or
what if FEMA gave a press conference and only FEMA showed up…..
The Chimpy administration hits another new low…no not in poll numbers but in journalistic integrity….
FEMA gave a press conference Tuesday on how things were going in Southern California..only the reporters weren’t reporters — they were employees of FEMA! asking softball questions
if this wasn’t in the middle of a tragedy i would be laughing my ass off….second thought i am laughing my ass off
The first questions were about the “commodities” being shipped to Southern California and how officials are dealing with people who refuse to evacuate. He responded eloquently.
He was apparently quite familiar with the reporters — in one case, he appears to say “Mike” and points to a reporter — and was asked an oddly in-house question about “what it means to have an emergency declaration as opposed to a major disaster declaration” signed by the president. He once again explained smoothly.
[…]
“Are you happy with FEMA’s response so far?” a reporter asked. Another asked about “lessons learned from Katrina.”
“I’m very happy with FEMA’s response so far,” Johnson said, hailing “a very smoothly, very efficiently performing team.”
[…]
But something didn’t seem right. The reporters were lobbing too many softballs. No one asked about trailers with formaldehyde for those made homeless by the fires. And the media seemed to be giving Johnson all day to wax on and on about FEMA’s greatness.
Of course, that could be because the questions were asked by FEMA staffers playing reporters. We’re told the questions were asked by Cindy Taylor, FEMA’s deputy director of external affairs, and by “Mike” Widomski, the deputy director of public affairs. Director of External Affairs John “Pat” Philbin asked a question, and another came, we understand, from someone who sounds like press aide Ali Kirin.
here is the Washington Post story, and it is all over the INTERNETS
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/25/AR2007102502488.html
but to FEMA and the Bush administration, this was all “an error in judgement”
STATEMENT IN REGARDS TO FEMA’S TUESDAY PRESS BRIEFING
FEMA’s goal is to get information out as soon as possible, and in trying to do so we made an error in judgment. Our intent was to provide useful information and be responsive to the many questions we have received. We are reviewing our press procedures and will make the changes necessary to ensure that all of our communications are straight forward and transparent.
At FEMA, our focus is disaster operations and, in this case, it means working closely with the State of California to support their response to the devastating fires. We’re committed to being there for the State and being good partners. In working to do so we did not put enough focus on how we communicate to the public.
The real story — how well the response and recovery elements are working in this disaster — should not be lost because of how we tried to meet the needs of the media in distributing facts.
We can and must do better, and apologize for this error in judgment.
Me thinks the Bush adminstration is an error in humanity
“Are you happy with FEMA’s response so far?” a reporter asked. Translation: “Are we asking the questions you told us to ask properly, Mr. President?” a FEMA employee who feared for his job asked.
By: Freida Bee on October 26, 2007
at 9:45 pm
They made an ERROR IN JUDGMENT?Who the f**k are they kidding. Deliberate bastards. This sucks.
By: FranIAm on October 26, 2007
at 10:02 pm
I can’t wait for the media to be all over this obvious example of Pravda-style propaganda, making it the lead story that leads into a series of exposés showing just how deep the sticky web of disinformation perpetrated by these vile unpatriotic hacks goes. I also can’t wait for Alessandra Ambrosio to show up at my house for a sleepover.
By: Randal Graves on October 27, 2007
at 11:48 am
You have got to be kidding! Oh my god. Do they really think that people are that stupid? Hello?
By: phil_in_ny on October 27, 2007
at 12:22 pm
I heard about this yesterday listening to AirAmerica.You really have to wonder about the sanity of the people in the Bush junta and the arrogance they display toward the American people.To their credit, had WaPo not broken the story, would we have ever known about this little piece of FEMA theater?We need a revolution, folks. Now that the two political parties have merged and become one and the election process is corrupt and crooked, it’s sweet and quaint for activists to wear their “HILLARY 2008” buttons, but the entire system is diseased and needs to be dismantled and reassembled with an eye on the Costitution.Otherwise, I think and I believe, there’s not going to be a USA in my lifetime.
By: Christopher on October 27, 2007
at 1:58 pm
When I read this I just about screamed. It’s obvious that they thought they could get away with this. Honestly, they think the American people are as dumb as they are…well, about 30% of them are, but nonetheless-this is ridiculous!I wonder if Jeff Gannon was in that crowd asking questions? This is the perfect example of what happens when stations like Faux News are given any legitimacy. It gives other idiots, like FEMA, the idea that they could do it too. And if anybody thinks this wasn’t ok’d by the White House, they’re nuts. FEMA got caught, and no all of the sudden the White House is calling it an “error in judgement”. How about it was a friggin’ LIE! It was a case of DECEIT! Asshole Nazi’s, the whole lot of ’em.
By: Mary Ellen on October 27, 2007
at 11:58 pm
I think from Bush down, these people are in a land of make believe. It’s all fantasy island to them. They drink the kool aid and collect their checks.
By: Zoey & Me on October 28, 2007
at 12:11 am
What a fucking joke, and of course no one up the Food Chain knew anything about this charade. They are just as “shocked” as we are. After all, this entire Administration is built on Christian Values. Well that, and the bones of American Soldiers, but mostly Christian Values.Maybe like 2/3 Christian Values, and 1/3 bones. Oh, and oil.1/3 Christian values, 1/4 Oil, 1/3 bones and 1/12 Mad Dog 20/20.
By: fairlane on October 28, 2007
at 4:42 am
What I meant to say was given that it was the Bush administration’s version of FEMA, the wildfires were probably news to them.
By: Morse on October 28, 2007
at 12:25 pm
DCap -I suppose they thought they were seeding the audience to get the question-answer mill going. I remember my old company used to do this at CEO presentations to staff. I never thought a public agency like FEMA would pull this crap.
By: Spartacus on October 29, 2007
at 2:49 am
Except you guys, the place that they aren’t talking about this at all, infact have buried this story completely is San Dieger. I heard also that they screened the crowd at Rancho Bernardo when the dickhead showed up and sought out only Bush supporters…whether that is true or not, who knows but that’s the rumor.It’s pretty fucked up, anyway, hi, missed you crazy liberals and I am really tired of the fires and the winds.Maybe I should put up a little pay pal donation thingie site to help send me to New Zealand.Nah, too tacky. But maybe….heehee see you guys later.
By: Marjorie on October 29, 2007
at 4:17 am
That was one of those headlines where I read the article just to see if I was misunderstanding it– it seemed to outrageous to be true. But it was. True, that is. And outrageous, as well. I kidded with my son a couple of days ago about how every time it gets to the point that these guys can’t f*ck up any worse, they miraculously find a new way to do so.
By: Johnny Yen on October 31, 2007
at 5:07 am