Posted on 05/23/2006 7:01:25 PM PDT by evad
Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.’s chief appointments officer vigorously denied allegations yesterday that the administration booted Democrats out of state positions so they could be replaced with Republicans and Ehrlich loyalists.
“Not a single person can ever say, ‘I was fired because I’m a Democrat,”’ said Lawrence J. Hogan, who heads the governor’s appointments office.
Mr. Hogan also denied that Joseph Steffen, the self-described “Prince of Darkness” and a central figure in the probe of the administration’s hiring and firing practices, was sent into state agencies to ferret out employees who could be fired.
He said Mr. Steffen’s role was to go into dysfunctional agencies and recommend ways to make them more productive and more responsive to taxpayers.
Mr. Hogan’s testimony came at a hearing of the legislature’s Special Committee on State Employee Rights and Protections. The committee was set up to look into complaints by longtime state workers who did not hold top policy-making positions that they lost their jobs to make way for Republican replacements.
Mr. Hogan said the administration replaced only about 4 percent of more than 7,000 at-will employees, all of whom could be fired without cause.
The committee’s hearings are nearing an end, and so far there has been no testimony from Mr. Steffen, who was fired by Mr. Ehrlich last year after he acknowledged that he had used the Internet to spread rumors about Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley. Republicans claim that Mr. Steffen was set up by a Democrat, posing on a Web site as a Republican, who lured him into posting criticism of the Baltimore mayor.
At an executive session after the hearing ended, the committee directed Ward Coe, the committee’s special counsel, to continue to try to locate Mr. Steffen and issue a subpoena to force him to testify. Sen. Thomas “Mac” Middleton, D-Charles, said the committee hopes to wrap up its work by June 30.
Sen. Bryan Frosh, D-Montgomery, one of the harshest critics of the Ehrlich administration’s personnel policies, questioned Hogan about memos he distributed to the committee that Mr. Frosh said were sent to Mr. Hogan and three other top Ehrlich aides by Mr. Steffen.
The memos detail Mr. Steffen’s proposals for getting rid of employees in the Department of Juvenile Services.
Mr. Frosh pressed Mr. Hogan about why Steffen would send the memos if he had nothing to do with personnel decisions. Mr. Hogan said he did not recall seeing any of the four memos. “I probably wouldn’t have paid much attention if I had,” he said.
Why would he deny it? He sould be proud of it!
To do this, you would first have to find a Democrat who actually works.
I'm sure the Annapolis Capitol protested strenuously about the Clintons firing all those Republicans way back when.
Indeed. Kind of applies to the following also.
He said Mr. Steffen’s role was to go into dysfunctional agencies and recommend ways to make them more productive and more responsive to taxpayers.
In the state of MD, that would be ALL of them
Sounds like you're familiar with our little home town rag.
Ah, another Annipolitan! You know the Crab Wrapper.
Freerepublic.com not mentioned, but is certainly present.
Yes..the local advocate for all liberal/dimocrat causes and media wing of the DNC.
Yes...Mr. Steffen will always get coverage in the Capital...as long as it's perceived as negative.
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