How Biden Can Bring Transparency Back to Government
Federal secrecy reached new heights under Trump, but there’s a lot the incoming president can do to let the sunshine back in.
By Joshua Eaton, The New Republic, Jan. 1, 2021
On January 20, workers will disinfect every inch of the White House complex to prepare it for the new administration. While they’re doing that, President-elect Joe Biden could do some sanitizing of his own by signing a memorandum to promote government transparency, opening the windows of the executive branch to let some fresh air and sunshine in after four very cloudy years.
The presidential memo is one of several key steps that transparency advocates want to see from the new administration. Some of those steps, like an overhaul of the Freedom of Information Act and more funding for agency records offices, would require action from Congress. But there are other steps, like appointing someone within the White House to oversee government transparency efforts, that Biden can take on his own.
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