Here's one way Obama can burnish his legacy
He can make FOIA work


It won't surprise researchers, journalists, and historians to know that almost half of federal agencies do not comply with a law requiring agencies to modernize their Freedom of Information Act policies, and that a majority are out of step with the policy voiced by President Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder.
Nate Jones, the FOIA guru at the National Security Archives at George Washington University, along with archive director Tom Blanton and researcher Lauren Harper scrutinized the published and practiced FOIA policies at more than 100 federal agencies, and you can see who gets darts and laurels here. (Disclosure: Jones and I are working together on an unrelated project).
FOIA remains an incredibly powerful tool to compel the government to disclose information. A mandatory declassification review process can pry loose some of the government's darkest past secrets. But the FOIA process is only as good as the incentives given to people who process the requests and the way that they are supervised. To put it mildly, the CIA's FOIA officers aren't going to presume to try to figure out how to disclose something.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Some FOIA officials can be great; they'll point you in the right direction, or help you edit your requests to net more documents, or even help you bridge the mind-numbing bureaucratic roadblocks that pop up every time your subject request involves more than one agency. Others are just horrible. When it comes to national security information, FOIA decisions are maddeningly inconsistent.
FOIA requests can force the government to disclose how it chooses contractors, how it disciplines wayward employees, how efficiently it spends its money, and how it holds itself accountable.
In times of budget stress, Congress isn't going to spend more on FOIA. But if President Obama wanted to take a stand in favor of transparency, there are worse ways to do so than a presidential push for real FOIA reform. Real FOIA reform would require that agencies be accountable for their processes. It would increase the number of FOIA processors at each agency. It would expedite processing times. It would allow much more transparent appeals. It would be technologically modern. It would not necessarily be adversarial. FOIA officers might be rewarded for helping requesters find the documents and information they need.
Maybe it's a pipe dream. But Obama's current record here is not very good. A lot of his problems aren't his, and he can't fix them. This one he can, if he pays attention and takes the time.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Marc Ambinder is TheWeek.com's editor-at-large. He is the author, with D.B. Grady, of The Command and Deep State: Inside the Government Secrecy Industry. Marc is also a contributing editor for The Atlantic and GQ. Formerly, he served as White House correspondent for National Journal, chief political consultant for CBS News, and politics editor at The Atlantic. Marc is a 2001 graduate of Harvard. He is married to Michael Park, a corporate strategy consultant, and lives in Los Angeles.
-
Help! Do we really need four Beatles biopics?
Talking Point The cast of Sam Mendes' Beatles biopics has been announced
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Test driving the Rolls-Royce Spectre Black Badge
The Week Recommends We take the most powerful Rolls-Royce ever built for a spin in Barcelona
By Fergus Scholes Published
-
Tuberculosis is seeing a resurgence, and it's only going to get worse
Under the radar The spread of the deadly infection is buoyed by global unrest
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: who are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published