President Barack Obama's March 20 memo restricts communications between federally registered lobbyists and executive branch employees on use of Recovery Act funds and requires disclosure of written communications. A closer examination of the summaries of lobbyist contacts with federal agencies shows that there are few online postings of those communications; some agencies have not posted any contacts at all. According to a review of the 29 agencies receiving stimulus money, only 110 contacts had been disclosed as of May 18.

Even as the catastrophic human tragedy unfolds in Sri Lanka, the island's government is refusing to allow aid workers or journalists into the country, banning the delivery of humanitarian relief outside of the official camps. With at least 50,000 civilians unable to escape the exchange of gunfire and shelling between the military and the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) along the northeastern coast of Sri Lanka, a UN spokesman described the disintegrating situation as a "bloodbath." The Sri Lankan government's actions have directly jeopardized the lives and security of tens of thousands of citizens, violating long accepted standards for humanitarian aid.