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This afternoon, Tom Emmer asked the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation Services to investigate Minnesota Attorney General. Here's what we know thus far:
Representative Tom Emmer wants the bureau to look into allegations that Swanson been an obstacle to employees attempting to organize a union. Swanson put an assistant attorney general on leave earlier this week, but denied that the suspension was punishment for speaking with news media about the union drive.
Messages left for Bureau of Mediation Services Commissioner James Cunningham were not immediately returned.
Emmer, a Republican, has been pushing DFL House leaders to investigate Swanson, who is also a Democrat.
Here's what Mark Brunswick is reporting in the Strib:
Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Delano, deputy House minority leader, sent letters to legislative leaders and to the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation Services on Wednesday seeking the inquiry regarding the office of DFL Attorney General Lori Swanson.
"The actions in the attorney general's office during the past year have become an unnecessary concern for public employees in that office," Emmer wrote to Mediation Services.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 5, the union pursuing the organizing effort, has contended that the attorney general's office has created an atmosphere of intimidation for attorneys seeking to unionize and stifled criticism.
Most recently, an assistant attorney general who is an advocate of the organizing effort, Amy Lawler, was placed on administrative leave after she spoke to reporters about ethical concerns she had over how some consumer protection lawsuits were handled.
Ms. Swanson's saying that Ms. Lawler's being placed on "placed on paid leave" wasn't "because of union-related activities" isn't supported by AFSCME's statement that the attorney general's office has created an atmosphere of intimidation for attorneys seeking to unionize. I'm certain that those statements won't fit together.
Ms. Swanson doesn't appear to be an ethical person. Here's what Ms. Lawler said about Swanson's tactics:
During an interview, Lawler also described wrestling with ethical issues in her job. She said one issue came up when Swanson directed her to quickly file lawsuits against mortgage foreclosure consultants even though the attorney general had no defendants in mind.
"And that was kind of the case across the board," she said. "She'd just have an idea about a lawsuit, and she'd want it filed as quickly as possible. The biggest was she wanted people who'd be willing to appear at press conferences."
That sounds completely unethical. If it isn't unethical or illegal, it's certainly sleazy and repulsive.
Eric Black quoted Eliot Seide as saying this:
Seide, of AFSCME, was blistering in his comments toward Swanson, as he has been since Swanson first rejected the union drive. "We have a group of attorneys trying to practice good law for the people of Minnesota and they wanted to form a union so they could do that. Instead what they faced was a savage workenvironment of fear and intimidation," he said.
Here's how Rep. Sertich is responding to Tom Emmer's questions:
Sertich responded Wednesday afternoon saying, "We actually had a discussion last spring about this that Rep. Emmer seems to have forgotten." According toSertich, the rules committee went to the non-partisan legal counsel that theHouse has on staff. "They advised us not to interfere in any ongoing employment dispute with any potential legal ramifications," Sertich said.
My question to Rep. Sertich is whether the Rules Committee, which he chairs, published an official report on this. As I recall, the House voted 129-0, on two seperate votes, to conduct a hearing on this. I don't recall ever hearing anything about Rep. Sertich's conversation with the House legal counsel's office. That's why I just contacted Rep. Sertich's office. I'll keep you posted on what I find out.
Suffice it to say that there's alot of discord in the AG's office, which is inexplicable due to the nature of the problem source. I never thought I'd see the day that a DFL Attorney General would be accused of hindering the formation of a public employees union in the office.
You can't write fiction that strange.
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