ROBIN WILLIAMS - WILLIAMS AND COSBY BLAST BUSH OVER KATRINA RESPONSE

A series of celebrities including ROBIN WILLIAMS and BILL COSBY have slammed US President GEORGE W BUSH for his response to last month's (AUG05) Hurricane Katrina.

Speaking at New York's Higher Ground benefit on Saturday (17SEP05), the outspoken stars - who also included DANNY GLOVER and HARRY BELAFONTE - took the opportunity to criticise the Bush administration over its handling of the catastrophe in America's Gulf Coast region.

GOOD MORNING VIETNAM star Williams, who took the Lincoln Center stage pretending to be a hurricane, told the crowd he was heading for Bush's home in Kennebunkport, Maine, to "see if they respond any quicker".

Veteran funnyman Cosby said, "The people who got into office forgot about the people."

LETHAL WEAPON actor Glover said, "When the hurricane struck, it did not turn the region into a Third World country - it revealed one," while crooner Belafonte added, "Katrina was not unforeseeable. It was the result of a political structure that abdicates its responsibility."

Other stars who asked viewers of the televised event to donate money to the hurricane relief fund included ROBERT DE NIRO, MERYL STREEP and LAURENCE FISHBURNE, while BETTE MIDLER and PAUL SIMON were among the performers.