Why does Obama seal his college records?

Answer 1

It is believed that these, along with other sensitive records were sealed as they contain information as to where he was actually born. He has been widely criticized for running on "the most open and transparent" party in history during his initial campaign.

Answer 2

Everyone, including presidents, has a right to keep certain records (medical records, college transcripts, etc) confidential. This does not necessarily mean the person is hiding anything: there are many reasons why presidents do not release certain records, and it is a myth that every other president except Obama has released every record. In fact, a number of presidents did not want their college transcripts, or some other documents, released. There are privacy laws that say a person is not obligated to release them unless he or she wants to. And it has been correctly pointed out on several fact-checking sites that President Obama's records are not "sealed"-- a legal term which means a court did it; rather, the president himself, like others before him, has exercised his right to keep certain records private. It should also be noted that some pieces of information about his college grades are publicly available: for example, we know he graduated from Harvard Law School with academic honors, and the university has acknowledged that fact.

Answer 3

His records are not sealed; they are just being kept private, which anyone has the right to do. (It is actually incorrect to say his records are "sealed." That is an action done by a court, which has not happened with the president's records.) It is not unusual to keep certain records private-- anyone, including presidents, has a legal right to keep personal documents (medical records, college transcripts, etc) confidential. This does not necessarily mean the person is hiding anything: there are many reasons why presidents do not release particular records, and it is a myth that every other president except Obama has released every record. In fact, President Obama has made some information available, but like all presidents, he has decided which documents he would release and which he would keep private. As time goes by, that may change, and he may release even more of his personal documents.

Answer 4

All college records are sealed and are not public regardless of who you are. College records are not public information. I work at a University.

In addition, "sealed" implies that a court has ordered them to be sequestered. This is not so, for any of Obama's records. Rather, they are personal confidential information, as provided under law for all people in the United States. Items such as school transcripts, work evaluations, tax records, medical history and such are all afforded legal privacy, and not subject to public scrutiny. If the person choses, they may make them public, but there is no legal requirement to do so, nor is there a public right to force them to be disclosed.

Answer 5

They aren't. Only a court can "seal" records, and that has not happened with Mr. Obama at all. However, the president has chosen (as many other presidents did) not to release certain personal documents, and under federal law, he does not have an obligation to make them public-- college transcripts or medical records, for example, are confidential. It should also be noted that just because a president does not release something, that does not mean he is hiding anything. And Obama has released a number of records, including his birth certificate and his tax returns.

Answer 6

He didn't. This is an internet myth. First, nobody can "seal" their records: only a judge and a court can do it, as part of a legal proceeding. This did not happen with Barack Obama. Second, the president has released a number of his records, but he is under no obligation to release every one of them. In fact, certain documents like college transcripts or medical records are protected by federal law, and a person may keep them private. Many presidents have done so, and not releasing such records does not prove the person has anything to hide.

Answer 7

He didn't. This is an old internet myth from 2008, and it wasn't true then either. To have one's records "sealed" requires the order of a judge. But Barack Obama did not have any legal verdict that required anything to be sealed. Rather, like nearly every other president, he chose not to make his college transcripts public. He is under no obligation to release the transcripts, since his college grades (as well as the grades of every other American student) are protected by confidentiality laws.

Some presidents have revealed certain information about their college days: we know for a fact, for example, that George W. Bush was a C student. We know that Woodrow Wilson was the only president to receive a PhD. And we know that Mr. Obama graduated from Harvard Law School in the top 10% of his class and received academic honors. But most presidents have not shown people their college transcripts, and not doing so does not mean they have anything to hide.

Answer 8

No, he did not. This is another of the many myths you can find online, the majority of which are generated by "Birthers," a group of mostly conservative Republicans who believe the president was not born in the United States and thus has something to hide. But it has been well-documented that Mr. Obama was born in Hawaii, and the schools he attended are also well-documented. As for the myth that he had his records "sealed," only a judge can do that. And Mr. Obama was never convicted of a crime, so he never faced a judge. Further, all transcripts of college grades, and certain medical records, are private under federal law. This includes the documents of famous people like celebrities and politicians, as well as your transcripts and mine. The fact that these documents are private has nothing to do with President Obama, and those privacy laws were in effect long before he was elected.

Nearly every modern president has been very selective about what personal documents they released, and failure to release all of them does not mean the person has anything to hide. For example, we know for a fact that Mr. Obama graduated with academic honors from Harvard Law School in June 1991, because that information was made public. But the grades he received in each class have not been released. For him to receive academic honors, however, we know he must have gotten very good grades in his courses (top 10% of his class, according to the Harvard website). So the fact he never released his transcript is his decision and does not mean there was anything negative, nor anything worthy of suspicion.