JCR Blog

Tom Vilsack took a moment out of his busy travel schedule to say he opposed Jim Nussle's initiative to create an Inspector General's Office. From Washington, DC Vilsack said "That doesn't seem to work particularly well in Washington, D.C. - we still have $600 hammers being purchased by the Pentagon." Except we don't.

In the meantime, the CRG is reporting that Kelly Taylor, the whistle blower in the CIETC scandal, testified that Nussle's plan could help others report mismanagement.

The whistleblower who provided key information for a state auditor's report that detailed excessive salaries at a job training agency told lawmakers Thursday that creating an Inspector General's Office could make it easier for people in his position to come forward.

On the subject of the CIETC scandal, the DM Register is reporting that Vilsack, Tom Harkin, and Leonard Boswell were warned of the brewing scandal over a year before Taylor came forward to the State Auditor, Dave Vaudt.

Gov. Tom Vilsack was among a handful of public officials whose offices were sent letters warning of nepotism and exorbitant salaries in a government employment agency that is under federal investigation for alleged misuse of taxpayer money, a whistle-blower told The Des Moines Register this week.

... [Carol] Dymond said she paid one of the highest prices for acting as a watchdog of taxpayer money when she lost her job two months later.

Update to the update: Iowans are't the only ones noting Vilsack's absence. The South Carolina Democrats didn't include Vilsack in their presidential poll even though he will be keynoting the South Carolina Jefferson-Jackson dinner hours before the poll results will be revealed. Maybe Vilsack should take the hint and spend a weekend in Iowa.