Craig Fugate is from Florida and is the
director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management.Reporting from Washington -- A Florida official well-versed in hurricane response is President Obama's choice to head the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which was the focus of national ridicule for its slow response after Hurricane Katrina left New Orleans and parts of the Gulf Coast in tatters.
The nominee, Craig Fugate, 49, is the director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management.
In his home state, Fugate has been at the center of efforts to cope with hurricanes and wildfires. He also has been a vocal critic of the agency he was picked to lead, describing FEMA in an interview last year as "broken."
David Vitter of dubious fame because of his inclusion on the list of the DC Madam..has decided that he didn't like the way Fugate answered some of his questions. So he has put a hold on his nomination.
Louisiana Sen. David Vitter has placed a hold on Craig Fugate's nominationA spokesman for Vitter told the paper that Vitter "submitted some questions to the nominee, and the nominee did not answer those questions sufficiently for the senator."
The Louisiana Republican is providing Fugate with follow-up questions related to FEMA activities in his home state, which bore the brunt of the botched agency response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, CQ said.
“Hopefully, the senator will be able to release his hold . . . if he gets the answers to the questions he’s trying to have answered,” Vitter spokesman Joel DiGrado told CQ. Fugate just this week easily cleared the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee and his Senate confirmation had been expected.
I remember how angry I was when he was questioning Hillary Clinton on the Hill during her nomination process for Secretary of State. I felt how dare he have such a prominent role in the questioning when he was caught on a client's list for a prostitute.
His wife, Wendy, said it best in 2000, probably before she knew about his infidelities.
Words of Wendy VitterIn 2000, Vitter was included in a Newhouse News Service story about the strain of congressional careers on families.
His wife, Wendy, was asked by the Newhouse News reporter: If her husband was as unfaithful as former President Bill Clinton, would she be as forgiving as Hillary Clinton?
“I’m a lot more like Lorena Bobbitt than Hillary,” Wendy Vitter told Newhouse News. “If he does something like that, I’m walking away with one thing, and it’s not alimony, trust me.”
“I think fear is a very good motivating factor in a marriage,” she added. “Don’t put fear down.”
TPMDC today is reporting that it looks like Vitter will have some competition.
Stormy Daniels Embarks On Listening Tour For Possible Senate Bid Against VitterSen. David Vitter (R-LA), the Christian Right champion whose career became mired in the D.C. Madam prostitution scandal in 2007, may be on the verge of getting a primary challenger: Porn-star Stormy Daniels is responding to the draft effort to get her into the Republican primary, and has now announced a listening tour.
Daniels will hold her first event in Baton Rouge on May 5, followed by a New Orleans event on May 6. A Daniels candidacy, if it does occur, would likely turn out to be a vehicle to remind voters of Vitter's moral hypocrisy.
"DraftStormy is excited about the listening tour and is confident that it will help persuade Stormy Daniels to accept their challenge and run for Senate," the press release says. "We believe that the voters of Louisiana are ready for change and look forward to bringing honesty, integrity, and strength of character back to the United States Senate."
I don't know much about Craig Fugate, but I hear most think he is qualified to head FEMA. We need someone there now getting that agency straightened out. We don't need Vitter to block his nomination.