CNN.com - 'Can I quit now?' FEMA chief wrote as Katrina raged - Nov 3, 2005: "Rep. Charlie Melancon, whose district south of New Orleans was devastated by the hurricane, posted a sampling of e-mails written by Federal Emergency Management chief Michael Brown on his Web site on Wednesday.
The Democratic lawmaker cited several e-mails that he said show Brown's failures. In one, as employees looked for direction and support on the ravaged Gulf Coast, Brown offered to 'tweak' the federal response.
Two days after Katrina hit, Marty Bahamonde, one of the only FEMA employees in New Orleans, wrote to Brown that 'the situation is past critical' and listed problems including many people near death and food and water running out at the Superdome.
Brown's entire response was: 'Thanks for the update. Anything specific I need to do or tweak?'"