Ex-FEMA Chief Testifies About Katrina Response

By Paul Brown

Published February 10, 2006 at 12:46 PM EST

Michael Brown appears at a hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Feb. 10.

The former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency appears before a Senate panel Friday to discuss his agency's much-criticized performance in responding to Hurricane Katrina. Michael Brown had defended his conduct in an earlier House hearing last September.

Brown said his agency's mission of responding to emergencies was marginalized when it was made part of the Homeland Security Department. "Anytime you break that cycle of preparing, responding, recovering and mitigating, you are doomed to failure," he said.

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Paul Brown

As a newscaster and reporter for NPR, Paul Brown handles an ever-changing combination of on-air, reporting, editing and producing tasks with skills he developed over 30 years working in radio and print journalism.