Because Mr. Chertoff's pants are on fire again.
It's riveting to watch, isn't it? I mean, the disaster plan. They use it every time the shit comes anywhere near the fan. Tell a lie. Lather, rinse, repeat. And before you know it, the untruth becomes truth, and they've washed that scandal right outta their hair.
After five years, this response has become almost reflexive on the part of the administration. It seems, however, that the media is no longer willing to put up with it. Here are the first two grafs of a story on CNN's website:
Defending the U.S. government's response to Hurricane Katrina, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff argued Saturday that government planners did not predict such a disaster ever could occur.
But in fact, government officials, scientists and journalists have warned of such a scenario for years.
And then, CNN is rude enough to point out that Chertoff's colleague, Michael Brown of FEMA, has said that his agency has already planned for such a scenario.
Though even I will admit that none of this means Chertoff is lying. There is, of course, another explanation. He could be breathtakingly incompetent.
And you know what? He's the head of the Department of Homeland Security.
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