Open government is key to honest government

When government fails, it’s the rare public official who says, “Oops. My fault.”

That’s human nature, particularly for officials in the public eye who may have to run for office again. No one wants to be held directly responsible for letting the public down.

Case in point is the recent catastrophe in Texas, when unexpected winter storms left four million homes without power, ruptured pipes and tainted the water supply for many.

Texas’ energy grid essentially collapsed. While Texas Gov. Greg Abbott was quick to blame frozen wind turbines, the cause was much more complex than that....