I've waited a bit just to make sure, but it appears that Vivek Kundra finally is back to stay.
His saga is a cautionary tale for everyone seeking to serve the Obama administration, though. Washington is a "no good deed goes unpunished" town. In attempting to make personnel decisions carefully and to avoid conflicts of interest, the Obama administration has unleashed an evil djin--a crowd of pundits, bloggers, reporters and groups ready to pounce on the slightest taint. Once leashed, this monster will leave no stone unturned, no closet unopened. I suppose that is as it should be, especially in this era of transparency, but it's going to take some getting used to. Remember the days when all manner of private peccadilloes remained private?
I guess sunlight will be disinfecting us all now. So here's a reminder: Don't commit anything to the Ethernet, public records, or anywhere else unless you are prepared to see it, well, everywhere.
And now that Kundra is back, expect to see mountains of once-hidden or impenetrable federal data being unearthed, cleansed, transmitted and revealed. The Data.gov countdown begins . . .
