FEMA's Fake Press Conference
| Fri Oct. 26, 2007 7:50 AM PDT
Yesterday, in response to the wildfires that have displaced more than a million people in California, FEMA's deputy administrator, Vice Admiral Harvey Johnson, called a last minute press conference. As Al Kamen recounts in today's Washington Post, it soon became clear that there was something very odd about the briefing. It seemed that the reporters in attendance were teeing up softball questions for Johnson to hit out of the park. One reporter asked, for instance, "what it means to have an emergency declaration as opposed to a major disaster declaration." As Kamen put it, "the media seemed to be giving Johnson all day to wax on and on about FEMA's greatness." That's because the "reporters" Johnson called on weren't reporters at all, but members of FEMA's PR shop, including the agency's deputy director of external affairs, Cindy Taylor, and its deputy director of public affairs Mike Widomski. Shameless.
Update: Johnson has officially apologized for yesterday's PR stunt, saying "We can and must do better, and apologize for this error in judgment. Our intent was to provide useful information and be responsive to the many questions we have received." Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has called the episode "inexcusable and offensive to the secretary." Are heads going to roll?
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Comments
There are some resignations in order.
FEMA (and this administration) cannot seem to help but screwing up everything. Just when it looked like FEMA was going to win some "brownie" points for its help in the California fires, it shoots itself in the foot with this stunt. Amazing. Simply amazing.
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Forgive me if ya'll have already directed similar condemnation at common leftist mainstream media fakery (TNR & Beauchamp; Beirut AP Fauxtography; Duke, Nifong & "rape" - "The narrative was right, but the facts were wrong."; Dan "fake but accurate" Rather; leftist fantasies of racial injustice in the deep south (the Jena 6); fake Iraq war vet Jessie MacBeth; fake hate speech @ GWU; ...
And the list goes on.
In advance, thank you Mother Jones for your smart, fearless and consistent condemnation of the relentless shameless fakery coming from leftist mainstream media.
Unless, of course, you haven't shone your disinfecting light upon the lies of the Left, exampled above, among countless others.
In which case, please spare us your sanctimony.
I think it is about time. A practice session in Washington beats the hell out of some idiot with a microphone in California asking someone who has just lost his home how he feels about that. From what I have seen on MSNBC, The Washington Post and most of the other news media, they need a little lesson on what the difference is in a declared emergency versus other FEMA related situations. Way to go FEMA.
'...Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has called the episode "inexcusable and offensive to the secretary."'
Since when does insulting the secretary of homeland security matter? What about US? What about those FEMA is theoretically supposed to be accountable to?
Yes, heads should roll, starting with the very top. Will they? Hell no! The attention span of the nation is way too short to force any such thing and this has already blown over, before anyone really noticed it happening. God, that's sad.
What else did you espect from Bush Adm.. They Lied and almost 4000 Am soldiers died and 30,000 wounded and 1.5mil Iraqis dead. They should be on trial in International court for crime against humanity. Now they trying to make themself look good in the eyes of Califorians. Thank you FEMA for your incompetency in Katrina and California.
What a lame stunt FEMA! And the response statement, "We can and must do better, and apologize for this error in judgment" is even lamer. Especially since the "press conference" in the absence of the press was obviously a premeditated performance that only demonstrated FEMA's longstanding lack of judgment, honesty, and useful actions. FEMA defensively states only, "we made an error in judgment" and "We are reviewing our press procedures". Next they'll be hiring Alfonso Cuarón to direct their press releases. There is only one conclusion to draw and they have pointed that out clearly - the government can get exactly the same results and spend way less if we dissolve FEMA! Just a side note, take FEMA and switch the A and the E, flip the F and you get LAME.
-arol
Come on Dave the dream is over when 51% percent of us finally say enough but will the real ID act have kicked in by then preventing state to state travel.. and will too many of our youths be locked in institionalized prisons(not to mention body bags or wheelchars) for the 'we the people' to shake down the current regime which I believe Hamilton(or possibly Jefferson) said will be neccesary by force by the people every 20-30 years, how long have these hooligans been in power??!!
Submitted by Dori Smith (not verified) on Mon Oct. 29, 2007 6:32 AM PDT.
Homeland Security? I'd say it's time to rethink the formation of this agency and the fact that George W. Bush and Dick Cheney felt that they needed to engage in an act of 'reform' that awarded control over domestic and foreign intelligence and 'security' to a carefully picked team of supporters. This power grab has resulted in a climate of corruption where staff is engaging unconstitutional activities across the board. Chertoff's remarks are irrelevant. What is needed here is an investigation that will reveal the long range plans of Homeland Security. The American people have a right to know what these leaders plan to do with their tax money, and how they intend to respond to emergencies which will be on the increase now that global overheating has reached catastrophic levels. Was this an attempt to test out methods for dealing with emergencies that could frighten massive numbers of people? This White House offered the oil industry the opportunity to write its own energy policy. Time to take the whole agenda apart to try to understand just what it is they are up to. ...Before it's too late.
