As Transparent as Corporate America

Government in the Sunshine. The concept is at the core of Florida government perhaps more than any other single philosophy, and something which has historically made us the pride of the nation among open records advocates. Not only are our government records among the most accessible in the nation, but out meetings are in the open. And outstanding groups like the First Amendment Foundation found our elected officials to make sure we live up to all we intend to be.

That is why a recent article on Rick Scott in Time demonstrates exactly how hard a time the new governor is going to have when it comes time to move into the governor's mansion. He is a man who has never felt any need to tell you what he is doing, much less explain himself. Let's for a moment take his pressman Brian Burgess' word when he tells us Scott has a "very analytical mind," "sucks up information" and has "incredible problem-solving skills." We really have to, because Scott thus far has been unwilling to share much of a glimpse of his management style.

Truly, this is why the press this year has focused so much on things like Scott pleading the fifth 75 times during depositions, or with him refusing to discuss a pending legal case because it is a private matter. His political opponents point out those instances as signs he is not an ethical businessman. Perhaps, but the greater concern to those of us who watch politicians for a living are most concerned that Scott doesn't feel the public, or even in many cases those who work with him, need to know how he manages his affairs or runs a business.

This is especially depressing as Scott's "success" running a business is what he touts as the top part of his resume. (I put quotes around success because getting ousted from your job for a record fine isn't necessarily the best definition)

This approach is also impractical, which I expect Scott will learn in the very near future. That is because when the business you run is the state of Florida, everyone living here is a stakeholder, and the law not only discourages the keeping of secrets, it forbids it.

We do not need a WikiLeaks to gain access to the governor's communications. His emails, memos and phone records are all public record. All we need to do is make a public records request. And you don't need a Capital press badge to do that. Anybody, even if they don't live in Florida, need only place a phone call and officials are compelled to provide this information in a rapid and timely fashion.

Now, anybody who has made a significant number of requests knows the government can be less-than-forthcoming. They have even been known to fight requests until a judge settles the dispute. But if Scott decides to do that too often, he is going to find himself wasting a lot of taxpayer dollars on losing litigation, something which won't help his fiscal conservative street cred very much. Calling record request lawsuits frivolous may work once or twice, but will soon become a stale excuse.

The last governor to hail from the corporate world was Jeb Bush, though he probably was far better schooled on the workings of public life as the son of a president and brother of a then-governor. Even that didn't complete prepare Jeb, who in 2002 was famously caught on tape asking guards to "throw their asses out" when some lawmakers conducted a sit-in and his office. Jeb said he wanted the press thrown out, not the lawmakers, but that really doesn't matter. He learned quickly that working in public office sometimes meant your office was public.

Over the years, we have also seen the communication lines between the governor and others become increasingly accessible. The press can easily get anything sent on gubernatorial email accounts, and if Scott tried to send anything related to state business on a private account, they can get that too. If the press make a request and it isn't met, a judge can force the governor to turn over his personal computer to have it scoured for private emails related to public business.

Most people who live in public life understand this. It is why when Charlie Crist would go have a roundtable with business leaders, he would typically invite the press to sit in. I have personally attended some of those.

That isn't to say there will never be any private meetings. I recall a time in Leesburg when the governor had a private meeting with community college presidents. Some of the press had a hissy-fit about it, but the law allowed him to the group to close the meeting.

Those sorts of get-togethers, though, are more rare than the ones where a governor is expected to make his remarks in public. And even when such meetings are held, there is no expectation that those in attendance will keep their mouth shut about what transpires, and unlike a corporate CEO with the ability to fire leakers, the governor will be able to do nothing to dissuade people privy to information on public business from making that information public.

For a million reasons, Florida is called the Sunshine State, but for those of us who believe in transparency, the greatest reason we keep that moniker has little to do with the weather. And if Rick Scott can't get somewhere near the same page on that account, he is going to find himself under a storm cloud real quick.