Where's White House email?

I had to chuckle when I heard that the White House record-keeping when it comes to email is woefully inadequate. It really shouldn't come as a surprise, considering President Bush's open contempt for email messaging. He dislikes it so much that he doesn't send emails, explaining to a newspaper reporter, "I don't want you reading my personal stuff."

Well that was three years ago, but I'm guessing nothing much has changed. Except now a congressional committee is looking for an explanation as to why an estimated 1,000 days of emails are missing from several White House offices. That goes against what are considered "fundamental principles that well-run private companies adhere to routinely."

The White House belongs to the American people - and sure, much of the correspondence that travels to, from and within the building is (and should be) considered classified or confidential - but that does not mean that it should not be archived. Correspondence should be retrievable and recoverable. If this were happening in any private sector industry, the ramifications would include major legal issues.

Of course, where national security is in question, even more care should be taken - but that should only proper, secure storage - not misplacement. If Pete Yost's Associated Press article is correct, "White House officials say they think they've located a substantial amount of the missing e-mail. But the White House has been trying to track it all down for months and still doesn't have final results," that doesn't sit well with me.