Only 5 percent of White House reporters say Obama has been more transparent than Bush
Win McNamee/Getty Images


It's long been a critique of President Obama that, despite vowing to run the most transparent White House in history, he's done anything but that. And with the White House correspondents dinner this weekend, Politico surveyed 61 members of the presidential press corps and found that they, too, think Obama's administration has hardly been forthcoming with information.
In the survey, 41 percent of respondents said former President George W. Bush's White House was more transparent than Obama's; only 5 percent say Obama's White House has been better on that front.
Meanwhile, 42 percent agree with the assessment of New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson that the Obama White House is the "most secretive" they've ever covered. And half say they've been lied to by a White House official.
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The whole survey is worth a read, both for its insight into the White House, and for its unapologetic navel-gazing. (Real question: "Do you think President Obama knows you by name?")
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Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.
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