US Senator Mary Landrieu commented Friday upon the announcement of Don Powell, the Gulf Coordinator stepping down from his position that he has held since being appointed by President Bush:
WASHINGTON – United States Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., today made the following statement on the Federal Gulf Coast Rebuilding Coordinator Don Powell’s decision to step down.
Sen. Landrieu said:
“It is with mixed emotions that I learn that Don Powell, a decent, intelligent and hard working man, is leaving the Office of Gulf Coast Rebuilding. In his time working for our recovery, he has had some notable victories, and I am grateful for his contributions.
“But we continue to have a crisis along in the Gulf Coast. Regrettably, Chairman Powell found himself entrenched in an administration that refused to use the levers of power at their disposal to accelerate our recovery, and I am sure that many times that must have been very frustrating for him.
“He has my very best wishes for his future pursuits, and he will always have a pot of red beans and rice on the stove at Prieur Street if he ever has a hankering for good Louisiana cooking.
“I hope to work with his successor to speed up our recovery and remove the remaining barriers to rebuilding.”
In addition, here are comments from the Louisiana Recovery Authority and from Mayor C. Ray Nagin of New Orleans:
LRA:
The Louisiana Recovery Authority's (LRA) leadership issued the following statements on the resignation of Donald Powell, the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding:
"Since his initial appointment as the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding, the people of Louisiana have had a champion in Don Powell," said LRA Chairman Norman Francis. "He answered the call to serve the people of this region. He has helped ensure historic federal investments in Louisiana, push for safer rebuilding practices and maintain accountability to the American people. I am, personally, grateful for his commitment to our recovery efforts."
"In the years since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast, I have seen recovery from many different levels - working first at the local level in Lake Charles and later at the state level for the LRA and in Congress with Senator Landrieu - and I can truly say that Chairman Powell never wavered in his commitment to rebuilding Louisiana and the rest of the Gulf Coast," said Paul Rainwater, the LRA's executive director. "We thank him for his dedicated service and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors."
"We hope the White House will quickly appoint his permanent replacement and we look forward to continuing our partnership with the leadership of Office of Gulf Coast Rebuilding as Louisiana seeks to streamline its recovery, speed the pace of rebuilding and ensure continued transparency in the process," Rainwater said.
Mayor Nagin
"Chairman Powell worked with our region during one of the most traumatic events in our history in America. Although we did not always agree, it was an honor to work with him and I wish him well."
So our Recovery Czar (as he was first referred to by the Bush Administration, following the name given to Paul Bremer in Iraq) is retiring. Time for an accounting of the Czar's performance. St. Bernard Parish does not even have half the residents it had pre-Katrina. With the exception of Belle Chasse, where the federal levees protecting federal air base held, 3/4s of Plaquemines Parish is still off-line - excluding some weekend fishing joints that cater to out-of-town elites. As for New Orleans, the demographics have been changed drastically. The population is way down, debatable by how much, but safe to say that it is greater than 1/3, and our State, Louisiana, will lose another Congressional seat to Houston, Texas. Why? Ask any small businessman and they will tell you financing is the key to any successful venture. Louisiana's recovery has not been a successful venture because of the lack of those who print the currency to provide adequate or sufficient timely financing. Powell, before being made our Czar, was a banker. More than anyone else a Banker would know that the recovery depended on financing! Thus, no matter how many backs he slapped, babies he kissed, or kind words he offered, he successfully stalled and bought this Administration critical time to allow the sentiment of good Americans to help their fellow citizens die down. From the Administration's standpoint, a job well done! From a more objective standpoint measured by performance, or lack thereof, a squandering of an opportunity to rebuild a region! Maybe we would have fared better with Czar Paul Bremer. Written by R. E. Lee
on 3/3/2008
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