The latest on Brownie

Yesterday, Michael Brown defended himself in Washington.
Here are some of his amazing excuses and rationalizations

Brown had no direct experience with disasters before given a job by FEMA. Yet his defense against charges that he wasn't qualified for the job was that he had 'experience' once on the job:
"I have overseen over 150 presidentially declared disasters. I know what I am doing. And I think I do a pretty darn good job of it."

Brown suggested that it wasn't FEMA's job to help low-income people during a disaster:
"And while my heart goes out to people on fixed incomes, it is primarily a state and local responsibility. And in my opinion, it's the responsibility of faith-based organizations, of churches and charities and others to help those people."

"I don't think that's a federal government responsibility to keep my hamburger meat ... fresh," Brown said.

In a true martyr moment, Brown said "I'm happy to be a scapegoat and I'm happy to be called not a Rudy Giuliani..."

And in a new twist to the "what did he know and when did he know it" question, Brown claimed that he was "just tired and mis-spoke" when he said he was unaware people were stranded at the New Orleans convention centre.

Though he called himself a scapegoat, he made an effort to point out that he wasn't a superman or a dictator.

And who was to blame? Brown's 'Blame Game' targeted:
Americans (who were not prepared for a disaster)
The 'hysterical Media'
A 'dysfunctional' Louisiana
Governor Blanco
Mayor Nagin

But Brown took no blame himself:
"You see, I get it when it comes to ... emergency management."
"I know what I'm doing and I think I do a pretty darn good job of it".
"I can go to bed at night and sleep because I know I fought that battle."


USA Today ran an article that looked at Michael Brown's history with the International Arabian Horse Association:

As the ethics commissioner for the International Arabian Horse Association in the 1990s, Brown launched a contentious investigation into Scottsdale, Ariz. horseman David Boggs, one of the brightest stars in the Arabian world.

Brown's actions led to a flurry of lawsuits, a five-year suspension from the group for Boggs and Brown's resignation in 2000 from the Colorado-based association.

In a four-year span, Brown, a lawyer, amassed association legal fees exceeding $1.5 million and initiated a controversial legal defense fund for himself, which ultimately led to his resignation. The 45,000-member horse group, now called the Arabian Horse Association, was involved in at least seven lawsuits during Brown's tenure.
Recent news reports of the episode depict Brown as an inept commissioner, but insiders say his real challenge may have been to tailor his aggressive style to the intricacies of the horse association's politics.

Brown, an Oklahoma attorney with no background in horses, entered the equine world in 1991 as the association's first commissioner of judges and stewards, a post some said they thought pointless, given that the group has an ethics board that examines issues of competition.

"He took on a job in an industry he knew nothing about. To me, it made no sense to bring in someone who knew nothing," said Janice McCrea Wight, president of the Arabian Horse Association of Arizona. But, she added, Brown did make improvements in the judging area.

As Brown investigated Boggs, members of the group's board protested the cost of the inquiry and the assault on its biggest showman, a trainer and breeder with an international reputation.
"He had to wait a year in heavy litigation that involved thousands of hours of work before the board would agree to indemnify him," said Andrew Lester, an Oklahoma attorney and Brown's friend and former law partner who represented him at the time.

Michigan lawyer Tom Connelly, association president from 1998 to 2000, denies the group wouldn't pay the fees.
"There were people on our board who didn't like what Mike was doing," he said. "A lot of negative comments were made, and Mike felt we wouldn't support him in a lawsuit. I personally assured him he was covered."
Members quaked at the expenses, as the Arabian industry foundered after key tax breaks ended in the 1980s.
"Michael Brown spent all their money on lawsuits," said Wight, whose association produces the world's largest Arabian horse show and is associated with the national group. "He was initiating lawsuits and investigations, and people were retaliating."

In 1996, Brown investigated charges that Boggs ordered plastic surgeries on his horses. Arabians are primped to a degree that outdoes movie stars, and some trainers may take shortcuts to fit the rigid ideals judges use. Boggs, who denies the charges, handled one of the most sought-after breeding stallions, Magnum Psyche, who was listed by Brown for suspected surgeries.

Boggs answered Brown's inquiry with a lawsuit while it was still in progress. He named the association and its officers, accusing Brown of defaming him and damaging the value of the horses in question by leaking information.
When the inquiry ended, Magnum Psyche was cleared. Magnum's owner and the owners of the other horses charged sued Brown and the association for defamation and property disparagement. The cases were settled, but there was still the issue of the defense fund.

"The defense fund was a sham," said Mike Streator, Boggs' attorney. "The IAHA had indemnified him, so he was being defended. It was flat-out fraud."

Connelly said that Brown was not fired. "We negotiated a separation, but the writing was on the wall. The feeling of the group was that Mike was overly aggressive. People have heroes in our industry, and David Boggs is one of those. When he got thrown out for five years, it upset people."

Pressed by media inquiries after Brown's collapse at FEMA, the Arabian Horse Association posted a statement on its website conceding Brown's decisions generated disputes that resulted in litigation. In the statement, Barbara Burck, executive vice president, says, "Brown was regarded as upholding the highest standards of integrity."
But in an interview, she confirmed that his legal actions were damaging. Brown's successor has been sued only once since 2001.

"The financial state of the group around 2000, at the time of those lawsuits, was on a decline," she said. "There was a particular instance here that resulted in litigation, and it was costly."

9/29/05

An internal review of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's information-sharing system that showed it was overwhelmed during the 2004 hurricane season was released to the public.

From Concord Monitor:

In an Aug. 3 response, Brown and one of his deputies rejected the audit, calling it unacceptable, erroneous and negative.

"The overall tone of the report is negative," wrote FEMA chief information officer Barry West in an Aug. 3 letter that Brown initialed. "We believe this characterization is inaccurate and does not acknowledge the highly performing, well managed and staffed (informational technology) systems supporting FEMA incident response and recovery."

Complete Associated Press article:

Brown was warned of problems
Ex-FEMA chief informed of backlog before Katrina
By LARA JAKES JORDAN
The Associated Press
September 29. 2005 8:00AM

WASHINGTON - Former FEMA director Michael Brown was warned weeks before Hurricane Katrina hit that his agency's backlogged computer systems could delay supplies and put personnel at risk during an emergency, according to an audit released yesterday.

An internal review of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's information-sharing system shows it was overwhelmed during the 2004 hurricane season. The audit was released a day after Brown vehemently defended FEMA for the government's dismal response to Katrina, instead blaming state and local officials for poor planning and chaos during the Aug. 29 storm and subsequent flooding.

The review by Homeland Security Department acting Inspector General Richard Skinner examined FEMA's response to four major hurricanes and a tropical storm that hit Florida and the Gulf Coast in August and September 2004. It noted FEMA's mission during disasters as rapid response and coordinating efforts among federal, state and local authorities.

"However, FEMA's systems do not support effective or efficient coordination of deployment operations because there is no sharing of information," the audit found. "Consequently, this created operational inefficiencies and hindered the delivery of essential disaster response and recovery services," it said.

Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke had no immediate response yesterday. FEMA is an arm of the department.

In an Aug. 3 response, Brown and one of his deputies rejected the audit, calling it unacceptable, erroneous and negative.

"The overall tone of the report is negative," wrote FEMA chief information officer Barry West in an Aug. 3 letter that Brown initialed. "We believe this characterization is inaccurate and does not acknowledge the highly performing, well managed and staffed (informational technology) systems supporting FEMA incident response and recovery."
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