The Boulder Daily Camera takes issue in an editorial Tuesday with Attorney General nominee , current U.S. Attorney John Suthers, for his support of the Bush Administration’s policy of secrecy in the aftermath of the 9/11 attack, particularly with respect to the detainees:

When confronted with an irrefutable fact about civil liberties in post-9/11 America, Suthers responded by either vehemently asserting “facts” he could not verify or knowingly misleading the public. Neither alternative reflects well on Suthers.

Because open government and government candor are so vital to democracy — and because Ken Salazar supported these values in word and deed — we can only hope that Suthers’ praise of Salazar is sincere, and that his fallacious defense of secret detentions was an atypical error that he now regrets.

The obvious lesson being that democracies die behind closed doors. But it’s also an important reminder for voters. The problem may not lie with Suthers, but with voters, who when electing leaders, don’t give enough consideration to a particular candidate or party’s position on critical issues such as constitutional and rights and civil liberties.

Posted 12/15/2004 at 12:31 pm by Jeralyn Merritt
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