Obama gets high marks for openness

[Death Wizard]

Watchdog groups have applauded Obama for using the bully pulpit to demand that government be more open. The president's favorable rating was helped by comparisons with Bush, whom some considered to have had one of the most secretive administrations. Ellen Miller, co-founder of non-partisan Sunlight Foundation, says, "What the administration has done is gone from nothing to creating a full-blown discussion about the need for greater government accountability and transparency." Obama's administration for the first time began posting online the names of visitors to the White House; set up the first online application for reporters and the public to request White House employees' public financial disclosure reports; started data.gov and recovery.gov Web sites to post government data and stimulus spending; and ordered federal deparments to streamline Freedom of Information Act responses and to "adopt a presumption in favor of disclosure."

[William Haskins]

obama has made some strides in this and, as the article points out, he benefits from a pretty low bar set by bush.

but as the article also points out, there have been some shortcomings (and some of them, in my view, has been the result of deliberate feet-dragging).

also the GAO found some sloppy work (http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/13/nation/la-na-obama-web13-2010mar13) in USAspending.gov.

at any rate, i'm all for government transparency, so to the extent that obama delivers on this issue, i am pleased with him for doing so.

[SPMiller]

Surprisingly, last I checked, Texas has the most open state government in the US, especially regarding web presence. Doesn't make any sense, but there you have it. So, I don't want to tell Obama to look to Texas for inspiration, but he could do a lot worse.

[Death Wizard]

obama has made some strides in this and, as the article points out, he benefits from a pretty low bar set by bush.

but as the article also points out, there have been some shortcomings (and some of them, in my view, has been the result of deliberate feet-dragging).

also the GAO found some sloppy work (http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/13/nation/la-na-obama-web13-2010mar13) in USAspending.gov.

at any rate, i'm all for government transparency, so to the extent that obama delivers on this issue, i am pleased with him for doing so.

You are discombobulating me with your reasonableness.

[Death Wizard]

Surprisingly, last I checked, Texas has the most open state government in the US, especially regarding web presence. Doesn't make any sense, but there you have it. So, I don't want to tell Obama to look to Texas for inspiration, but he could do a lot worse.

You're right, it doesn't make any sense. But I have no evidence to argue against it.

My best friend of 45 years lives in Dallas, and he is ultra-conservative and highly religious (Christian-religious) and he loves living there. He and I only still get along because we both like talking about beer, golf and women. And since we're both happily married, the women part is definitely just talk.

[William Haskins]

You are discombobulating me with your reasonableness.

my unreasonableness is often exaggerated.

[Death Wizard]

my unreasonableness is often exaggerated.

Mine is sometimes exaggerated.

[rugcat]

My exaggerations are sometimes unreasonable.

[Death Wizard]

My exaggerations are sometimes unreasonable.

You are unreasonable only in an exaggerated sense.

[William Haskins]

your sense of the unreasonable needs no exaggeration.

[Death Wizard]

Only when my unreasonableness is exaggeratingly sensed.

[William Haskins]

of course.

[Bird of Prey]

Exaggeration is essential to American political persuasion. . . .

[Death Wizard]

Exaggeration is essential to American political persuasion. . . .

You're back!

[Gregg]

Were any of these "watchdog groups" from the conservative side of the spectrum?
I would venture a guess that the Republicans in Congress don't agree with the conclusion of these groups.

[Death Wizard]

Were any of these "watchdog groups" from the conservative side of the spectrum?
I would venture a guess that the Republicans in Congress don't agree with the conclusion of these groups.

So you're saying that you disagree with the conclusion?

[benbradley]

I can be unreasonable by quoting Obama saying "health care debates will all be carried by CSPAN"...

[ColoradoGuy]

Were any of these "watchdog groups" from the conservative side of the spectrum?
I would venture a guess that the Republicans in Congress don't agree with the conclusion of these groups.
I suppose not. Cheney, as I recall, had Google Earth fuzz out the location of his residence. And pretty much any FOI request was stonewalled. So, as others have said, the bar is set pretty low for the Obama administration on this issue.

[clintl]

The Republicans in Congress have no cause to be upset over transparency issues with the Obama Administration. He has gone out of his way on a number of occasions to engage them, and incorporate some of their ideas into his proposals, and the response has typically been a raised middle finger.