opinion

Clinton: Transparency needs better technology

Hillary Clinton said she would do a better job than past presidents, presumably including the current one, at communicating with the American people about foreign relations.

At the same time, Clinton was first flip and then vague on what she would do to ensure better public access to executive branch records and to improve transparency in the White House.

“Well, you can count on me not to have a private email server,” Clinton joked when asked how she would address concerns about access to public information.

Let’s start on a positive note, because the former secretary of state did in fact demonstrate an impressive ability to communicate clearly about foreign policy issues. She put on a mini-clinic during a 90-plus-minute interview with The Des Moines Register on Tuesday. Topics ranged from a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine and the Iran nuclear deal to relations with Russia and China.

“We can do a better job of explaining to the American people what’s really at stake,” Clinton said.

So, Clinton is offering better communication on foreign policy; that’s wonderful. But an essential part of communication is trust, which is in short supply in Washington generally and specifically between Americans and Clinton. One way to build trust is to verify information, and verification must include public access to government information and records.

Clinton’s private email server is only one reason to ask about her intentions for a transparent executive branch. President Barack Obama promised the most transparent administration in history, and yet government watchdogs and the media have complained loudly about noncompliance with public-record laws.

MORE: Clinton disputes report of new email discrepancy

On Tuesday, Clinton said the president and his team are committed to transparency, but “the explosion of information is just overwhelming and the government is woefully behind technically. It is really hard when you are running a government in 2015 that is not yet in the 21st century when it comes to technology.”

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, one of the leading government watchdogs over his 40 years in Congress, agrees technology is out of date but he lays the blame for transparency problems on the president.

“I think it’s the attitude of whoever’s president,” he said, calling Obama the “most stonewalling” president in his experience. Yes, Grassley’s a Republican and he’s not shy about criticizing the president. But Grassley has also held former Republican presidents accountable and insisted on prompt responses to inquiries.

In June, the House Oversight Committee heard testimony from journalists about violations of the Freedom of Information Act. Sheryl Attkisson, formerly of CBS, testified about receiving public documents 10 years after she had filed FOIA requests. Agency officials unlawfully politicize requests for information, obfuscate and delay, she said. They create their own backlogs by requiring a formal FOIA request for even the most basic of information.

IN HER OWN WORDS: Clinton on emails, the race, more

The Register has had similar experiences. Editorial writer Clark Kauffman was once instructed to file a FOIA request for a copy of a Department of Agriculture license for a zoo. Agency officials refused to budge until Kauffman sent them a copy of the document, which he had already obtained from a third party, and a copy of the license hanging on a wall at the zoo.

Clinton said Tuesday that Congress has been reluctant to pay for information upgrades. Grassley, however, pointed to billions spent to upgrade technology at the FBI and the IRS, which he felt was ineffective.

Clinton said better management of information would be a priority for her. “When I talk about how we need to reform the government and how we need to make it work more efficiently, it’s a big part of it,” she said.

Both Clinton and Grassley envision bringing in technology experts to assess the issues and propose solutions. Clinton says Congress needs to spend more on technology and experts. The famously frugal Grassley said Google or Microsoft “would probably be glad to do it for nothing.”

None of that will matter, however, unless the next president is willing to not only talk about open government but also enforce existing laws without political consideration and eliminate the red tape that stands in the way of routine requests. So far, none of the candidates for president has offered a detailed proposal to improve public access to government.

Clinton is an excellent communicator when she wants to be. But someone who would set up a private email server for personal convenience needs to offer more than cloudy assurances that she will work on improving transparency rather than making it worse.