Politics

Secret Proclamations?

By Paul Blumenthal

Apparently, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour issued a secret proclamation declaring April as Confederate Heritage Month. The proclamation was issued on March 15, 2010 and appears nowhere on Barbour’s official web site. Even more galling, when the Associated Press asked Barbour’s office for a copy of the proclamation–which apparently not too many people knew about–the governor’s office refused to produce a copy. The AP had to rely on the Sons of Confederate Veterans, who were specifically cited in Barbour’s proclamation, to fax them a copy. I wasn’t aware that state executives could just up and issue secret proclamations. I guess transparency doesn’t mean diddly.

Gov. Haley Barbour's official web site fails to display proclamation declaring April as Confederate Heritage Month

Full post as published by Sunlight Foundation on April 13, 2010 (boomark / email).