Typical of the Bush Administration. A bunch of deceivers. Trying to get a truthful response from these criminals is a feat in and of itself.

This came to me as a shock, but is this a new low for our government? Not really.

I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday..

White House scolded FEMA for fake news conference.

Dan Perino stated "that is our job and we do not appreciate the competition."

Dana Pirro's face makes me sick! Takes a real sleaze-o to me the spokesperson for the lying, disgusting, horrible, Bush admin.

Thats brilliant, how to turn lemonaid into lemons.

You idiots do a good job and pull this BS? Dumb, dumb, dumb.

Fraud! Why am I not surprised? This present administration is so corrupt it will never tell the truth. FEMA why did you have to lie once again? "Error in judgment"?…you think?

Here we go with Fema once again. When Hillary get elected they should clean house and put responsible people in there. These Republicans are shameless!

White House to FEMA: "You bad boy, you naughty bad boy."

Still doin' a great job, brownies!

OH, BIG SURPRISE!!! The Blame Game, again??? When will this administration take responsibility for anything?

"Hello, Mr. Kettle? You have a call from Mr. Pot on line one…"

therealist

I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday..

I'm surprised you actually try to excuse this. What is the difference, wouldn't both be biased in someway?

Frankly, this is an inexcusable problem and whom ever made this decision should be fired. As soon as our gov't stops allowing access to independent media, is when we stop becoming a representative democracy.

If Hillary gets elected, only expect more of the same. The only candidates offering real change are Obama and Edwards.

Again… we are dealing with a Republican administration, continuing the culture of corruption and deception.

Proof again why the people increasingly don't believe what the government says or claims that it does. These are offices of public trust. They are appointed to perform duties specified by law, not waste our money trying to look good. Whoever participated in this sham should be immediately and publicly dismissed from office.

"I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday"

And that's why you're posting your thoughts on someone else's website? Unless you work for CNN, therealist, you're a hypocrite.

And what about an unbiased reporter? Anyone can say they prefer an uncontaminated XYZ over a contaminated XYZ. Substitute anything for XYZ and the statement holds. Unless you're claiming all reporters are biased, you're just playing with words. And if you are indeed claiming all reporters are bias- well, you have no sense of proportion my friend.

Its bad for all of us when an agency that hashad problems in the past finally gets it right and the bashers are still so hard on them they feel the need to stack the deck rather then take the chance they will be quoted out of context or called liers and hacks straight to there faces. I am disapointed with fema's actions, but I am embaressed for the media's behavior in the way they cover stories like this. BLAME BLAME BLAME when does this crap stop

Fake reporters. We've heard this before.

Mistake, my ass. This entire administration has operated under lies and fabrication. This is no different.
This was planned crap, and shows how desperate Bush is to wipe out his earlier incompetence regarding Katrina - only, in typical right-wing fashion, with lies, not excellent action.

"I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday.."

I see. No bias from the government employee, hmm? Just believe whatever lies they tell you?

Geez, the brainwashed in this country are pathetic.

FEMA is a USA joke.

Nothing surprises me from this bunch of arrogant incompetents.

Homeland Security, my butt.

I worry about these fools more than any threat from outside the country.

This should be a national outrage. We know that our government lies to us, but to lie so baldly and so brazenly? Heads should roll.

Fire Vice Admiral Harvey Johnson!

FEMA response to the fires in CA where on all accounts good. Sorry Dem's. With that, it is not in FEMA's charter to hold News conferences that are not directly requested by the media or other Government Agencies. Making up a New conference is even worst. Those behind the staged news conference should be requested to resign…

I do find it interesting that the Main stream media did not request a new conference with FEMA. Could it be that the liberal biased Media did not want to report/inform the truth?

When will Americans stop allowing the government to get away with this type of stuff? A phony news conference is unbelievably stupid and who appoints the head of FEMA? VOTE!

Ok, now I want ALL OF YOU to go to your rooms for 1/2 hour!!!

In my opinion, including this story in the "Political Ticker" page, which traditionally carries tidbits about the '08 election campaign diminishes its significance. One would think that clear evidence of a government agency blatantly attempting to manipulate the media and public opinion would be considered more important than Hilary Cliniton's birthday party. Also, the constant updating of this page means the headline will disappear from CNN's main news webpage much more quickly than it should.

no "mal-intent." please, unless you prove to me the official who decided to do this is really really stupid (an IQ of 50?).

"I'm very happy with FEMA's response," Johnson said in reply to one query from an agency employee.

Are you kidding me? What in heck did FEMA do in response to this catastrophe? The Credit goes to California and the great Governor Arnold. Period. Just send money FEMA…and leave the planning and coordination to California…and every other state, for that matter.

That's the type of deceit I expect from our President, but FEMA?! Oh no!

