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FEMA Apologizes for Fake News Conference on Wildfires

reuters.com — FEMA apologized on Friday for having its employees pose as reporters in a hastily called news conference on California's wildfires. Hey, at least none of them were male escorts.

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  • snotrokit, on 10/29/2007, -4/+161Yup, we pretty much lied our asses off and got busted for it. Fast and hard. This is so astonishinly unacceptable, but unfortunately, this is what this administration has become. This is commonplace, and I fear that this happens way more often than we all know about.
    • cannon1000, on 10/28/2007, -28/+4FEMA = Administration ? I would say that especially with a democrat controlled congress they have much to do with this and besides since so much of the government is about using tax money to help those that can't take care of themselves...there are more "liberals" in government...they don't give a crap on who the president is.
      • PeppermintPig, on 10/28/2007, -2/+24Because Bush appoints his cronies to FEMA. The Administration basically did a release stating they were angry about what happened as a means to wash their hands of any responsibility.

        All this bureaucrat speak is not impressing anybody. "We'll begin to look into doing something, blah blah blah"

        I think there's enough people out there who don't care what the party lines are when it comes to trying to cover up scandals, pass bad law, and execute boondoggles.
      • halavais, on 10/28/2007, -1/+16For those who didn't RTFA, the quote is "She said the department was looking at the possibility of reprimanding those responsible." This is a far cry from the appropriate response, which is "heads will roll." Faking a news conference should be at least a firing offense. Anything less seriously impacts the legitimacy of the government.
        • mikelieman, on 10/29/2007, -0/+12REPRIMAND? How about arresting them for violating 18 USC 371, in that their fraud was, in part, to deprive Congress of their proper oversight role?

          And WTF is up with the White House Press Corps, that they wouldn't bring this up?
      • ncnavguy, on 10/29/2007, -0/+13A lesson is Civics Cannon1000, Fema is a subdepartment of Homeland Security, and is part of the Executive branch, which means that they report back to the president and he not only sets policy but also the people who execute it.
      • JoeVet, on 10/29/2007, -0/+13FEMA is under the executive branch. Bush appoints the FEMA director.....Do you not know how your government works?
    • shubidubi, on 10/28/2007, -12/+0I wonder - is this article in favor of republicans or democrates...I saw it also on skewz (http://www.skewz.com/link/link_details/2140) and it seemed like it has a democrate twist
      • Lewie, on 10/28/2007, -0/+3We all know reality has a liberal bias.
    • sjl127, on 10/28/2007, -1/+5This is right out of the ex soviet union - government control of the media to win the hearts of the masses. Do you still trust them? This government agency, and a bunch of others have fallen way short, BATF included. I don't believe for a minute Chertoff didn't know about this, and perhaps even ordered it. He's a sly one.
    • sjl127, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=7253
    • spacecoyote1966, on 10/28/2007, -3/+3They wanted to get busted. The Bush Admin and the neocons want agencies like FEMA to fail.
      The news conference was double-layered ruse. One, that it was fake, and two, that they got "caught." Its kinda like the episode of Seinfeld where George tries to get fired from the Yankess.
      Unfortunately, there are already people, even here on Digg, that are falling for the ruse and calling for FEMA to be abolished.
      • Bamborzled, on 10/28/2007, -0/+1That's an interesting theory. It's like a meta-conspiracy.
  • iching, on 10/29/2007, -6/+115When Bush spoke in New Orleans they put fake Palm trees in the background gave him electrical power to speak then cut the power after he left.
    • kineticarl, on 10/28/2007, -2/+26"Heck uva (snow) job, Brownie!"
    • arcticblue, on 10/28/2007, -3/+9Do you have a source for the fake palm trees? I did a quick Google search, but nothing came up.
      • drapelyk, on 10/28/2007, -0/+6You are right. I tried as well and found nothing... That would have been interesting...
    • nullity, on 10/29/2007, -0/+1I have a friend that was detained by the Secret Service for holding a sign at a Bush public speech that said "This grass is spray painted green". It was the truth, and further proof of how media and politicians distort reality.
  • krakdaddy, on 10/29/2007, -3/+175I like how elaborately staged lies are now "errors in judgment"...
    • PeppermintPig, on 10/28/2007, -1/+17Well, the error in judgment was that they thought they could get away with it... lol. It's sad.
    • GregR, on 10/27/2007, -0/+2FTA "She said the department was looking at the possibility of reprimanding those responsible."
      Translation: "We'll be promoting those guys to executive positions."
      • joot2112, on 10/28/2007, -0/+3more like translation: We'll find someone to blame to give a pretense of justice. We'll wave our hands around, and pardon them when no one's looking.
    • Bamont, on 11/08/2007, -2/+1They didn't *lie* about anything, get your facts straight. They DID pull some shady ***** - but didn't lie about anything. They called the AP and other media outlets, told them they were holding a news conference in 15 minutes. Obviously nobody could make it. Shady? Yes. Stupid? Yes. A lie? Not really. On top of which - nothing said in the conference itself was a lie. So please, continue on with your "this administration is fascist and we must destroy it!" routine - it's a well known attitude here on Digg that requires little evidence and even less reasoning ability.
      • haterofps3, on 10/28/2007, -0/+3The issue isn't what was said! It is what was not asked! They staged questions, they didn't let the press on the phones listening to the conference ask any questions. They didn't want anyone to see how incompetent they are. While I agree they didn't lie and I will also agree that while more and more diggers are reading the articles it doesn't translate that all the diggers understand what is being said.

