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"There was no legal justification for the Secret Service to withhold the visitor logs we requested," Adina Rosenbaum, the Public Citizen attorney handling the case, said in a statement. (Photo: Public Citizen)
Major 'Step Forward for Transparency' as Trump White House Forced to Release Visitor Logs
"The Trump administration is resisting transparency at every turn, but it's still possible to fight back."
Feb 15, 2018
In a major victory for transparency that could provide "a window into the corporate lobbyists driving Trump administration policy," the White House on Thursday was forced to settle a lawsuit brought by Public Citizen over its refusal to make visitor logs public.
"There was no legal justification for the Secret Service to withhold the visitor logs we requested," Adina Rosenbaum, the Public Citizen attorney handling the case, said in a statement on Thursday. "We are pleased that the public will have access to these valuable records."
Public Citizen filed its suit last August after the Trump administration denied the group's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for records on those who had visited four major White House agencies--the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), and the U.S. Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).
Justifying its denial of Public Citizen's FOIA request, the Secret Service claimed it had transferred the visitor logs to the White House Office of Records Management, which isn't subject to FOIA.
Under the terms of the settlement, the Secret Service will be required to transfer the visitor logs back to the four White House agencies, which will then have to post the logs online within a month of receiving them.
According to Public Citizen, "visitor logs from the past year will be released over the next several months."
Journalists, legal experts, and transparency advocates celebrated the settlement on Thursday, which Public Citizen president Robert Weissman said thwarts an attempt by the Trump administration to "keep secret the names of the people visiting the White House in order to keep the public in the dark about the corporate takeover of our government."
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This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
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In a major victory for transparency that could provide "a window into the corporate lobbyists driving Trump administration policy," the White House on Thursday was forced to settle a lawsuit brought by Public Citizen over its refusal to make visitor logs public.
"There was no legal justification for the Secret Service to withhold the visitor logs we requested," Adina Rosenbaum, the Public Citizen attorney handling the case, said in a statement on Thursday. "We are pleased that the public will have access to these valuable records."
Public Citizen filed its suit last August after the Trump administration denied the group's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for records on those who had visited four major White House agencies--the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), and the U.S. Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).
Justifying its denial of Public Citizen's FOIA request, the Secret Service claimed it had transferred the visitor logs to the White House Office of Records Management, which isn't subject to FOIA.
Under the terms of the settlement, the Secret Service will be required to transfer the visitor logs back to the four White House agencies, which will then have to post the logs online within a month of receiving them.
According to Public Citizen, "visitor logs from the past year will be released over the next several months."
Journalists, legal experts, and transparency advocates celebrated the settlement on Thursday, which Public Citizen president Robert Weissman said thwarts an attempt by the Trump administration to "keep secret the names of the people visiting the White House in order to keep the public in the dark about the corporate takeover of our government."
In a major victory for transparency that could provide "a window into the corporate lobbyists driving Trump administration policy," the White House on Thursday was forced to settle a lawsuit brought by Public Citizen over its refusal to make visitor logs public.
"There was no legal justification for the Secret Service to withhold the visitor logs we requested," Adina Rosenbaum, the Public Citizen attorney handling the case, said in a statement on Thursday. "We are pleased that the public will have access to these valuable records."
Public Citizen filed its suit last August after the Trump administration denied the group's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for records on those who had visited four major White House agencies--the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), and the U.S. Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).
Justifying its denial of Public Citizen's FOIA request, the Secret Service claimed it had transferred the visitor logs to the White House Office of Records Management, which isn't subject to FOIA.
Under the terms of the settlement, the Secret Service will be required to transfer the visitor logs back to the four White House agencies, which will then have to post the logs online within a month of receiving them.
According to Public Citizen, "visitor logs from the past year will be released over the next several months."
Journalists, legal experts, and transparency advocates celebrated the settlement on Thursday, which Public Citizen president Robert Weissman said thwarts an attempt by the Trump administration to "keep secret the names of the people visiting the White House in order to keep the public in the dark about the corporate takeover of our government."
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