Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee - a declared Republican presidential hopeful and darling of the far, religious right is under investation by the Arkansas Ethics Commission.
According to an AP release dated Feb 2, 2007 and posted to the todaysthv.com web site at 1:53 pm CST - the Commission is investigating a complaint from Jim Parsons of Bella Vista, Arkansas that Huckabee violated state FOIA statutes when he ordered the destruction of computer hard drives in the Governor's office before he turned the office over to the new Democratic Govenor Mike Beebe. Parson's has also filed a complaint with the Pulaski County (Little Rock) prosecutors.
Update to follow...
Update: Sorry for the quick post - child care pickups CANNOT be late. All of the references here can be found at one of several sites: The Arkansas Time at arktime.com; todaysthv.com and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (arkansasonline.com) - Links to come as I get the hyperlink stuff figured out.
For those of us living down here in Arkansas, we've seen more than a couple of things in the last 3 weeks pop-up about the trailer trash that was the former Governor.
I think that Huckabee is one of those "out of no-where" Rethug presidential candidates. If you don't think he has a little chance - you need to read the diary posted today from by BrooklynRaider "A Mole at the Conservative Summit, Pt. 3: Mr. Huckabee Goes to Washington". It should give everyone pause about his potential to play to the far right and to really move a crowd with his speaking skills. A diary by Arkydem which was posted last night provides another glimpse into the presidential hopeful.
During Huckabee's final days in office - in fact before those final days - a number of things happened that should cause any sensible voter to stop and think.
It is well known down here that he pardoned convicted murders because they got right with Jesus while behind bars. Unfortunately, one of them travelled up to Missouri and murdered some folks, received the death sentence up there and - after being executed - was called one of the worst things called a human by the prosecutors.
But in the last days of his administration, the far right republican rag of newspaper - the Arkansas Democrat Gazette -reported the following:
- Brenda Turner, his chief of staff, ordered the state department responsible for IT to destroy all of the hard drives on the machines in the governor's office.
- Office furniture - reported donated by the Republican Party of Arkansas - was taken from the office, along with hard wired light fixtures and speaker podiums.
- He looted the Governor's emergency fund (an appropriated fund to cover state emergency's) to provide grants and other funds to his "special" interests - leaving the incoming Govenor with a $0 balance mid-way through the state fiscal year.
Links and other updates will be added - I have another child care issue arising but want to provide some documentation to others watching and researching the "man".