Mike Pence's E-mails!

[Y]

http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/mike-pence-doesnt-want-you-see-his-emails-whats-he-so-worried-about

Here's What We Know About That Email Mike Pence Is Fighting so Hard to Prevent You From Seeing

The next VP is fighting to keep an email from a political ally private.

By Michael Arria / AlterNet
November 17, 2016

The election might be over, but email controversies could stick around for a while. The Indianapolis Star has reported that incoming Vice President Mike Pence is fighting to keep an email from a political ally private. If that seems ironic given the endless insinuations about Hillary Clinton's email server, it's because it is.

While governor of Indiana, Pence was sent a position paper by Daniel Hodge, the chief of staff for Texas governor Greg Abbott. Abbott was looking for states to sue the Obama administration over its immigration executive action. Seventeen states, including Indiana, ended up filing a lawsuit against Obama.

But the story doesn't end there: Pence used outside counsel for Indiana's lawsuit, hiring Indianapolis law firm Barnes & Thornburg with taxpayer money. In 2014 a labor lawyer named William Groth made a public records request for information on the hiring, looking to determine exactly how much taxpayer money was spent. When Groth obtained the records, Hodge's paper was redacted.

Now Groth is appealing a decision handed down by Marion Superior Court in April that determined the court couldn't overturn public access decisions made by Pence's administration. Pence's legal team says the email is legal work that is protected by Indiana's Access to Public Records Act. This is a battle that could conceivably transcend the state of Indiana. The Indianapolis Star piece quotes Indiana University media professor Gary Lanosga on the controversy: "It comes down to this—the court is giving up its ability to check another branch of government, and that should worry people."

Robert Grand, a managing partner at the law firm Pence hired, has been tapped by Donald Trump as part of his presidential Inaugural Committee. Grand is a major GOP fundraiser and backed Jeb Bush's candidacy during the Republican primary. In March, after Bush suspended his campaign, Grand told USA Today, "I'm not happy with the way Trump has behaved. But if that's the will of the people. ... Whoever it is, is going to be much, much better than Clinton."

[Y]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/11/17/vice-president-elect-mike-pence-has-his-own-email-dispute-in-indiana/


Mike Pence has his own email controversy in Indiana

By Kristine Guerra November 17

For the past year and a half, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence has been mired in a legal dispute over government transparency as his lawyers fight to withhold the contents of an email that some say should be considered public record.

Critics of the vice president-elect's decision to not release the records — specifically an email attachment sent to Pence's chief of staff in 2014 — say it sets a dangerous precedent that would give the executive branch the ability to decide what's public and what's not, without much accountability...

How the case unfolded

In 2014, Indiana joined 16 other states in suing the federal government to overturn President Obama's executive order shielding about 4 million illegal immigrants from deportation. These include children who entered the country undocumented with their parents and adults whose children are either U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents. The order directed the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to prioritize deporting felons.

The lawsuit, which was spearheaded by Texas and filed in December 2014, argued that Obama's action was an overreach of his authority.

Normally, a state's attorney general's office represents government officials and agencies in legal matters. In this case, the Indiana attorney general's office opted to not be involved. The governor's office then hired Barnes & Thornburg LLP, one of the major law firms in Indiana, on the taxpayers' dime.

Groth told The Post that he was concerned about taxpayer dollars being spent on the litigation, so he submitted a public records request in December 2014, asking for all communications between Pence and the state attorney general's office about his decision to join the lawsuit, the contract between Pence's office and the private law firm, and invoices that show how much the litigation costs.

Groth was unsatisfied with the records he received in response to his request, so he filed a lawsuit in Marion County court in June 2015.

What Pence disclosed

The governor's office released 57 pages of emails pertaining to Indiana's involvement in the federal lawsuit over Obama's executive order.

Groth also had received copies of invoices from Barnes & Thornburg showing how much Indiana spent in attorney fees and travel and lodging expenses while the case was being litigated in federal district court in Texas.

Records show the state spent nearly $79,000 over a course of about 10 months, from January 2015 to November 2015...