        What they did is wrong as it bypasses the reporters who should be asking the unbiased questions.
        • Bamont, on 11/08/2007, -1/+1I wasn't arguing that what they said wasn't stupid. I also didn't say that how they went about doing it was smart, either (in fact, I said quite the opposite). The reality though, is that they didn't *do* anything wrong in terms of how the fires were addressed. They should have simply not held the press conference - but they apparently weren't smart enough to figure that out. However, there wasn't any question that could have been asked that would have been ground breaking. Simply because Diggers think otherwise isn't indicative of anything. It's a sad state of affairs for many on Digg who share the attitude of, "We don't read, we assume. And we're always right."

          Yeah, get over it.
  • MrMan42, on 10/28/2007, -4/+93This administration is so consumed with lies they couldn't find the truth with a map. Lying is just S.O.P. for them. It's their first choice. I am so disgusted.
    • DirtySnachez, on 11/01/2007, -1/+13Its a sign of respect for the people they govern.
      When will people start doing something, is it a matter of self-respect ?
  • jbur816, on 10/28/2007, -3/+75Wow, this amazingly corrupt administration can't even keep its lies undercover. It is falling apart.
    • GawtMilk, on 10/28/2007, -32/+1Amazingly corrupt? I'm glad that this is the kind of bench line we've got. America, according to a recent study, is the 9th least corrupt country in the world.
      • Baroja1898, on 10/28/2007, -1/+25You just keep believing that, you loyal Bushie.
      • Bdog2g2, on 10/28/2007, -1/+21The funding source of that study would be? The institution that performed the study? If you ask a university official in Lima, Peru if they're government is corrupt, they'll say no, not like it used to be. Ask a citizen, and they'll say, as bas as ever.
    • minoss, on 10/28/2007, -0/+2They can't keep a fake press conference from coming out yet somehow they faked a moon landing and orchestrated 9/11. This is the type of crap I remember every time i hear of some big conspiracy theory. Our government is inept. This includes at lying.
  • Caffeinate, on 10/28/2007, -2/+68Disgusting. More masterbatory, self-congratulating stunts to try and convince themselves and the American people that they have the faintest clue about how to do their job. Had this happened ten years ago, they would have all been out of a job and publicly castigated for such nonsense. These days, under this administration, a lie of this proportion barely even makes the news.
    • Bamont, on 11/08/2007, -2/+210 years ago you fired the Attorney that was investigating you. You hid the skeletons from your fund-raising scandals in Panama. In other words - it was acceptable because it was a democrat doing it. Too bad you're far too young to know what other administrations have done, this one just happens to be under the guise of the intraweb.
  • iching, on 10/29/2007, -6/+62Back in the USSR

    I'm back in the USSR
    You don't know how lucky you are, boy
    Back in the USSR, yeah

