FEMA is no longer lying to reporters

Noeone · 10-30-2007, 04:53 AM

It looks like FEMA has stopped lying and yes even talking to the press. In response to
the state of California catching fire again FEMA has released a fake press
conference. looks like they don't hate black people, they just don't want to get off their
asses and think.

"I Should Have Cancelled" Fake FEMA Press Briefing - Primary Source

Quote:

John "Pat" Philbin, the now former director of external affairs for FEMA, told
CBS News that he should have stopped the press conference that the agency held
last week without any media present.

“I should have cancelled it quickly. I did not have good situational awareness of
what was happening,” he told CBS News in a telephone interview.

Philbin himself was heard off-camera asking Vice Admiral Harvey Johnson, his
boss, a question. He now says he feels terrible about what happened adding that
the FEMA press office was under considerable pressure to get information on the
California fires out to the press and was working on little sleep.

“I can definitively tell you that there were no discussions or conversations about
setting up a fake news conference.”

Philbin said that Adm. Johnson, the second-in-command at the agency, did not
realize it was FEMA staffers and not reporters who were asking questions, despite
the fact that Johnson called on members of the FEMA staff by name during the
press conference.

“I am not aware that he knew what was happening and all of sudden staff were
asking questions,” Philbin said. “When the staff began asking questions I should
have intervened and I didn’t.”

He said he was told by staff members that the announcement to reporters about
the last-minute press event had gone out early enough for the media to get to the
FEMA headquarters.

FEMA staffers announced the briefing just fifteen minutes before it was set to start,
not enough time for more than a camera crew to get to the event, which was
broadcast on cable channels.

DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff has called for disciplinary action for the fake news
event, which was held last Tuesday at the height of the California fires. But
Philbin’s departure from FEMA is not related to any disciplinary action within DHS.

Philbin had long-standing plans to retire last Friday and begin a new position today
at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. But the ODNI is distancing itself
from Philbin and said in a statement today, “We do not normally comment on
personnel matters. However, we can confirm that Mr. Philbin is not, nor is he
scheduled to be, the Director of Public Affairs for the Office of the Director of
National Intelligence."

Asked what’s next for him, Philbin said, “I have lots of experience, I know how the
government works. I have credentials in government and academia and I am
looking at my options.”

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