BushCo Secretive...Surprise, Surprise!

White House Declines to Provide Storm Papers

WASHINGTON, Jan. 24 - The Bush administration, citing the confidentiality of executive branch communications, said Tuesday that it did not plan to turn over certain documents about Hurricane Katrina or make senior White House officials available for sworn testimony before two Congressional committees investigating the storm response.

Well color me shocked!

The White House this week also formally notified Representative Richard H. Baker, Republican of Louisiana, that it would not support his legislation creating a federally financed reconstruction program for the state that would bail out homeowners and mortgage lenders.

Not surprisingly, this makes BushCo's earlier dedication to "do what it takes" in the aftermath of Katrina ring a bit hollow.