http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/09/11/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry5303360.shtml
After the early media reports, departures from nearby Reagan National Airport were temporarily halted as a precaution, the Federal Aviation Administration said. FBI agents rushed to the scene, unaware that a training exercise was underway.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said following the reports that “we’re safer” because of such exercises, adding that he does not question law enforcement efforts to keep the city safe.
In a shot at the media outlets that initially reported the incident, he said, “before reporting things, checking would be good.”
“It appears as if a lot of this could have been avoided,” said Gibbs.
The Coast Guard vowed to review how it conducts its exercises in the wake of the uproar.
Senator George Voinovich released a statement saying he is “extremely concerned about the report of a Coast Guard training exercise being conducted on the Potomac River as September 11 memorial ceremonies were in progress nearby at the Pentagon.”
“The anxiety caused by this situation on such a solemn day is extremely disturbing,” he said. “I look forward to hearing from [Homeland] Secretary [Janet] Napolitano about the decision-making process leading up to today’s events. It sounds very much like the left hand didn’t know what the right hand was doing.”
Well, Voinovich is rather emotionally fragile, as he showed a couple years ago. I can see why he’s upset by this.