It appears FEMA is confused about the concept of independent reporters. Staging a phony FEMA press conference is not something that's beneath the Bush administration. I do not buy that the White House knew nothing about this, it's just a convenient excuse because they've been outed. Once again, they believe appearance is more important that actual performance. If they felt confident that they we prepared for emergencies such as the wildfires, then what would they be trying to hide? This would be funny if it wasn't so tragic.

WHAT KIND OF CRAP IS GOING ON IN AMERICA?! I feel like I have been in the Matrix since 9/11. These people in the government all they LIE, CHEAT, KILL AND STEAL! And all they say is "Sorry about that" and nothing happens!

This is getting depressing. I have no faith in out government anymore.

While Mr. Chertoff's cronies were staging a fake press conference, our neighborhood church was baking dozens of cookies to be taken to the fire fighers on the line, neighbors were gathering toys and books for children displaced by the fire and other friends of ours were banding together to make dinner for an entire fire house. The citizens of San Diego County don't need grandstanders and its a shame that our President doesn't demand better.

Ah, yes, the old standby, "error in judgment." AKA, the last refuge of a scoundrel, or a blatant, premeditated attempt to deceive.

Umm .. the White House condemned this action? The same White House that did "press conferences" on military bases where the officers in the "audience" where given questions to ask?

To: "Therealist" -
Are you really that stupid. This is NEWS fool, reports report NEWS you anus.
WH Staffers are simply puppets on a string. Most reporters are as well, but there are a few with integrity still.

White House press secretary Dana Perino said it was not appropriate that the questions were posed by agency staffers instead of reporters. FEMA was responsible for the "error in judgment," she said, adding that the White House did not know about it beforehand and did not condone it.
Yeah I'm sure the Bush Admin is really outraged by this behavior, since they themselves have been caught on multiple occasions performing the exact same kinds of stunts. Yet another example of why this is the most dishonest administration in our country's history

Why did they not just call Fox, amounting to the same thing of course.

typical crap from the bushies. False news, false war, false elections

"I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday.."

Sit, boy, sit! Good doggie!

The director should be fired!

I heard those cots and blankets were top-notch.

Hey therealist –

What an outstanding idea you have, one that's bound to serve the public well. But why stop at staff members of governmental agencies posing questions to their bosses? Here are some other scenarios that are sure to produce the complete, unvarnished truth:

* Executives at a hospital accused of lax enforcement of its infection-control standards should answer questions only from its P.R. staff.

* Executives accused of portraying a false picture of their corporation's profits and insider trading and eviscerating their employees' pensions should answer questions only from its own ranks, starting at the vice-president level and above.

* Executives of a toy manufacturer accused of distributing toys with a defect that poses a fatal risk to children, but is determined too costly to remedy, should answer questions only from their secretaries.

You know, your idea is so brilliant that it's a shame that it's anonymous. So I urge you to write it to CNN with your full and actual name, so that you receive all the credit you deserve.

<bIt's interesting to note that the rhetoric Bush used in his speech in San Diego was almost word for word the same language (and poor grammar) including the same lame colloquialisms he used when he spoke in New Orleans two years ago.

IT'S ALL BUSH'S FAULT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FEMA has issued an apology, saying that they had an error in judgment when they were attempting to get out a lot of information to reporters, who were asking for answers to a variety of questions in regard to the wildfires in California," Perino said. "It's not something I would have condoned. And they — I'm sure — will not do it again."

Whoa– Perino may not condone it, but Bush did: didn't Bush & co. get caught doing just this when they rehearsed soldiers with questions to put to them? How Perino has the nerve to say this when Bush, etc. have been the role models for this type of lying, self-promoting "reporting" (must go in quotes as it is certainly not real journalism)is really mind-boggling. They must think we have no memory whatsoever. In addition, FEMA must really think people are brainless to accept their explanation.

I dare anyone to find ONE person who is surprised by this new revelation. By now we all know the way this administration works. It comes as no shock that they are manipulating Americans once again. I'm a little surprised it was laid bare so swiftly. But then again, I think we've all caught on to the "Bush Dog & Pony" show. I REALLY hope they show a picture of the Pres. looking incredulous at this SHOCKING "non-sanctioned" boo-boo- I get the biggest kick out of GW's incredulous look.

It’s interesting to point out that Bush used the almost the same speech (including poor grammar) and colloquialisms during his speech in San Diego as he did at his speech in New Orleans 2 years ago. Dust off the boloney and pitch it at ‘em again.

Oh, this is sad. Thought we got rid of the outright fake stuff. Remember how Bill Clinton used to fake cry. He stand just out of camera range (with a few exceptions - that's how we know) and when following an emotional speaker on a touching issue, he be standing there forcing himself to look sad - then start touching his eye with a lowered head as he approached the podium. Got caught doing it approaching Ron Brown's funeral also. Was laughing and joking it up, until he noticed he was on camera - down went the head, up came the back of the finger to the eye.

