Pompeo Visit to AUC
Tracking # |
A-2024-00297 F-2024-01653 |
Submitted | Nov. 18, 2023 |
Due | Jan. 16, 2024 |
Est. Completion | None |
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Communications
From: Dr Thomas DeVere Wolsey
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
All communications between Secretary Pompeo and his team and President Francis Ricciardone and his team and executive assistant of the American University in Cairo (AUC) indicating who initiated the contact and the scheduling of the visit to the American University in Cairo, Egypt on January 10, 2019. Communications with Ehab AbdelRahman (various spellings may be found) of AUC are included in this request. Note this is the second request for this information beginning May 2021. Reference F-2021-06176
Communications were probably via email (AUC's domain is @aucegypt.edu) but might have been via diplomatic pouch, State.gov email, etc.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Dr Thomas DeVere Wolsey
From: U.S. Department of State
Dear Thomas Wolsey,
The status of your FOIA request #F-2024-01653 has been updated to the following status 'Received'. To learn more, please log into the DoS FOIA Portal via the Application URL below.
https://pal.foia.state.gov
Regards,
U.S. Department of State
From: U.S. Department of State
Dear Thomas Wolsey:
Thank you for filing your information access request to the U.S. Department of State. Your request number is F-2024-01653.
You will receive a formal acknowledgement to your request in no later than 10 working days. If the Department requires additional information from you, then you will also be notified.
Should you have any questions about your request, you may also contact us at:
FOIAStatus@state.gov
Regards,
Requesters Communications Branch
Office of Information Programs and Services
U.S. Department of State
From: U.S. Department of State
*THIS EMAIL BOX IS NOT MONITORED, PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL.** Dear Dr.Wolsey: This email acknowledges receipt of your November 20, 2023, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. § 552) request received by the U.S. Department of State, Office ofInformation Programs and Services on November 20, 2023. To Whom It May Concern:Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:All communications between Secretary Pompeo and his team and President Francis Ricciardone and his team and executive assistant of the American University in Cairo (AUC) indicating who initiated the contact and the scheduling of the visit to the American University in Cairo, Egypt on January 10, 2019. Communications with Ehab AbdelRahman (various spellings may be found) of AUC are included in this request. Note this is the second request for this information beginning May 2021. Reference F-2021-06176Communications were probably via email (AUC's domain is @aucegypt.edu) but might have been via diplomatic pouch, State.gov email, etc.The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.Sincerely,Dr Thomas DeVere WolseyUpload documents directly: https://www.muckrock.com/ (Date Range for Record Search: From 01/01/2012 To 11/20/2023).
You are seeking a copy of "... Unless you advise otherwise, we will treat as non-responsive anycompilations of publicly available news reports and any publicly availabledocuments not created by the U.S. government, such as mass-distribution emailsfrom news media. This Office assigned your request the subjectreference number and placed it in the complex processing track where it will beprocessed as quickly as possible. See 22 CFR § 171.11(h).
This Office will not be able to respond within the 20 daysprovided by the statute due to “unusual circumstances.” See 5 U.S.C.§ 552(a)(6)(B)(i)-(iii). In this instance, the unusual circumstancesinclude the need to search for and collect requested records from otherDepartment offices or Foreign Service posts.
If you have any questionsregarding your request, would like to narrow the scope or arrange analternative time frame to speed its processing, or would like an estimated dateof completion, please contact our FOIA Requester Service Center or our FOIA PublicLiaison by email at ortelephone at 202-261-8484. Additionally, you may contact the Office ofGovernment Information Services (OGIS) at the National Archives and RecordsAdministration to inquire about the FOIA mediation services they offer. The contact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of GovernmentInformation Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001, email at (mailto:FOIAstatus@state.gov) FOIAstatus@state.gov ; telephone at202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769. (mailto:ogis@nara.gov) ogis@nara.gov
**THIS EMAIL BOX IS NOT MONITORED, PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TOTHIS EMAIL.**
From: Dr Thomas DeVere Wolsey
Please make this request a priority because I originally requested the information more than 2 years ago in May 2021. The unusual circumstances you mention would be applicable if State had complied with the first request in a timely manner. Thank for making this a priority.
