Political Quotes

“Mr. President, last week marked the 10th anniversary of Sunshine Week, an initiative that has become a nationwide effort to promote openness and transparency in government. As Justice Brandeis wrote in 1913, ``sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.'' That is what Sunshine Week is all about--shining a bright light to provide accountability and ensuring the public's right to know what its government is doing. James Madison wrote in the Federalist No. 51, that ``if men were angels, no government would be necessary.'' This passage has been quoted and used time and again for different purposes--sometimes correctly, other times incorrectly. Nevertheless, it is important to keep in mind its context. Of course men aren't angels. Rather, we are all ambitious, and ``ambition must be made to counteract ambition.'' Thus, Madison described the Framers' challenge of forming a government administered by man as how to ``enable the government to control the governed; and . . . oblige it to control itself.'' Madison went on to explain the need for the government structure we all know and live under now with proper checks and balances. Because of this structure, which is the best in the world, we celebrate Sunshine Week and continue to ensure the public can hold its government accountable. There is perhaps no better tool that Americans have to help ensure that open government and transparency prevail than the Freedom of Information Act.…”