Tip O’ My Hat
Normally, I’m not one to praise politicians for fulfilling promises. After all, political vows usually ring hollow or aren’t met thanks to partisan wrangling, bickering, or compromise. I get that. Democracy itself is compromise, and sometimes politicians can’t follow through on the issues that they would like. But, at least in regards to his promise to provide “open and transparent government” – especially regarding the TARP and ARRA – President Obama has thus far delivered.
Case in point: Discretionary funding for transportation improvements.
Yesterday, I had a question at work regarding when the U.S. Department of Transportation would be able to release discretionary funding to the States. Thanks to an online version of the ARRA, the newly created Recovery.gov, and several other online resources I was able to find out exactly when the funding would be open for competitive bidding. Mind you, this let me sort through a 400 page legal document in 10 minutes.
If the Federal Government can keep this up then as someone who does this for a living I might just be impressed.
