In the ACORN documents posted online by the MOGOP, one particular response stands out in an odd way. The email is a request for a phone number sent from Brian Mellor of Project Vote to Barbara Wood, the senior counsel for the Secretary of State.
Normally a request for a number would be something casual, but a cache of documents I found online on election law provides an important glimpse into how the Secretary of State's office worked with Project Vote and against the Department of Social Services.
This email from Brian Mellor provides a direct contact to Barbara, seemingly at her request, on October 9, 2008.
Keep in mind that the lawsuit had already been filed, and the injunction put in place. This contact with Richard Cairns is about something new, the attempt by the St Louis Board of Elections to join the Missouri Secretary of State to ACORN V. Scott. The St Louis Board of Elections, as an LEA (local election authority), attempted to say that coordination of the NVRA was the responsibility of Robin Carnahan, and she was necessary to enforce the rules asked for in the ACORN suit.
On October 14, 2008 - five days after this email was sent, Richard Cairns, one of the lawyers suing the State of Missouri, filed a brief in opposition to the Stl Board of Election Request to add Robin Carnahan.
Sometime between October 9 and October 14, it is reasonable to assume that Barbara Wood, in her official capacity as the lawyer for Robin Carnahan, called a lawyer for ACORN and spoke to him about the this motion. That discussion, or phone call, and its notes, are discoverable. They are not protected by work product, or attorney-client privilege, because the contact itself makes the information "open."
Cairns isn't suing Carnahan, and his Response to the Motion may have been based on that discussion.
This is not normal relations as required by the Secretary of State's staff. This is clearly evidence that the Secretary of State staff was doing their best to stay out this lawsuit, to the detriment of DSS.
And there's more evidence of that coming up, including a surprise appearance by a former Attorney General at a convenient time.
And Missouri Secretary of State, Robin Carnahan, is running for the U. S. Senate?
According to Section 14, Article IV, EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT - of our Missouri Constitution, the Secretary of State is custodian of records, and documents and performs duties in relation to elections and corporations,.
Don't you think that being a candidate in an election that you are required to oversee, is a serious conflict of interest? Shouldn't she resign from her state executive position? After all, you can’t referee the game you’re playing in.
Posted by: JonahVark | 03/10/2010 at 08:59 PM