Watchdog Blows Whistle on Biden Admin – Red Alert!
(UnitedVoice.com) – Democratic presidential candidates every four years promise voters their administrations will be the most transparent in American history if they’re elected. Yet, the last two are proving to be anything but. In 2013, then-President Barack Obama was in his fifth year and second term as president. The media and watchdog groups who sought open records requests were deeply upset with the Obama/Biden administration’s failure to live up to its promises.
In 2020, then-Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden promised transparency. It’s not working out that way. Government watchdog groups say the administration is severely lacking in fulfilling Biden’s promise. So far, the administration has refused to turn over White House visitor logs, stonewalled Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, and the president has ignored calls for press conferences and interviews.
Biden Living Up to His Former Boss’s Reputation
In 2013, the media criticized Obama for trying to control the message and running from his commitment to openness and transparency. Open records activist groups said the administration either outright stonewalled them or provided them the information they were entitled to receive under the law. Even US senators said the administration withheld information from them, violating the law. Still, the administration claimed it fulfilled its promises to the American people.
Now, President Biden appears to be following in Obama’s footsteps. It’s a radical departure from former President Donald Trump, who appeared on American airwaves weekly, if not daily. While the media didn’t like Trump, they loved the access he gave them. Over the last several months, the media has expressed their displeasure with Biden.
Still, that’s not the worst of Biden’s transparency problems.
Biden Administration’s Tepid Response to Open Records and More
On Wednesday, June 22, the John Solomon Reports podcast revealed the Department of Energy (DOE) has refused to provide documents requested under FOIA or communicate with Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT), who filed the request in November 2021. PPT wanted to know how much the DOE paid to send government employees to the COP26 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland.
Additionally, PPT wanted to look at telework agreements with government employees to discern why they were working at home but could attend an in-person conference. The Energy Department told the watchdog group the information would be available in April. It’s now July, but still, PPT says it hasn’t received the records.
Additionally, under Donald Trump, the Department of the Interior (DOI) created a transparency website that provided public details of lawsuit settlements. The Biden administration took down the website, and some believe it allows the government and plaintiffs to secretly get what both parties want while someone gets paid well.
So, you decide. Is transparency waning under Biden despite his promises to the contrary?
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