Editorial: Guardians of secrecy

Friday, July 20, 2007 | 7:22 a.m.

Vice President Dick Cheney and members of a special task force routinely sought input from petroleum officials and other energy industry leaders in creating the nation's energy policy, and virtually shut out those who might have offered differing views.

Cheney and President Bush have closely guarded information about the meetings, which began in 2001, and a 2004 U.S. Supreme Court decision has allowed them to keep the information secret.

But a former White House official provided the list of names and dates to The Washington Post, which published the information in a story on Wednesday. Officials from such entities as Exxon Mobil and British Petroleum, and, of all people, Enron's Kenneth Lay , were afforded one-on-one time with Cheney's task force.

Environmentalists, however, were herded into a one-time meeting in April 2001, the Post reports, and Cheney didn't bother to attend.

Such reports are not new, as some of the names have leaked out over the years. But as the task force's activities remain protected by court order, the documents submitted to the Post illustrate that the Bush administration's energy policy, including efforts to make Nevada the nation's dumping ground for nuclear waste, has been orchestrated with significant input from industries that not only stood to gain from those policies, but also were generous financial supporters of Bush's campaign.

Cheney and Bush have fervently guarded the names and dates regarding what were considered routine policy discussions. It is clear, now, why such secrecy was desired. Industry officials, it seems, have crafted our nation's energy policy with the support and outright protection of Cheney and Bush.