Wayne Dolcefino, investigative journalist extraordinaire, has released another video about his and Jim McIngvale’s attempts to force Harris County to release public records pertaining to the 2022 election. Lina Hidalgo plays a starring role. And her performance reminds one of Shakespeare’s famous line from Hamlet, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.” The line implies that someone who denies something too strongly may be hiding the truth.

Fighting Disclosure Before an Accusation Has Been Made

Neither Dolcefino nor McIngvale have accused Hidalgo of trying to unfairly alter the outcome of the election. They’re just trying to learn what happened.

Yet Hidalgo and her cronies have steadfastly refused to produce public records – records that could easily prove their innocence. Instead:

• Hidalgo and her team use encrypted apps to communicate, a practice outlawed elsewhere.
• They tried to charge tens of thousands of dollars to copy emails that should only take seconds.
• They have redacted the records they do produce so heavily as to make them incomprehensible.
• For instance, in a list of phone calls, they blacked out EVERY phone number.

The video’s title borrow’s from a saying by Louis Brandeis more than a hundred years ago, “Sunlight is the best disinfectant.”

Downward Spiral of Suspicion, Distrust, More Investigation

The loss of trust seems to have resulted in a downward spiral. No telling yet where it will end. But for those old enough to remember, the spectacle is like a rerun of the waning days of Watergate. The shriller President Richard Nixon’s denials became, the more journalists investigated his denials.

And like Nixon, Hidalgo and her courtiers now resort to lame ad hominem attacks, calling those seeking the truth “losers.”

It took two years to uncover the truth in the Watergate scandal. Ultimately, the relentless exposes and investigations ended with Nixon’s impeachment, resignation, and long, slow slide into irrelevance.

From Transparency Advocate to Stonewaller

Ironically, when first out of college, Hidalgo worked for a group called Internews, according to her Wikipedia page. Internews advocates for press freedom around the world. One of its main missions: “Holding governments accountable by supporting investigative journalism…”

Make sure you watch Dolcefino’s 10-minute video. The denials are revealing…methinks.

(Update: 2/18/2023) And lest you think this post is politically motivated by an election denier, check out this editorial in the Houston Chronicle. “Hidalgo has concluded that Mattress Mack’s request for records is hurting democracy,” they say. “The presumption of the Texas Public Information Act has long been that public records are public property and most should be accessible to the owners.”

The editorial continues, “Harris County had the option of transparency and chose obfuscation.” The Chronicle concludes, “Texans have a right to know what their government is doing, how their tax dollars are being spent, and yes, how their elections are being run. That right is under assault…”

Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/16/2023

1997 Days since Hurricane Harvey

The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.