    Been away so long I hardly knew the place
    Gee, it's good to be back home
    Leave it till tomorrow to unpack my case
    Honey disconnect the phone
    I'm back in the USSR
    You don't know how lucky you are, boy
    Back in the US
    Back in the US
    Back in the USSR
  • iching, on 10/29/2007, -2/+49I just heard the Dana Perrino tape and her Freudian slip she says that
    'the white house condones this'
    rather than' condemns this' you can catch it yourself on Crooks and Liars later.
    • GawtMilk, on 10/28/2007, -25/+3That's not a Freudian slip, that's just a mistake. The words are too similar to be classified as a Freudian slip.
      • izzie2, on 10/27/2007, -1/+9Yes,No,same thing.
      • StarlessKnight, on 10/28/2007, -1/+12Freudian slip
        –noun
        (in Freudian psychology) an inadvertent mistake in speech or writing that is thought to reveal a person's unconscious motives, wishes, or attitudes.
        Compare parapraxis.

        [Origin: 1950–55]
        Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
        Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

        * Definition fails to state "except in circumstances where the words are similar."
  • SirBarnes, on 10/28/2007, -20/+9that is a biggie...where the hell are diggers? oh wait...they've fallen asleep...oh no...they are awake...they are just digging up dumb stories like Britney Spears...stupid pictures...chain letters...duplicate stories...shame on you diggers! let me guess the conspiracy theorists were right...while they are throwing around nooses
  • backwoodsbob, on 10/28/2007, -1/+19The real bitch about this type of stunt, and all the others previous to it, is the example it sets.Monkey see,monkey do. They get away with it so easily, well then why don't we give it a try, says. oh ,Stephen Harper, our king of Canada; and everyone else in between. At least this time it was reported rather than being swept under the rug.
  • GuacamoleSan, on 10/28/2007, -20/+4Yeah, i posted a story about how princess diana spoke after the crash....no diggs. This place is filled with web developers. That stupid OinK thing is more important than war with Iran? i dont think so.
    • satanatnmtedu, on 10/28/2007, -2/+4Diana is dead. And, she said nothing important. Why do you think that story is remotely digg worthy? Certainly, many front page articles are crap, but so was the diana story.
    • Lythium, on 10/28/2007, -1/+3Dugg-down for being a complete non-sequitur.
  • sbgskl, on 10/29/2007, -2/+50Governments should be afraid of their people.
    • Bdog2g2, on 10/28/2007, -1/+5Keyword there..."should"
      • akula696969, on 10/28/2007, -0/+9When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty.
        Thomas Jefferson
    • Adamande, on 10/28/2007, -1/+9Why? We let them do pretty much anything they like anyway. My government is selling out our sovereignty to the corrupt politicians of the new European Empire (EU) and your government (I'll just go ahead and assume you're American) takes away your rights and wrecks your reputation and economy with illegal wars based on lies. And what do "we, the people" do on either side of the Atlantic? Nothing the governments need to be particularly afraid of, I would say.
    • ORBAT, on 10/28/2007, -7/+2Yes, I saw that movie too. Very profound of you.
    • spyd3rweb, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1They were afraid long ago, then they built Stealth Bombers, Nuclear Weapons, and UAV's. Now they're still afraid so they're installing CCTV cameras everywhere and insisting on wiretapping illegally.
  • REpler, on 10/28/2007, -2/+21An apology isn't enough - this isn't an "oops we're sorry" kind of thing. Why do they even THINK this is something they should do? Please write your senators and express your feelings. PLEASE. It only takes a minute.
    • pintomp3, on 10/28/2007, -0/+3it's "oops, we're sorry we got caught"
  • KnightMareInc, on 10/28/2007, -3/+35FEMA under Clinton worked
    FEMA under Bush and yeah you know.
    • fuzzynyanko, on 10/28/2007, -3/+1You should see FEMA right before an election.
    • JoeVet, on 10/28/2007, -3/+8Tell that to the Ron Paul supporters. They use the fact that Bush gutted FEMA which lead to failure during Katrina to argue that FEMA needs to be completely dismantled instead of completely overhauled and strengthened.
    • spyd3rweb, on 10/28/2007, -0/+13I'd like to point out that FEMA and the National Guard functioned very well during the floods of 1993 in Iowa, maybe some people have a different opinion, but the guard units were very nice, kind, helpful, and accepted help from local citizens to fill sandbags pass out water. Now they'd point guns at you and forcefully confiscate your guns, food, ammo, water, and tell you to shut up and move to some sports stadium.
  • lancert, on 10/28/2007, -2/+20Unfathomable. There needs to be many terminations/resignations on Monday morning.
  • dafragsta, on 10/29/2007, -2/+29"We're sorry for defrauding the people we work for."

