The on-going dispute between Vice President Dick Cheney and General Accounting Office (GAO) Director David Walker over records relating to the White House National Energy Policy Development Group (NEPDG) finally boiled over on January 30, when Walker filed an unprecedented lawsuit against the Vice President. The GAO seeks access to detailed notes of the energy task force’s meetings. Walker began his quest in July at the urging of congressional Democrats after similar requests were rebuffed, but he then put the matter on hold after the September 11th terrorist attacks. However, the recent Enron debacle brought the matter to the forefront again.
The standoff is based on allegations that energy industry representatives, particularly Enron, influenced the NEPDG’s recommendations. On July 18, Walker issued a formal “demand letter” to the Vice President, giving him 20 days to provide “factual information” about how the NEPDG National Energy Strategy was developed, including the participants, meetings held, their purpose, information gathered, and costs incurred. The Vice President has steadfastly refused to produce all of the information requested, maintaining that a certain level of privilege exists to protect Executive Branch communications. In a nutshell, the White House is arguing that the President and his advisors have a right to elicit advice from outside parties in the course of executive decision-making. If all of this information were revealed to the public, outside parties would be hesitant to participate in such discussions in the future.
When asked to comment on the dispute, President Bush supported Vice President Cheney, saying that “in order for me to be able to get good, sound opinions, those who offer me opinions or offer the Vice President opinions must know that every word they say is not going to be put into the public record. And so I view the GAO like the Vice President does. It’s an encroachment on the Executive Branch’s ability to conduct business.”
In response, Walker claims that Congress has a right to the requested information, in connection with its oversight authority and consideration of comprehensive energy legislation. “Clearly, the formulation and oversight of energy policy and the investigation of Enron-related activities represent important institutional prerogatives of Congress . . .. Failure to provide the information we are seeking serves to undercut the important principles of transparency and accountability in government,” explained Walker.
The NEPDG was composed of members of President Bush’s Cabinet and other high-ranking advisors. Its National Energy Strategy contains several hundred recommendations, some of which can be put in place by Executive Order, others that require federal agency rulemaking, and still others that require legislative activity. The House has passed a comprehensive energy bill that contains most, but not all, of the White House recommendations. The Senate continues to debate a bill.
