I’m purusing the news headlines this morning, when I get to this nugget, otherwise described as a Gag Order from the EPA.
The Environmental Protection Agency advised employees last month not to answer questions from journalists, the Government Accountability Office or the agency’s inspector general, according to an EPA e-mail made public Monday.
“Please do not respond to questions or make any statements,” the June 16 e-mail said, advising staff to direct questioners to senior staff members cleared to answer questions from outside the agency.
For the last 7 years, this has been a growing mentality within the Bush/Cheney administration. Politicization of an agency, close off an agency, defund an agency. So, I can’t say that I’m very surprised, but I am saddened that a joker has dismanteled and destroyed so much of our government, particularly, when they are trying to hide accountability by not talking to their Inspector General or the Government Accountability Office. Here’s the portion of the text that I find the most disturbing:
2. If you are contacted directly by the IG’s office or GAO requesting information of any kind, please forward their call or email to Gwen Spriggs, cc Robbi. Please do not respond to questions or make any statements.
Except, there is a duty NOT to give the IG and the GAO the run around.
In a written statement, the EPA’s Office of Inspector General said it did not approve the language of Robbi’s warning and advised, “All EPA officials and employees are required to cooperate” with the office.
“This cooperation includes providing the OIG full and unrestricted access to EPA documents, records, and personnel,” the statement read. “We are currently engaged in discussions with OECA [Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance] to assure that OIG and OECA interpretations are consistent in this matter.”
The lack of accountability is seen when the EPA’s Stephen Johnson refused to appear before two senate committees.
Enough is enough. Congress talking tough about the lack of accountability of government agencies is one thing. They MUST follow through and end the Culture of Ssecrecy. Waiting until January is not an option.
Which leads me to this question, will Obama continue the Culture of Secrecy and lack of accountability should he win the presidency?
secrecy in a government department? You think they have something to hide? Say it isn’t so.
Government for the people, by the people is a joke. Only certain people are allowed to speak out.
A big fat raspberry to the EPA – which seems to mean “everyone protect our ass”.
To be fair, the communications departments of most major organisations take a similar line. Rarely will they let rank and file employees just talk to the press. I was a press officer once and I would pitch a fit if someone talked to the press without informing me – and usually if they did inform me I wouldn’t let them.
Partly there was good reason behind my approach (we were dealing with sensitive individual personal data which journos wanted) and partly I was a petit bureaucrat with little other power – so I wielded what I could.
Vol, I know that the press thing is what is being focused on in the media, but the more heinous part of this is not speaking to the IG or the GAO. If the IG and GAO don’t have access how will there be any transparency?
[...] is AFTER Johnson’s refusal to cooperate with two senate committee hearings, I discussed yesterday. In additon to Johnson’s refusal to testify before Congress, Sen. Boxer brought up other, [...]
Yeah, no GAO accountability is absolutely ridiculous and probably illegal. One more count for the Bush administration indictment, please.
I’ve also worked for a different agency where my ID gave me unfettered access to any public record I wanted and cited statue. In the name of accountability.
It didn’t say they got to contact their superiors first. It said they had to hand over the papers. Any papers. At my say so.
Any delay just allows time for the shredders to be cranked up.
(I never got to flash my ID like that at anyone, demanding “papers please” – but I always wanted to. My petit bureaucrat tendencies remained unsatisfied.)