    "Your fired... and charged with fraud."
    • Zonkzor, on 10/28/2007, -4/+8What exactly is a "fired" ?
      • dondara, on 10/28/2007, -2/+8Hey, grammar nazi, let it go.
        • uknowwhoibe, on 10/28/2007, -4/+1Hey, person-who-thinks-it's-ok-to-use-crappy-grammar-in-a-public-forum, YOU let it go.
        • dafragsta, on 10/28/2007, -0/+3Hey holier-than-thou person, I know it was "you're." I wasn't handing in a book report to be graded, and I typically have exceptional grammar, spelling, and somewhat adequate use of punctuation. I am not HAL 9000.

          You'll never effect my by using the wrong affect!

          Suck it Trebek.
      • andersan, on 10/28/2007, -0/+1Your an idiot.
    • ORBAT, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1American governmental organizations get punished for their *****-uppery in the parallel universe you seem to inhabit, but over here in the real world nothing will happen.
    • H0tKarl, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1They'll just be transferred to other agencies.
  • DirtySnachez, on 10/28/2007, -2/+36Go back to bed, America.
    Your Government is in control.

    /damn I miss Bill Hicks.
  • Bossy, on 10/28/2007, -2/+18You got two options: Take arms (be a rebel and kill any of those sob) or work hard to get someone with integrity elected into the oval office.
    • JoeVet, on 10/28/2007, -2/+1Is there some one with integrity running for office? Certainly not the Republicans or the Democrats. Has there been a new party come to light in the last few days that I missed? The answer is no. The best we can do is vote for the one that will hurt us the least. They have made politics a rich man's game. The game has to do with getting little people to vote and if they win then their side gets to fleece all the gold from all the people. They also get the power to control all the people. The notion of serving the people died a long time ago.
  • ScotchInBox, on 10/28/2007, -3/+19Un-*****-believable - they just don't get it! This has to be the most corrupt, inept, dumbest administration ever in power.
  • Waiting2awake, on 10/28/2007, -2/+11 It is truly sad, but honestly - what can you do about it? There are simply not enough people awake enough to put the pieces they see together. Many, because it hasn't directly hurt them, refuse to believe it is real. Even after this, what was clearly designed, will be forgiven as a "mistake". They are attempting to deceive Americans....

    They are lying to you - STILL!!

