music and 
physical education.
    Jan White is with us. She said this: ``Last 
year was survival; this year is innovation.'' The school system has not 
only survived, but they're going to be stronger and better than they 
were before.
    One of the things that the Governor and 
the Senator said to the Federal Government, 
they said, ``We need help. Our tax bases have been destroyed. We need 
operating cash to keep our schools running.'' And so we've spent almost 
$480 million to help the schools recover. But there's a lot more work to 
be done.
    And one of the places where work can be done and is being done is in 
libraries. Laura Bush feels strongly about this. 
She's set up what's called the Laura Bush Foundation, and in working 
with the private sector, has awarded more than a million dollars in 
grants to 20 schools to purchase new books.
    We see the new Mississippi because of the faith-based and community 
organizations that abound here. When the hurricane struck, men and women 
of faith stepped forward immediately. The following Sunday, Father 
Harold Roberts--he's with us today--and 
the congregation of Episcopal Church of the Redeemer gathered at the 
site where their church once stood. They carried lawn chairs, and they 
brought blankets to sit. Some of them had been through this before.
    See, back in 1969, Hurricane Camille destroyed everything but the 
steeple and the old church bell. This time, nothing was left standing, 
and so the congregation had to ring the old bell from its new place in 
the rubble. On that first Sunday after Katrina, Father Harold 
Roberts read from the Book of Romans. 
Here's what he said: He said, ``Rejoice in hope. Be patient in 
suffering. Persevere in prayer''--precisely what the people of this part 
of the world have done.
    Father Roberts is working hard. His 
congregation began to rebuild their school, and now they're building--
they're going to build a church on higher ground. In the meantime, 
they're gathering in the gymnasium. He said, ``In spite of the 
challenges

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of the past year, we see the power of God working. The people have been 
incredibly patient. We will recover from this, and we will not rebuild 
until we can do it right.''
    Good citizens have risen up all over Mississippi to rebuild this 
State. Many volunteers traveled thousands of miles to be here. In other 
words, I hope you realized you weren't alone. One of the amazing groups 
was Hands On Gulf Coast.
    Hands On Gulf Coast is a group of volunteers, total strangers to the 
people of this part of the world, in large part. They said, ``What can I 
do to help?'' They came en masse. They did all kinds of things. They 
cleaned up wreckage, and they removed mold, and they repaired roofs, and 
they provided clothing, and they tutored students. Somebody said, ``We 
have a need.'' They said, ``I want to help.''
    When the Coastal Family Health Center lost three buildings and more 
than 60 staff members, Hands On offered to help. They worked with nurses 
who came from the gulf coast. They got FedEx to supply funding for 
airfare. They provided food and housing. And as a result, the Coastal 
Family Health Center was able to provide critical help for good people 
in this part of the world.
    Suzanne Stahl, who I happen to have met, 
is standing right over there. You've been down here for 12 months, see. 
Isn't that amazing? Somebody shows up and says, ``I want to help,'' and 
is still here helping because she cares, as do a lot of other people. 
She said this: ``It's been incredible to see the power and will of all 
the volunteers who have come to do something. If only I could have 
bottled the energy and enthusiasm of these volunteers. It's just about 
as unbelievable as the devastation.''
    So, I want to thank all those who have volunteered. I want to thank 
those who have given of their hard-earned money to help the good people 
down here recover. I want to remind those who are constantly looking for 
a way to serve your fellow man that there's still work to be done down 
here, that there's still hope. There's still a need for people to come 
and help.
    The armies of compassion that conducted the millions of acts of 
kindness remind us that the true strength of the United States of 
America lies in the hearts and souls of our citizens, and we're thankful 
for that.
    No doubt in my mind, Mississippi will have the renaissance that 
Governor Barbour talked about. You can't drive 
through this State without seeing signs of recovery and renewal. It's 
just impossible to miss the signs of hope. And you've done it the old-
fashioned way, with vision and hard work and resolve.
    Some of the hardest work is still ahead. We'll complete the clearing 
of the wet debris from the Mississippi Sound. We'll ensure Federal money 
reaches the individuals who need it to build their homes. We'll make 
sure the schools and libraries are rebuilt better than before, and we'll 
stand by you as long as it takes to get the job done. And when the job 
gets done, your children and your grandchildren will have a brighter and 
more hopeful future.
    May God continue to bless the courageous people of Mississippi. 
Thank you for coming.

Note: The President spoke at 2:10 p.m. in an East Biloxi neighborhood. 
In his remarks, he referred to Gov. Haley R. Barbour of Mississippi and 
his wife, Marsha; Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honore, USA, commanding general, 
First United States Army; Patricia Thompson Lott, wife of Sen. C. Trent 
Lott; Mayor A.J. Holloway of Biloxi, MS; Mayor Rusty Quave of 
D'Iberville, MS; Mayor William Skellie, Jr., of Long Beach, MS; Vickie 
Williams, principal, Lizana Elementary School; and Jan White, principal, 
Gulfview-Charles B. Murphy Elementary School.

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