Obama Spent $36.2 Million Tax Dollars In One Year Alone to Hide What They Were Doing

Obama Spent $36.2 Million Tax dollars In One Year Alone to Render FOIA Useless

The Associated Press analyzed the most transparent administration in history’s record on FOIA and what they uncovered should alarm Americans who don’t want their government to act in secret.

In his last year alone, former president Barack Obama spent a record-breaking $36.2 million dollars on legal costs to keep federal records secret and immune to the Freedom of Information Act.

It was the administration’s second consecutive year of a record inability to find records requested by citizens, journalists, organizations and so on.

It set records for outright denial as well.

Of the $36.2 million in legal costs fighting such lawsuits last year, the Justice Department accounted for $12 million, the Homeland Security Department for $6.3 million and the Pentagon for $4.8 million. The three departments accounted for more than half the government’s total records requests last year according to the AP.

Under the records law, citizens and foreigners can compel the U.S. government to turn over copies of federal records for zero or little cost. However, the government agencies repeatedly demanded outrageous sums in addition to wait times amounting to years.

This went on for eight years, not simply the last two of Obama’s term, it simply grew worse as the years went by.

FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) helps safeguard our liberties and protect us from an overreaching government. This is a non-partisan issue.

In June, 2015, at the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson, formerly of CBS News, testified that the federal government has so “perverted” the FOIA process by “ridiculously overused” exemptions and stall tactics they have created a system to intentionally “obfuscate, obstruct and delay” the release of public information.

In March of that same year, the Obama administration removed the White House from FOIA requests.

Also in March, a note on a FOIA request that wasn’t blacked out [the government was also redacting at a record pace] said, “We (agency workers) live in constant fear of upsetting the WH [White House].”

Government agencies have a history of perverting the process in favor of leftists. In 2013, the federal government granted waivers on FOIA requests for greenies but not conservatives. Green groups received information for free 92% of the time while equivalent Conservative groups were not granted fee waivers 93% of the time.

This had been going on for years but the problem worsened in 2009 with a simple presidential memorandum.

The White House memorandum of April 15, 2009, cited White House Equities – Presidential Privilege – to give itself the power to censor any FOIA requests that might contain “White House equities” – essentially any information involving or referencing communications with the White House – without first clearing it with presidential attorneys. Anything embarrassing was certainly included.

The memo served as a Fiat and it presents an existential threat to a Republic.

Hillary would have been more of the same. That’s why she had a private server.

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