Jimmy Reid Quotes

Secrecy in government, in the public mind, becomes synonymous with deception in government.

When it comes to governments and corporations, we should demand that less is secret. That's where corruption flowers.

The American people do not have the information upon which they can hold the administration and responsible agencies accountable. I call that a coverup.

If governments did not mislead their citizens so often, there would be less need for secrecy, and if leaders knew they could not rely on keeping the public in the dark about what they are doing, they would have a powerful incentive to behave better.

When the Vice President of the United States shoots somebody, the public has the right to know.

Our government cannot function cloaked in secrecy. It cannot function unless officials tell the truth.

Government ought to be all outside and no inside.... Everybody knows that corruption thrives in secret places, and avoids public places, and we believe it a fair presumption that secrecy means impropriety.

What we've seen in government for so often is that people have been shady - about their roles, hiding things, not releasing things.

Americans can tolerate some secrecy, particularly when it is rooted in protection of the public's interests. But when the claims appear to hide wrongdoing, they begin to curdle.

The only way we are held accountable is if people know what government is doing.

It's my father's legacy. My father's view was that the public is the employer of these government employees and has the right to know what they're up to.

Honesty, integrity, and accountability, the values, which should be the hallmark of this government, have instead been thrown under the bus by an arrogant majority, casualties in a misguided campaign to shield from accountability those who abuse this House.

We have the incredible privilege of serving in the highest offices in the state. We must prove ourselves worthy of our fellow citizens' faith. We must be trusted to always place the public's good above our own and to always choose fairness over favoritism.

My sole motive is to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them.

I'm a longtime believer in the old adage that sunlight is the best disinfectant, particularly in politics.

Any unveiling is also veiling. No matter how transparent our governments want to be, governments will be selectively transparent.

No nation ever yet found any inconvenience from too close an inspection into the conduct of its officers, but many have been brought to ruin and reduced to slavery by suffering gradual impositions and abuses.

Most of all, be honest with yourself and make sure those in political office, our so called public servants, are being honest, holding them accountable for their actions!

If something is being done on a secret basis in national security, that's a great reason for elected officials to not talk about it. And that's a great way to shirk accountability for it with the public.

People do not want politicians they know to be corrupt.

Everyone needs to understand that my work addresses existing problems, and one of the crucial problems in Russia today is corruption.

What we are missing, utterly and completely, in this government is accountability.

Politicians often claim secrecy is necessary for good governance or national security.

Corruption is the enemy of development, and of good governance. It must be got rid of. Both the government and the people at large must come together to achieve this national objective.

The Philippines is a country in which a man of morals can't be president, in which a politician who hasn't been linked to any wrongdoing isn't assumed to be honest, but merely better at hiding his corruption.