Reform Government Secrecy

The U.S. classifies far too many secrets, obstructing democracy.

Excessive government secrecy takes many forms, from agencies needlessly claiming documents are classified to ignoring information requests and destroying records — even when the documents show government fraud or illegal conduct. This hinders a free press, effective oversight, and the public’s ability to self govern.

We need to fight for systemic improvements, and we need the press to vigorously question the government every time it says something is classified.

Write a letter to strengthen presidential library transparency

It’s too difficult to know what current presidential administrations are doing with donations to presidential libraries or what past administrations have done. Congress can help fix it — but it needs to hear from you to act.

First Name * Last Name
Email Address *
Street Address * Zip Code *

Edit this message so that it is unique to you: Dear Senator/Representative, As your constituent, I am deeply concerned that secretive donations to presidential foundations, ostensibly to build presidential libraries, enable bribery. This concern is exacerbated by the fact that public access to the government records stored at these libraries is at an all-time low. These twin problems make it too difficult to know what current administrations are doing, and what past administrations have done. I am asking that you PLEASE SUPPORT the Presidential Library Anti-Corruption Act. It is critical that the public knows that wealthy donors can’t solicit favors from sitting presidents by donating to these facilities. I am also asking you to PLEASE INCREASE FUNDING for the National Archives and Records Administration. NARA is responsible for overseeing the presidential library system, but NARA’s budget has remained stagnant for 30 years. As a result, it can now take more than a decade for presidential libraries to respond to a single declassification request from a member of the public. Secretive donations, combined with deficient access to presidential records, makes it harder for the public to know what presidents do with their power. This is unacceptable. Now is the time to use your considerable influence to support transparency and improve public understanding of the presidency. Thank you.

* Required. We will not share your information with third parties. Learn more

Something went wrong processing this request. Please try again later.

Opt in to email updates from Freedom of the Press Foundation

Something went wrong and your email updates subscription could not be processed. Please visit our signup page and try again.

Thank you for helping close important secrecy loopholes at presidential libraries.

Donate

Share this message on social media: Secret donations to presidential libraries can enable bribery, while public access to presidential records is at an all-time low.
Use our action center tool to tell Congress to close the secrecy loopholes and increase transparency.
Join me in telling Congress to increase transparency at presidential libraries.