

DHS scrambles to cover up FOIA scandal - tshtf
http://www.papersplease.org/wp/2010/08/18/dhs-scrambles-to-cover-up-foia-scandal/

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zeteo
Original AP article about the "FOIA scandal":

[http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iz_vYVn2EG...](http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iz_vYVn2EGBVVmj9Pg6AllECgh9wD9H3O8OO2)

Basically, out of 103,000 FoIA requests last year, DHS delayed about 500 more
than the customary 3 days, because Janet Napolitano's staff wanted to find out
more about the people making those requests.

~~~
roboneal
The scandal is really about the policy put in place by the Obama
administration.

From the article you cited:

"Career employees were ordered to provide Secretary Janet Napolitano's
political staff with information about the people who asked for records — such
as where they lived, whether they were private citizens or reporters — and
about the organizations where they worked. If a member of Congress sought such
documents, employees were told to specify Democrat or Republican."

That's a dangerous politicization of DHS and the FOIA process and certainly
goes against the spirit of "transparency" the Obama administration was voted
in on.

~~~
jbooth
Ok, sure, it's against the spirit of transparency but I'd be willing to bet
that in 90% of the cases that got sent upstairs, it actually was quite
transparent scandal-fishing. Still, agree on the principle, you're right
there.

But as for policy put in place by a given administration.. citation? Are you
alleging with a straight face that the Bush administration wasn't doing this?
Remember that whole "Department of Justice actually frickin _prosecuting_
people on poltiical grounds" thing?

~~~
jdminhbg
"Are you alleging with a straight face that the Bush administration wasn't
doing this?"

I just reread his post, and it doesn't look like it.

~~~
jbooth
"Put in place" kinda implies that it wasn't happening before, no?

And if both administrations that have presided over a DHS practiced similar
policies, then it's still a scandal but it's not about only one of them.

~~~
roboneal
From the article: "But in July 2009, Homeland Security introduced a directive
requiring a wide range of information to be vetted by political appointees for
"awareness purposes," no matter who requested it."

So yes - the Obama administration "PUT IN PLACE" this policy. It's not a long
article. Read it.

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duffbeer703
This isn't political, they are just making sure that the terrorists don't FOIA
bureaucratic minutae.

If the terrorists can read bid proposals from competing vendors after DHS buys
50 million paperclips, they win.

~~~
loewenskind
oh ffs, take your scary boogy man bullshit elsewhere. Unless of course you'd
like to cite some proof of this army of scary "terrorists" (stupid word btw)
that is so large they have time to probe every possible vulnerability. And
while you're looking that up, please bring with you research on why _they
haven't managed to do anything with the countless holes we have everywhere_
[1].

[1] One glaring example is the ocean ports. Did you know something like 1 out
of every 100 containers is actually checked? I believe that was at the request
of Walmart, among others. They must be working with the "terrorists"!!!

~~~
BCM43
I think that was sarcasm. The last part suggests it.

