Where did FEMA Go?

Under the Clinton administration, FEMA was elevated to cabinet level importance. But the Bush administration decided to scale it back, and after 9/11, fold it into the Department of Homeland Security.

James Lee Witt was FEMA Director under President Clinton. His background had been in state and local emergency management.

But neither of President Bush's FEMA Directors have any emergency management background. His first FEMA Director -- Joe Allbaugh had been Mr Bush's chief of staff as Texas Governor and campaign manager for his 2000 Presidential run. The current FEMA Director -- Mike Brown -- is an Oklahoma lawyer who worked for the International Arabian Horse Association.

After taking on the job in 2000, Mr Allbaugh told Congress, FEMA had become "an oversized entitlement program." And that the Bush administration planned to "restore the predominant role of state and local response to most disasters.''

Meanwhile, Mr Witt told Congress last year state and local disaster responders were left hanging by the sudden changes at the federal level. He told Congress he still heard "from emergency managers, local and state leaders and first responders nearly every day that the FEMA they knew and worked well with has now disappeared.''

It was obvious they weren't around in the aftermath of Katrina after state and local resources were exhausted. (Bloomberg)