Heads should roll over this one - also

You know, I really don't care if FEMA officials are asking questions and responding to them. Almost any organization does this….it's called an online FAQ. But I want to know that these are employees asking this, not being misled into thinking that these are reporters.

This is exactly how NOT to call a press conference.

I held a news conference with myself where I asked myself if I was happy with the job I was doing. I told myself that I generally gave myself positive marks, but that there were areas where I could improve my performance. I had a followup question for myself, but I couldn't take it, because I had to write an article about my news conference to post on my MyFace webpage.

What were those questions again?

How many times has FEMA and other government agencies done this and NOT gotten caught? It sounds like it's show business as usual to me. You know, lie until you get caught, pretend "mistakes were made", say on TV how the bad thing you did was really good, pretend to apologize, fire somebody, and then charge ahead to the next item of government twisted fiction that plays with the lives of Americans as though we were toys, or pets perhaps. I am so done with the dog and pony show of these deceitful "actors" and "poseurs". Go ahead, make me an activist!

Attn: Gerald M, Toms River NJ

The FEMA component really amounts to zilch. They just hand out paper and collect paper. It's up to the Legislative branch, Executive branch and state goverment to come up with a few billion to fund the relief.

I bet they won't be in any hurry to fund opting to just pay lip service until after the election and beyond.

I prefer fake reporters asking scripted questions than real reporters asking scripted questions which occurred when Bush held his last "press conference" before the invasion of Iraq. The FEMA episode was silly, while the pre-invasion "presser" was tragic.

taking a bad practice to new lows. If you had to get out information, wouldn't a standard PressRelease have been faster, easier, less expensive, and honest.

The White House scolded FEMA because they got caught.

"It's not something I would have condoned. And they — I'm sure — will not do it again."

Is that supposed to make everything better? "Yeah, it won't happen again. We promise." WHATEVER. This kind of stuff is ridiculous. The administration is not real. Your government is not real.

I work for FEMA and I can tell you this "incident" pretty much sums up what I deal with on a daily basis. I'm embarrassed to tell anyone where I work or who I work for.

this really isn't that much different from those "town halls" the president seemed to love for a while.

the funny thing is that FEMA did a much better job this time and wouldn't have risked much by letting real reporters ask them questions.

This is not a mistake. It is fraud. What is the Bush White house's position on defrauding the public? We are now approaching George Orwell territory…or are we already there? If the heads of FEMA are so out of touch with reality that they don't know that faking a press conference is media fraud, then it is a sad day for America. If the press puts up with this, then they have bought into the lie. What's next Washington Rose warning the public to not question the executive branch, or suffer the consequences?

The press doesn't get much better marks as many news feeds carried it as news. I also wonder what else this administration has staged for our benefit.

thanks for reminding me again why I am voting for Ron Paul in 2008.

An official statement from FEMA read that they were "sowwy," and that they promise to never ever do that again. An additional representative has asked that we not stay mad forever and ever.

Another lack of leadership from people appointed by the USA's largest liability…"Bush Administration". But what's new right….at least Americans understand exactly what we can expect from the White House (which is actually bathed in "red" with war debt, and blood of humans)nothing but pass the blame, remember Brownie. What a joke this administration is.

A fake news conference? How could you tell?

Apparently saving their asses is more important than saving and helping people who really need to help. Wake up! The American people are not that stupid!

"The White House scolded the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Friday for staging a phony news conference…" Scolded? What's next, send them to their room without TV tonight? A real President would fire their butts. Instead, W'll probably say, "Great job, Brownie-nosers." This administration is bimbo-ing its way through history to the detriiment of both its own citizens and those abroad. Talk about phony!

Surprise, surprise. Wanna bet this goes on more often than you know. I can't wait to hear Rush Limpbone and Bill badcomplexion O'Liely and Adolf Coulter make excuses for this.
Anyhow, the people of CA deserve a huge amount of kudos for being so "cool" under such horrific conditions. I'd have Californian's watching my back anyday over people from most of the RED states. Isn't it ironic that "red state" was initially used as a term applied to self-described socialist states that are guided by Marxism. Or is it?

so what's new? standard neo-con protocol — just got nailed this time.

"I honestley believe that FEMA does a dedicated job. It's employees are very dedicated.It's a real shame that people just look at negative aspects."

HOLY ****, don't these people have any brains whatever? After their screwups around Katrina, they need to keep their noses clean.

Folks,
These people are designated by the elected officials of this country and represent you, America!
I am not shocked by the comments below only the fact that nobody will be called on the carpet or fired for this!
I guess its true that America has no morals or shame. I for one am appaled by it and the responce!

