Jason Grumet argues that there's a dark side to sunlight. But transparency is necessary for accountable government; in fact, it's hard-wired into the American democracy.
Continue readingJon Stewart Eviscerates Congress and President Obama for Gutting STOCK Act
All hail Jon Stewart and those clever Daily Show writers for very adeptly (and hilariously -- though not in a very safe for work way) reporting last night how quickly and quietly Congress and President Obama combined forces to gut major transparency provisions of the STOCK Act passed last year. In an election year, they rushed to pass this reform legislation (and garner public kudos for doing so), but now with less of a spotlight on their actions, they rushed to undo the bill. Readers of our blog know that Sunlight's lobbyist, Lisa Rosenberg, has taken the charge to inform you about this as it happened nearly two weeks ago. As she put it, the Senate's action to approve the removal of STOCK Act transparency provisions was an epic failure on Thursday, May 11, especially since they did so invoking unanimous consent. Then the House followed suit and rushed the vote in mere seconds the next day, as most House members had already left Washington for recess. The House also completely lapsed on fulfilling their "read the bill" rule to wait three calendar days to deliberate on the legislation -- to, you know, actually give citizens time to know what their elected officials were voting on before it was a done deal. (This would have also given the press more time to inform Americans of these shenanigans.)
Continue reading“Fiscal Cliff” Casts Shadow of Secrecy
Just like the debt limit negotiations and Supercommittee process that helped cause it, the so-called "fiscal cliff" of expiring laws is creating another round of secretive negotiations among our political leaders. The heads of both parties now thrive on stories of impending fiscal consequences, even when they're of their own making.
To cope with a polarized electorate, our leaders have figured out a way to create an apparent impending disaster that is unpalatable regardless of one's ideology. Whatever the outcome of their fight with each other, they've created a dystopian future against which they can be made to look like heroes warding off impending doom with their brave bipartisanship.
It doesn't really matter which party started it (both of them) or whether this was avoidable (it was), because divided government has again led us to a place where the most important policy decisions are probably going to be made in secret, and then passed down to the rest of us.
While online disclosure and dialog don't threaten to take away politicians' power anytime soon, they do represent our best chance at elevating substance, rewarding merit, and reducing undue influence, whether in crafting legislation or in dealing with the struggles of divided government. Sunlight's approach to government transparency has made us skeptical observers of these political negotiations, and as we find ourselves entering yet another cycle, we decided to ask:
What can we expect of the next month, and what should we do about it?
Continue readingGroups Call for 3 Day Rule
Sunlight has long called for all bills to be posted online for 3 days before they’re considered on the floor.... View Article
Continue readingBoehner’s 72 Hour Pledges, Condensed
Throughout the last year, we’ve repeatedly pointed out that Speaker Boehner repeatedly pledged to put all bills online for 72... View Article
Continue readingBroad Spectrum of Interests Urge Super Committee Transparency
A bipartisan assembly of groups representing a variety of interests—from a conservative government watchdog to a supporter of women’s rights... View Article
Continue readingIt’s Not Too Late for the Public to Read the Super Committee’s Bill
The Super Committee has 10 days to reach a deal to reduce the debt by at least $1.2 trillion. They... View Article
Continue readingMembers of Congress Can Address Super Committee Super Secrecy
Today’s New York Times reports that Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle are concerned about the super... View Article
Continue readingHouse Violates 72 Hour Pledge Again
Two weeks ago the House of Representatives violated a pledge made by Speaker John Boehner to provide a 72 hour... View Article
Continue readingBoehner’s Many 72 Hour Pledges
In the post below I noted that it’s a bit surprising that the Read the Bill pledge was subverted by... View Article
Continue reading
59063
