May 07, 2009

Obama's choice for #2 Housing official accused of 'blatant violations' of open records laws

Rick Moran

President Obama's choice for top deputy at HUD, Ronald Sims, has been handed the largest fine in US history for withholding documents that showed there were cheaper alternatives than building the $430 million Seattle Seahawks stadium.

Jerry Seper of the Washington Times has the exclusive report that details another Obama nominee with ethical problems:

President Obama's choice for the government's No. 2 housing job is embroiled in the largest fine in U.S. history for "blatant violations" of open records laws after the Washington State Supreme Court chastised his office for withholding documents detailing taxpayer costs for a new professional football stadium in Seattle.

The documents that Ronald Sims' office was found to have kept from the public when he served as King County executive included information about cheaper alternatives to the $430 million Seattle Seahawks stadium, which was built in 2002, according to a Washington Times review of the court records.

Washington's highest court ruled in January that the withheld documents would have allowed voters in a referendum to challenge "the veracity" of King County's request for $300 million in public bonds for the project. The justices found the actions of Mr. Sims' office to be so "egregious" that they scrapped a lower court's order of a $123,780 fine - the largest ever assessed in a public records case - and recommended that the penalty be increased to as much as $825,000.

Obama nominated this crook three weeks after the fine was assessed.

"Transparency" would demand an explanation for how this guy made it through the vetting process in the first place.

Don't hold your breath.

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