Reporters press for open session on defense bill
May 6, 2015, 3:12 PM
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. talks with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington,Tuesday, May 5, 2015, as he walks to a Senate GOP policy luncheon. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
WASHINGTON (AP) — A group advocating for the Capitol Hill press corps is pressing the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee to open the panel’s crafting of the annual defense policy bill.
The Standing Committee of Correspondents wrote to Sen. John McCain on Wednesday and asked him to reconsider the panel’s April 23 decision to meet behind closed doors when it drafts the legislation. The panel typically closes its markup of the bill to the public.
The journalists said the American people would be well-served if the panel allowed the public to see lawmakers at work.
The Senate panel is expected to begin work on the bill next week.
A spokesman for the committee said an overwhelming bipartisan majority of the panel voted last week to hold a closed markup.
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