The mayor should have been able to recognize a textbook conflict of interest, which this was. He should have fully informed the Assembly about the situation. He should have handed off his trustee duties to someone else and generally stayed an arm's length from the whole business. It appears there was no legal requirement that he do those things, but he should have had the good judgment to do them anyway.
(You can read the rest of the article here.)
Good for the Anchorage Daily News! I am very happy that they are taking such a strong stand!
I don't think it takes an ethicist to see that this thing stinks to high heaven. In my opinion almost any elementary school kid could see the wrong here without too much difficulty. Of course expecting Mayor Dan Sullivan to have reached that level of moral maturity may be unfair.
For those who are not yet aware of Sullivan's ethical lapse I could not send you to a better source to learn about it then to my friend Mel Green's blog.
Over at the Mudflats it looks like Jeanne Devon is pretty pleased with this news as well.
I for one can hardly wait to see an independent legal review. I cannot imagine that Sullivan will get a pass on this daylight robbery of our city's treasury.
Perhaps while we are waiting for that outcome we could busy ourselves writing up a petition requesting that this mayor be recalled. In my opinion this is not a partisan issue. Any time a sitting mayor signs a check for $193,000 to HIMSELF, based on nothing but the rumor of a contract which nobody can seem to find, and then takes that money and squirrels it away so that the city cannot get it back, that mayor deserves to lose his position of responsibility over the citizens of Anchorage.
I cannot help but think that if this were a Democratic mayor who had pulled this shit that the city would be on fire right about now while angry mobs roamed the streets demanding restitution.
Boy, does Sullivan make poor choices...and this photo is another fine example..hands rigt under the boobs on one and on the butt on the other! What a horrid professional example of a mayor anywhere in the United States. (Plus the fact he is married!)
ReplyDeleteWill be watching this $193,000 issue closely. It smells illegal as the devil...insurance companies and agents have to be licensed w/the State of Alaska. The M of A is not an insurance company!
Well, you certainly seem to be over the quota on grifters in Alaska.
ReplyDeleteYes, good for ADN. I'll have to give them more clicks.
ReplyDeleteOne big issue that I haven't seen addressed is the tax issue. Insurance proceeds are paid income-tax free. Death benefit payments are not. Insurance policies must meet the requirements of the states insurance division. As this payment came from the municipality, rather than an insurance contract, the taxability is in question. Maybe this qualifies as a private placement insurance contract, I don't know.
ReplyDeleteHow can you possible say that the ADN has acted responsibly in this matter? They coddle politicians.
ReplyDeleteCheeez.
I agree with the 3:56AM comment. The ADN editorial is a cop-out and a way for them to seem critical of Sullivan. I would not be surprised if the horrible charge of a "conflict of interest" is as far as they are willing to go.
ReplyDeleteI thought the 8:47 PM poster made a good point about possible tax liability on this money.