Political Quotes

“on July 4, the Nation will celebrate the 46th anniversary of the enactment of the Freedom of Information Act, FOIA. The ``right to know'' is a cornerstone of our Democracy. For five decades, Americans have counted on FOIA to help shed light on the activities of their government. As we reach this important milestone, there are many victories to celebrate. This week the Senate will enact the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act, which includes important language that I helped craft to protect the public's ability to access information under FOIA. Section 710 of that bill will allow the Food and Drug Administration, FDA, to obtain information about drug inspections and drug investigations undertaken by foreign governments, while at the same time ensuring that the American public has access to information about potential health and safety dangers. I thank Senators Harkin and Enzi and the many open-government and consumer groups-- including OpenTheGovernment.org and Public Citizen--who worked with me to enact this FOIA provision. Last year the Senate unanimously passed the Faster FOIA Act, a bill that I cosponsored with Republican Senator John Cornyn. This legislation would create a bipartisan panel of government and outside experts to make recommendations on improving the FOIA process.…”