Wishing upon a czar: Experts want oil-spill chief

Damned if they do...

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_OIL_SPILL_CZAR?SITE=CONGRA&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Wishing upon a czar: Experts want oil-spill chief

By SETH BORENSTEIN
AP Science Writer


WASHINGTON (AP) -- A White House once ridiculed for having too many czars is now being criticized by disaster experts and a former oil company president for not having one: an oil-spill czar.

Obama administration officials find that criticism hard to stomach. They say there is clearly someone in charge, Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, and he's been cleaning up oil spills and other messes for decades, including the aftermath of 2005's Hurricane Katrina. His title is national incident commander, and even though he retired this week as head of the Coast Guard, he's staying on to run the spill response.

Those wanting a czar say they have nothing against Allen or his skills and generally praise the government's overall response to the spill. They question the perception of authority that Allen has and his focus. They want a big name, a bigger title, someone prominent who can walk into the Oval Office.

"Titles are interesting, effects are better," Allen told The Associated Press Wednesday evening. "I'm responsible for effects."

In his clipped cadence, Allen added: "I don't think it's an issue of authority. I think it's an issue of unity of effort."

snip//

Allen is doing a great job, said former Florida emergency management chief Joe Myers, a disaster consultant.

"Thad Allen is the czar as far as I'm concerned," Myers said. "Who would you get if you don't get the Coast Guard? They've been responding to oil spills since they've been spilling. They are the czar. That's the law."