Frequently throughout the long and drawn out process that has become the court martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning, reporters covering proceedings have complained or expressed frustration about the lack of access to court records. But, finally, the military has decided to allow a smidgen of transparency in the court martial to possibly avoid a major [...]

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Former White House press secretary Robert Gibbs appeared in his new role as MSNBC contributor on Sunday and acknowledged it was official policy within the administration of President Barack Obama to not acknowledge the existence of a drone program. On “Up w/ Chris” [...]

The administration of President Barack Obama refuses to acknowledge to a court that the CIA actually has a drone program that exists. This act is repellent in one respect because the administration’s nominee for CIA chief, John Brennan, sat before senators and answered questions about the program during his confirmation hearing. It is also detestable [...]

In President Barack Obama’s first days as president, he pledged to have his administration create an “unprecedented level of openness in government.” His chief of staff, Jack Lew, has contended the administration is the “most transparent administration ever.” At a rally in 2010, he told the public, “We have put in place the toughest ethics [...]

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has determined that border searches of American citizens without probable cause or suspicion, which sometimes result in the seizure of laptops, cell phones or other electronic devices, do not violate civil liberties. How DHS drew these self-serving conclusions is unknown because no evidence to support these conclusions was released [...]

Over a week ago, a federal judge ruled documents the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was ordered to produce in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit could not be subjected to a protective order. The development has received minimal attention, but the case seems important, as the government sought to use an innovative tactic [...]

The Senate Intelligence Committee recently adopted a six thousand page report on CIA torture and abuse. The report, a product of a three-year review of CIA practices, including its rendition, detention and interrogation (RDI) program, remains classified. It stems from at least six million CIA documents and could be the most comprehensive record to-date of [...]

The United States government has disclosed the names of fifty-five of the eighty-six prisoners cleared for transfer from  Guantanamo Bay prison. All of the names made public were of prisoners President Barack Obama’s interagency  Guantanamo Bay Review Task Force approved for release from the prison. Previously, the US government had maintained the names of prisoners cleared [...]

The Washington Post has published an article on an analysis of annual reports from government agencies the Post did, which is further proof—despite President Barack Obama’s promise of unprecedented transparency in government—he has presided over a government that in some ways is more secretive than ever before. The newspaper looked at his commitment to seemingly enhance the [...]

Months ago, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) submitted a challenge, a petition for extraordinary relief, to hopefully force the judge in the court martial proceedings against Pfc. Bradley Manning to grant the press and public access to court filings. I signed on to the lawsuit as a plaintiff. Other people who signed on as [...]