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POPLARVILLE, Mississippi (Reuters) - President George W. Bush, under fierce criticism for his government's slow response to Hurricane Katrina, sought to reassure storm survivors on Monday as a veteran lawmaker complained that bureaucratic red tape was hampering relief efforts in Mississippi.

Bush made his second visit to Louisiana and Mississippi, where the storm has caused one of the biggest humanitarian crises in U.S. history. On his first tour on Friday, five days after the huge scale of the disaster became apparent, the president acknowledged the initial relief effort had been "unacceptable."

Speaking to emergency officials gathered in a stifling auditorium at Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Bush pledged that "we're here for the long term."

"I understand. I understand the damage. I understand the devastation, I understand the destruction, I understand how long it's going to take. And we're with you. That's what I want you to know," Bush said.

In a sign of the political pressure facing Bush, Mississippi Republican Sen. Trent Lott, a former Senate majority leader, said he has been battling the Federal Emergency Management Agency and its Mississippi counterpart for help for his state and urged Bush to cut red tape.

After a one-on-one meeting with Bush in Poplarville, Lott said: "I am demanding help for the people of Mississippi to recover from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.&q