(Washington, DC)
Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and
prosecutes government abuse and corruption, said today that the Bush
administration has failed to provide a complete and accurate response
to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request concerning the decision
to place White House staff on a regimen of the powerful antibiotic,
Cipro, the same day as the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. By
contrast, U.S. Postal Service workers from Washington, DC’s Brentwood
Postal Facility – Judicial Watch clients – were denied antibiotic
treatment, even after it became apparent that the Brentwood facility
had been contaminated. Judicial Watch represents the Brentwood Postal
workers in various legal proceedings against government officials who
put their lives in jeopardy. So far, 8 postal workers have died and
hundreds remain harmed by the lethal exposure.
Despite multiple
press reports confirming that White House staff began use of Cipro on
September 11, 2001, the incomplete and evasive FOIA response from The
White House consisted of a paltry, four e-mail messages and an
“administrative alert” concerning testing procedures in reaction to the
anthrax deaths of two postal workers, all of which were dated October
23 and October 24, 2001. Judicial Watch has appealed the FOIA response
and will take strong legal action to uncover the truth despite the
obstructionist tactics of the administration.
“The Bush
administration has an established reputation for secrecy and
obfuscation when it comes to answering straight-forward questions that
are clearly in the interest of the American people. Unfortunately, the
Bush administration is incredibly even less transparent and accountable
than the criminal enterprise the Clintons ran out of The White House
during their regime. There’s a disturbing trend of denying the American
public access to information that keeps politicians accountable. We
will not stand for it,” stated Judicial Watch Chairman and General
Counsel Larry Klayman.