Promises of a bit more sun

In today's political landscape, gubernatorial candidates are treating Gov. Bobby Jindal like he has a contagious disease.

Everyone seems to be running away from him, even those closely aligned to Jindal in philosophy and party.

Talking about kicking a man when he's down, if Jindal says white, the candidates will say black. That's the power of polling, and it's no secret Jindal has abysmally low approval ratings.

Sometimes, though, taking a position against Jindal puts a candidate on the record for better government. That happened last week.

The four major candidates vying to be Louisiana's next governor promised more openness in government, saying they'll push to limit the broad public records exemptions granted to the governor's office.

Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle, Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne, state Rep. John Bel Edwards and U.S. Sen. David Vitter said an exemption that shields records considered part of the governor's "deliberative process" should be curbed.

Dardenne, Edwards and Vitter said the exemption has been abused. Vitter said he'd issue an executive order curtailing it on his first day in office.

Each of the men said they'd seek legislative restrictions on use of the deliberative process exemption, which was introduced into public records law in a rewrite backed by Gov. Bobby Jindal in 2009 and described by his administration as a way to protect the free flow of ideas.

The comments came at a forum sponsored by the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, which pushes for more sunshine in government.

The candidates said open records and public access are essential for people to have confidence in government and for companies to feel comfortable doing business in Louisiana.

Louisiana law gives the governor broad exemptions from having to disclose records, such as decision-making discussions, communication with internal staff, security information, out-of-state travel and his schedule.

Citing exemptions, Jindal has refused to release any of his emails from his two terms. Under his watch, more state agencies have claimed their records can be kept secret. The deliberative process language has been more broadly interpreted than lawmakers say they intended.

The open records law is intended to provide unfettered access to information for voters so that they can decide whether their government is properly using the tax money they provide or whether those they elected are performing the job satisfactorily.

Open records provide a legitimate window into a leader's thought processes and how outside influences (and money) are coming into play.

But he who controls the flow of information controls the message, and until recently, Jindal has had very little opposition.

Secrecy is poison to an open government. Louisiana is starved for sunshine. To hear the candidates promise more openness gives hope that an era of more transparency and less suspicion is on the horizon.

The editorials in this column represent the opinions of The News-Star's editorial board, composed of General Manager and Executive Editor Kathy Spurlock, Business and Politics Reporter Greg Hilburn and Education Reporter Barbara Leader.