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nodope0695
01-23-2009, 01:07 AM
Read these memos from Obama. Do you beleive what he's saying, or are you sceptical and see them as merely words to apease the sheeple?


THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release January 21, 2009

MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

SUBJECT: Freedom of Information Act

A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires transparency. As Justice Louis Brandeis wrote, "sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants." In our democracy, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which encourages accountability through transparency, is the most prominent expression of a profound national commitment to ensuring an open Government. At the heart of that commitment is the idea that accountability is in the interest of the Government and the citizenry alike.

The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a clear presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails. The Government should not keep information confidential merely because public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure, because errors and failures might be revealed, or because of speculative or abstract fears. Nondisclosure should never be based on an effort to protect the personal interests of Government officials at the expense of those they are supposed to serve. In responding to requests under the FOIA, executive branch agencies (agencies) should act promptly and in a spirit of cooperation, recognizing that such agencies are servants of the public.

All agencies should adopt a presumption in favor of disclosure, in order to renew their commitment to the principles embodied in FOIA, and to usher in a new era of open Government. The presumption of disclosure should be applied to all decisions involving FOIA.

The presumption of disclosure also means that agencies should take affirmative steps to make information public. They should not wait for specific requests from the public. All agencies should use modern technology to inform citizens about what is known and done by their Government. Disclosure should be timely.

I direct the Attorney General to issue new guidelines governing the FOIA to the heads of executive departments and agencies, reaffirming the commitment to accountability and transparency, and to publish such guidelines in the Federal Register. In doing so, the Attorney General should review FOIA reports produced by the agencies under Executive Order 13392 of December 14, 2005. I also direct the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to update guidance to the agencies to increase and improve information dissemination to the public, including through the use of new technologies, and to publish such guidance in the Federal Register.

This memorandum does not create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

The Director of the Office of Management and Budget is hereby authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.

BARACK OBAMA




THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release January 21, 2009


MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

SUBJECT: Transparency and Open Government

My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government. We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government.

Government should be transparent. Transparency promotes accountability and provides information for citizens about what their Government is doing. Information maintained by the Federal Government is a national asset. My Administration will take appropriate action, consistent with law and policy, to disclose information rapidly in forms that the public can readily find and use. Executive departments and agencies should harness new technologies to put information about their operations and decisions online and readily available to the public. Executive departments and agencies should also solicit public feedback to identify information of greatest use to the public.

Government should be participatory. Public engagement enhances the Government's effectiveness and improves the quality of its decisions. Knowledge is widely dispersed in society, and public officials benefit from having access to that dispersed knowledge. Executive departments and agencies should offer Americans increased opportunities to participate in policymaking and to provide their Government with the benefits of their collective expertise and information. Executive departments and agencies should also solicit public input on how we can increase and improve opportunities for public participation in Government.

Government should be collaborative. Collaboration actively engages Americans in the work of their Government. Executive departments and agencies should use innovative tools, methods, and systems to cooperate among themselves, across all levels of Government, and with nonprofit organizations, businesses, and individuals in the private sector. Executive departments and agencies should solicit public feedback to assess and improve their level of collaboration and to identify new opportunities for cooperation.

I direct the Chief Technology Officer, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Administrator of General Services, to coordinate the development by appropriate executive departments and agencies, within 120 days, of recommendations for an Open Government Directive, to be issued by the Director of OMB, that instructs executive departments and agencies to take specific actions implementing the principles set forth in this memorandum. The independent agencies should comply with the Open Government Directive.

This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by a party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

This memorandum shall be published in the Federal Register.

BARACK OBAMA

Trust, but verify. I'll believe it when I see it.

Also, Obama has signed FIVE Executive Orders in his first two days in office. Have a look at them here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing_room/executive_orders/

Ex Post Facto
01-23-2009, 01:56 AM
I think these orders are the right thing...I have no complaint thus far. They are much better than BUSH's orders any day.

So far people on this forum are pretty rage filled haters. I don't trust most actions of government. But these orders seem to draw an attempt at some trust. While we should always be mindful of these things...at least it's not a new wire tapping, FEMA camp, or war order. I'm sure there will be executive decisions and orders to worry about. These aren't any of them though.

I haven't taken the Obama pledge and don't plan too; but, steps made in the right direction are better than steps in the wrong direction.

nodope0695
01-23-2009, 04:35 AM
I think these orders are the right thing...I have no complaint thus far. They are much better than BUSH's orders any day.

So far people on this forum are pretty rage filled haters. I don't trust most actions of government. But these orders seem to draw an attempt at some trust. While we should always be mindful of these things...at least it's not a new wire tapping, FEMA camp, or war order. I'm sure there will be executive decisions and orders to worry about. These aren't any of them though.

I haven't taken the Obama pledge and don't plan too; but, steps made in the right direction are better than steps in the wrong direction.

I hate to say it, but I too find the orders hopeful...but I'm a Reagan guy, and beleive in the "Trust but verify" thing.

I'm not too wild about the closing of GITMO without a plan for where those guys down there are going to go.

I'll continue to "hope" for the best, but truth be told, I really hope his "Obama stimulus package" fails epically. A $1000 "tax credit" for people who don't fucking pay taxes....last time I checked, that was WELFARE. But thats for another thread....