The Attorney General of Virginia, Ken Cuccinelli II, has made the most reasonable of demands: He has asked the University of Virginia for documentation to assure taxpayers that taxpayer funds weren't improperly spent in research involving Michael Mann, author of the now discredited Hockey Stick Graph.

This demand for accountability has met with uproar in the scientific community and in the mainstream media, as seen in the Washington Post article of today, which characterizes Mr. Cuccinelli's request as a "witch hunt."

The refusal to cooperate with authorities is unseemly. Watch for new developments in this story.