Rule Change Would Allow Government to Lie About Whether Records Exist

[EFerrari]

Mon Oct. 24, 2011 10:56 AM PDT

This story first appeared on the ProPublica website.

A proposed rule to the Freedom of Information Act would allow federal agencies to tell people requesting certain law-enforcement or national security documents that records don't exist—even when they do.

Under current FOIA practice, the government may withhold information and issue what's known as a Glomar denial that says it can neither confirm nor deny the existence of records.

The new proposal—part of a lengthy rule revision by the Department of Justice—would direct government agencies to "respond to the request as if the excluded records did not exist."

Open-government groups object.

http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/10/foia-rule-change-government-lie-about-records?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+motherjones%2Fmain+%28MotherJones.com+Main+Article+Feed%29

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

1. Seems reasonable.

:argh:

[a2liberal]

3. Seriously? (n/t)

[11 Bravo]

5. Did you miss the smilie?

[a2liberal]

26. Yes, I kind of did

I was reading on my phone which for some reason only shows the first frame of the animation. So all I saw was a happy guy sitting at a computer. Though I can't claim I would have realized even reading on the computer... that's a pretty tiny indication. Sorry.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

30. Tell that to a jury!

:think:

[a2liberal]

31. huh? (n/t)

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

7. Use your powers of observation.

[a2liberal]

27. Sorry

see reply above

[leftstreet]

2. K&R

:wow:

[msongs]

4. did not exist = government lying about them as the BUSH 3 adenda marches on nt

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

6. But, "transparency in government" made a helluva campaign slogan for candidate Obama.

[leftstreet]

8. If you request a copy of that campaign speech, I must tell you it doesn't exist

:-)

[Xipe Totec]

9. And of course, they'll apply the rule to deny the existence of the rule... nt

[Electric Monk]

13. What rule?

1984 or Catch-22?

[Xipe Totec]

21. Exactly!

:evilgrin:

[Solly Mack]

10. Damn

K/R

[JCMach1]

11. paging Mr. Kafka... please report to the Castle

[gratuitous]

12. Why is it called the "Freedom of Information Act" then?

Suggested new name for the Act: We'll Tell You What You Need To Know, And That's Damned Little, You Nosy Commie Rat Bastard You Act.

Which, from what I've read here at DU will be just fine with any number of people, because we have to trust the Obama administration and all of its successors to handle such awesomely unlimited power carefully, responsibly, and in the best interests of the people and the nation, and if you think otherwise, shut up.

[EFerrari]

14. So, first Holder says publicly he's looking for a crime to charge Wikileaks with

(which is illegal), then he facilitates an embargo on their donations and now he's trying to gut FOIA.

He's defintely getting a medal.

[Jakes Progress]

15. Now whose Department of Justice is that?

Is this the work of this administration?

If so, then the trite old expression "New Boss=Old Boss" is really becoming less trite and more applicable.

[FarCenter]

16. I'm surprised they ever used "neither confirm nor deny" language

It would be tantamount to revealing that a document whose existance was classified actually did exist with that title.

[Angry Dragon]

17. TRANSPARENCY

Change you don't know if you should believe

[bobthedrummer]

18. K&R

RECALL SCOTT WALKER!

[kenny blankenship]

19. Brilliant! It will be the most transparent administration EVAR*!

as far as you know.

[dtexdem]

20. Don't you mean "continue to lie"?

Wouldn't this just make current practices legal?

[bobthedrummer]

22. POOF! Down the memory hole, kick

http://www.thememoryhole.com

RECALL SCOTT WALKER!

[Octafish]

23. I'm starting to think this isn't a democracy anymore all the time.

Because the proof keeps piling on.

Thanks, Eesita! Thanks, MoJo!

[nc4bo]

24. And hasn't been for quite awhile. Been moving away from it in incremental steps

but not enough people have woken up from their stupor yet and still believe in the fairytale of the American Dream.

[lonestarnot]

29. Dirty big secrets do not exist.

:scared:

[DirkGently]

25. Wow. Gov't secrecy like this is NOT for the good of the country. Ever.

When we will learn this?

[woo me with science]

28. K&R This is extremely serious and disturbing.

We need to stop this shit in its tracks.

There are creepy things happening in our government.

Note this post, too, which mentions a 70 percent rise in requests by US government and/or police to take down information from Google: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=2185214&mesg_id=2185214