The Department of Justice has proposed federal regulations that would authorize the United States government to lie to the American people. This sounds bad, but in truth it's a big step forward. In the past, the government would simply have lied, without announcing its intention to do so. This was certainly true, for example, during the administrations of Lyndon Johnson (Gulf of Tonkin), Richard Nixon (Watergate) and Ronald Reagan (Iran-Contra). The Obama administration, reflecting an admirable commitment to transparency, wants everyone to know it will lie.
This is not as crazy as it seems. The issue concerns the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which requires the government to reveal certain information to the public upon request. The government does not have to reveal all information, however. FOIA permits the government to refuse to reveal certain types of confidential information. For example, §522(c) provides that the government need not disclose information if its disclosure would jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation, reveal the identity of a confidential informant, or divulge classified information pertaining to foreign intelligence, counterintelligence or international terrorism.
When someone files a FOIA request for such information, the government is authorized under existing regulations to refuse the request by explaining that such information is exempt from disclosure. Recently, however, the Department of Justice concluded that this response does not adequately protect the government. The government's concern is that this response implies that the government has the information requested, a disclosure that might in itself cause some harm to the government.
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