Jordan Barab at Labor Blog highlights this NY Times article on the Labor Department's too cozy relationship with Wal-Mart:
The report by the inspector general faulted department officials for making "significant concessions" to Wal-Mart, the nation's largest retailer, without obtaining anything in return. The report also criticized department officials for letting Wal-Mart lawyers write substantial parts of the settlement and for leaving the department's own legal division out of the settlement process.
The report said that in granting Wal-Mart the 15-day notice, the Wage and Hour Division violated its own handbook. It added that agreeing to let Wal-Mart jointly develop news releases about the settlement with the department violated Labor Department policies.
That last part isn't what you think. The Labor Department's policy is to give Armstrong Williams the last crack at all news releases. He's got a deft touch with public relations. He puts the "proper" in proper-ganda.