    But what can be done? What are you willing to do for it?
    • Hetman, on 10/27/2007, -4/+2The revolutionary speaks! My question is what do you plan to do. You sound like a politician yourself. You are asking other people to do what you should be doing. How about you get your ass off your pc and do something.
      • MrESaulved, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1Waiting2awake, like many others, is on your side Hetman, direct your anger where it belongs.
    • DirtySnachez, on 10/28/2007, -0/+10You need to strap on a pair, try and take your country back.. but I'll bet if you try you'll end up in Gitmo.
      Enjoying that feeling of freedom ?
      • MrESaulved, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1I'm not afraid of "gitmo". Even if I were afraid of reprisal by these thugs masquerading as a governing body, isn't that enough justification to boot them out of office? And if they do not go? I will force them out, me and countless others who think like me.
  • FISHLEGBOOTS, on 10/29/2007, -3/+15Canada never looked so good.
  • Frostman3D, on 10/28/2007, -0/+10I hope all the major media outlets cover this, because they generally don't. I don't trust the media anymore, I get my news online.
    • JoeVet, on 10/27/2007, -1/+3From what news source? Just because its on the internet doesn't make it any more credible. If you haven't noticed yet, all news emanates from a few corporate sources. True independent news reporting is dead in America.
      • Frostman3D, on 10/28/2007, -0/+3All media in the us pool from Reuters and the AP. We don't really have news anymore, just regurgitated talking points. Everybody runs the exact same stories.
  • KhanneaSuntzu, on 10/28/2007, -5/+34American flipping apathic losers. Lost case, a nation put to sleep, led to the slaughter, and only thing they do is blog about it, some halfhearted semi-ironic whining.
  • skews13, on 10/27/2007, -5/+8the only errors in judgement,were made by whoever voted for these clowns in the first place.
    your doing a heck of a job,american voting public.
  • InContrast, on 10/27/2007, -2/+5I guess they are getting ready for the 2008 election so they can keep their contracts. "Look, we care... See... We're addressing our flaws".
  • meltat373k, on 10/28/2007, -5/+26hmm... I guess after all Ron Paul isn't a fool for suggesting to get rid of fema
    • PeppermintPig, on 10/27/2007, -1/+4How far down the rabbit hole do we have to go before more people are able to appreciate this candidate?
  • tarzidil, on 10/28/2007, -1/+19Personally, I don’t accept their apology and I hope most Americans refuse as well. This behavior is unacceptable from a government agency. Someone needs to lose their job at the very LEAST.
    • pkfx, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1Most Americans probably don't even know about this.
    • spyd3rweb, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1They used to hang traitors or take em out back and shoot them. what happened to that?
      • Mexiglass, on 10/28/2007, -1/+1comparing this to treason is like comparing manslaughter to genocide. Misleading the public isn't treason and I say it isn't even as bad as people make it out to be.
  • cherish592, on 10/27/2007, -9/+4I don't get it. FEMA didn't ***** up anything-- mostly because they weren't even involved in relief efforts- volunteerism was up and working before FEMA arrived. If anything, they would have had a chance to hold a press conference where there wouldn't have been any tough questions anyways.

    Is there something that we don't know about??
    • nycmac247, on 10/27/2007, -0/+6Maybe the gov't should run the nightly news, Comrade?
  • cfuse, on 10/28/2007, -1/+12The shocking thing is that no one is shocked. What the hell is it going to take?
  • plr4ever, on 10/27/2007, -2/+2Why involve FEMA in anything. not just becuase they cannot do it, but just that it looks realllllly bad to the public if the president continues using a department that screws up most of everything.
    • JoeVet, on 10/27/2007, -0/+2FEMA is the last thing Bush has to worry about concerning his poor public reputation. The worst public support of any president doesn't happen because of one screwed up news conference.
  • stealthc, on 10/29/2007, -4/+10Abolish FEMA. Clearly they do more harm than good. If this was even an option for them, they are beyond redeeming.
    And don't you dare tell me they "helped" during Katrina.
    • JoeVet, on 10/29/2007, -1/+6Let those Californians burn! Let's just privatize national disasters and then only profitable places will be saved. Its easy to deny others help during a disaster. Its another thing to refuse help when your home with all your belongings have gone up in smoke. FEMAs failure during Katrina was due to its dismantling by the GOP. They actively tried to get rid of it during the formation of DHS and even went so far as to put in a figure head with no experience as chief. Katrina proved that such an organization is needed by showing the devastating effects when FEMA has been dismantled. Without a FEMA with real backing, more Katrina stories will happen.
  • CraigJ, on 10/27/2007, -5/+6FEMA is part of the Administration yes, but I seriously doubt anyone at the White House had anything to do with this. If you think this kind of ***** doesn't go on in every government you are kidding yourselves. I think Bush needs to go for various reasons, but this isn't connected IMO. This is just a very bad decision, probably made by the managers in the field when no one showed up to their party. Those people should be fired. Personally, I believe that all employees in the public sector should be held to a much higher standard than those in the private sector because they are paid with taxes and get incredible benefits at out expense. Unfortunately, a significant portion of people end up in public service because they can't cut it in the private sector.
    • JoeVet, on 10/27/2007, -2/+4Some people don't have any memory at all! Bush sponsors fake news stories. Even when the GAO says they are illegal propaganda, Bush endorsed them. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/artic ... Its idiots like you who fail to learn from the past that keep these corrupt people in office. WAKE UP!
      • CraigJ, on 10/27/2007, -1/+2Just because that has happened in the past does not make it the case here. Your position against Bush begins to lack credibility when you blame him for every little thing. Apparently you also suffer from a lack of reading comprehension.; I said in my OP that Bush needs to go, so, thanks for the idiot label. Right back at you, moron.
    • medalian1, on 11/16/2007, -0/+1Why do you feel the need to make excuses for your government? Do they make excuses for your mistakes? It's proven fact that our government has been involved with state sponsored terrorism. Don't worry, when the next "terrorist attack" happens and you turn on the TV and they tell you to report to FEMA for free water/food and are never heard from again, don't say we didn't try and warn you.
  • byrdgang, on 10/28/2007, -0/+4Does anyone have a video clip of this fake press conference?
    • medalian1, on 11/16/2007, -0/+1No reporters were allowed to film this, only listen in (audio only).
  • DumDumDog, on 10/27/2007, -1/+2So are they saying they are sorry they got caught?
  • pintomp3, on 10/27/2007, -0/+5what's more disgusting is that even if actual reporters were there, no one from the corporate media asks hard questions. they would have served up the same softballs.
  • dildoolielly, on 10/31/2007, -1/+6Apologies?! WTF does that mean?!!

