By Dave Dahl
SPRINGFIELD – The person who is supposed to be policing members of the General Assembly says she is hamstrung by the rules the General Assembly created.
Legislative Inspector General Carol Pope and the other two people who have held the job, Julie Porter and Tom Homer, detailed their frustrations to the joint panel that was formed late last year to address the latest wave of corruption investigations at the Capitol.
Much of the focus Thursday was on Porter, brought in to clean up the #MeToo mess that has cost several people, including the House speaker’s chief of staff, their jobs.
In written remarks, Porter said she uncovered wrongdoing by a sitting lawmaker – she provided no other details of the case – only to see the Legislative Ethics Commission refuse to move forward on it. And Pope said in a confidential process, having to inform the commission of lawmakers of the content of allegations is the opposite of confidential.
Porter found her time in office “extraordinarily disappointing” by the time it was over. It was not all bad, though.
“It’s very healthy, I think, in public service for new people to come in with new perspectives,” Porter told reporters after her testimony. “I came in at a time when I was needed. I do think that for this to be not just a personally rewarding position, but a meaningful position, where someone does not feel like they’re banging their head against the wall, these laws need to change.
“Knowing what I know now, if I were asked to come in tomorrow and do this role again, under the same rules, I do think that it would be a waste of time.”
Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]
