Via The Western Word, comes Jon Tester’s first annual ethics self-audit. In theory I think this is a great idea, but I also think it would be a lot more useful if the results stayed private. When you publicize them you create one hell of an incentive to audit through rose-colored glasses. It becomes nothing but a publicity stunt.
And not a very smart one. Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Retired Justice John “Skeff” Sheehy of Helena, a Democrat, agreed to perform the audit. He will look at hundreds of documents at no charge and submit a written evaluation to Tester by April 15, if possible.
I wonder who is going to determine whether the Sheehy’s generosity constitutes an illegal in-kind contribution?
Posted in Jon Tester | | Write a Letter to the Editor
The more I think about this, Ret. Justice Sheehy is violating Senate ethics rules by donating time.
To the best of my knowledge Senate offices (and House for that matter) must pay for services rendered. The one exception is interns. However, to qualify as an internship, the experience must be primarily educational in nature for the participant and the intern cannot replace paid staff.
Since Tester is serious about cleaning up Washington, I am sure this will come up in the report.
[…] wrote before on Tester’s public relations stunt to hunt out his own impropriety. From the Gazette: […]
[…] hypothesized before that Senator Jon Tester is violating Senate Ethics rules in the process of conducting a […]
The rules for unpaid interns are actually a bit more stringent. Not only does the experience have to be primarily educational, but they have to actually be earning course credit. To my knowledge, Sheehy ain’t enrolled in any college.
It is never too late to go back to school.
