And we have a winner! Er, Loser!
Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) has admitted that he put a secret hold on the Open Government Act of 2007.
The bill would significantly reform the federal Freedom of Information Act, which is one of the strongest tools Americans have to supervise the inner workings of government and to hold elected officials accountable.
Ryan Patmintra, Kyl's press secretary, confirmed that Kyl placed the hold to allow for more negotiations among him, bill co-sponsor Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and the U.S. Justice Department. It's no secret that Kyl has concerns about the Open Government Act, Patmintra said.
If Sen. Kyl's concerns are no secret, then why would he insist on working from the shadows to place a hold on this very important legislation? The irony of secretly blocking a vote on a bill that would make government more transparent is supreme. Sen. Kyl should feel pretty silly.
Kyl is behind another bill that concerns SPJ. Known as the Kyl Amendment, it would criminalize the leaking -- and publishing -- of classified information.
So, Sen. Kyl is "Senator Secrecy" in more ways than one.
Thanks to so many SPJ supporters who made calls and made noise. Please keep up the heat. Kyl says he plans to continue blocking this vote until his "concerns" are addressed. For more background information gathered during this process, check out one of my previous posts.