If you think is bad , wait until you see what the Bush administration is hiding from the flying public when it comes to air safety. There are not enough Air Traffic Controllers to keep our skies safe because of the mass retirements. Only after there is an air disaster will the truth come out.

How different FEMA's fake news conference different from Bush's fake press conferences? Nothing is different.

Both use softball questions, both are scripted, both are designed and choreographed to make their leaders look as if everything is they are doing a "heck of a job".

What about the health benefits from such massive fires? Dana?

Can anybody find out who steals Bush's suit jackets when he goes to a disaster area? How high he rolls up his sleeves is an indication of high bad the situation is.

In response "therealist" post of 3:45:

You are an idiot. I guess we should do away with news conferences and freedom of the press altogether and just get our information entirely from govt press releases, right?

I think you're looking for the FoxNews website…

Federeal Emergency Managment "FEMA" An agency to assist all the people (white, black, hispanic or any color, because we are human. Fema assist when received a Governor and Presidential declaration, we can't use our own pocket. Like Fema employee I'm really sorry about political status, JUST I KNOW THAT IN THE FIELD FEMA EMPLOYEES ARE THE BEST TO ASSIST IN A DISASTER.

I certainly don't condone what FEMA did in the way of "staging" a media event with their own employees instead of reporters, but because of the number of questions being asked I can see how they were trying to expedite the answers getting to the public ASAP. They are so afraid of being blamed again for slow response as they were in Katrina's aftermath.
I also think that certain media agencies and the Dems are trying to make this a political "football", as usual, with anything they can possibly
find that might put a bad light on our government agencies.

It can be safely assumed that these types of actions flow downward from the top- with the top obviously being the Bush administration. The task of repairing what the current administration has broken begins in approximately 55 weeks.

shows what a sham our media and democracy has really become.

Horrible. As a federal employee and victim of the recent fire, I'm embarrassed by FEMA's action. A low level employee will become the scapegoat on this one.

Gee thanks DC. Those of us having to work on the front lines and answer your phones are forced to work all weekend in 10 hour increments with no days off for your stupidity.

The White House scolded FEMA because they got caught.

Yeah, but this all seems way too dopey, even for Republicans. They couldn't have believed they'd get away with this.

I wonder if they are up to something ELSE while people/CNN concentrate on this.

What is so surprising about this tactic, the Bush administration has used it for years. It will not let anyone with a opposing viewpoint into many of their public engagements. They do not want to hear anyone's opinion but their own. I thought Karl Rove was gone, who's directing the show now?

You people are delusional if you think that it's a Republican government that lies. How quickly you forget how deceitful the last Democrat administration was.

Again the Bush administration is not attending to the real needs of the people but instead staging FAKE PROPAGANDA. CAN WE TRUST ANYONE IN THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION ANYMORE? The answer is obviously no. He needs to be impeached right now and his staff needs to leave with him,

So I'm wondering, has the White House changed its position regarding the photo op in which Bush delivered a faux Thanksgiving turkey to troops in Iraq?

This just in from the White House Press Office:

We're winning in Iraq and the troops will be home by Christmas.

Dana Perino, aren't you getting pretty darned tired of wiping all those Republiclown arses by now? What a crock!!

you people dont really know what is going on, on the political issue, since everybody is only there not to resolve the problems with the world is to stole the money from the world, so far in my hold life i have not see anyone that work with the hard to help the people and work for the people only for themselves, cause when a disaster happend fema ( a federal agency ) can do anything until the president of the united stated declared as a state of emergency, so dont think that the decision is comming from someone else is only from the f…. president.

How difficult IS it to call a press conference? Particularly for a federal agency that should have experience with press conference?

This is beyond really lame. And these guys are supposed to be in charge during a disaster or martial law?

More of the same with these republicans. When will America wake up…hopefully before it is too late.

HECK OF A JOB, FEMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What country is this? Fake reporters asking soft questions. Sounds like Cuba or Iran.
This is the largest disgrace the Bush Administration has brought to this country since the war in Iraq. All involved in this lie should be fired NOW.

"Intelligence gathered by this and other governments leaves no doubt that the Iraq regime continues to possess and conceal some of the most lethal weapons ever devised."
George Bush 2003

Yeah! Right! The White House condemns FEMA for doing what the White House TOLD them to do! Better get your waders on! It's getting so deep we're all in danger of drowning!

And some people wonder why a great many Americans DISTRUST government! And it will follow that nothing serious will happen to FEMA management for this gross deceit.

