    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book I)]
    [March 1, 2007]
    [Pages 207-212]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at Samuel J. Green Charter School in New Orleans
    March 1, 2007

        Thank you all. Please be seated. Dr. Tony, thank you very much for your kind introduction. God,
    I love the smile on his face. [Laughter]
        Think about this: You can play recess outside in a garden. So, like,
    those are the two things I was good at, at school--[laughter]--eating
    and playing. [Laughter]

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        But I really appreciate you inviting me over. Somebody said: ``Well,
    why did you come to Samuel J. Green Charter School in New Orleans,
    Louisiana, when there's other places to go?'' Well, the answer is,
    there's nothing better than being in the middle of a bright spot, a
    place that just shines with optimism, in a part of the world that has
    gone through some really difficult times. And so I'm here to herald
    success: success for today and, equally important, success for the
    future of this important city.
        And I thank you all for giving me a chance to come. I mean, there's
    nothing more illustrative of the issues that this community faces than
    to think that that blue line represented water and destruction. And yet
    we're now dry; we're on dry land, recovering. And so I've come back to
    New Orleans, Louisiana, to remind people that the Federal Government
    still knows you exist, still knows you have issues, and wants to work
    with your leadership to address those issues.
        I know the Picard family is here. Thank you for coming.
    Gaylen was the wife of Cecil, who helped
    guide Louisiana's schools through the worst of the storms. He has passed
    away. I'm honored to be in your presence. I know that you miss your good
    man, as does the people of New Orleans. He was a person that served your
    community with a lot of class. And I know he would be proud of places
    like Green that are setting high standards, strong centers of
    excellence, making sure every single child gets an education. Thanks for
    being here today. It means a lot.
        Sorry Laura is not here. She and I, by the
    way, spent some of our youth here in New Orleans. I really don't want to
    go into all the details of what--[laughter]--but we know something about
    the town. And it's a great place. And she loves New Orleans, as do I,
    and we've got a lot of friends here.
        I want to thank Robin Jarvis, the
    superintendent of the Recovery School District, for joining us. I
    appreciate very much--[applause]--thank you, Robin. I want to thank some
    of the elected officials who have joined us here at the school, with
    whom I had lunch earlier, starting with your mayor. It's good to see you, Mr. Mayor. Appreciate your time. A
    pleasure to be here.
        The mayor and I have gotten to know each
    other--[laughter]--in a positive way--[laughter]--in a positive way.
    It's interesting, you know, we're kind of two strong-willed people who
    got thrown into a deal we didn't ask for. Tell you an interesting story
    about the mayor. The first time I ever met him, we came in Air Force One
    right after the storm hit--a couple of days after, I think it was, and
    the mayor was a little irritable. [Laughter] He hadn't had a shower.
    [Laughter] So I came off the plane--I knew I was dealing with a good man
    when I looked in his eyes and he was able to maintain a certain sense of
    humor in the midst of all the trauma. And so I sent him up the stairs
    for him to take a shower on Air Force One. [Laughter]
        Everybody--yes, I was about to say--[laughter]--the president of the
    New Orleans City Council, Oliver Thomas, thanked me then, and he thanks me now. Good to see you,
    Big O. I have spent enough time down here, where I call him ``Big O.''
    [Laughter] He calls me ``Little G.'' [Laughter]
        I'm proud to be with your Lieutenant Governor. Mitch, thanks for coming; appreciate you being here. I
    flew down today from Washington--am I flying back with you all too? Yes.
    Flew down today with the Senator, David Vitter,
    and Congressman Bill Jefferson.
    Andrea, good to see you. Thanks for
    coming. I think they want a ride back. [Laughter]
        We had lunch today with a lot of the parish presidents--and
    Ray and Oliver and Mitch and
    David and
    Jeff--talking about the issues. Oh, by the way, my friend, Don Powell--he's from Texas; I'm from Texas, and--
    [applause]. He made the mistake of

