As those who keep up with the happenings of the Legislature know all too well, it’s often difficult for Republicans and Democrats to find common ground.
We can thank state Auditor Troy Kelley for making that a little easier this week.
The Democrat, elected in 2012, was indicted this week on 10 felony counts by a federal grand jury. It was the latest development in a series of events that began with federal agents raiding his home in March. You can read more on the indictment in a story on the front page.
Republicans have been calling for Kelley’s resignation since news of the federal case came to light.
They were joined this week by almost all of the Democratic agency and department leaders in Olympia, as well as Gov. Jay Inslee, who had previously been reluctant to demand a resignation.
The governor said in a statement Friday that Kelley is no longer able to serve the citizens as auditor, a sentiment that should represent simple common sense at this point.
“You have now been indicted for the very type of conduct that your office is tasked with regulating; in turn, you have lost the public’s trust,” Inslee wrote.
Surprisingly, Kelley seems intent on remaining in office, though he has taken a leave of absence.
He held a news conference during which he said, “I never, ever thought I was breaking the law, and I still do not to this day.”
Kelley appears to have pursued an office responsible for preventing malfeasance by governments throughout the state, all while carrying a past in which he was ignorant and misleading at best and a criminal at worst.
When he was interviewed at The Chronicle in 2012, he brushed off previous concerns over his past as political mud-slinging. Now, it certainly appears as though he was operating with a lack of self-awareness and shame that is shocking even by modern standards.
In the unlikely event that Kelley is not responsible for wrongdoing, he will be cleared through the grand jury process. Regardless of that unlikelihood, he is creating an unwanted spectacle that threatens to undercut the work of the auditor’s office staff across the state.
If Kelley will not resign, it’s time consider impeachment in the state Legislature.
Rep. Drew Stokesbary, a Republican from Auburn, said discussions have already started on that front.
“Every single person in the Capitol thinks he needs to resign, other than himself,” Stokesbary said.
Legislators should use this rare moment of unity to do what Kelley refuses to do himself — restore faith in the auditor’s office by removing the man responsible for damaging the public’s trust.
