Posted on 01/22/2009 1:46:30 AM PST by Gondring
President Barack Obama began dismantling the Bush legacy Wednesday, using his first full day to overturn an order that let ex-presidents seal their papers forever.
[...]
Researchers generally can't get access to White House records for at least five years after a president leaves office. Documents involving national security remain out of reach far longer.
[...]
Bush issued the controversial order two months after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, citing concerns about the premature release of Clinton-era records, and he defended the policy this month in an interview.
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Obama vowed during the campaign to overturn the order, as part of a government "transparency" agenda. Open-government advocates called it a pleasant surprise that he put a focus on the issue so soon after taking office.
[...]
Bill Clinton took nine months to issue his first directive regarding government records. The Bush administration issued its first directive in October 2001 – a memo by then-Attorney General John Ashcroft that told federal bureaucrats in essence that if they had any reason to withhold records from the public, they should.
Obama ordered the opposite presumption on Wednesday: "In the face of doubt, openness prevails."
[...]
Delays for release of Ronald Reagan's records reached seven years at one point. The National Archives blamed a shortage of archivists.
Blanton said Bush policies had aggravated the problem, by signaling that timely release of records that by law the public is entitled to inspect isn't a high priority.
"It put molasses into a system that was already gummed up," he said.
Researchers remain hopeful that Congress will codify the order Obama signed Wednesday, so future presidents can't revert to less open policies on White House records. They are also hoping the new administration classifies fewer documents.
(Excerpt) Read more at dallasnews.com ...
I guess he figures he can move left later.
How about Mr. Transparent turns over his college transcripts from Columbia University.
That would be a great start!
Don’t forget he also attended Harvard.
premature release of Clinton-era records
.
Sandy Burgler, premature thief of Clinton-era records, now we could have found out why Clinton#1 let Saddam commit several acts of war by firing on our Military Pilots continuously for 8 years in the UN ‘no fly zone’, instead the media will perpetuate their lie about Saddam’s innocence
As Barack is showing himself for the Ideologue that he is, he is forgetting he will only be in D.C for a short period of time.
Others will come after him, his political path will do nothing but come back to bite him in the end.
This is actually about setting the stage for a prosecution of Bush and others in his administration.
The sealing of the records, at the time, was widely thought to have been done by Bush to protect Clinton, because after 9/11, people started calling for investigations into Clinton’s actions during his term and his contribution to leaving us vulnerable to 9/11. Naturally, neither the press nor anybody else is interested in that now (Sandy Burger was obviously sent to hide what was publicly available at the time, and who knows what Clinton has been up to behind the scenes).
But look for them to pore over the records looking for one word in one e-mail that will give them enough to launch their final vendetta.
I’m well aware of what is taking place. They’re on a witch hunt. The other poster seems to think Barack Hussein Obama is working for the people, which is absolute nonsense.
This is a Witch Hunt. SO hold on folks, you can bet if anyone does not agree with the POS, the IRS will be called out,etc.
Once again, thanks stay at home Conservatives. (sarc)
Does he believe in "transparency" or not?
Hey, Mr. Transparent, how about releasing your birth certificate?
“Does he believe in “transparency” or not?”
Sure he does. You can see right through him...
Boob bait for Bubbas.......he is ALL show and stagecraft, and stupid people will think he’s the best, most moral President ever.
This is actually about setting the stage for a prosecution of Bush and others in his administration...
But look for them to pore over the records looking for one word in one e-mail that will give them enough to launch their final vendetta.”
I predicted to my Republicans friends during the election that this would happen. They doubted that BO would dare engage in a scorched-earth political policy. Well, my Republican friends, that is exactly what he announced yesterday.
Only when it is too late will the world see what a master Obama is at stuffing lies into the skin of the truth. It will look good enough to eat for his first term. It won’t be until the second term when many will finally see the horrors he intends.
You are absolutely welcome, and unless the GOP and the rest of the GOPBots get their act together, you can expect it to happen again... I vote for the Constitution, morals, and values... not a Political Party that has thrown us to the wolves.
On a side note the so called "Secrets" held by the Government is what got our country into the position that it is in now, 90% of the information classified should not be!...
So whine as you may, the Governments actions SHOULD BE ABSOLUTELY TRANSPARENT... as you will learn about in the coming few years when you find out the depths to which the Government has held back information on our collapsing economy!
Since there is NO EVIDENCE that Mr. Transparency was eligible to run for or serve as POTUS, the People can have the U.S. Constitution upheld and have a "NATURAL BORN" CITIZEN elected instead.
(Hint: McCain isn't a "NATURAL BORN" CITIZEN either. But Alan Keyes is!!! And Keyes knows the Constitution better than Mr. Transparancy and McCain combined!!!)
The question is: how is a USURPER legally removed from an office, particularly a USURPER of the office of POTUS? Can a USURPER of the office of POTUS be legally impeached if he/she was not eligible to be elected to be, or serve as, POTUS in the first place?
I look forward to fianlly seeing Mr. Transparency's CERTIFIED "VAULT" BIRTH CERTIFICATE, college records and health records.
Thanks, Mr. Transparency!
IF they have committed crimes then they should be prosecuted, the Law is the Law and no one should be above it! not even a GOP (term used loosely) President!
Cyropaedia wrote:
“Yet the hypocrite still refuses to show us his (long form) birth certificate.
Does he believe in “transparency” or not?”
..... Think of a one-way mirror: that sort of transparency.
“Since Mr. Transparency’s CERTIFIED “VAULT” BIRTH CERTIFICATE, his COLLEGE RECORDS, and his HEALTH RECORDS, etc. are part of the President’s papers, Mr. Transparency should have NO OBJECTION to the public gaining access to them and the public should have NO OBSTRUCTION now in doing so.”
Sounds good to me, and, like you, feel “Mr. Transparency should have NO OBJECTION to the public gaining access to” his records — especially his certified “vault” birth certificate.
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