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    answering the phone call when I called him. [Laughter] I said, ``I need
    somebody to come down here to help the good folks break through the
    logjams to make sure that that which we intend to do gets done.'' And
    the czar--we call him ``Czar Don Powell''--and I can't thank my buddy
    enough for taking on a tough job. If you were to sit at the table with
    us, you'd see how tough it is--``so-and-so has the responsibility here,
    ``no, you've got the responsibility''--it's a lot of this. And our job
    is to make it this: straightforward. That's what we're here to do.
        You know, I came down here and spoke, and I said: ``The Federal
    Government will be involved.'' And I said: ``We're going to put money on
    the table to help follow that through.'' And I believe we have, with
    $110 billion. That's not to say there may be more money needed for the
    gulf coast, but 110 billion is a lot. And now the question is, are we
    going to be able to spend it wisely? Can we get it done? Can we get it
    to the people that need help?
        Just so you know, of the 110 billion, 86 billion of that has been
    obligated; in other words, it's out the door. But only 53 billion has
    been spent. And so part of the day today, we talked about if the money
    is out the door in Washington, where is it, and how come it hasn't been
    out farther? And that's one of the things that we're going to continue
    to work on, to make sure that obligated money ends up in somebody's
    pocket, so it helps.
        I know housing is a big issue here. The mayor talks about it; Oliver
    talks about it a lot; the Lieutenant Governor is concerned about it. You know, I made a conscious
    decision when we began the rebuilding effort to say, ``I want the local
    folks running the programs.'' I felt you would get a better response and
    a response more tailored to the needs of the local citizens if the local
    folks were in charge. That was the case in Mississippi and in Louisiana.
    And I felt like the housing program that was devised by the folks in
    both Mississippi and Louisiana was a really interesting solution, a
    creative way of saying to people, we're going to help you rebuild your
    homes so that people will actually come back to New Orleans. And those
    who are here will have money to rebuild their homes, and those who are
    outside the State will receive incentives to come back.
        And one of the issues we have to work on is to make sure that the
    money that has been sent from Washington to fund the road to recovery
    program, the home program, actually gets spent. I don't know if you know
    this or not, but there is $6.2 billion that has been sent down; 50
    million has been spent. And so we have an obligation, all of us involved
    with this process, to work to make sure that people begin getting that
    money so they can get back to living their lives.
        One of the issues that we talked--spent a lot of time about is
    infrastructure. And Louisiana has had--now had $4.6 billion sent from
    the Federal Government. And actually, it's your money, I mean, so we're
    sending your money back to you--4.6 billion, and about 2.5 billion has
    not yet been spent. I guess what I'm telling you is, is that first of
    all, there is money in the pipeline that I hope will help improve lives.
    And if it is stuck because of unnecessary bureaucracies, our
    responsibility at the Federal, State, and local level is to unstick it,
    is to make sure that it keeps moving.
        The reason I herald this and the reason I want to come to a school
    like this: It's important for the taxpayers from around the country who
    paid the bill to understand where we are in the process and to realize
    there's some really positive things taking place with the money that I
    believe the country has been generous about. In other words, when you go
    to Congress and say, ``We need $110 billion to help the people in the
    gulf coast,'' somebody has got to pay. That's the taxpayer. And the
    taxpayers come from more places than just Louisiana and Mississippi. It
    is the collective effort of the country as a whole. And I'm proud

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    of the generosity of our citizens, and I want them to know that while it
    is still difficult work here, progress has been made. And there's more
    to be done.
        The economic recovery here--I was talking to the mayor about Mardi Gras, a subject I know a little bit about--
    [laughter]--I remember most of them. [Laughter] He said it was up to
    about 80-something percent capacity. In other words, it's not 100
    percent, it's not as good as people would like it, but things are
    beginning to happen.
        One of the things that you've got to continue to work on, and we
    want to help you at the local level, is in the criminal justice matters.
    It's important for the society to say loud and clear: There are
    consequences for crime. And there's got to be a--[applause]--there can't
    be any doubt in somebody's mind that this is a consequential society if
    you want to be able to walk your streets safely.
        And so I know the Attorney General
    was down here the other day. He briefed me personally on working with
    the local folks on--for the Federal Government helping, what really is a
    local responsibility. And yet we want to help. We want to make sure your
    criminal justice system does its job so that citizens feel safe and
    tourists feel safe to come. It's a big responsibility we have, and to
    the extent that we can help, we will.
        One of the things that the mayor and I have
    talked about is extending tax relief to businesses doing jobs here in
    the New Orleans area. Why? Because we want the entrepreneurial spirit to
    remain strong in this part of the world. And one way to encourage strong
    entrepreneurship is to say, there's a tax benefit for investing in this
    part of the country. There's certain things you can look at to determine
    how well an economy is doing.
        Take a look at your port. It's coming back; it's strong. Commerce is
    beginning, and this is--it doesn't seem like much to you all since
    you're so close to it, but for a fellow who was here and remembers the
    port being completely shut down, it's pretty good progress.
        Now, there's more to be done; I fully understand that. The
    Senator spent a little time up there on Air
    Force One, right up there in the Presidential cabin, talking about
    levees, making sure that the case is continually made about
    strengthening these levees. I hear him. I hear him. We have said, we're
    going to bring the levees up to--stronger than ever. We're making
    progress there. I told the Senator I understand there's still more work
    to be done. And I want to work with Congress to the best we can to get
    money to continue meeting the obligations we set.
        I'm real proud of another thing that's happened as a result of
    Democrats and Republicans working together--it actually happens sometime
    in Washington, DC--and that is that bill I signed that will enable more
    Federal revenues to come down here to restore the wetlands. And the
    reason I bring that up, I'm a strong proponent of the restoration of the
    wetlands, for a lot of reasons. There's a practical reason, though, when
    it comes to hurricanes: The stronger the wetlands, the more likely the
    damage of the hurricane. And so we've been working together on behalf of
    the city.
        I do want to spend a little time on education. I like a system that
    is willing to challenge the status quo when the status quo is failing.
    And one of the reasons I've come to this school is, it represents a
    group of citizens, including your principal and your parents and the teachers and the citizens,
    who said, ``We're tired of mediocrity in the school system.'' It is not
    acceptable to have children trapped in schools that will not teach and
    will not change. It is not acceptable to the great city of New Orleans,
    Louisiana, to have a failing school system.
        And so the storm came, and it did terrible devastation, but it gave
    a great chance for renewal. And one of the areas where renewal is most
    evident is in the school

