More Little Reported News - DHS Withholds FOIA Requests

Darrell Issa, the self-described "cop on the beat" has been holding hearings on Democrat stonewalling at the Department of Homeland Security over Freedom of Information Act requests. It has been previously reported by the AP (via HotAir) that DHS has appeared to take a political stance on FOIA requests. Now Issa's Government Oversight Committee is taking on the challenge.

Republicans in Congress objected Thursday to the Homeland Security Department's now-rescinded practice of requiring secretive reviews by political advisers of hundreds of requests for government files under the Freedom of Information Act. The chairman of a House oversight committee said the process "reeks of a Nixonian enemies list" and was unacceptable.

And this from the AP:

The Homeland Security Department official in charge of submitting sensitive government files to political advisers for secretive reviews before they could be released to citizens, journalists and watchdog groups complained in emails that the unusual scrutiny was "crazy" and hoped someone outside the Obama administration would discover the practice, The Associated Press has learned.
. . .
But at the Homeland Security Department, since July 2009, career employees were ordered to provide political staffers with information about the people who asked for records — such as where they lived and whether they were private citizens or reporters — and about the organizations where they worked. If a member of Congress sought such documents, employees were told to specify Democrat or Republican. No one in government was allowed to discuss the political reviews with anyone whose information request was affected by them.

This is such an egregious abuse of the law that it deserves investigation, even if the shame of public exposure has cause the practice to halt. Further, there appears to be some retaliation as the Deputy Chief FOIA officer at DHS, Catherine Papoi, has been moved out of her office and replaced by her new boss. But rest assured, sports fans, this was not retaliation.

"The government should not keep information confidential merely because public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure, because errors and failures might be revealed or because of speculative or abstract fears," Obama said shortly after he took office.

Ya think?

Which Is the More Outrageous TSA flaws or DHS response

Temple of Mut has been warning us that TSA measures for airport security have not been implemented using an appropriate risk assessment methodology. From her blog:

As a safety professional, I have been doing RISK ASSESSMENT for years. Essentially, it is the concept whereby different factors that could impact a business are reviewed, and the resources to eliminate or minimize a hazard are selected based on a) How harmful the hazard is; b) How often the hazard is faced; and, c) The amount of materials/training/work it will take to eliminate/reduce the risks associated with that hazard.

Now Drudge has a headline linking to an article about a pilot blowing the whistle on the stupid ways that security is implemented at our nation's airports, echoing the Temple's criticism.

Here's a little YouTube:



Look at the heavy-handed manner in which the Feds (and Big Sis specifically) respond to criticism. So my exit question, which is more outrageous, the mindless tactics and kabuki theater of our airport security or the the federal government's heavy handed response to questioning. Also, in a nation where the federal government and local law enforcement can't agree on how to process illegal aliens arrested for felonies, how is it that county sheriffs can seize this man's pistol four days after he posts some Youtube critical of the a federal agency? I mean, what the hell, you can't even get that kind of cooperation to take down Mafia dons.

Feel the power of the dark side, young jedi pilot.