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ANOTHER STORY that has not been very well covered: As Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) puts it, the Bush Administration: has an obsession with secrecy." "Bush] has repeatedly rewritten laws and changed practices to reduce public and congressional scrutiny of its activities. The cumulative effect is an unprecedented assault on the laws that make our government open and accountable."    

A 2004 congressional report on secrecy in the Bush Administration makes a compelling case. Excerpt here.  And this was before knowledge of the Administration's clandestine and reviewless, warrantless wiretap program of U.S. citizens.

Former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill Believed this administration was too secretive, even several years back.  Journalist Bill Moyers: "It has to be said: there has been nothing in our time like the Bush Administration's obsession with secrecy."  Former New Jersey Governor Thomas Kean: "You'd be amazed at the kind of information that's classified."  More on this here.   

According to several sources, the administration has also sought to shape and control the nature of shared information as well. For example, with respect to the Global Climate Change issue, there are also claims that open debate on the matter have been somewhat stifled.  In a bit of a first for an open democracy regarding purely scientific and non security sensitive information, the administration has allegedly sought to control what government climate change information is shared. 

According to this non mainstream source (perhaps slanted, but it raises some critical issues), the Bush administration obsession with secrecy is one of the top 25 underreported stories of 2006. When you combine it with some of the points briefly referred to here, and the administration's  poor fiscal record, even poorer environmental record, management and strategy on Iraq, failure to pay attention  to al Qaeda prior to September, 2001, and several other factors, it paints a picture that is hard to believe. So many people simply don't.

Highlights and cites for two other largely underreported stories, on Iraqi civilian casualties, and the 2004 election; results, exit polling, and voting machine control, oversight, and review. 

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