AP clarifies what Bush was told about leveesWe don't normally work on the weekends, but the Associated Press has released a "clarification" of its headline-grabbing report earlier this week and we wanted to get it out as soon as we could. AP concedes President Bush was not told before Hurricane Katrina hit land that the storm might cause a "breach" of New Orleans' levees. He was told the levees might be "overrun." That distinction may or may not be important. You can decide for yourself. AP's clarification, and additional information, follows: First, the clarification: WASHINGTON - In a March 1 story, The Associated Press reported that federal disaster officials warned President George W. Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees in New Orleans, citing confidential video footage of an Aug. 28 briefing among U.S. officials. The Army Corps of Engineers considers a breach a hole developing in a levee rather than an overrun. The story should have made clear that Bush was warned about flood waters overrunning the levees, rather than the levees breaking. The day before the storm hit, Bush was told there were grave concerns that the levees could be overrun. It wasn't until the next morning, as the storm was hitting, that Michael Brown, then head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Bush had inquired about reports of breaches. Bush did not participate in that briefing. Then, to refresh your memory: You'll see in hundreds of comments that follow this post we did last week that the issue of whether or not Bush was warned about a "breach" did get considerable attention. Many readers said the words "breach" and "overrun" mattered a lot. Many said they didn't. Last modified March 6, 2006 |