"It's really unfair to label FEMA as irresposible without knowing how they have assisted disaster victims throughout the years. Let's go back to 09/11/01 for instance. Those that do nothing but critizising should ask people in The Big Apple if Fema was not there for them. You should ask a victim of the Sunshine state if they weren't supported during hurricanes Charles, Frances, and Ivan. Hop on a plane and go to Puerto Rico and see if they were not helped during tropical deppression Jeannette. While you're there in the airport, take a flight to the American Samoa islands and see for youyrself that FEMA has been there for the needy. Now, as for hurricane Katrina and Rita, even when the response could have been considered late, but as you read this comment, victims of those catastrophies continue to get assistance from , yours truly, FEMA. As for the recent California fires, the local goverment has acted upon it decisive and assertively but so has FEMA.
I encourage those that employee there time just highlighting an agency's mistakes, while just looking from the outside as fanatics who just see from a distance, to open there eyes and contemplate the efforts of the personnel whose hearts go out for their reason of being, the victims.

I am not surprised, this administration will stoop this low.

Maybe they could print a transcript of the "news conference" and sell it for 2.1 million and give the money to the victims ???

This whole government is a fraud run by criminals. I despise what my country has become - corrupt, cheap, and devoid of any integrity. No one seems to care, and the ones who do and are capable of stopping this administration have been co-opted, bought off, or bullied into silence. It's despicable and sickening.

Not shocking. Bush has been faking a presidency for almost 8 years now. No one does anything about anything…we just sit here and chat about it. Let's sit here and wait like a frog in some nice warm water…

What a total disgrace. I remember Nixon lost his office over one of these kinds of shenanigans, but this administration does crap like this every day of the week, and they're still in office? And Hannity, Limbaugh, O'Reilly et.al. are still piping away! What has become of this once great country??

Wasn't Cindy Taylor the one sending emails to Mike Brown during Katrina about his clothing choices? Hmmmm, seems some of them were there and in charge of that debacle too!

No different than the "5 O'Clock Follies" that comes out of the Pentagon or by satellite link from the Brass in Iraq. The whole bunch thinks that FOIA means "Forward Only Information Approved".

Just another example of how this administration has no confidence from the nation.

If FEMA supposedly didn't have such an important job this would be a joke. Unfortunatly, reality causes FEMA's last antics to be anything but funny.
Let's take the money that FEMA is wasting and come up with a way to privatize disaster response, as this is just more proof that about the only thing our goverment is doing right any more is …???

President George W. Bush is ultimately accountable for every human being in his administration. He should have put in the honest and experienced inspectors generals to ensure his regime was transparent and punished those who violated the law or exercised poor judgment and management skills. Unfortunately, George W. is so inept he is incapable of governing. The whole world knows it and laughs at Americans for choosing such a man of limited intellect to be our President. The FEMA incident is totally Orwellian in its dimensions. This newscast was brought to you by the Ministry of Truth masquerading as a Free Press guaranteed to Americans under the Constitution. It is very sad, indeed. Whether they spoke factually or not has no bearing upon how their conduct should be viewed. They have lied and deceived the American people into believing they were other than who, in fact they were. These people have subverted the Constitution and should be tried for treason.

Will anybody ever be fired for incredibly bad decision making?
Didn't these numbskulls run for office espousing accountability. They're spoiled children.

Politisize a department of our government, drive out the professionals, demote it from a cabinet level position and this is what you get. What did you expext from an illegitimate, failed administration? Competency? Honesty?
Regard for the American people? Guess again. Look no further than this example.

it is a shame to allow such actiions to continue but what caan one expect all that happens is that their hands get slapped and if they are fired they get another gov job with a big raise, FEMA IS A JOKE. EVERY THING THEY DO IS A JOKE.

Is ANYONE surprised? You people keep voting for the liars and crooks and then are amazed that they act like liars and crooks.

FEMA could have issued a "fact-filled" PR release and that would have provided the answers to the press.

I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday..

Posted By therealist : October 26, 2007 3:45 pm

LOL…you're kidding me right…..and you think those agency staffers are not biased?…..nice try realist…LOL

Bush, if he had any decency at all, would fire everyone at Homeland Security/FEMA starting with Michael (the human X-ray) Chertoff and go right down the line until there was no one left but the janitor.

This is total BS - A federal agency - Homeland Security no less - staging a news conference solely for the purpose of deceiving the American public.

And thank you George Bush and your sleazy minions, for destroying what little faith I had left in my government.

Republicans have no shame or sense of decency. They will get their collective asses handed to them on a silver platter next November.

at first i was stunned by this, but then i realized it's really no different than a multimedia FAQ. our company just announced layoffs, and they circulated a bunch of questions they formulated that they answered themselves. no one was offended by that. did this filmed Q and A session deceive people? were the questioners labeled as "Mary Jones, New York Times"? if so that's deceptive. otherwise, it's just information dissemination.

I'm a Republican - and I agree - this is poor management - and this should be followed by a swift firing…of anyone involved…

This undermines the freedom of the press. People need to be fired and held accountable for this!

