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Obama throws transparency under the bus
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With the so-called "stimulus" bill, President Obama has thrown the change he promised under the bus.
On his Change.gov website, Obama promised to "end the practice of writing legislation behind closed doors" - to "restore the American people’s trust in their government by making government more open and transparent. Obama will work to reform congressional rules to require all legislative sessions, including committee mark-ups and conference committees, to be conducted in public. By making these practices public, the American people will be able to hold their leaders accountable for wasteful spending and lawmakers won’t be able to slip favors for lobbyists into bills at the last minute."
Just words.
On the campaign trail he was even more emphatic about promising transparency:
"Sunlight is the greatest disinfectant . . . No more secrecy . . . And, when there's a bill that ends up on my desk as president, you the public will have 5 days to look online and find out what's in it before I sign it."
Just words.
Obama's "sunlight before signing" was the first promise Obama broke as President. But, Obama's bloated boondoggle bailout broke seven Obama promises:
1. Make Government Open and Transparent
2. Make it "Impossible" for Congressmen to slip in Pork Barrel Projects -
The Washington Post reports "Democratic lawmakers and the White House added billions in new spending and tax breaks that will benefit a handful of specific companies and industries:
- $8 billion in unplanned spending specifically requested by President Obama for regional high-speed rail projects.
- Language that will save General Motors from paying up to $10 billion in taxes related to its acceptance of federal bailout funds.
- A tax credit that will primarily benefit Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson and RV manufacturers in Elkhart, Ind.
3. Meetings where laws are written will be more open to the public - Democrats wrote the bill in secret, the meetings were not even open to Republican members of Congress, let alone the public.
4. No more secrecy.
5. Public will have five days to look at legislation - Obama will sign the bill on Tuesday. That won't even be four days.
6. You'll know what's in it - Even Congress didn't know what was in the bill.
7. We will put every pork barrel project online
Just words.
President Obama continues to say one thing and do another.
Special Report: Obama's First 100 DaysExclusive examiner.com coverage of the Obama administration's promise to bring about change.
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