Wrong Tool

Once again the Beshear administration shows the political subtlety of a broad sword.

From the Herald-Leader:

Gov. Steve Beshear's administration might have violated state and federal laws by firing a governor's office staffer who had just returned to Kentucky in December from three months of U.S. Air National Guard training.

A couple of points:

The guy fired was a political appointee in the Governor’s Office. If he truly had any illusion of keeping a job after the administration changed he was an idiot.

However, the Beshear administration should have found him a job counting paper clips for a few months or offered him a job in Inez or Fulton or sent him to work for the boss from hell. I can think of at least three other ways to get rid of this guy without front page headlines.

Another mark of political ineptitude is who in the administration is talking and who isn’t.

Dan Egbers, general counsel for the state Personnel Cabinet, didn't return a call.

Dan Egbers knows more about personnel law than anyone in state government. If Dan Egbers is not returning phone calls then someone probably screwed up big time.

On the other hand we have Executive Assistant to the Governor Colmon Elridge III sending an email to the fired employee.

"I did not know anything about this until this morning but unfortunately it is true," Elridge wrote in a Jan. 25 e-mail. "I am so sorry for the way in which this turned out, however, you know as we all do how we serve at the pleasure of our Governor!"

Elridge is nice guy, but I’m not sure I’d want a 25 year old being out front in another possible hiring investigation, unless of course I needed an expendable soldier to fall on his sword if things got rough.

Elridge’s bio from WHAS:

Executive Assistant to the Governor - Colmon Elridge, age 25, most recently served as the Central Kentucky Director for the Kentucky Education Association and the Outreach Director for the Kentucky Democratic Party and Democratic National Committee. Previously, Elridge served as the Legislative Liaison for the Kentucky Association of Regional Mental Health Programs (KARP). In 2007, Elridge served as President of the Fayette County Young Democrats and in 2006 he served as Treasurer of this group. Elridge resides in Lexington and is engaged to Victoria Hall of Louisville