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    system of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the charter system, like right here
    at Green, where people said--[applause].
        There are now 31 charter schools in this city, as I understand it;
    that's up from 8. Charter schools, to me, say innovation, individuality.
    You know, the No Child Left Behind Act--and I am a very strong supporter
    of it; I look forward to the Congress reauthorizing the bill--believes
    in setting high standards, local control of schools, and accountability.
    And the reason accountability is important is, in order to solve
    problems, you have to measure the problem; you have to know what the
    problem is. You can't guess, particularly when it comes to the life of a
    child. You can't guess as to whether or not a child can read or write
    and add and subtract. You must measure to know.
        And so we said, in return for Federal money, we expect local
    districts and States to measure, to have tests. The principal, the good doc asked me to go into the fourth
    grade class and say to the kids, ``Good luck on the test tomorrow.''
    That was music to my ears, because you don't know whether or not a child
    is reading unless you test.
        And the interesting thing about No Child Left Behind which is vital
    is that when we find a child falling behind, there is extra Federal
    money for that child to get up to speed early, before it's too late.
    It's a good piece of legislation, and it fits in with the philosophy of
    this charter school.
        If you're interested in changing a school system that hasn't worked,
    please insist upon a couple of things: high standards, for starters. If
    you demand low standards, you're going to get bad results. I call it the
    soft bigotry of low expectations. If you want to have a school system
    that works, insist upon measuring so that a parent will know whether or
    not the curriculum is meeting their child's needs. These parents, by the
    way, are satisfied parents. I don't expect the principal to have brought unsatisfied parents, but
    nevertheless--[applause].
        If you're interested in a school system that works, when you find
    excellence, herald it. That's what I'm trying to do. I'm trying to lend
    my voice to herald this school. By the way, a good school is one that
    generally has an educational entrepreneur as its head, somebody who is
    flexible--rigid enough on the standards, but flexible enough to meet the
    standards--somebody willing to say: ``Well, we tried this curriculum,
    and it hasn't worked. Let's make sure that we focus on the children, not
    on the process, and get a curriculum that does work.''
        One of the things that--and by the way, New Orleans is blessed not
    only with a strong public school system, now that you've got charters in
    it, but you've got some great parochial schools too. And these schools,
    like this school, were quick to start up after the storm. They knew
    their mission, and they knew their charge.
        I am very conscious that this community is going to require more
    schools. And the Government has a role to play. We're spending quite a
    bit of money, Federal money, to help you rebuild the schools. And
    Margaret Spellings--who's the Secretary of Education--I know has been
    down here, and I know she understands the responsibility we share. As a
    matter of fact, there's been about $450 million allocated for the New
    Orleans school system. I would strongly--and by the way, some of that
    money is flexible in use. And what I would strongly urge you to do is to
    use some of the unspent money to recruit and attract teachers, because
    in order to make sure that the school system is full--you've got 40
    teachers. Do you need more? Yes. He needs more.
        The housing issue obviously is important. But it's also important to
    be able to use some of this money available to find educational pioneers
    that want to come down and lend their expertise to help rebuild a school
    system. There's no doubt in my

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    mind that the school system that you're going to rebuild is going to be
    a great school system, because you've given it such a great start.
    Charter schools work. It makes a lot of sense.
        And so I've come to Green to say, thanks to the citizens of New
    Orleans who pay attention to the quality of education; thanks to the
    parents of this school who set an example by being involved; and thanks
    to the leadership. Doc, you're
    running a good show here. I'm proud of your job.
        Thanks for letting me come by. I'm honored to be back down here. I'm
    reminded of the New Orleans Saints football team that--[applause]--
    here's a team that a lot of people didn't give much hope for--did
    they?--when the season started. And it rose; it became a national story.
    It was a factor in the championship. The same thing is going to happen
    to the city. You got work to do. You got work to do. I'm going to keep
    coming down so long as I'm the President. And then after I'm the
    President, I'm going to slide in incognito. [Laughter]
        God bless you all. Thanks for coming.

    Note: The President spoke at 3:44 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to
    Anthony Recasner, principal, Samuel J. Green Charter School; Gaylen
    David Picard, wife of former Louisiana State Superintendent of Education
    Cecil J. Picard; Mayor C. Ray Nagin of New Orleans, LA; Lt. Gov.
    Mitchell J. Landrieu of Louisiana; and Andrea Green-Jefferson, wife of
    Rep. William J. Jefferson.