Obama vs. FOIA?

An hour before President Obama took to the stage for a second debate with Gov. Mitt Romney that many say he won, the Washington Examiner website published a damning Op-Ed distilling Christopher Horner’s “The Liberal War on Transparency,” which it calls “a 300-plus-page indictment on Obama’s transparency promises, particularly when it comes to the FOIA.”

From Daniel Epstein, executive director of the taxpayer watchdog group Cause of Action:

His investigations into Solyndra, the Troubled Asset Relief Program’s, or TARP, bailouts of General Motors and Chrysler, global warming alarmism, recess appointments, regulatory overreach and green energy highlight a Constitution-ignoring and anti-congressional-oversight political culture in the federal government, all of which Obama promised to change. And Horner’s investigatory sleuthing exposes enough taxpayer-funded dinner parties, soirees and back-room deals to make for a Fitzgerald novel.

Horner’s “Liberal War” argues that the Administration’s withholding of documents as “pre-decisional” or as “deliberative process” is nothing more than a charade to create delay tactics or avoid oversight. Among the Administration’s attempts at opacity: The Executive Branch has used personal email accounts, personal computers and personal technological devices to conduct official business outside the scope of the FOIA.

An especially good read for journos. Find the full post here.