Former Gov. Phil Bryant once declared, “Transparency in government is critical to its integrity.” He should tell that to his buddy in the White House. The Trump administration has embarked on a widespread crusade to hide, disguise, and deny access to public data.
Even Republican leaders have criticized some aspects of this systematic effort to obscure government information, alter official records, and reduce public access across multiple agencies. Researchers estimate that well over 3,000 data sets have been removed from public access.
Here are examples among the many identified in news reports:
The Pentagon drew scrutiny for deleting and then obscuring data on service members wounded or killed in the Iran conflict. It drew both public and congressional attention for withholding limitations and costs on the hurried retrofit for the President’s new luxury Air Force One. And it continues to severely restrict media access inside the Pentagon itself.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) removed public health datasets on chronic conditions and virus monitoring. The Department of Justice deleted the National Law Enforcement Accountability Database and took down public databases tracking January 6 Capitol attack prosecutions. The Census Bureau restricted public access to data. The Department of Agriculture eliminated farm reports on climate change and household food security.
The Department of Homeland Security withheld deportation and detention data until forced to release such by federal courts. The agency has also spent millions on private detention facilities at more than four times their assessed market value without full disclosure. ICE has hidden internal health logs detailing detainee hunger strikes and involuntary medical procedures.
The IRS, the Department of Education, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration no longer allow researchers to apply to access and study their data.
More ominously, institutional oversight of government has been diminished through structural changes. Numerous Inspectors General have been fired, reducing independent audits of federal agencies. White House staffers no longer preserve text messages and other communications unless they are the "sole record of official decision-making." New leadership installed at the National Archives has altered historical record preservation. Deep budget cuts across agency statistical divisions have hindered timely access to economic and educational data. And search functions on official portals have been restricted.
Then there is the White House ballroom project. Criticism erupted when internal documents were uncovered revealing costs had escalated to $600 million, including over $300 million in public funds, despite initial claims that it would be entirely privately funded. And key corporate donors were omitted from public lists.
Per Gov. Bryant’s declaration, we have a major integrity problem in Washington.
“The integrity of the upright shall guide them: but the perverseness of transgressors shall destroy them” – Proverbs 11:3.
Crawford is an author and syndicated columnist from Jackson.
15 comments:
TDS Bennie, thanks for checking in.
Ever think there should be some things that our government does not really want everyone to know? Maybe not everyone should know about how our president is being transported.
Sources? Get your news from far left wing blogs? Listening to Schumer? Acute TDS?
Oh no! The Ag. Dept Climate Priests took down the 'Hawg, Tick 'n' Snake Erport' owing to insufficient and deprived Hippie Energy! How will farmers survive?
Does anyone remember Crawford writing articles about Obama and Biden doing worse?
Crawford is a shill for the lefties.
Another TDS diatribe…. Let’s ignore things hidden by the presidents Crawfish likes (Obama, Biden) and only focus on what Trump dies/did….
I wonder if these wack jobs ever think to check throughout our history and history of other countries that governments aren’t exactly in the business of telling the truth or having integrity? Must be a slow news day and need to come up with some TDS clickbait.
Bill Crawford is Stuart Stevens with less talent and charisma.
Pheel is the one with integrity issues. Just ask Favre
Gov. Bryant’s declaration, “we have a major integrity problem in Washington” is 100% correct. Like “we have a major integrity problem in the field of so-called journalism” is 100% correct.
Which is why agenda driven propagandists posing as journalists refuse to talk about the murdered 2-year-old, the 2 children killed by stray bullets within a ten day period, their Democrat Crime Party city becoming a murder capital; the list is almost endless.
Those willing to ignore even the deaths of innocent children due to their party’s pro-crime catch & release tactics, need not lecture anyone on the subject of “integrity.”
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? Mathew 7:3
All gubments hide stuff. All. In this one ? The sons profits are being hid and soon his.
Can I start a crusade to hide Crawford’s posts before they continue to dumb down America???
If everyone stopped posting comments on his articles, then maybe this site would stop posting his articles. Just don’t post. You can do it.
Kingfish just uses bots to post comments anyway, wouldn’t change much.
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