The White House is scolding Fema?

How low can this White House go? Lower than 24%?

This is another case of Armstrong Williams! They got caught faster this time, didn't they?

What is so surprising about this tactic, the Bush administration has used it for years. It will not let anyone with a opposing viewpoint into many of their public engagements. They do not want to hear anyone's opinion but their own. I thought Karl Rove was gone, who's directing the show now?

Yeah, maybe you're right. This does seem to fall in line with their previous "put the boot on democracy's throat before it speaks" sort of actions.

I assume this has never happened under previous administration.

SO now FEMA is comprised of fools AND LIARS. And will the president fire those responsible and in charge? LOL
The excuse is as lame as the original news conference fraud is stupid. Most agencies who want to get out information make a statement before answering questions.

Haha! That's hilarious in a tragic kind of way. The government already has complete control of the mainstream media so why not just cut out the middleman.

After all their talk of values and keeping government out of our lives, who would have ever thought that it would be the Democrats who created the smallest government in modern history under Clinton / Gore and Republicans who create a government full of liars and criminals that spend every chance they get, build massive walls (remember when they tore walls down?), and use every tactic they can to push government interference and control in our lives. Fascinating collapse for a once proud party that actually stood for something.

How low can we sink as a country. Why do we have to exploit the things that happened for political gain? My heart goes out to those who have suffered in Ca. Why put the Governor of La. in the cross hairs over the tragedy of Ca? Shame on FEMA.

Seriously - at what point do we take our government back from these incompetent, lying thugs? It's outrageous. They shouldn't just be impeached. They should be imprisoned. As we learned during the Clinton lynching, lying under oath is a federal offense, and when Bush took office he took an oath for the entire time he was here.

Must have been the same group that told Dubya that Saddam Hussein was getting enriched uranium from Niger.

Way to go, Dubya. Dem Republicans will be the downfall of America yet!!

I'm repeatedly amazed as to the depths of dishonesty this administration seeks day after day. How is it that we allow them to stay in power? Is there any law or moral code they have not broken?

Yet another wake up call for the American public. The few people here leaving comments defending this kind of activity are ignorant and don't deserve the freedoms they take for granted yet enjoy every day.

Is this the new, improved FEEMA that dual citizen Micheal Chertoff left us when to departed to run DHS? Wow–what an improvement, thanks Mike! Learned a lot from Katrina we see…

Yet another exposure of the complete and utter disregard our higher level "public servants" have for the American people at large.

Everyone, left and right, Dem and Repub and everywhere in between, had BETTER start waking up.

You'd better start turning off the cable news and reading, doing your own research. You'd better start finding out what double-think means, what neo-feudalism is. You'd better start looking into the reasons Lou Dobbs–one of the few honest men left on this network–claims there is a war being waged on the middle class right now.

You'd better start understanding why the network that employs him routinely delets ticker comments they don't approve of while leaving bigotry and hatred unmolested.

Only an educated and informed public can save our republic right now. The Founding Fathers gave it to us couched with the statement "…IF WE CAN KEEP IT!"

There really isn't an argument to this. Not even a side. This is what happens when you have idiots who think like it's 1807 running the country in 2007. I'm surprised they even knew how to plug in their microphones. It's still a shocker. but honestly…It's not. What's next?

and you liberals want the federal government to take over everyone's health care?! I dont think that's such a good idea!

"I would prefer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday"

Apparently 'therealist' does not understand the concept of journalism. You cannot possibly find more biasness than in the source itself (FEMA). To willingly take FEMA's word for it without no investigation or inquiries is foolish, ignorant, and undemocratic. We have witnessed before what FEMA is (in)capable of doing; more than ever do we need genuine journalists to seek the facts.

Is anyone really surprised? Look who is in the White House and then answer that question.

So what did the apology say, "Oops, we're sorry." Or "there was an error in judgement," "mistakes were made," or some other not so clever use of passive voice to be sure than no one had to be accountable for the mistake ad the poor judgement.

An old drunk who was also somewhat wise once told me that I should never account to malice that which could be sufficiently attributed to simple stupidity. These days, I'm not so sure there's any malice left anywhere.

They just took a page from Rumsfeld's playbook "The One Minute Secretary of Fraud."

Typical of the Bush Administation to fool the american public and guide their agenda their way so as to decieve the congress and the people of our country.

Why am I unsurprised by this revelation?

DISSOLVE FEMA! They are worthless low-life's that offer no real help to communities in need.

Calling them liars is being too nice.

Well, if they had allowed real questions at the "press conference" someone might have asked why the Bushies caused so much havoc here positioning Junior for a photo op, i.e., "take credit for something he had nothing to do with" - the reason we did so well here in San Diego is we learned from Katrina and didn't count on FEMA for anything essential. Firefighters had to wait for hours to get a meal because Bush was in the way getting his picture taken - it was just WRONG!!!