From: U.S. Department of State
Dr. Thomas Wolsey,
This is in regard to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request F-2024-01653 stating your interest in "All communications between Secretary Pompeo and his team and President Francis Ricciardone and his team and executive assistant of the American University in Cairo (AUC) indicating who initiated the contact and the scheduling of the visit to the American University in Cairo, Egypt on January 10, 2019. Communications with Ehab AbdelRahman (various spellings may be found) of AUC are included in this request. Note this is the second request for this information beginning May 2021. Communications were probably via email (AUC's domain is @aucegypt.edu) but might have been via diplomatic pouch, State.gov email, etc." (Date Range for Record Search: From 1/1/2012 To 11/20/2023)
To better enable us in processing your request, we ask that you provide some additional context regarding the information you are seeking. Our records indicate that you have already submitted a request for this information under FOIA case F-2021-06176. Did you mean to submit a duplicate request or were you intending to amend the original request? Case F-2021-06176 is still processing. If you would like us to, we can combine both requests into one using Case F-2021-06176.
We have attached a copy of your initial FOIA request, for convenience.
We kindly ask that you provide a response within 10 business days of the date of this email. If we do not hear from you by March 22nd, we will assume you are no longer interested in this information, and we will administratively close your request.
Destinee McGhee
FOIA Analyst
Department of State
A/GIS/IPS/CR (Charleston)
From: U.S. Department of State
Dear Thomas Wolsey,
The status of your FOIA request #F-2024-01653 has been updated to the following status 'On Hold - Need Info/Clarification'. To learn more, please log into the DoS FOIA Portal via the Application URL below.
https://pal.foia.state.gov
Regards,
U.S. Department of State
From: U.S. Department of State
Mr. Wolsey,
This is in response to your email below regarding FOIA Case Number F-2024-01653.
The Office of Information Programs and Services’ electronic records system indicates that this request is “on hold” pending additional information. By email dated March 8, 2024, FOIA Analyst, Destinee McGhee, requested that you provide some additional context regarding the information you are seeking. A copy of this email is attached for your reference. If you have already provided the requested information, please disregard this email. If not, please submit the information as soon as possible.
Regards,
U.S. Department of State
FOIA Requester Service Center
-
~WRD0000
From: U.S. Department of State
Dear Thomas Wolsey,
The status of your FOIA request #F-2024-01653 has been updated to the following status 'In Process'. To learn more, please log into the DoS FOIA Portal via the Application URL below.
https://pal.foia.state.gov
Regards,
U.S. Department of State
From: U.S. Department of State
Dear Thomas Wolsey,
The status of your FOIA request #F-2024-01653 has been updated to the following status 'Closed'. To learn more, please log into the DoS FOIA Portal via the Application URL below.
https://pal.foia.state.gov
Regards,
U.S. Department of State
From: Dr Thomas DeVere Wolsey
Hello, I did not receive notifications about the earlier request dated March 8. It may have gone to spam. Please reopen the request. I did intend to submit a second request, because State has not responded timely to F-2021-06176 and appears to have stonewalled the request. For example, rather than completing either request, State has spent more time "processing" than complying since 2021. You may combine the two requests, but please expedite them so I receive the information by the end of the month of April 2024.
Thank you.
Thomas
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Nov. 19, 2023. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #F-2024-01653.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: U.S. Department of State
Mr. Wolsey,
This is in reference to your email below regarding FOIA case control number F-2024-01653. This is also in reference to your email dated April 4, 2024, and to your email dated February 12, 2024, and our attached reply dated March 26, 2024, with a clarification email dated March 3, 2024, included.
The clarification email stated that additional information was needed before processing FOIA request control number F-2024-01653. The same email also asked you to provide the information within ten business days of the date of the email. It also added that, if the Office of Information Programs and Services (IPS) did not hear from you within those 10 business days, FOIA case control number F-2024-01653 would be administratively closed. As IPS did not hear from you, FOIA case control number F-2024-01653 was closed.
We apologize for the delayed response.
Sincerely,
U.S. Department of State
FOIA Requester Service Center
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED
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~WRD0002
From: Dr Thomas DeVere Wolsey
The attachment does not open, and I received no timely request from IPS. What information do you need? This request and the previous are over 3 years old. You'll hear from my representative in Congress, among other things.
From: Dr Thomas DeVere Wolsey
For clarification, the downloads are not documents but some remnant of a document that seems to contain no data. The only attachment that opens make no request for additional information. It would be better if FOIA at State would just provide the information rather than the run around I have been getting.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Nov. 19, 2023. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #F-2024-01653.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: U.S. Department of State
Lori Hartmann
Appeals Officer
A/GIS/IPS/PP/LA - room 5420, HST
Office - 202-485-2305, x52305
Teams - 1-771-204-7747
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Nov. 19, 2023. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #A-2024-00297.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: U.S. Department of State
We closed the appeal. Please contact FOIAStatus@state.gov<mailto:FOIAStatus@state.gov> for the status of your request.
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~WRD0000
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