House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., sent a letter Friday to the Department of Homeland Security requesting information about possible Obama administration abuse of the Freedom of Information Act. The Treasury Department's stubborn opacity has already frustrated Bloomberg News, so there appears to be a pattern that doesn't match the promises of unprecedented transparency. 

A House committee has asked the Homeland Security Department to provide documents about an agency policy that required political appointees to review many Freedom of Information Act requests before the records were released, according to a letter obtained Sunday by The Associated Press. ...The Associated Press reported in July that Homeland Security had sidetracked hundreds of requests for federal records to top political advisers to the department's secretary, Janet Napolitano. The political appointees wanted information about those requesting the materials, and in some cases the release of documents considered politically sensitive was delayed, according to numerous e-mails that were obtained by the AP.

This is an inspired choice for Issa's first investigation, as it is both important and certain to draw favorable new coverage.