During the White House press briefing today, Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked if the administration still considered itself the most transparent administration in history, even after the scandal surrounding former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s deleted emails.
“Yes,” Earnest responded, “And the reason for that is that there are large number of ways that reporters and the public have access to the administration and to decisions made at the administration.”
Earnest pointed to the public release of visitor access records and making FOIA requests more efficient as proof that this White House is “much more transparent” that previous administrations.
At the White House, Earnest explained, government smartphones couldn’t be used to access personal email. He noted that in 2012, however, software was developed allowing White House staffers to use personal smart phones to access their official government emails.
Each agency of the administration, he said, had its own rules and guidelines about personal and government emails.
Earnest was reluctant to say whether or not the White House considered Clinton’s email revelations closed, but pointed to her assertion that she properly returned business emails back to the State Department.
“There is no evidence that’s been marshaled thus far to demonstrate that there should be a lack of trust in that regard,” Earnest said.
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