Trump's history with National Security Archive a red flag for 2021 theft of docs
Washington, D.C., April 14, 2017 – The Trump White House announced today it would no longer disclose the routine visitor logs maintained by the Secret Service and published online by the Obama administration since 2009, and claimed national security and privacy risks.“This is a White House lie,” said National Security Archive director Tom Blanton. “There is no national security risk to releasing the visitor logs; we have seven years of nearly 6 million Obama visitors that prove no problem. Privacy was protected there too. What’s really going on is the swamp suits Donald Trump just fine.”
Anticipating the Trump move, earlier this week the Archive and its senior analyst Kate Doyle joined with the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and CREW, the watchdog group that first sued Presidents George W. Bush and Obama for copies of the visitor logs, in a new Freedom of Information lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security, parent agency of the Secret Service, to open the Trump logs – including at Trump Tower and Mar-a-Lago.
The lawsuit focuses on the fact that protecting the President and vetting White House visitors is central to the Secret Service’s statutory mission, making the records clearly under agency control. In contrast, today’s White House announcement tries to exempt the logs from the Freedom of Information Act by claiming they’re not agency records.
The Archive published screen shots of the White House “Visitor Records Requests” Web page, one from the Obama White House showing the routine lists of visitors, and one from last month saying “This page is being updated. It will post records of White House visitors on an ongoing basis, once they become available.” Today’s Web page says only “Thank you for your interest in this subject.”
Blanton commented, “Open government is taking a beating from Donald Trump. His very first bill signed into law threw a shroud over oil companies’ payments to foreign governments. He’s the first president in decades to refuse releasing his tax returns. Now he’s covering up who comes to lobby him, including foreigners – when the American people have a right to know.”
"White House to Keep Its Visitor Logs Secret," by Julie Davis, The New York Times, April 14, 2017
"Trump will keep list of White House visitors secret," by John Wagner, The Washington Post, April 14, 2017
"As Trump Continues Mar-A-Lago Trips, Watchdogs Want To Know Who's Joining Him," by Greg Allen, NPR, April 13, 2017
"The public deserves to know who is visiting the White House," by The Washington Post Editorial Board, The Washington Post, April 11, 2017
"Let us see the White House visitor logs, Mr. President," by The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board, The San Diego Union-Tribune, April 10, 2017
"New suit demands Trump White House visitor logs," by Josh Gerstein, Politico, April 10, 2017
Trump sued for not releasing White House visitor logs, by Mallory Shelbourne, The Hill, April 10, 2017
Watchdog groups sue for White House, Mar-a-Lago visitor logs, by Jill Disis,CNN, April 10, 2017
"Secret Service Sued Over Trump Residence Visitor Logs," by Bob van Voris, April 10, 2017
Watchdogs Sue Trump Admin For Visitor Logs At WH, Trump Tower, Mar-A-Lago, By Esme Cribb, Talking Points Memo, April 10, 2017
"Who’s visiting the White House? Watchdog groups are suing to find out," by John Wagner, The Washington Post, April 9, 2017
“Release of White House Visitor Logs Important for Transparency,” by Rep. Mike Quigley, The Hill, March 30, 2017
“Mar-a-Lago can't release visitor logs — because it doesn't keep them,” by Darren Sameulsohn, Politico, March 28, 2017
“White House’s Online Visitor Logs Remain Offline Under Trump,” by Rebecca Ballhaus, Wall Street Journal, March 27, 2017
“White House Won’t Say If It Will Release Names of Visitors,” by Lachlan Markay, The Daily Beast, March 7, 2017
“The Trump White House Has a Position on Disclosing Its Visitor Logs: Silence,” by Andy Kroll, Mother Jones, March 6, 2017
“Senate Dems Want Mar-A-Lago Visitor Records Made Public,” by Jordain Carney, The Hill, March 6, 2017
“Data disappeared from Obama administration site promoting transparency,” by Traci Mauriello, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, February 22, 2017
“What happens to White House visitor log under Trump?” by Josh Gerstein, Politico, January 20, 2017DOCUMENTS
Document 1 – Complaint for Injunctive and Declaratory Relief, Doyle v. DHS, April 10, 2017.
Document 2 – Visitor log screen shots taken from the Obama Whitehouse.gov.
Document 3 – Kate Doyle’s FOIA Request to the Secret Service, March 10, 2017.
Document 4 – Kate Doyle’s FOIA Request and Appeal to the Secret Service, January 23, 2017, and February 24, 2017, respectively.
Document 5 - White House and Vice President’s Residents Visitor Records Litigation Matters, September 3, 2009.
Document 6 - Memorandum Opinion, Judicial Watch v. United States Secret Service, August 17, 2011.
Document 7 - Amicus Brief of the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington in Support of the Appellee, Judicial Watch v. United States Secret Service, May 8, 2012.
Document 8 - Opinion of the Court, Judicial Watch v. United States Secret Service, August 30, 2013.
Document 9 – Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) letters to President Donald Trump and the Secret Service, March 6, 2017.
