tl;dr on my “The Republican Street Fight Over Transparency in Government” in The Daily Beast
The split within the GOP about transparency is growing.
Sixteen senators, led by Lamar Alexander (R-TN), have now objected to OSHA asking people submitting scientific studies in a proceeding about silica to declare their financial conflicts of interest.
Why? Says on Alexander aid: “The chilling effect the financial disclosure could have seems counter to the idea of robust inclusion of a diverse set of ideas and views to inform the rule-making.”
From my piece:
The “chilling effect?” Seriously? What’s the chill? That the shrinking violets of the cement industry will be too afraid to hire lobbyists to present their views about the (non-) dangers in inhaling silica?
Read more here.