Scholarship
How, and How Often, Do Legal Academics Use FOIA?
Ryan Scoville Mon, Mar 4, 2019, 11:52 AM
Casting sunlight on how law professors use federal transparency laws.
Latest in Secrecy: FOIA
immigration
Does the Data President Trump Cited at His Emergency Announcement Even Exist?
Scott R. Anderson, Benjamin Wittes Fri, Feb 15, 2019, 3:47 PM
Inquiring minds want to know.
Secrecy: FOIA
Someone at the Justice Department Wants Ethics Advice on Whitaker’s Supervision of the Mueller Investigation
Scott R. Anderson, Benjamin Wittes Fri, Dec 7, 2018, 2:30 PM
The most recent results from our FOIA project.
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
What Does the Justice Department Think About Birthright Citizenship?
Scott R. Anderson, Benjamin Wittes Thu, Nov 1, 2018, 3:54 PM
Inquiring minds want to know.
FOIA
The National Archives Passes the Buck on Spanberger
Scott R. Anderson, Benjamin Wittes Thu, Nov 1, 2018, 2:37 PM
A response to our FOIA request revealed the National Archives and Records Administration sent Spanberger’s documents to the U.S. Postal Service for processing. USPS has not said what happened from there.
Secrecy: FOIA
A Meta-FOIA Request: How Did the Postal Service Release a Congressional Candidate’s SF-86?
Scott R. Anderson, Benjamin Wittes Thu, Aug 30, 2018, 1:58 PM
A federal employee’s background-check materials should not be released under FOIA. But the records of how such an abusive request was processed certainly should be.
The Russia Connection
What to Make of the Carter Page FISA Applications
David Kris Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 10:35 PM
The release of the Carter Page FISA applications represents a monumental disclosure to the public—and underlines just how disingenuous House intelligence committee Chairman Devin Nunes has been.
The Russia Connection
Document: Justice Department Releases Carter Page FISA Application
Quinta Jurecic Sat, Jul 21, 2018, 6:16 PM
Pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, the Justice Department has—in a highly unusual move—released a redacted copy of the FISA application seeking a warrant against former Trump campaign advisor Carter Page. The application became the subject of political controversy when the Republican majority on the House intelligence committee, on the basis of little evidence, accused the FISA Court and Justice Department of enabling the surveillance of Page for political rather than national security reasons.
Secrecy: FOIA
Climate Change at the FBI: Why We Sued the Bureau Last Week
Scott R. Anderson, Benjamin Wittes Mon, May 21, 2018, 5:24 PM
An update on a Freedom of Information Act request.
Donald Trump
Is the State Department Giving Money to President Trump? Let’s Find Out
Benjamin Wittes Mon, May 7, 2018, 6:23 PM
A few months ago, I began working with Scott Anderson and Sabrina McCubbin on an interesting project: trying to discern whether the State Department was, quite literally, paying President Trump money. Today, having gotten no response from the department on the subject, I filed a lawsuit on the subject