Transparency Groups Disappointed with Obama

Administration isn't very open at all

Journalists, transparency organizations, and government staffers met at the Washington College of Law (WCL) at American University last Thursday to discuss where, how, and why President Barack Obama has fallen short in his stated goal of reforming the federal government's secretive ways.

The WCL Collaboration on Government Secrecy, headed by law professor and former Department of Justice Office of Information and Privacy director Dan Metcalfe, hosted the event. It is the group's fifth assessment so far of transparency in the Obama administration.

"We had a good time the first year, and then the following three years we had an annual assessment," Metcalfe said. "And that's when the disappointment began to set in."