Somewhere along the way, FEMA became a dumping ground for the President's political cronies with little experience in disaster relief. The Agency's first director was Joe Albaugh. He was President Bush's 2000 campaign chairman. Albaugh brought in the failure, Michael Brown. His previous work was with Arabian horses. The number two guy, Brown's top deputy at FEMA is a fellow named Patrick Rhode. He worked for the President's 2000 election campaign. The number three guy at FEMA is Brooks Alchuler. He used to work in the White House. His job was planning Presidential trips. And FEMA's long-term recovery director is a guy named Scott Morris. He produced television and radio commercials for the Bush campaign. The Federal agency charged with handling national emergencies is staffed at the very top by a bunch of political hacks with virtually no experience that qualifies them to respond to something like Katrina.

- Jack Cafferty reporting to Wolf Blitzer on The Situation Room, CNN, September 2005