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Politics And Porn In State E-Mails
by Michael Martinez
A string of controversies over the use of public e-mail accounts and computer systems broke out this week in several states.
Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt, a Republican, has been deflecting criticism from Democrats since his office acknowledged that it routinely purges e-mails. State Attorney General Jay Nixon, a Democrat who already has launched a gubernatorial challenge to Blunt next year, said this week that the state's open-records and sunshine laws apply to e-mails.
The dispute began when the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Blunt's office has regularly been deleting e-mails. According to Nixon, state law requires public offices to retain interoffice e-mails for three years. Blunt told the Post-Dispatch that "nobody saves e-mail for three years."
Things got personal later when Blunt's office released a statement claiming that Nixon did not have any credibility on the issue because Nixon falsely asserted that his office did not destroy any e-mails for the past three years -- a statement Nixon denied anyone in his office ever made.
Blunt said in a news conference Tuesday that his staff has never tried to hide anything by deleting e-mails. He also acknowledged that his office has no written policy for determining which e-mails meet the criteria of the state's public-records laws.
The Missouri Republican Party, which has sought Nixon's e-mails in the past, is engaged in a fight of its own about the state's sunshine law. The party sued the Ethics Commission this week over a closed meeting it held this month to discuss campaign finance issues.
Republicans complained to the commission last year that Nixon used campaign committees to take illegal contributions. In a statement this week, the GOP Executive Director Jared Craighead linked his group's lawsuit to the Nixon complaint, which was dismissed by the ethics panel.
"The Ethics Commission's violation of the sunshine law tarnishes a campaign finance system already damaged by [Nixon's] collusion to tank the defense of a new law that injected transparency into the system," he said.
In Rhode Island, meanwhile, police are investigating e-mails with graphic pornography sent by public employees. The Providence Journal recently obtained such e-mails sent by state troopers and state Transportation Department employees. Maj. Steven O'Donnell told the newspaper that state police are investigating.
A few of the e-mails examined by the Journal had been circulating among state employees for more than a year. The state police and Transportation Department require employees to follow acceptable-use policies for e-mail accounts.
O'Donnell said the police's computer-crimes unit was not tasked with investigating the matter because forwarding porn is not a crime. He clarified that authorities are investigating inappropriate actions, not criminal behavior.
And in North Carolina, state auditors are examining whether an aide to a gubernatorial campaign tried to inappropriately access state records to research a potential rival candidate.
AP reported that Lt. Gov. Beverley Perdue, a Democrat, on Tuesday asked for an investigation into a public-records request for information on her traced to the office of State Treasurer Richard Moore. Perdue is expected to compete against Moore, who already has declared his candidacy, to be the state's 2008 Democratic nominee for governor.
Moore's office confirmed that the request came from an adviser who doubles as his deputy campaign manager. The adviser made the request on a public server with a private e-mail account belonging to a relative.
North Carolina forbids state employees from using public resources for political activities. An aide to Moore insisted that no laws were broken but said the adviser who made the request will be disciplined.
Kentucky Officials Battle Over E-Voting
The Kentucky Elections Board recertified multiple e-voting platforms this week amid the release of a report by the state's top law enforcer that outlined major holes in the state's voting system.
The board cleared three systems manufactured by Election Systems & Software, Hart Intercivic and Premier Election Solutions, the company formerly known as Diebold Election Systems. Kentucky Attorney General Greg Stumbo asked Secretary of State Trey Grayson to re-examine some of the devices after learning from a vendor that uncertified machines had been used in multiple elections.
All of the systems were certified unanimously by the elections board Tuesday. According to Grayson, the devices meet all applicable state and federal standards.
The investigative report delivered by Stumbo, a Democrat who some people expect will challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell next year, said that Kentucky's e-voting certification process is broken and that its machines suffer from severe vulnerabilities. He noted independent investigations in California and Florida that identified weaknesses in devices used there.
Florida lawmakers moved earlier this year to shift the state to a paper-based system. California's recent e-voting review has prompted several jurisdictions to rethink their voting platforms.
"Kentucky voters deserve the same prompt corrective action as voters in California and Florida have received," Stumbo said. "The security flaws in our voting systems potentially compromise the integrity and secrecy of the ballot."
In a statement, Grayson said Stumbo's report included errors about the system that Premier submitted for review. But Grayson said he appreciated Stumbo's willingness to cooperate with election officials in their efforts to improve the voting system.
Illinois Governor Signs Sex-Offender Bill
Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich this week signed into law a bill that makes it a criminal offense to solicit children for sex online.
The bill, H.B. 1979, imposes enhanced sentences against those caught using electronic media to lure minors. It also requires those who violate the law multiple times to register with the state as sex offenders and includes a separate provision addressing identity theft.
State Rep. Ruth Munson, the sponsor of the bill, said in a statement that it will make it more difficult for sexual predators to abuse the Internet and harm children.
"The Internet has made the impossible possible," she said. "But it has also provided a window of opportunity for those who wish to harm our children."
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