[jbattle]

> “Personally, I have actually been told by others that we are one of the most transparent agencies out there”

Are there really voting-age citizens that are persuaded by a comment like this?

[vkou]

The comment isn't supposed to persuade anyone, it's supposed to be a fig leaf for people who already support the political party in question, to cite in defense of their party.

This shifts debate into an unanswerable questions - whether or not the official in question is lying.