You might remember Russel Honoré for his response to Hurricane Katrina. Now he’ll assess US Capitol security
Over the course of his profession, the final got here to be referred to as a no-nonsense chief, a high quality maybe greatest exemplified in his slogan, “Don’t get stuck on stupid.”
Louisiana Gov. Jon Bel Edwards praised the information on Twitter, writing that Honoré was “a great choice” for the job. “He has and will serve our nation well,” the governor stated.
He’s led the response to many disasters
Hailing from Lakeland, Louisiana, Honoré was commissioned as a second lieutenant of the infantry in 1971 upon graduating with a level in vocational agriculture from Southern University and A&M College.
Honoré served in a wide range of infantry command positions all through his profession and took command of the First Army based mostly at Fort Gillem exterior Atlanta. He additionally served because the vice director for operations, J-3, The Joint Staff, Pelosi famous, specializing in navy help to civil authorities.
Before the fateful 2005 hurricane season, Honoré had helped coordinate US response to flooding in Venezuela in 1999 and Mozambique in 2000, in accordance to his web site.
Praised for management after Katrina
But Honoré commanded the nation’s consideration in 2005 when he led the Defense Department’s response to Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita.
He instructed everybody he noticed to level their weapons down, reminding National Guardsmen and New Orleans cops that they weren’t deployed to Iraq, in accordance to CNN’s Barbara Starr, who was embedded with Honoré.
“He came off the doggone chopper and he started cussing and people started moving,” Nagin stated.
The mom, Alexandra Wheeler, instructed CNN she credited Honoré with saving her twins’ lives. Wheeler and Honoré met once more in 2017 and Wheeler instructed the retired normal, “We are eternally grateful to you for that.”
CNN’s Stephanie Elam contributed to this report.