Biden Interior Department Revokes Trump-era Transparency Order
- June 22, 2022
Michael Tennant, The New American
Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on Friday revoked a 2018 order requiring her department to post details of its legal settlements online so the public can see if officials are colluding with special-interest groups to advance the latter’s agenda via the courts.
Given the differing approaches to the matter by the two administrations, it seems clear that interest groups aligned with the Democratic Party are benefiting most from sue-and-settle. However, as Michael Chamberlain, director of government watchdog Protect the Public’s Trust, told the Daily Caller, “There is this potential for abuses whether it’s a Republican or Democratic administration.”
“If the department is able to just act with its allied groups and just roll over and give them what they want, they’re making an end [run] around the normal channels,” he added. “They can’t get [policies] through Congress, they can’t get [them] through the regulatory approach, but they can get [them] through the courts, so this way, the potential for abuse is tremendous.”