I had noticed the incongruence early in the day, but somebody at Politico figured out how to squeeze all the sarcasm into the lead sentence: "President Obama's only event at the White House that isn't closed to the press on Wednesday is a ceremony in which he'll accept an award for being open to the press."
Steven Nelson of the Daily Caller observes that the award is . . . well, pretty much based on crap: "The Associated Press reported this week that despite pledges of increased transparency, the Obama administration last year responded to fewer Freedom of Information Act requests than the year before. In 2010 there were 544,360 requests filed at the 35 largest government agencies. The AP reported that the administration 'refused to release any sought-after materials in more than 1-in-3 information requests.' The Obama administration has developed a reputation for ruthlessly prosecuting whistleblowers for leaks to the press. The heavy-handed approach has prompted concern about a 'chilling effect' that could discourage future government transparency."
It just keeps getting better gang:
HEADLINE OF THE DAY: Sunshine Award Event Postponed for Unspecified Reasons. “President Obama was due to accept an award from a coalition of good government groups recognizing ‘his deep commitment to an open and transparent government’ in conjunction with Sunshine Week, the UPI reports. However, reporters were told the event was postponed ‘due to changes to the President’s schedule.’ No other reason was given.”
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