SUNSHINE IS A GREAT DISINFECTANT

It wasn’t my original line, I wish it was. I heard a politician say it recently. “Sunshine is a great disinfectant.” I thought about this concept. How many times have people of note, politicians as well as others, gotten themselves into trouble by trying to hide facts from the public. It has been said over and over, “The crime is usually not as bad as the attempted cover up.”

For some unknown reason people of note seem to forget that everything they say or do is recorded by someone somewhere and that information is readily available for all to see and hear. Their picture is being taken every minute of every day. There are no secrets. When Phil Mickelson won the Masters Golf Tournament, he took his family out to a local hamburger joint for lunch. He happened to put on the “Green Jacket” he was awarded for his Masters win. The lady at the restaurant took his picture and posted it. Phil’s reaction? Everybody is press now.

Nixon tried in vain to cover up his criminal action as did Clinton and so many others. It didn’t work. It never works. Today the Obama administration is trying to cover up the “Fast and Furious” gun running scheme. They are playing the “race card.” I believe they will try anything. Guess what? It isn’t going to work. Eventually the facts will come out for all the world to see. I am sure their primary effort for now is just to delay the inevitable until after the election. They have a good chance of pulling that off, but eventually the truth will be known. The sun is going to shine on this and there will be clarity and that clarity will serve to disinfect this ridiculous scheme.

I remember my mother used to hang her wash out on the clothesline in the sun. She believed the sun would take stains out. She always preferred drying her laundry in the sunshine for its beneficial effect on her clothes.

Government activities absolutely must be public business. Attorney General Holder’s attempting to withhold information from the Congress and the American people serves only to make us all the more determined to discover what they are trying to hide. Who knew what and when did they know it? These are the simple questions that have plagued people of note before and questions which have led to their downfalls. In the case of this gun running scheme, people have been killed. Two have been law enforcement agents. Who knows how many Mexicans have died because of this ridiculous, amateur fiasco?

Executive privilege is not automatic, even for Emperor Obama. When this administration is sued, and they will be, a judge will review all the documents being sought by the Congress. The judge will then decide if they are in fact qualified for “executive privilege.” Embarrassment of  public officials is not a legitimate reason for the privilege. Hiding criminal activity also is not a legitimate reason for privilege. In fact there are only a very few actual legitimate reasons executive privilege can be claimed.

The simplest answer is to let the sun shine on this deal. Allow the facts to be known. They’re going to come out sooner or later. If this is nothing more than stupidity causing embarrassment, we will all just laugh at you. If, however, criminal activity has been perpetrated, prosecution will most surely follow. A president and an attorney general should know better. This I know, this matter will see the light of the sun and it will be disinfected and you can count on it.

Ron Scarbro June 27, 2012