Ohio agency head accused of snooping on Joe the Plumber put on paid leave
posted at 5:59 pm on November 7, 2008 by Allahpundit
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The trigger was pulled late Friday afternoon to minimize publicity, but we’ll take it any way we can get it.
Good lord. Is justice actually going to be done here?
Helen Jones-Kelley, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and former head of that department in Montgomery County, has been placed on paid administrative leave by Gov. Ted Strickland.
Strickland said on Friday, Nov. 7, that he took the action “due to the possibility, as yet unconfirmed, that a state computer or state e-mail account was used to assist in political fund raising.”
“I have asked Inspector General Tom Charles to include this matter in his current, ongoing investigation,” Strickland said in a press release.
Is it S.O.P. for a governor to undermine an agency head he himself appointed by suspending them before an investigation’s been finished? If he’s moving this early to put out the blaze, he must be feeling pretty sure that where’s there smoke, there’s fire. Or, maybe, he suddenly figured out that this is now a national news story and he’d better make a move to turn down the heat.
The Dispatch, bless its heart, has filed a request demanding any and all e-mails sent by Jones-Kelley that reference Barack Obama and is being told they’ll have them shortly, so look forward to the last missing piece of the puzzle dropping sometime next week. Exit question: Should JTP still sue? He’s finally paid off his tax lien so it’s not like he needs the cash anymore.
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JUSTICE?!!!!
Justice – in THIS Case, would involve something on the order of the activities that Vlad The Impaler engaged in!
…..and left in public for at LEAST a week, so that everyone can SEE what justice LOOKS like!!!
grtflmark on November 7, 2008 at 10:27 PM
As many of you have already said..
Paid leave?!?!?!?.
Yep. I got thirty days of that every year when in the military (a long time ago). If that was punishment, I sure wasn’t aware of it.
PAID LEAVE: In the real world, that’s what we call a paid vacation.
LegendHasIt on November 7, 2008 at 10:34 PM
New charge.
Principles Allah? Um, suing might perchance dissuade more illicit government snooping of private citizens in the future. Sheesh.
Topsecretk9 on November 7, 2008 at 10:34 PM
If there is jail time, who makes the house payment?
gooddad on November 7, 2008 at 10:59 PM
Just as long as she does not land a job as Secretary of HUD and she is eventually – fired.
Then great!
Honestly, I don’t think Obama had any actual involvement in this, except to say that a leader creates the environment his subordinates work in. She felt like she could get away with it and it was necessary.
Says something about the employee, but it does cast aspersions toward her “employer”.
His denouncing her publically – and any shenanigans like this – would go a long way to establishing his much, much needed crediblilty among non-Obamabot cultists.
kybowexar on November 7, 2008 at 11:04 PM
Sue Joe, Sue!
It’d be nice if accountability can survive an Obama admin.
It might be nice if the Obamessiah reigns in his more zealous acolytes.
Iblis on November 7, 2008 at 11:07 PM
Sue them blind.
Jaibones on November 7, 2008 at 11:29 PM
This is the kind of cyber-thuggery which doubtlessly was rampant in the run up to election day. With Obama minions and delegates holding high office in many Obama states, Lord knows how many laws, rules or regs were broken to shoe-horn The Untested One into office. This woman showed us her “thug thizzle” fo’ shizzle
sladenyv on November 8, 2008 at 12:14 AM
He’s been slandered on a national stage, and a big part of that is the direct result of complicity by this partisan hack, working on state computers, and likely under the direction of a political party. If they start following email chains on this, it could get big enough to bring down a significant percentage of the Ohio government. The One’s organization was vast and interconnected, even the thought of some email containing original quoted text from Obama (maybe buried way down in the replies) saying to ‘get this cracker, quick’, could lead to the shortest presidency in US history.
Falconsword on November 8, 2008 at 12:28 AM
Translated from Governese:
“Sorry Helen, but you were spooking the marks, and we just don’t need that right now. I hear Underbus is hungry, why don’t you take an early lunch and go feed him?”
