Eric Fehrnstrom, Mitt Romney's top political adviser, says e-mails sent from personal accounts by White House officials, including President Barack Obama’s campaign manager Jim Messina, to lobbyists appeared to break the law.
"This appears to be a violation of the law which requires that all official communications be preserved," Fehrnstrom said on a conference call with reporters Thursday,
The Hill reports.
House Republicans released a report Tuesday showing that Obama administration officials arranged meetings with lobbyists at coffee shops near the White House, apparently to prevent the consultations from being entered on official White House visitor logs.
Editor's Note:
You Owe It to Yourself to Know What Obama and Bernanke Are Hiding From Americans
Some of the e-mails came from Messina’s personal e-mail address, including conversation about the healthcare reform bill with a pharmaceutical lobbyist. He formerly served as White House deputy chief of staff.
The Presidential Records Act mandates that all official executive branch communication be archived, including e-mails.
"I think it's very troubling that Jim Messina, when he was serving in the White House as a senior aide, made promises to a lobbyist about obtaining billions of dollars in public funds, and he did it using his personal e-mail, which suggests he wanted to hide the conversation," Fehrnstrom said.
White House press secretary Jay Carney offered this defense: “Mr. Messina had a longstanding personal e-mail account in which he got traffic. In an effort to comply with all the regulations pertaining to e-mails, he would forward e-mails to his White House account or copy his White House account so that those emails would be part of presidential record.”
Editor's Note:
You Owe It to Yourself to Know What Obama and Bernanke Are Hiding From Americans
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