Professional crisis communicators watched the news conferences with dismay. Deflecting blame is not helpful if politicians want to build trust with the public, they say.

The Homeland Security chief denied that a memo she issued in June requiring her to approve FEMA expenditures over $100,000 caused the agency to move more slowly.

Hours before a massive wall of floodwater barreled down a river in the heart of Texas Hill Country before sunrise on Friday, forecasters with the National Weather Service warned people that dangerous