Holder, Others in Obama WH Used Fake Names on Official Emails

Outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder has maintained several government email accounts under aliases, according to Politico.

Revelations that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton used a personal email account, rather than one maintained by the Department of State, for government business has raised concerns by lawmakers responsible for the agency's oversight and advocates of governmental transparency.

Holder used a number of pseudonyms, including Henry Yearwood (a combination of family names) and David Kendricks (from two members of The Temptations), according to The Huffington Post. Since all were nonetheless official @usdoj.gov accounts, they are retained on government servers.

A Justice Department spokesman told Huffington that other Cabinet members have also used pen names and that Holder did so to enhance security and thwart efforts to flood his email account. DOJ staff responsible for responding to Freedom of Information requests are aware of the aliases and, when appropriate, have made available messages from all of Holder's accounts, though the confidential addresses are redacted.

Besides Holder, other members of the Obama administration also used aliases, including former Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius and former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, The Associated Press reported in 2013.

Former Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel used two BlackBerry phones, one for personal use and the other for his government work. "He understood the need to keep the two separate and to keep government business on his official email," a Pentagon spokesman said.

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