Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I wish to spend a few minutes speaking about a topic we should all be able to agree on, even in this polarized environment in which we live and work, and that is the idea that transparency and accountability are key to good governance. Transparency and accountability are key to good governance. Open government is a prerequisite for a free society, one in which the legitimacy of government itself depends upon consent of the governed. In fact, we can't consent on something we don't know anything about. My colleagues get my point. As our Founding Fathers recognized, a truly democratic system depends on an informed citizenry so they can hold their leaders accountable at elections and between elections. But the American people cannot do that without transparency. Justice Brandeis famously said that sunlight is the best disinfectant, and he is right. That is why Congress has enacted numerous pieces of legislation that have promoted accountability and transparency in government so that good governance can hopefully flourish. This is a bipartisan issue. When I came to the Senate, I found a willing partner in Senator Patrick Leahy from Vermont. Senator Leahy and I are polar opposites when it comes to our politics, but on matters of open government and freedom of information, we have worked closely together on a number of pieces of legislation.…”