Jerry Brown’s mounting ethics problems

Jerry Brown is the political butterfly of California. From the California Secretary of State to two terms as Governor to Mayor of Oakland to his current job as the state’s Attorney General, he is the definition of career politician. He is also one of the people most responsible for the current state of the state. If you’ve held almost every major office in state government over 35 years either you somewhere along the line earn this responsibility or end up being labeled a hack or both.

Mr. Brown is once again running for Governor at a time when the state is in the midst of its deepest crisis in history. Between the man-made drought in the Valley, our bankrupt finances, the collapse of the economy, and our dysfunctional legislature we need vision and clarity and honesty more than ever before.

Mr. Brown brings a lot of baggage with him, but his recent conduct as AG must be considered as some of his most egregious. In reading his press releases, it is the typical liberal litany of lawsuits against oil companies, banks and corporations. But there’s not a lot of real substance to any of this. Filing lawsuits is not winning them, nor have we seen any great initiatives.

Where there is substance is in his selective application of the law. Recently, one of his aides illegally recorded a conversation between a San Francisco reporter and a justice department official, and then tried to get the reporter fired. Her article on Brown’s questionable influence on the wording of an upcoming ballot initiative that benefited a political donor might be damaging to his hopes in 2010. The aide in question was fired but the questionable quid pro quo was never followed up on. The investigation into the wiretap was also dropped by Brown’s office.

More recently, we have the spectacle of ACORN’s San Diego office  dumping potentially incriminating documents as a private investigator filmed them. The investigator salvaged the documents, which are now under review by Breitbart.com and some of which have been also released to an passionately disinterested press. This is the ACORN office where an employee offered to assist two undercover reporters playing a pimp and prostitute in setting up a 501c charitable foundation to evade taxes. He also offered to assist by importing underage prostitutes from Tijuana.

In Fontana, California, another ACORN employee was caught on camera by the same reporters offering advice on tax evasion as well as suggesting locations for the proposed brothel. As far as I know, California does  have several statutes that would apply.

An employee of ACORN’s  South Central Los Angeles office was filmed offering to do research on international child sex slavery for the reporters and encouraging them in their business plan.

Brown has chosen so far to ignore the problem. Child slavery? Corruption? Conspiracy to evade state income taxes? I thought this is why we have Attorneys General.

Lastly, right in his back yard, Sacramento Mayor and former NBA star Kevin Johnson has been caught in a coverup. In this case, Johnson’s charter school, St. Hope, took federal grant money and used it inappropriately. Most was paid back, but then it was discovered that he may have had inappropriate contact with young volunteers, who were then paid off for their silence. His fiance’, Michelle Rhee, has been accused of being a “fixer” in the case. Didn’t we used to take cover ups seriously? The Americorps Inspector General, Gerald Walpin, was fired in this case, but the Obama administration chose to shoot the messenger and try to sweep it all under the rug.

Where do we draw the line on improper conduct, Mr. Brown? Illegal wiretapping? child sex slavery and large scale criminal fraud?  Cover ups?

One of the most serious complaints these days is selective enforcement of the law. Unfortunately, it seems to have become a hallmark of Mr. Brown’s tenure as Attorney General. He was able to insert himself into the Anna Nicole Smith case easily enough. Why not actually do the job of an Attorney General?   And knowing all of this, do we really want him as our Governor again?