Let the Sunshine In

Let the Sunshine In

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Last week, a New York Times editorial was spot-on in calling for “a heavy dose of Internet transparency” to shed light on the relationships between our legislators and the special interests. The Times noted that “the technology is already there, along with the public’s appetite for more disclosure about the byways of power in Congress.” In suggesting “prompt, searchable postings of basic data–from lobbyists’ itineraries and expenses to incumbents’ donor ties and legislative labors,” the Times is recognizing the value of the Internet as a technology that enables far greater sharing of information and shifts power into the hands of ordinary people.

It is far past time for Congress to enter the twenty-first century. Believe it or not, the Senate still files its campaign finance reports on paper (even though every Senator’s campaign undoubtedly uses computers–well, we’re not sure about Ted “the Internet is made of tubes” Stevens of Alaska). There’s no technical reason why lobbyist reports couldn’t be filed weekly, and online for immediate access.

There’s no technical reason why committee hearings aren’t all streaming on the web. Nor is there any technical reason that Members’ personal financial disclosure reports aren’t immediately posted on the web and updated whenever a Congressmen buys or sells property or stocks. If the SEC can require advance disclosure by directors of public companies before they buy or sell their company’s stock, surely we should expect similar disclosure by the people who are buying and selling legislation.

One new organization taking the lead in pushing these ideas that the Times mentioned is The Sunlight Foundation–a nonpartisan watchdog organization devoted to using the Internet and information technology to increase transparency and accountability in Congress. The group is urging elected officials to sign onto its “,” which calls for posting daily work schedules on the Internet, including meetings with lobbyists and all fundraising events. Rep.-elect Kirsten Gillibrand has agreed to it and Sen.-elect Jon Tester reportedly will as well.

Finally, the Times editorial cited the need for an “independent agency to prod Congress to fully investigate corruption allegations.” Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi has signaled an openness to such an agency. She announced a bipartisan task force to look into the matter and report back by late March. Of course, creating a task force to look into creating an agency is potentially an inside-the-Beltway prescription for doing nothing. Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, told the Washington Post that the task force “worries me enormously” and that “they ought to bite the bullet” and create an independent Office of Public Integrity immediately.

If the Democrats want to make good on their promise to cleanup Congress, they will do everything they can to let the sunshine in.

We cannot back down

We now confront a second Trump presidency.

There’s not a moment to lose. We must harness our fears, our grief, and yes, our anger, to resist the dangerous policies Donald Trump will unleash on our country. We rededicate ourselves to our role as journalists and writers of principle and conscience.

Today, we also steel ourselves for the fight ahead. It will demand a fearless spirit, an informed mind, wise analysis, and humane resistance. We face the enactment of Project 2025, a far-right supreme court, political authoritarianism, increasing inequality and record homelessness, a looming climate crisis, and conflicts abroad. The Nation will expose and propose, nurture investigative reporting, and stand together as a community to keep hope and possibility alive. The Nation’s work will continue—as it has in good and not-so-good times—to develop alternative ideas and visions, to deepen our mission of truth-telling and deep reporting, and to further solidarity in a nation divided.

Armed with a remarkable 160 years of bold, independent journalism, our mandate today remains the same as when abolitionists first founded The Nation—to uphold the principles of democracy and freedom, serve as a beacon through the darkest days of resistance, and to envision and struggle for a brighter future.

The day is dark, the forces arrayed are tenacious, but as the late Nation editorial board member Toni Morrison wrote “No! This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

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Onwards,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editorial Director and Publisher, The Nation

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