The Freedom of Information Act and Mr. Trump's EPA
Michael Lemov, The Hill, Jan. 29, 2018
When the Freedom of Information Act was passed five decades ago, Congress did not see it as an environmental protection law. But the present frenzy of the Trump administration’s efforts to slash federal regulations, primarily those designed to protect the air we breathe and the water we drink and to eliminate the toxic chemicals that can kill us, may well open a new chapter for the 51 year old FOIA. It may, in fact, have already become a crucial environmental protection weapon.
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The prime weapon of the press and public groups is the fifty-one year old Freedom of Information Act. It was passed by a legislative coalition of Democrats and Republicans over the fierce opposition of four presidents, of both political parties. Those chief executives argued that an opening up government records would invade the powers of the president, impair the operation of the executive branch and, surprisingly, aid the Russians (then known as the “Communist Threat”).
FOIA arose out of the “McCarthy era” and the Cold War, a time filled with fear of Russia and Communism and marked by government abuses and mandated secrecy.
It took 12 years of intense struggle to enact the open government law. The fight was led by a young California congressman named John E. Moss, who had been tarred as a “red” himself as a as a candidate for Congress.
FOIA was one of the first laws worldwide to attempt to force transparency on reluctant chief executives. Today that includes the secretive President Trump and his EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.
Read more here.