Later, members of the press suggested that Michael Brown was not experienced in emergency management when he was appointed to the position by President Bush two years prior to Katrina. Mr. Brown continues to deny these charges. And, in fact he had limited authority to order federal agencies into action until about 36 hours after the storm hit, when Chertoff designated him as the "principal federal official" in charge of the storm. Chertoff was the one with the authority. " " President Bush recognized this and commended Michael Brown and gave him credit for the good work he had done, "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job. The FEMA Director is working 24 – they're working 24 hours a day."