Judge Rules White House Emails May Remain Private
U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled that the Freedom of Information Act doesn’t apply to the Office of Administration. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and the National Security Archive have sued the Executive Office of the President (EOP), claiming that the EOP has failed to comply with legal obligations by not taking proper measures to ensure the preservation of electronic records.
Since the Office of Administration was created in 1978 it has responded to FOIA requests. CREW claims that the Bush administration reversed that policy in August 2007. While the White House has acknowledged problems with the email system, it claimed that any missing records were available on tape backups.
