One of the most infamous secret societies in America, Yale University’s Skull and Bones Society, may be a little less secret come July, as the national archives is scheduled to publicly release 1,650 pages of records from the President George W. Bush-era.
The National Archives, which oversees White House records held at the George W. Bush Presidential Library in Dallas, Texas, reportedly received a request on April 15 for materials specific to George W. Bush’s presidency under the Freedom of Information Act.
The request specifically sought the public release of records containing 8,072 pages, 3,159 assets (such as presidential memoranda – cards, letters, etc.), and one video clip, according to the National Archives.
After having been thoroughly examined by both the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and former President George W. Bush himself, last month NARA sent a letter to representatives of the Obama and Bush administrations announcing plans to release 3,404 pages of the Bush-era records to the public, including 1,650 pages relating to The Skull and Bones Society, according to the letter.
However, several of the requested items proved restricted under the Freedom of Information Act’s 44 U.S. Code § 2204, which limits access to presidential materials based on their containment of sensitive information (i.e. national security secrets, trade secrets, and confidential communications).
In addition to the 3,404 pages of records, 1,503 assets and one video clip in whole, 582 pages and 186 assets in part will also be released to the public. You can be virtually certain that the juiciest tidbits of information held within the requested records will be shielded from public view as Skull and Bones is deeply intertwined with the U.S. intelligence community.
Skull and Bones was co-founded at Yale in 1832 by William Huntington Russell and the father of a future president, Alphonso Taft. The society’s alumni boasts many of America’s political elite, including former presidents William Taft, George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, and current Secretary of State John Kerry. On April 26, Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton was made an “Honorary Bonesman” because she graduated from Yale Law School in 1973.
A FOIA request from author Robert Gaylon Ross Sr. prompted the National Archives to release the Skull and Bones records. Ross has authored several books about secret societies, includingWho’s Who of the Elite: Members of the Bilderbergs, Council on Foreign Relations, & Trilateral Commission and The Elite Serial Killers of Lincoln, JFK, RFK & MLK, and claims that many of these organizations, including the Skull and Bones Society, play a critical role in global governance; acting as an unseen hand behind the curtain.
The records will become public in July unless either Bush or Obama moves to block the release, Politico reports.
Jay Syrmopoulos writes for TheFreeThoughtProject.com, where this article first appeared.