Sen. Mary Landrieu, who has worked so tirelessly to help rebuild the city she loves, took me around eastern New Orleans to hear from homeowners and small business people who persevered over the last eight and a half months.

What I saw and heard left me stunned by how little is happening compared to how much more must be done.

When I went to Louisiana in September, I saw a region damaged by a storm, but strong in spirit. Everyone I met was committed to rebuilding their lives and the city they love. On this trip I met people who were afraid, angry and disillusioned -- and rightfully disappointed in Washington 's response.

I left New Orleans convinced that the Gulf Coast doesn't have a morale problem; Washington has a leadership problem. The people of New Orleans can't rebuild their city's strength on a diet of empty promises.

On Sept. 15, President Bush spoke from Jackson Square and promised that we will "do what it takes, [and] we will stay as long as it takes, to help citizens rebuild their communities and their lives."

The president seems to mean these words when he speaks them about Iraq, but they ring hollow here at home when he talks about New Orleans.

Eight months later little has been provided in real response. Too much time has been wasted without real solutions for Katrina's survivors.

There aren't trucks lined up to haul debris out of eastern New Orleans. The piles of debris in front of nearly every building are constant reminders of Washington 's failure. Local officials told me of their fears that mosquitoes and rodents will carry diseases as a result of the piles of garbage in the streets. In the richest country on the planet, Americans shouldn't worry that their children will be at risk for Third-World health problems because Washington didn't meet its most basic obligations.

The administration boasts about the $9 billion in disaster loans they have approved. But today only $1 billion of that money has actually made it into the hands of Gulf Coast residents to rebuild - - a measly 11 percent. Half of those who applied for disaster loans were denied.

We must do more. We could tap into the goodwill of Americans and create civilian assistance corps -- one group of volunteers from every state could take responsibility for a block or a neighborhood. We need a disaster "ombudsman" -- a citizen general who can direct, organize, and structure a recovery effort. We've already seen General Honore, a career solider in the Army, demonstrate how an organization with clear lines of command, organization and structure can bring order, hope and assistance.

With Sen. Landrieu's leadership, progress is being made in the Congress, but Washington has miles to go to meet the Gulf Coast 's urgent needs. In September the Senate passed the approach Sens. Landrieu, Vitter and I offered to get small businesses back on their feet with bridge loans and grants for small businesses. Why is the Bush administration blocking this effort from becoming law?

Businesses in the Gulf Coast are hanging on by a thread. They can't endure much more red tape and needless delay. They need action now -- not after they close their doors and declare bankruptcy.

Talk about Washington 's slow response that isn't enough. It's time to demand an increased sense of urgency to correct it. New Orleans , the Gulf Coast and our country need to know that when we said "never again," we meant it.

John Kerry is a U.S. senator from Massachusetts. This column is a condensed version of a speech he gave in the Senate Friday.