Bush tours hurricane-ravaged areas under criticism

US President George W. Bush on Friday rushed to areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina to make a ground tour after he was criticized for being slow in responding to the disaster.

"We are going to help the people that need help," Bush said after setting his foot in Biloxi, Mississippi, which lost dozens of lives in the disaster.

He promised to "make things right" and stressed that there will be more federal support coming up after the Congress approved 10.5 billion US dollars to cover relief needs early in the day.

Referring to the chaotic situations and violence in New Orleans, Louisiana, Bush said there will be a quick fix.

"The people of this country expect there to be law and order, and we're going to work hard to get it," he said.

Asked about why the world's only superpower cannot even meet the needs of its own people when faced with such a disaster, Bush's answer was "I am satisfied with the response. I am not satisfied with all the results."

Bush's trip, which spans the vast hurricane-ravaged states of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana, was aimed to pacify criticism that his response to the disaster has been too little and too late, said local analysts.

News reports showed many people are unsatisfied with the government's reaction to the disaster. Some harsh words even came from his own party.

Former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a well-known Republican, challenged the Bush administration by asking "if we can't respond faster than this to an event we saw coming across the Gulf for days, then why do we think we're prepared to respond to a nuclear or biological attack?"

Source: Xinhua