Yesterday, the leadership in the Delaware Senate and the House of Representatives finally issued a statement on the indictment of State Auditor Kathy McGuiness. Both basically told her to get out of Dodge until the investigation is complete. WDEL broke the news:
Leaders in both Houses are urging McGuiness to put the public’s interests ahead of her own and take a voluntary leave of absence until the investigation is resolved.
“While we firmly believe an accused person deserves their day in court, we also believe that the scale of the charges both shatters the public’s confidence in Auditor McGuiness’ ability to serve as a watchdog of government finances and prevents her from meeting the duties and obligations of her office,” the statement from state Senate leadership said.
Both said they’re weighing their own Constitutional obligations in light of the indictment.
“We are concerned that the ongoing investigation and her legal defense will make it increasingly difficult for the auditor to effectively run an agency that is the watchdog of public funds. We believe it would be in the best interests of the auditor, her office and the residents of Delaware that she voluntarily take a leave of absence during these legal proceedings,” House leadership said.
This had to sting a bit for Pete Schwartzkopf. He has been besties with McG for well over a decade. Can’t be easy to see a friend going through this. But he is the Speaker of the House and he has to take a stand. He can’t ignore this.
Delaware Governor John Carney did issue a statement on Tuesday but, as usual, he is basically sitting on the fence like he does with many issues.
“The investigation is ongoing, so I don’t have a lot to say there. Obviously, what’s been alleged is very concerning, and we’ll see what…we see from the investigation from here on out,” said the governor. “I think that’s a decision that she has to make with respect to that. Obviously, she has staff that do the work of the office–it’s important work,” he said.
As Sheryl Crow once sang, it’s hard to take a stand.
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