Yet another wake up call for the American public. The few people here leaving comments defending this kind of activity are ignorant and don't deserve the freedoms they take for granted yet enjoy every day..

Is this the new, improved FEEMA that dual citizen Micheal Chertoff left us when to departed to run DHS? Wow–what an improvement, thanks Mike! Learned a lot from Katrina we see…

Yet another exposure of the complete and utter disregard our higher level "public servants" have for the American people at large.

Everyone, left and right, Dem and Repub and everywhere in between, had BETTER start waking up to the fact that this sort of "fake news" is practically SOP nowadays.

Only an educated and informed public can save our republic right now. The Founding Fathers gave it to us couched with the statement "…IF WE CAN KEEP IT!"

The quicker we can get Shrubya Bush & his incompetent cronies out of Washington, the better off this country will be. This administration has been such an embarassment. No leadership and plenty of cheap talk.

therealist posted this message:
"I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday.."

What an idiot! You can't get more biased than if you work for the organization that is being questioned!

And our government says they will "scold" FEMA for this?!?!?! They are all in this together.

WE NEED TO START OVER! I AM EMBARRASSED TO BE A CITIZEN UNDER THIS GOVERNMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

RISE UP PEOPLE! EDUCATE YOURSELF TO WHATS REALLY HAPPENING!

Part of the fake show was carried on Fox and MSNBC. Have they apologized yet?

I am just outraged that FEMA would host a fake news conference and have FEMA employees pose as reporters to ask favorable questions in a attempt to mislead the US public.

This was a well thought out scam at the highest levels of the US Government to trick the nation into believing that they were doing their job properly when they obviously were not.

Nothing this bunch of lying, fascist warmongers surprises me anymore. Just wait until the morning you all wake up and find out we've bombed Iran.
I think what surprises me more, week after week, is there are still so many people that truly believe in the Bush regime.

the government has never told the entire truth about anything…never did…never will…they do seem to get caught in lies alot though..sick

Yet another wake up call for the American public. The few people here leaving comments defending this kind of activity are ignorant and don't deserve the freedoms they take for granted yet enjoy every day..

Is this the new, improved FEEMA that dual citizen Micheal Chertoff left us when to departed to run DHS? Wow–what an improvement, thanks Mike! Learned a lot from Katrina we see…

Yet another exposure of the complete and utter disregard our higher level "public servants" have for the American people at large.

This is a great example of why big government is bad.

Ron Paul 2008!

"Our intent was to provide useful information and be responsive to the many questions we have received"

Great, the folks at FEMA can not even lie well…..

Enough is enough. This fraud of a government needs to come to an end sooner then later.

They had to do that.It took 3 days to get it through to Bush that there were real fires and that they were in California and not just the poor in the Gulf coast.

It wasn't until the Governator called and told him it wasn't one of his movies he'd been watching but the news did Bush finally utter those immortal words "Crap,tell Fema to tell them something until I can look Presidential and why didn't somebody tell me I was watching the news?You know I never watch the news!My two rich friends live in the vicinity of California.I was just talking to them during that hurricane party I was at a couple years back!".

'Nuff said!

Just how low can an administration go to demonstrate their lack of intelligence?

Always from the top down. I have worked for the Federal Government for over 3 decades, and in every case the mid-level politicos take their cues from the top down. If the President and his aides did not set this type of tone and establish a climate in which deceit was the rule of the day, the mid-level politicos would never think they could get away with such a stunt. Always from the top down.

Why is this a shock to anyone, we are talking about the Bush adminisration!

The Federal Government calling FEMA on their fake press conference and lying to the American people? Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black?
Posted by Watchman

Just when you think you've heard it all, now this deception/fraud. Everyone who participated in the farce should be fired. There are too many good people out there looking for work to put up with this nonsense. It was a poorly scheduled press conference to begin with. The ineptness is beyond comprehension from a government office who should have the best of the best working for us.

Yet another wake up call for the American public. The few people here leaving comments defending this kind of activity are ignorant and don't deserve the freedoms they take for granted yet enjoy every day..

Is this the new, improved FEEMA that dual citizen Micheal Chertoff left us when to departed to run DHS? Wow–what an improvement, thanks Mike! Learned a lot from Katrina we see…

Yet another exposure of the complete and utter disregard our higher level "public servants" have for the American people at large.

Only an educated and informed public can save our republic right now. The Founding Fathers gave it to us couched with the statement "…IF WE CAN KEEP IT!"

therealist

I would perfer an agency staffer asking the questions over a biased reporter seeking to make news, anyday..

