Posted on 09/09/2005 6:43:18 PM PDT by PhilipFreneau
An September 9, 2005 article by Patty Miller and Lisa Shearer of the Edmond Sun, a newspaper in Mike Brown's old home-town, contained the following:
Claudia Deakins, Edmond's director of marketing and public relations, was quoted in the Time article as saying that Brown was not a manager but more like an intern. Brown was assistant to the city manager in Edmond from 1977-80.
However, this morning, Deakins disputes Time's quotes attributed to her.
"I spoke with two reporters from Time Magazine Thursday. I answered questions about the City of Edmond, the organizational structure and role of the city manager and his staff. My comments were in the context of the organization as it functions today. I explained that my employment with the city of Edmond began in 1997, several years after Michael D. Brown's employment by the city and that I could not speak to the specifics of the organizational structure as it was during that time. I also explained that I could not I speak to the details of Mr. Brown's role within the organization.
"The only people who can speak with authority with regard to Mr. Brown's position in the organization are those who were at the City of Edmond during that time and worked with Mr. Brown, such as the city manager or members of the city council."
"I regret any misunderstanding that may have occurred as a result of my comments."
But Time was specific:
". . . according to Claudia Deakins, head of public relations for the city of Edmond, Brown was an "assistant to the city manager" from 1977 to 1980, not a manager himself, and had no authority over other employees."
Now this from the Edmond Sun...
A press release issued by the White House in 2001 when Brown was nominated to FEMA deputy director states that Brown worked "overseeing the emergency services divisions" at Edmond. While media reports question the veracity of that statement, a former Edmond mayor and City Councilman does recall Brown helping the city in emergency management.
"I recall having Mike Brown as a student in three or four of my classes while I was teaching at UCO (University of Central Oklahoma)," said Carl Reherman, former member of the City Council (from 1978-89) and now mayor of Chandler.
"I remember that he spent time in City Hall working with Dallas Graham who was then the City Manager and is now deceased," he added.
"I also recall that he worked on the remodeling of the basement of the old post office when City Hall moved to their new location," Reherman said.
"He also worked with Emergency Training exercise and was part of the EOC group. I remember that because of my interest in that."
But Time Magazine reported:
Brown did do a good job at his humble position, however, according to his boss. "Yes. Mike Brown worked for me. He was my administrative assistant. He was a student at Central State University," recalls former city manager Bill Dashner. "Mike used to handle a lot of details. Every now and again I'd ask him to write me a speech. He was very loyal. He was always on time. He always had on a suit and a starched white shirt."
In response, Nicol Andrews, deputy strategic director in FEMA's office of public affairs, insists that while Brown began as an intern, he became an "assistant city manager" with a distinguished record of service. "According to Mike Brown," she says, "a large portion [of the points raised by TIME] is very inaccurate."
This calls into question the accuracy of Time's report. If Time misreports the statement by a former Edmund city employee (Ms. Deakins), and reports only a part of Brown's work with the City of Edmund -- the part when he was a student -- in an obvious attempt to present him as little more than an office boy, it would be prudent to question the accuracy of the entire report.
Brown is probably not the last such case that can be found there. Everybody else hired with him probably ought to be investigated throughly ~ as should the person who hired him!
Somewhere between the reporting and the editing, something always gets lost in the translation.
I'm just pleasantly surprised that he isn't a Muslim and a member of CAIR...about what I'd expect from FEMA and 'homeland security.'
I think all of this (Brown's resume) is much ado about nothing. He is probably a competent guy, but Katrina needed much more than competent. It needs a one in a million type person. So that rules out all Dims. Bush appointed Vice Admiral Allen.
Reid, Schumer, Pelosi, Dean, no matter what there resumes say, aren't competent enought to wipe my crack. Seriously.
I wasn't aware that Brown had a phony degree...
Now, is his degree phoney? I suspect someone is looking at that ~ probably even know the guy doing the research ~ and if there were the slightest question about any degree he had, or award he claimed, they'd pull the plug on this guy so fast...... well, anyway, it would look like it did.
Then again, maybe he's Mr. Clean Jeans, but he's working in an agency with a bad record in regard to honest resumes.
Since when did Time Magazine ever let the facts stand in the way of a good Republican-bashing story. The National Enquirer has more credibility.
Well, what's the explanation for the church board claim?
Anyway, a lot of what Brown did that was bad p.r. He was talking about reconstruction when people watched the Superdome horror. And throughout his talks he gave the impression that FEMA was "in charge" and would do great, etc. etc.
True, FEMA wasn't much responsible for "first responder" evacuations. He never talked about FEMA "in cooperation with local and state" authorities, and segregating duties. I think the Superdome evacuation failure had more to do with state than FEMA and local authorities. But watching Brown give the impression FEMA was doing everything, one would get the impression failures had to be FEMA's fault.
Today I was in the barbershop. The talk was FEMA was the fault.
And Bush p.r. people have handled this as bad as they handled Joe Wilson - pushing Tenet to take the fall for a story that wasn't as bad as portrayed - if they waited it out.
Brown going out today solidified the supposition of Federal fault.
I think the emergency plans didn't take into account civil strife and bureaucracy. The lack of evacuation plans for the poorest of the poor and the homeless is not a good criticism because, grimly, no city will ever dedicate sufficient sources. I doubt Boston, NY, any major city has such a plan.
Next disaster - first responders need to include immediate show of force. Effect - cities will be more peaceable, critics will say not enough spent on search and civilian support. Can't win ever...
If he provided false information, he could be in some serious trouble.
Doesn't bother me a bit to see folks with phoney resumes get prosecuted.
yup. I remember Time reporting a wildly cheering student audience for Gary Hart at my university - he had 15 students cheering while 800 sat there p.o'd because the great man was an hour late and giving a shallow canned speech with pauses for cheers. Which the 15 obliged.
It is my understanding that Brown did an excellent job throughout Hurricane Ivan and other disasters. This whole issue is nothing but a smear-job by irresponsible reporters who feel that a destructive lie in print is worth ruining a man's career.
"Doesn't bother me a bit to see folks with phoney resumes get prosecuted."
OK, but that would include about 95% of Americans.
Bingo!
And that was the wrong thing to do! The libs will not stop here.........
"He is probably a competent guy,"
Not in P.R.
There is parallel to the tsunami. The professional class of rescue industry in the UN and NGO immediately responded with talk about "assessments" and plans for one, two weeks later. Wanted meetings to "cooordinate" with the US and other militaries.
But the world saw suffering on the ground. Demanded immediate interventions, American and other forces did so to great applause.
Brown sounded like the NGO crowd. True, the Superdome evacuation was not under FEMA control, but Brown wasn't explaining why FEMA comes in later. He made it sound like FEMA was top dog.
And he doesn't do TV well.
And the Superdome trauma, a unique event which by the technology of cell phones we daily shared the victims horror...well, someone's head has got to roll for that.
It really doesn't matter that much these days of TV news.
Brown came across like an ignorant idiot! He couldn't answer anything without hems and haws and duhs.
They should have pulled him immediately and quietly and NEVER let him near a microphone or camera
Regrettably, you're probably right. As yet, I'm unaware of anything that Brown did wrong (or right, for that matter) -- except create bad PR. Virtually every systemic failure can be laid at the feet of the local and state authorities.
But Brown's being "relieved in the field" means that the feds will inevitably take the PR hit...
Why? On what basis. An inaccurate Time magazine editorial thinly masquerading as "news"; an editorial that distorts statements from its own sources?
OK, I take back the "competent" part, but he is a guy...right?
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