I actually see where both you and the person you're debating with are coming from. Yeah, it's kinda a side-show because they can publish anything they want and you or I can't verify that's truly what is running. But it's a side-show that can turn into the main-show if the government really screws it up or a whistle-blower appears on the scene. From that angle, I say making them publish the code & promise the public that's the real code in production will then at least add one more avenue for any government-scandals to be "accidentally" revealed.

Basically, the more often you can force someone to tell a lie the more likely they screw up somewhere and it all falls apart.