Obama, Bush, Clinton urge more donations for quake-stricken Haiti

WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama met Saturday with his predecessors George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, who have been enlisted by the White House to coordinate fundraising and aid efforts in the aftermath of Haiti’s tragic earthquake.

Obama, Bush and Clinton urged Americans and others to donate as much money as they could to help Haiti recover from the devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake that rattled the impoverished Caribbean nation Tuesday.

“Our hearts are broken when we see the scenes of little children struggling without a mom or a dad, or the bodies in the streets, or the physical damage of the earthquake,” Bush said, his voice cracking at times.

Bush has been mostly absent from the public eye since leaving office in January 2009, but said he was “so pleased to answer the call to work alongside President Clinton to mobilize the compassion of the American people.”

More than 10 million dollars has already been donated by the US public. The two presidents will run their fundraising efforts through a website, www.clintonbushhaitifund.org.

Bush had enlisted Clinton and his own father George H.W. Bush in a similar effort to raise funds in the aftermath of the Asian tsunami of 2004.

As the US steps up its relief effort in Haiti, Obama warned of difficult days ahead as logistical problems and a lack of infrastructure have made it extremely difficult to deliver aid to the impoverished country.

“Every day that goes by we learn more about the horrifying scope of this catastrophe, destruction and suffering that defies comprehension,” said Obama, flanked by the two former presidents. “This time of suffering can and must be a time of compassion.”

Some 4,200 US military personnel were already in and off the coast of Haiti, including a destroyer and aircraft carrier, and another 6,300 were due to arrive by Monday. Haiti’s government has agreed to allow the US military to take control of the lone airport in capital

Port-au-Prince, the focal point of relief efforts.

Clinton, who already served as a United Nations special envoy to Haiti before the quake, promised a long-term effort to coordinate fundraising for Haiti’s rebuilding, which will take many years.

“We want to stay with this over the long run,” Clinton said.