The president and several high-ranking members of his administration scurried to Florida immediately after Hurricane Charlie blew through. And rightly so. The storm killed 23 people and inflicted tremendous property damage. In times of disaster, it's important and useful for people at the highest levels of government to provide a little personal attention. Beyond welcome solidarity and support, officials' engagement sends a message to the bureaucracy. It's an effective way to say, "This is important and we need to do what we can to help."
Alas, it's a lot easier to attract attention from Washington, D.C., with a photogenic natural disaster in a state with lots of electoral votes than it is with a manmade calamity in the boondocks - especially one that wreaks havoc in slow motion. We're talking about the kind of disaster that's struck the northwestern Montana community of Libby.
Libby has been designated a high-priority "Superfund" cleanup area by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has committed to cleaning up the town, but how quickly and how well are open questions. President Bush's proposal to cut EPA funding more than 7 percent next year has many people wondering.
That's why Montana Sen. Max Baucus last fall demanded that EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt travel to Libby for a firsthand look at the problem and to meet the people who so desperately need his agency's full attention. Baucus extracted a promise from Leavitt to visit as a condition for Senate confirmation of his nomination to the top EPA post.
Many people in Libby eagerly looked forward to Leavitt's visit. Townspeople gathered signatures on a resolution beseeching the EPA to do its utmost to execute a speedy and complete cleanup, to follow up with monitoring and provision for unexpected contingencies, and also to help the town emerge out from under the cloud of threat and uncertainty - help toward a more prosperous future. Many residents wrote letters to present to him when he came. They never got the chance.
After twice canceling scheduled visits to the town, Leavitt made a quick, unannounced visit to Libby Aug. 13. EPA staffers awkwardly responded to rumors circulating in advance of his arrival by reading from a short script about "national security concerns" precluding any comment of the administrator's schedule. When he appeared, Leavitt met with only a few folks, for a short while, then he left. We don't know about the people of Libby, but we're disappointed. Sure, the administrator is a busy man. But a lot of folks in Libby are busy too - busy fighting for their lives.
Truth be told, however, it isn't Leavitt's time we want. It's his commitment and his agency's action we need. Short and limited as it was, his recent visit will more than suffice if he follows through and makes certain that the Libby cleanup is fully funded and expeditious, and that the government follows through to help the community and its citizens find a prosperous future.
Did Leavitt stop in Libby merely to put a check on his to-do list? Or did he come really intending to help? His follow-through will provide the answer.
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