Getting into the White House used to be easy, even without an appointment. People could stroll around the grounds, walk right into the White House and, if their timing was right, even shake the president’s hand and have a few words with him.
But security had to be made a whole lot tighter, and today the public is kept at more than arm’s length. Even so, there’s no reason for the list of people who visit the president to be concealed.
A coalition of open government groups is suing to get the visitor logs of the White House and President Trump’s other homes. The suit accuses the Secret Service of breaking the law by ignoring several requests for those lists under the Freedom of Information Act.
Some of the groups also sued the Obama White House for its visitor logs. President Barack Obama’s administration eventually released visitor names each month, with the eventual tally rising to 6 million.
This was an act of transparency by an administration otherwise defined by an arrogant secrecy. The Trump White House should also start publishing its visitor log immediately, with special exemptions for sensitive circumstances.
This wouldn’t lead to perfect transparency, as there are always ways to avoid the obligation. Obama’s aides often met with lobbyists at outside locations to avoid detection.
In 2013, the D.C. circuit court ruled that the White House was not obliged to publish the names of visitors. Congressional Democrats have introduced a bill that would require publication of visitor logs at any place the president might travel.
A law shouldn’t be necessary. It should be done voluntarily. Publishing the logs would show whether their president is keeping his pledge to “drain the swamp.” It could also help the White House and its allies.
Rep. Devin Nunes, who heads the House Intelligence Committee, felt forced last week to step down from leadership of an investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. He became a target of left-wing activist groups after visiting the White House to show Trump documents he says prove Obama used dirty tricks against the incoming Trump administration. Perhaps Nunes and the White House would have thought twice about their meeting had they known it would be made public as a matter of course.
Trump has stumbled in setting up his administration, including by failing to fill hundreds of important jobs. Publishing the White House visitor logs is an easy way for him to demonstrate that means to create a transparent administration.
The White House says it is still pondering what to do. But the country has a right to know who is shaping policy. The people should know who’s conducting official business in what Thomas Jefferson called “the people’s house.”
