Governor Joe Lombardo further proved his ethical bankruptcy by filing an appeal of the Nevada Commission on Ethics’ decision to censure and fine him for misconduct involving his campaigning while wearing an official uniform and badge. Not only is Lombardo arguing that he shouldn’t be held accountable, he’s also arguing that unless he gets to appoint every member, the Ethics Commission itself is unconstitutional and should not exist.
This attempt at avoiding accountability comes after Lombardo’s previous scheme, where he delayed his original ethics hearing date so he could appoint two of his cronies who would vote to protect him, even as they voted to punish others for the same offenses Lombardo committed.
Lombardo has been trying his best to spin the Ethics Commission’s decision as “partisan,” but the Commission’s vote censuring and fining him was bipartisan and his playing politics only goes so far when his own legal team admitted that he violated ethics laws. Now, Lombardo believes that the next best step is to attack the constitutionality of the Ethics Commission itself instead of answering to the law. This begs the question: does Lombardo think that every previous ethics enforcement action, and all future ones, by the Nevada Commission on Ethics Commission are illegitimate? If so, does he have a plan for how to ensure ethical conduct from our public officials or is he only concerned about protecting himself?
Nevada State Democratic Party Spokesperson Stephanie Justice released the following statement:
“This lawsuit is just another tactic in Joe Lombardo’s scheme that proves just how ethically bankrupt he is. After adding two of his cronies to the Ethics Commission to try and protect himself and attempting to paint its decision as partisan, Lombardo has decided to question the constitutionality of the commission itself. There’s no doubt about it: Lombardo will do whatever it takes to protect his own political interests.”
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