Blacksmith on November 8, 2008 at 12:59 AM
Actually – and I know I’ll be flamed for saying this – but I think it’s entirely appropriate to put her on paid leave while the investigation is underway. This has happened where I work, when someone is suspected of a violation of ethical or other company policy. When the company takes that step, it usually results in termination of the employee.
.
Although it appears to be a “paid vacation,” keep in mind that we are all presumed innocent until proven guilty.
.
The good news is that at least the state of Ohio is investigating the matter. If, when the investigation is complete, she if found to have committed any violations of whatever policy, then termination is also appropriate.
Then, JTP’s lawyers need to have at her with guns a-blazin’.
UltimateBob on November 8, 2008 at 4:19 AM
the biggest problem with what she did is government databases were abused. The issue is bigger then Joe, political parties, or this election. She’s further undermined the credibility of the government in regards to data security and responsibility.
Should she be sued? Of course if only to force the government to make it official policy that appearing on the news is not grounds to go digging through someone’s private records. What’s more, releasing that information to the press is completely irresponsible and unethical. Joe isn’t the issue here. It’s a question of too much power without proper checks and balances.
Karmashock on November 8, 2008 at 6:09 AM
As an Ohio resident this is very good news to me.
I am a registered Republican and absolutely did not vote for Ted Strickland. However, I have been pleased with his work as governor up to this incident. He has been a far better governor than Bob Taft ever was. (Of course, a dead potted plant would have been a better governor than Bob Taft ….) Strickland is actually getting all the various levels of education working together to improve opportunities for college education for students.
Therefore, I was quite disappointed to see him support this woman initially. Now it appears that he is trying to do something about it – albeit it after the election.
Of course, his party – which ran on the corruption of the Republican officials – has already lost the attorney general to charges that make all the previous charges against Republicans look slight in comparision. Then this …
Then, of course, we have Jennifer Brunner who sold her soul to get Obama elected. I look forward to the day when she realizes that Obama didn’t need Ohio to win and therefore doesn’t owe her anything. Hopefully, in 2010 she will join the crowd under his bus.
And Joe … he should sue. Although I will be paying for the judgment out of my taxes, in the long run he would be helping to protect my rights by doing so.
Rose from Ohio on November 8, 2008 at 6:39 AM
A government worker put on paid leave… isn’t that the same thing as ‘a government worker working from home’?
Kevin M on November 8, 2008 at 9:17 AM
Nah, they’ll say she didn’t really do anything illegal, give her a slap on the wrist and she’ll be back. Either that or she’ll be tapped by Obummer for a cabinet level position. Maybe Computer Czar, sumthin’ like that.
eyedoc on November 8, 2008 at 9:28 AM
The more I see stuff like this, the more I feel that America abandoned stocks as a form of punishment way too early in our history: especially for public officials.
I think the prospect of this public humiliation would do wonders to get most officials’ heads on straight. One enhancement would be appropriate: each citizen should be allowed one swat to the politician’s backside with a rolled-up newspaper (no concealed bats or tire irons allowed).
Think about the prospect of a dysfunctional and over-budget bridges or highways being lined with stocks providing convenient access to the responsible official’s backside to thousands of aggrieved commuters…
And in this case, think about thousands of citizens being given the opportunity to impress upon Helen Jones-Kelley the true meaning of “freedom of speech”…
Oh well, I can dream, can’t I?
landlines on November 8, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Hey, how can I get some of that paid leave? I need a break, too.
sheesh on November 8, 2008 at 12:08 PM
Now that she is “suddenly famous”, shouldn’t we check to see if see is behind on child support or something. What’s good for the plumber, is good for the teacher.
CertainVictory on November 8, 2008 at 1:21 PM
helen jones kelly is just a typical obama supporter. she did what she could to help obama win the election. did she do anything wrong? sure she did but what can any one do?
kelly is just an example of the obama supporters who stole signs,who created the obama truth squads, who made others almost afraid to put a mccain/palin sticker on thier vehicle unless the vehicle be vandilized.
what does kelly forbode. card check for people who are trying to opt or reject union organazation? freedom act? whoes freedom? the freedom of the left that suppres free speech in our universities? why is it that the freedom act only applies to radio?
TomLawler on November 8, 2008 at 3:34 PM
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