FEMA Staffers Posed As Reporters at Their Own Press Conference

This post, written by Matt Corley, originally appeared on Think Progress

On Tuesday, while "wildfires raged" in California, Vice Adm. Harvey E. Johnson, the deputy administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), held a press conference at FEMA's Southwest D.C. offices that was "carried live on Fox News, MSNBC and other outlets." In the presser, Johnson said he was "very happy with FEMA's response" while praising "the good messaging" of federal and local government responders.

But if the questions lobbed at Johnson seemed a bit like softballs, that's because they were asked by FEMA employees posing as journalists. The Washington Post's Al Kamen reports:

We're told the questions were asked by Cindy Taylor, FEMA's deputy director of external affairs, and by "Mike" Widomski, the deputy director of public affairs. Director of External Affairs John "Pat" Philbin asked a question, and another came, we understand, from someone who sounds like press aide Ali Kirin.

Though FEMA told Kamen that "the staff did not make up the questions," the press briefing was filled with softball questions and opportunities for Johnson to praise the FEMA's response to the disaster, contrasting it with the agency's performance during Hurricane Katrina. Kamen writes: