Foley should leave state elections board
Published July 15, 2015
Editorial by Winston-Salem Journal, July 14, 2015.
Public trust is essential for any public official to be effective. State Board of Elections member Paul Foley is in danger of losing that trust. It’s time for him to leave the board.
It all began with Chase Burns, an Internet sweepstakes software magnate who was arrested in March 2013 on felony racketeering and conspiracy charges in Florida and was being investigated by the board of elections for possibly illegal political contributions.
State elections officials are scheduled to hold a hold a public hearing about the findings of that investigation today.
Burns donated $235,000 to the campaigns of top state officials, including Gov. Pat McCrory, Senate leader Phil Berger and then-House Speaker Thom Tillis.
According to a state attorney general’s report obtained by The Associated Press, shortly after the Burns investigation began, in May 2013, Foley took a strong interest, repeatedly asking election board staff members about its status.
But Foley failed to mention that his employer, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton, a Win-ston-Salem law firm had, for years, been defending Burns – an obvious conflict of interest. In September 2014, State Elections Director Kim Strach learned of the connection. At that point, Foley recused himself from the investigation, though he denied knowledge of his firm’s extensive legal work for Burns, the AP reported.
Foley continued to question staff members about the case.
And he stated that he had a right to see a press release or public report about the issue before the media did so that he could assist his law firm in preparing a response to anything that might be said about the law firm in the report, according to the report from the attorney general's office.
His colleagues, to their credit, told Foley that it would be inappropriate for them to talk with him about the investigation or answer any of his questions. But he was so persistent that eventually, officials at the state elections board asked the state attorney general’s office to investigate whether Foley's conflict of interest tainted the investigation.
The investigation concluded that it was proper for Foley to recuse himself from issues involving Burns. The investigation said that Foley's prodding and questioning didn't harm the probe because the staff members responded properly.
In an email, Foley told the Journal: “I never attempted to influence the direction or outcome of the investigation. The Office of the Attorney General correctly concluded that I had no effect on the investigation.”
But this situation sure gave the appearance of impropriety.
That Foley continued to press for information on the Burns investigation after recusing himself says loudly that he doesn’t understand his role on the board of elections.
Foley has shown he can’t be trusted to understand and fulfill his responsibilities. His continued presence on the board could hurt its credibility. If he won’t realize that and step down, Gov. McCrory should remove him.
To see the attorney general's report on this matter, go to http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article26996392.ece/BINARY/Memorandum%20on%20Chase%20Burns%20Investigation%206-23-15