What Pence did not disclose

Among the emails that were released, one in particular stands out. Sent in November 2014 by Daniel Hodge, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's chief of staff, to several state officials urging them to join the lawsuit against Obama. Among the recipients of that email was Pence's chief of staff, James Atterholt.

The email includes a PDF attachment called "white paper," which Pence's office did not release. Its content is unknown, but Hodge's email describes it as an outline of legal theories supporting the lawsuit against Obama. Parts of the invoices, a few names in the email and one message were redacted.

Pence's attorneys argue in court records that the contents of the "white paper" and the redacted portions are protected from disclosure under attorney-client privilege. In April, a Marion County judge who reviewed the "white paper" agreed with the state and ruled that Pence did not violate Indiana's public records law. The state's public access counselor, who advises on issues over public records, had reached the same decision.

Groth, who is  appealing the ruling in the Indiana Court of Appeals, argues that the document and the other redactions don't fall under attorney-client privilege. The "white paper," for instance, was not information shared solely between Pence and his attorneys; rather, it was sent to 30 other state officials. It also wasn't written by Pence's lawyer but was drafted by the attorney representing Texas in the federal case, according to records.

A dangerous precedent?

The governor's attorneys argued in court records that Groth's appeal would require the court to "intermeddle with government functions reserved to the Governor under Indiana's Constitution."

They cited a previous case in which the Indiana Supreme Court decided that a lawmaker's email correspondence with companies that lobby him will not be released. The state's highest court ruled that the judiciary shouldn't interfere with the internal functions of the legislative branch of government.

Raising the issue of separation of powers "would render all of (Pence's) emails undiscoverable," Groth said. An appeals court decision in Pence's favor would set a dangerous precedent in which future governors would not be required to comply with open records laws, Groth said, adding that it would have a "significant impact on the transparency of state government."

"It comes down to this: The court is giving up its ability to check another branch of government, and that should worry people," Gerry Lanosga, who teaches media law at Indiana University, told the Indianapolis Star.

The appeals court is scheduled to hear oral arguments next week and could reach a decision within the next two months.

[Y]

Can you say 'hypocrite!'

Add that to the deliberate voter suppression 'investigation' that has suspicious government, LEO, and election ties, things stink here in Indiana.

[The Troll]

Can you say 'hypocrite!'

Add that to the deliberate voter suppression 'investigation' that has suspicious government, LEO, and election ties, things stink here in Indiana.

  I haven't like Mike Pence since he was a right wing motor mouth on radio.  This man is a piece of shit and no more deserves to be vice president than dingle berries. 

[Mr442]

Anything between Pence and his attorney is covered under attorney/client privilege.  The very same privilege that you or I have between ourselves and our attorneys.  Like it or not, it is for the protection of our rights.

[The Troll]

Anything between Pence and his attorney is covered under attorney/client privilege.  The very same privilege that you or I have between ourselves and our attorneys.  Like it or not, it is for the protection of our rights.

If the asshole Mike  Pence has done something criminal and illegal with taxpayer or campaign funds, he needs to be put in prison.       Lock the bastard up.  The lawyer needs to be in jail, just because he a Republican lawyer.   

[Mr442]

Rights are rights, even when they don't go in our favor.  We have to hold everyone to the same set of rules, that's why our judicial system is the best.  I'm not a Pence fan either, but that's the way our system works.

[Exterminator]

Anything between Pence and his attorney is covered under attorney/client privilege.  The very same privilege that you or I have between ourselves and our attorneys.  Like it or not, it is for the protection of our rights.

Uh, no.  The state of Indiana was the client, not Mike Pence.

[parkerdivine]

Rights are rights, even when they don't go in our favor.  We have to hold everyone to the same set of rules, that's why our judicial system is the best.  I'm not a Pence fan either, but that's the way our system works.

Even if the attorney was hired with tax dollars to do political work?  I could see if this were a personal issue with Mikie...but this was a legal decision as Governor, using TAX dollars.