It just gets weirder, and dumber, and weirder, and dumber……

Incompitanance is the BUSH legacy.Pay up!

Why has CNN, like the rest of the media, buried this story as if it is just business as usual? This happened several days ago and it only now beginning to surface. This country has basically decided to roll over and play dead — how can this administration be given so much power without any checks? What has this country become? Certainly not what the founding fathers had in mind, I'm sure.

FEMA…FEMA…FEMA…can you guys EVER do anything with a semblance of integrity??? Guess you don't have much to pattern yourselves after (Bush administration).

What a disgraceful, distasteful organization. It makes me feel like we're living in Orwell's 1984 world. How dare they decieve us. There are people out there fighting this fire with their lives…with little if any sleep and little if any food! There are people who are homeless because of these fires and people who have died. And these bureaucratic morons hold a fake press conference. FIRE THEM ALL! What is wrong with FEMA…they're a complete and utter joke.

"An error in judgment'? Harrump! Anybody and everybody who had anything to do with this scam should be summarily fired. No "thinking about it." No suggesting that the bad kiddies "will never do it again."
Faking a news conference is outrageously unprofessional in any context. The disaster management team is once again an embarrassing disaster.

If you're incapable of making wise decisions, like shilling your audience, you should not be in charge of making life and death choices, um, like running FEMA. Three star officers are not dummies, I know a few of them. That makes this all the more shocking. FEMA didn't do a lot here in San Diego, thus the DC press conference. Fine. But they are stepping up here now, and thanks for that.

There is a deeper issue here than simple Orwell comparisons– although they are completely valid. Our federal emergency services are hobbling around on broken legs, unable to face any scrutiny. The Bush administration/war machine has diverted the funding and staffing that essential organizations such as this rely on to function even at basic levels. The question is, will the Bush administration use this debacle as an excuse to put FEMA out of its misery? And what consequences will that hold in the future as these ecological disasters seemingly become more frequent?

Isn't this the same Bush administration that hand picks it's audience when Bush goes out to speak to the people? Isn't this the same Bush administration that was paying reporters to report favorably on their policy? Isn't this the same Bush administration that had "news reports" on the war that were actually created by the US government and then distributed to the media as independent news? Why would anyone be surprised to see this out of FEMA. FEMA is just following the game plan laid out at the highest levels.

I guess they can't blame "Brownie" for this deceitful act. This was no arror in judgement. If you believe that, then you believe in Santa Claus and Gen. Patraeus

Frankly I'm quite surprised that the White House "scolded FEMA" for staging a phony news conference… this White House has specialized in staged and scripted news "events" an photo ops for years now.

When they haven't been able to control the questions, they have simply BOUGHT the coverage they wanted.

So management is considering whether punishment is necessary, eh? Actually, and unsurprisingly considering that they are neocon criminals, they're considering whether they can get away without administering punishment to anyone. I mean, ze were chust doing zere chobs, nicht wahr? Reichsminister Goebbels would be so proud… In fact, they're probably scheduling a ceremony right at this very instant so that they can pin medals on these politburo propagandists. It's a newly-created citation, specifically for FEMA political hacks - the Brownie!

If FEMA messed up I think they owe the voters in the United States a real news conference to let the voters know how much or how little they (FEMA) are doing.

What the hell is this about? I just stumbled upon this article? Are you telling me that in The United States of America we actually have a government that fakes news broadcasts and puts up phony reporters to softball questions in the midst of a national disaster?

What the hell has happened to my country? Where has honest, integrity, hard work, and our rights disapeared to?

Shame on George Bush, shame on FEMA, shame on all of us for allowing this to go on unchecked.

Obama 08. At least there's one guy that is telling it like it is and he's been doing it since 2002 when he said Iraq was a dumb war.

Get some honesty back in government, elect Obama for some real change to sweep these bums out.

This is unexcusable. What the heck is going on over there? Beware any FEMA relief checks, they may be fake too!

This is just one more example of the incompetence that continues to plague our nation's capital nowadays.
In times when gov't should be doing its best to regain the trust of the people, they continue their elitist games counting on the naivete of the people. This is the best government we can muster. It is also the one we deserve.

Why should we expect anything different? after the katrina episode FEMA has to justify it's existance. this administration is built on deceit and false reporting.

This is what is referred to as "aggravated stupidity."

I'm sure there must be a law on the books somewhere that we could use to prosecute employees of FEMA for just being stupid. Somebody call the county sheriff in Tabiona, Utah.

Hey Jessie … hahah… Obama being more honest then Clinton … in your dreams … eh has an ego like georgie … I'm right … I'm right, I'm always right!!

As for perino … another lying mouthpiece for this sleazy administration … can't you see georgie & dickie putting their heads together on this one …Let's set up a fake FEMA news conference and call CNN ! Laughs on