    Gov't Agencies don't APOLOGIZE, they get sued, dismantled, and taxes hopefully go to actual effective branches of Gov't.

    "Apologies"? Yeah, maybe that works on Bush voters, but not on real Amercians.
  • JoeVet, on 10/27/2007, -3/+4Vote Ron Paul! He'll get rid of FEMA altogether. Of course your screwed if there is an emergency such as fires in California but its not our concern. As long as the fires don't cross state lines, the rest of the country should just let 'em fry. /s
    • 955701, on 10/31/2007, -0/+5Good point - and without needing to fund FEMA, state residents won't pay out as much money to the government. Then each individual state can determine it's own disaster profile (midwest tornadoes, gulf hurricanes, California earthquakes) and we won't have this effed up one-size-fits-all organization that has to be towed across the country before it can even begin sending in "officials" for "press conferences".

      There are state emergency agencies JoeVet - and their funding could go up if the fed's weren't hoarding cash then providing minimal support with it.
  • syroncoda, on 10/27/2007, -0/+2so were is the unbiased media? oh wait you have to hire them onto your workforce first right?
  • sparkleprincess, on 12/10/2007, -1/+2Really this is not surprising since its not the first time the administration has done something of this nature. What it is though is disgusting.

    "Federal investigators are scrutinizing television segments in which the Bush administration paid people to pose as journalists praising the benefits of the new Medicare law, which would be offered to help elderly Americans with the costs of their prescription medicines."
    http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0 ...

