Washington - Incoming US President Barack Obama signalled a
'new era' of transparency, accountability and rule of law in his
administration, signing a series of ethics-related directives on his
first full day in the White House Wednesday.
'Transparency and the rule of law will be the touchstones of this
presidency,' Obama said during a signing ceremony, which also
included the swearing-in of Obama's senior White House staff.
The directives were part of a flurry of activity on Obama's first
day in office. Controversial US military tribunals at Guantanamo Bay,
Cuba were suspended for 120 days. Obama also planned meetings with
his top economic and military advisers later Wednesday.
Obama said he hoped his directives would help 'restore trust' in
the US government. Opinion polls have shown dropping public
confidence in government, with departing president George W Bush
leaving with one of the lowest approval ratings in recent times.
Among his ethics reforms, Obama tightened lobbying regulations on
current and former White House officials, including barring staff
members from lobbying the administration if they leave their White
House job, calling for a 'clean break from business as usual.'
Obama also called for a pay freeze for senior White House staff,
noting that families around the country were also 'tightening their
belts' in response to a serious recession afflicting the world's
largest economy.
Obama promised to open up more of his administration's documents
to public and media scrutiny, though he reserved the right to
withhold information sensitive to national security and privacy.
'For a long time now there's been too much secrecy in this city,'
Obama said in an implicit criticism of the Bush administration, which
battled regularly with the media over the release of documents. 'That
era is now over.'
Former vice president Dick Cheney was notorious for his disdain of
the press. Early in the administration Cheney withheld documents
related to an energy taskforce led by the vice president.
The Bush administration also came under fire for secret
surveillance measures in the war on terrorism, including warrantless
wiretaps on US citizens' conversations with people abroad that were
suspected of terrorism. The programme was eventually revealed by The
New York Times over stiff objections from the White House.
'The mere fact that you have the legal power to keep something
secret does not mean you should always use it,' Obama said, adding he
would consult with his attorney general and White House counsel on
any documents he plans to keep secret.
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