Open Letter to the Gabfest on Why Accountability Matters

You know, I’m normally the first person in my social circle to stand up for the print press and say that they still serve the public, but today’s Gabfest really undermined that belief. It was so simple: John asked David and Emily whether the Libby trial mattered.

Clearly it doesn’t matter to you all. Your interest is in whether this trial would publicly hurt the credibility of this administration (which you assert is already hurt) or whether the trial would cause this administration to get its comeuppance (which, you assert, they actually got in the last election). It seems to me your concerns are completely cynical and extraordinarily out of touch with the concerns of the people you are supposed to serve as journalists.

As one of the ordinary people, let me tell you why this trial matters. It isn’t about credibility and it isn’t about beltway comeuppance. It is about accountability. If Scooter Libby or anyone else in this administration broke the law, they need to be accountable not to the press but to the law and, hence, the people. It is infuriating enough for ordinary people to see how cynically our leaders manipulated the press in order to further their own agenda. But then to hear you all say that, because we all now know about it, it no longer matters is incredibly disappointing.

Get your heads around this: simply saying “yes, I broke the law” or “yes, I betrayed my oath” doesn’t absolve a person of wrongdoing. Saying “I’m responsible” doesn’t mean you’re taking responsibility. There must be action. There must be restitution. And in some cases there must be trials and there must be sentences. There must be consequences when our leaders commit wrongs. Forgetting that is the ultimate cynical act.