    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book II)]
    [September 1, 2008]
    [Pages 1166-1167]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Briefing at the Emergency Operations Center in
    Austin, Texas
    September 1, 2008

        Governor, thank you;
    Senator, thank you for
    coming; Members of Congress.
        The coordination on this storm is a lot better than on--than during
    Katrina. A lot of it had to do with
    the Governors. Yesterday I was on the video
    conference with the Governors of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and
    Texas. There was clearly a spirit of sharing assets, of listening to
    somebody's problems and saying, how can we best address them? The
    Federal Government is very much involved in helping the States. Our job
    is to assist. That's why Secretary Paulison is with me today; he heads FEMA.
        I do want to thank the State of Texas and other States for welcoming
    citizens from Louisiana. It's been a huge evacuation. It's hard for a
    citizen to pull up stakes and move out of their home and face the
    uncertainty that comes when you're not at home. And I want to thank

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    those citizens who listened carefully to the local authorities and
    evacuated. And I want to thank my fellow citizens in Texas and in other
    States for welcoming these folks in open arms. The State of Texas is a
    generous State. And, Governor, I wanted to
    thank you and your team for being so kind to the people.
        And it's very important for those who have been evacuated to listen
    very carefully to the officials in their respective States before they
    decide to return. This storm is yet to pass. It's a serious event. And
    as the Governor mentioned, the people of
    east Texas got to be prepared for a possible flooding event.
        All in all, what I look for is to determine whether or not assets
    are in place to help, whether or not there's coordination, and whether
    or not there's preparation for recovery. And to that end, I feel good
    about this event.
        And I do want to thank Gail McGovern of
    the American Red Cross for joining us, and thank a lot of the other
    organizations that are preparing to go help people in need. These
    organizations, such as the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army,
    require the support of our citizens.
        And if you're interested in how you can help once the storm passes,
    please call up the different web sites of these organizations and donate
    your time or your money so that the recovery effort is as compassionate
    and complete as possible.
        Governor, thanks for having me. I want
    to thank your team for all the hard work they're doing. I'm looking
    forward to going in with you in the room next door to say thanks to the
    people that are working the long hours. And we're going to go down to
    San Antonio and see a staging area there and thank the people there for
    working so hard, not only on behalf of the citizens of Texas, but on
    behalf of the people of the region.
        Appreciate it. It's good to be home.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:05 a.m. In his remarks, he referred to
    Gov. J. Richard Perry of Texas; Sen. Kathryn A. ``Kay'' Bailey
    Hutchison; Gov. Robert R. Riley of Alabama; Gov. Piyush ``Bobby'' Jindal
    of Louisiana; Gov. Haley R. Barbour of Mississippi; and Gail J.
    McGovern, president and chief executive officer, American Red Cross.