The statement by President Trump's latest lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, “I'm focused on the law more than the facts right now,” seems self-contradictory as surely the law is based on facts even though politics seems to focus on fake news.
It is time to consider the ninth commandment which basically says don't lie, rather than the fifth amendment which could be read to say: I don't want to speak in court as the truth may hurt me. Surely the truth should be the default approach for all people. We know there are political lies and there are some occasions, mostly involving military or police actions, when it is not always best to tell the complete story immediately, but that is the exception rather than the norm.
Perhaps it is appropriate to reflect on the insight offered by the words of Mahatma Gandhi: “Truth never damages a cause that is just” and to ponder on what truths are not being said or 'misspoken' and what damage that may follow.
Dennis Fitzgerald
Melbourne, Australia
