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.

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

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.