Kirsten Gillibrand Quotes

The people have the right to know what their Agents are doing or have done, and it should not be in the option of the Legislature to conceal their proceedings.

After all, I have spent the better part of my adult life insisting that government be open... that government be accessible... and that government be held accountable to people who voted us into office.

Public business in the United State Senate should be done in the public.

Throughout my first term in office, we have taken many steps to keep my commitment to make my work in Congress as transparent and accessible as possible.

Ever since I arrived in Washington in April 2009, I have been fighting for more transparency and accountability in government.

And one of the things I've tried to do in my first months in office is to give more Georgians - reporters and members of the general public alike - a closer look at how their government works.

We need more transparency and accountability in government so that people know how their money is being spent. That means putting budgets online, putting legislation online.

When I'm governor... I'll be the first governor with a listed telephone number.

When I was elected to Congress, I made a commitment to my constituents that my office would set the standard to be open and transparent.

Since I've been in the Senate, is that my work with people like Tom Coburn on opening up transparency in government, making sure that every dollar the federal government spends that's out there - that that's all posted on a searchable database on the Internet.

If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?

Open government is, within limits, an ideal that we all share. U.S. President Barack Obama endorsed it when he took office in January 2009.

I am committed to making Georgia a model for open and honest government.

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.

Government must be a transparent garment which tightly clings to the people's body.

I will run an open government that speaks with honesty, seeks opinion, listens to its citizens.

Good government only happens when the people working in it do their jobs, and do them well.

We should be able to go to our government and get clear answers.

I am pleased to report that Texas is known for having one of the strongest set of open government laws in our Nation. And ever since that experience, I have long believed that our federal government could use 'a little Texas sunshine.'

Representative government demands an ongoing conversation between legislators and constituents.

Too many people in government seem to think they are above regular folks, and I said I would expect humility in the way each member of my team served- that they would recognize that the taxpayer is boss.

Open the way before the new government to prove that it is for serving the people.

Taxpayers can go online and find out more about the way their government works than ever before.

The people want government that works for them at every level.

Government is competent when all who compose it work as trustees for the whole people. It can make constant progress when it keeps abreast of all the facts. It can obtain justified support and legitimate criticism when the people receive true information of all that government does.