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Gov. John Kitzhaber this morning changed his position on whether a state-level investigation of allegations of corruption in his office was necessary.
Kitzhaber called upon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum to begin an investigation immediately.
Rosenblum has been under increasing pressure to launch an investigation on her own. State law requires the attorney general to investigate reports of possible public corruption, but Rosenblum has failed to act. (Disclosure: Rosenblum is married to WW Publisher and co-owner Richard Meeker.)
Kitzhaber's request today may not be what it appears.
Since July, WW has been filing requests under Oregon's public records law for emails and other documents related to the private consulting contracts that first lady Cylvia Hayes obtained while representing the state and serving as a policy adviser to Kitzhaber. The governor's office stonewalled those requests for months and has continued to block production of records to WW and other media since October, when WW first reported on Hayes' contracts.
Kitzhaber's letter to Rosenblum today will allow his office to further delay producing public records. That's because exemptions in the public records law allow public bodies—such as the governor's office—to withhold records that may be involved in litigation, a criminal investigation or a personnel investigation until those proceedings are finished.
In other words, what may look like Kitzhaber seeking an investigation could in fact be his attempt to prevent the public from finding out what really happened in his office.
Here's the text of Kitzhaber's letter:
Updated at 1:00 pm with Rosenblum's letter to Kitzhaber:
WWeek 2015