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Open & Shut

From the Fall 2000 issue of The News Media & The Law, page 40.

From the Fall 2000 issue of The News Media & The Law, page 40.

Funny, fascinating, nonsensical or notable, these are the Reporters Committee’s newsworth quotes for the news media.

I believe in open government because I believe Texans have a right to self-determination. We have a right to say how the government should behave because government is elected by the people.

–Texas Attorney General John Cornyn in a speech at the Freedom of Information Foundation’s annual conference.

Because I am black, it is said automatically that Justice Scalia has to do my work for me. It is interesting that I rarely see him, so he must have a chip in my brain and he controls me that way.

–Justice Clarence Thomas, on criticism that he is a clone of Justice Antonin Scalia.

The threat of being put to the defense of a lawsuit may be as chilling to the exercise of First Amendment freedoms as fear of the outcome of the lawsuit itself.

–Judge Ellen Huvelle, District of Columbia Superior Court in her opinion on Guilford Transportaion v. Wilner.

No citizen is responsible, upon pain of criminal and civil sanction, for ensuring that the internal procedures designed to protect the legitimate confidences of government are respected.

–Judge Michael Luttig, of the U.S. Court of Appeals in Richmond (4th Cir.), in Ashcraft v. Conoco, Inc. and Mitchell

Requiescat in pace.

–U.S. Rep. Edward Markey’s (D-Mass.) thoughts on the fairness doctrine. (English translation: May it rest in peace.)

The Communications Decency Act was so unconstitutional it wasn’t even any fun to write the opinion.

–Justice Anthony Kennedy on the federal law struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1997.

We welcome your submissions of newsworthy quotes for the news media. E-mail to: openandshut@reporterscommittee.org; fax to: (703) 807-2109.

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