It seemed like a slam-dunk. Time magazine did all the investigating: FEMA head Michael Brown lied REPEATEDLY on his resume. He did NOT have experience overseeing emergency services for the city of Edmond -- Brown was basically an INTERN and had no oversight of ANYONE. He also lied about being a college professor and garnering a top award for his work as a professor at the lowly Central State University -- Brown was only a STUDENT. Rather bizarrely, Brown also claims that for the past 22 years he has been a director of the nursing home in Edmond called Oklahoma Christian Home. No one there HAS EVER HEARD OF HIM. My God, how much more damning does it get? So I jsut watched the stories on the morning talk shows about what I assumed would be the final nail in the coffin for Brown.
So what do "Good Morning America" and "Today" do? They blow it. Diane Sawyer lets the Time reporter who broke the story give out the details. But instead of wrapping up with some natural comment, like "Gee, this raises serious questions about Brown's credibility," Sawyer says, as if the story is nitpicking, well what does all of this really mean anyway? She also quotes FEMA people who say Brown is "disappointed" in Time magazine. I'll bet he is.
The Today Show is FAR worse. Andrea Mitchell (who botches her live intro while stumbling over her own words) files a story that begins with Brown's lies on his resume -- facts that overwhelmingly contradict virtually every portion of his resume and most fundamentally undercut Brown's LONE CLAIM to any disaster relief experience. But Mitchell quickly makes this part of a larger story about who is to blame for the disaster and the response. Why? Why does a story about Brown's NUMEROUS LIES on his resume morph into a story about who is to blame for the incompetent response to Katrina? The White House couldn't have asked for a better clouding of the issue. Brown lies on his resume and "Today" cuts right to Mayor Nagin of New Orleans and criticizes him for not doing a better job. I'm sure he could have done a better job and frankly I could care less if the people of Louisiana throw out both Nagin and Gov. Blanco. But what the hell does that larger, complex story have to do with Brown lying repeatedly on his resume? Nothing. Talk about the blame game.
The capper? The Today Show repeats the lie that the White House is pushing about Gov. Blanco. Gov. Blanco declared a state of emergency on the Saturday before Hurricane Katrina struck. She sent an official request for government help that very day to President Bush (dated Sunday) and stated that the disaster was likely to be beyond the scope of city and state officials. Bush declared a state of emergency on Sunday and -- according to FEMA's own website -- they should take charge at that point. Period. The White House lied to the Washington Post and Newsweek, who repeated Bush's lie that the Governor didn't ask for help until after the storm -- even though any child with an internet connection can confirm it's not true. Both ran corrections. And what does "Today" say after shifting the story from Brown's lies to "the blame game?" NBC's Andrea Mitchell said this:
"Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco did ask for federal help the day the storm struck."No she didn't. She asked for federal help two days before the storm struck and Bush took responsibility by declaring it a federal state of emergency on Sunday. This is not a minor issue. How could "Today" possibly get the most basic facts on this story wrong? Do they know the storm hit on Monday? Do they know the levees broke on Monday and it was annonced to the world Monday at 2 p.m.?
"Today" needs to run a correction for swallowing the White House smear and getting it wrong. And "GMA" needs to realize that when the head of FEMA lies on his resume about the only minor, pathetic experience he claimed to have in emergency disaster relief, that serious questions need to be raised about Brown's qualifications and character.
