Responsibility

Bush: 'I take responsibility'
Tue Sep 13, 2005 7:36 PM BST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush took responsibility on Tuesday for any failures in the federal response to Hurricane Katrina and acknowledged the storm exposed serious deficiencies at all levels of government four years after the September 11 attacks.
"To the extent that the federal government didn't fully do its job right, I take responsibility," Bush told a White House news conference at which he openly questioned U.S. preparedness for another storm or a "severe attack." Bush's rare admission of "serious problems in our response capability" came as the White House stepped up efforts to repair his public standing. Bush will address the nation at 9 p.m. EDT (0100 GMT) on Thursday from hard-hit Louisiana, his fourth visit to the disaster zone since Katrina struck. White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Bush would use Thursday's address to "talk to the American people about the recovery and the way forward on the longer-term rebuilding." The president's approval ratings have hit new lows, partly due to fierce criticism of the slow response to the August 29 hurricane, which killed hundreds and displaced 1 million people in the worst natural disaster in U.S. history.
Fifty-four percent of Americans disapprove of Bush's handling of the response, but 57 percent say state and local officials should bear responsibility for the problems, according to the latest Washington Post-ABC poll.