Records? What Records?

Today's front page Washington Post story on Bush' s records raises more than just eyebrows.

Federal law requires outgoing White House officials to provide the Archives copies of their records, a cache estimated at more than 300 million messages and 25,000 boxes of documents depicting some of the most sensitive policymaking of the past eight years.

But archivists are uncertain whether the transfer will include all the electronic messages sent and received by the officials, because the administration began trying only in recent months to recover from White House backup tapes hundreds of thousands of e-mails that were reported missing from readily accessible files in 2005.

The risks that the transfer may be incomplete are also pointed up by a continuing legal battle between a coalition of historians and nonprofit groups over access to Vice President Cheney's records. The coalition is contesting the administration's assertion in federal court this month that he "alone may determine what constitutes vice presidential records or personal records" and "how his records will be created, maintained, managed, and disposed," without outside challenge or judicial review.

It's going to be a long, ugly battle. Perhaps Obama can compel Bush to comply, perhaps not. But unless the Democrats demand these records be released, it won't happen. And given the lack of spine on Capitol Hill, I'm thinking eight years of Bush lawbreaking will just get swept under the rug in the name of "pragmatism."

Of course, the Dems will act surprised when Obama is asked for every piece of communication ever conceived in his administration by the GOP in the name of "open government."