    "Fake news, fake reporter
    Why was a partisan hack, using an alias and with no journalism background, given repeated access to daily White House press briefings?"
    http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2005/02/10 ...
  • shubidubi, on 10/29/2007, -3/+0I wonder - is this article in favor of republicans or democrates...I saw it also on skewz (http://www.skewz.com/link/link_details/2140) and it seemed like it has a democrate twist
  • TruthWillWin, on 10/28/2007, -3/+3this is f*cking insane!! on top of everything else that is absolutely insane what the out of control government has done.
    Like almost non-stop executing false flag events and secret CIA coup d'etats to benefit the corporations who the elites own also.
  • GeauxLSU, on 10/28/2007, -3/+2IMO, it is silly to lay the blame on the chain of command ABOVE FEMA....The United States Coast Guard has the EXACT same chain of command above them as does FEMA, BUT they were the only agency (Fed, State or Local) that did their job during Katrina. Yep that's right a Federal agency under Homeland Security was rescuing people the night of the storm and for weeks afterwards.
    FEMA's problem isn't their chain of command above....It is their structure within the organization. A militaristic structure works in disaster situations, whereas a bureaucratic structure adds to the suffering.
    • Mexiglass, on 10/28/2007, -0/+1agreed but people don't like military structure because it is effective because it is harsh.
  • BuckCynnie, on 10/27/2007, -1/+4Are they going to apologize for this apparently fake apology?
  • sjl127, on 10/27/2007, -1/+2It just goes to show you, than when part of a gang with a lot of power, you get away with a lot.
  • aadyss, on 10/28/2007, -4/+3 I am constantly amazed by the liberal hatred of the Bush government but in essence their love of government itself. It must be the liberal thought process for total liberal control of government so no malfeasance could possibly creep into their grandiose design, since they are not hypocrites or other evil example of the human species. Perfection is their way, for no Democrat has ever been accused, arrested or convicted of any crime as the Republicans. They have never started a war or even been in office when the winds of war ever have blown across our fruited plains. I have to admit, that as a Conservative, I have failed miserably compared to the liberal. My apologies liberals, for you do hold the high ground of enlightenment, etc. I do want to live in the world governed by the liberal, so I too may wrap myself in the comfortable cloak of mediocrity.
  • spacecoyote1966, on 10/28/2007, -2/+3FEMA functioned quite well during the 90's. As JoeVet pointed out, the problems with FEMA today are due to the neocons attempt to undermine it. In fact, I bet this pseudo news conference was part of that attempt. Chertoff is deliberately making FEMA look bad in hopes that it will be completely abolished.
    • GeauxLSU, on 10/28/2007, -1/+1FEMA in the 90's didn't disasters the scale and scope of Katrina nor the 07 Cali fires. These duties need to be transfered to the Coast Guard. They have the aerial support and the boats...they just need the ground equipment.
      • Mexiglass, on 10/28/2007, -0/+1they often call in for support from the Coast Guard, the problem with having a permanent disaster response organization is that they are a waste of money until they are needed, so the government cuts funding because they are in debt but when there is a disaster people complain about how the government wasn't ready for a massive disaster.
        The problem lies with people, they don't want to pay a lot of taxes and they don't want the government in debt, but they do want the government to give them a lot of free services and they do want these services to be top quality. This is just not possible.

        Now you could improve things by Eliminating certain agencies such as FEMA and have US forest service/US GS monitor wildfires and natural disasters dealing with rocks, and the Coast Guard/NOAA deal with weather disasters and allow them to divert and share funding. The problem lies not with politicians for the most part but with the ignorance of the average american
  • solid12345, on 10/28/2007, -5/+1Funny how the wackos claim this government is incompetent yet they also say Bush did 9/11. You can't have it both ways, you can't say the administration is idiotic yet was able to orchestrate this mass hoax on us by attacking our own country.
    • MrESaulved, on 10/28/2007, -0/+3False dilemma: you fail at logic. You can say that both the administration is idiotic and that they did orchestrate the events on 9/11.

      In fact, you should.
      • Groovemaster, on 10/28/2007, -0/+2Exactly. If they were smart, they would have pulled 9/11 off without anyone noticing.

        As it is, a hell of a lot of people did notice. Everyone else is just in denial to the obvious.
  • 2Bnor2B, on 10/28/2007, -1/+4My jaw dropped when reading the White House statement. How quickly they forget Bush's the fake QA session with soldiers in Iraq.

    "It is not a practice that we would employ here at the White House," said Press Secretary Dana Perino, mentioning three times that it was an "error in judgment." "It's not something I would have condoned, and they, I'm sure, will not do it again."

    Posted in a related article at http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN263661 ...
  • adub666, on 10/27/2007, -0/+1what the ***** were they thinking? this just shows that incompetence is rampant! who the hell would think that they could pull such a stunt and get away with it? i mean, come on! it's clear that it would royally piss off the media, and they're well positioned to not only talk amongst themselves to determine that it was fake but also inform the entire world...

    come on guys... having half a ***** brain is is minimum requirement if you're going to try and be clever, sneaky or underhanded.

    moral of the story: if you're ***** stupid, don't try to cheat, otherwise people will see right through it and laugh at you.
  • matbot3i, on 10/27/2007, -0/+2Southern California didn't need the administration's help. Katrina victims did. Bush, his DHS and their FEMA have done nothing that I could witness outside of these PR ops, faked or otherwise.
    • Crazyloc, on 10/28/2007, -0/+1well we in southeren califrnia did need federal help, but you are right not to the EXTENT of the Katrina disaster but we STILL needed the adminsitatrions for national supplies and choppers and the guard to fight those fires.
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