Wired wonders, doesn’t transparency mean more than just posting legislation on the web, then rushing to approve it in congress?
The White House and congressional leaders agreed to the details of the $700 billion government bailout of financial institutions late Sunday afternoon and they promptly released the bill on the internet.
The Huffington Post and The Open House Project both posted the legislation online shortly after the House server appeared to be overwhelmed by traffic. The Sunlight Foundation then posted the bill up on its site PublicMarkUp.org.
The House apparently plans to approve the legislation Monday, and the Senate is expected to act on it Wednesday.
Several newspapers have summaries of the legislation and what it would do. But one wonders whether this is what we mean by transparent government.