Public Integrity Unit
With Ronnie Earle retiring, we now have the perfect opportunity to ask the Legislature to move the Public Integrity Unit out of the Travis County DA's office and move it to the Attorney General's office. The Public Integrity Unit investigates and indicts all state and federal elected officials in Texas for violations of law.
Ronnie Earle has politicized the office towards a slanted agenda. He has gone after Tom DeLay and Kay Bailey Hutchinson while turning a blind eye against the likes of Dan Morales. Some of Ronnie Earle's indictments and investigations have been against Republicans, only to have the charges dropped or overturned by the 3rd Court of Appeals. This is not to say the Attorney General would be completely impartial, but the AG is elected and held accountable by voters statewide instead of a small cross-section sliver of Central Austin voters.
Moving the Public Integrity Unit from the Travis County District Attorney's office is a plank in the Republican Party of Texas Platform.
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1 comment:
Randy:
I agree that leaving the Public Integrity Unit solely in the hands of the Travis County D.A. is a bad idea. But concentration of power always leads to its abuse. I suggest that it would be advantageous, not to take away the Travis County D.A.'s unit, but to create a parallel unit in the A.G.'s office. This would have several advantages. (1) Since the Travis D.A. wouldn't be losing anything, she will be less dogged in opposing it than otherwise. (2) Since the Dems can be assured of control of the Travis County D.A.'s office in perpetuity, they will be less dogged in opposition. (3) Having a state and a local officer in competition may lead them to check each other. (4) Having a Republican able to investigate official corruption means that sometimes the show will be on the other foot. (5) This principle of divided and competing government powers checking each other is a time-tested idea that seems to work.
I for one oppose putting the public integrity office in any one place.
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