Special Session Lawsuit Update

The state attorney general's office has once again successfully blocked the deposition of Mary Monohan, the clerk of the House of Delegates that can prove or disprove claims of forgery related to the Senate's adjournment during the special session. Previously scheduled for 4 p.m. yesterday, the deposition may not happen until Wednesday or Thursdsay, if at all.

The statements of Raquel Guillory, a spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, paint a conflicting picture. In the WTOP article, the position of the AG seems to be that the deposition will never happen:

A spokeswoman for Attorney General's office said Monahan's testimony
is not germane to the legislative process.

"We believe that the deposition is unnecessary, one, because of
legislative privilege and, two, anything that she has to offer is irrelevant" to
the results of the special session, She said.

However, if you read the WJLA story, you would think that they just need a bit more time:

Raquel Guillory, a spokeswoman for the attorney general, says the deposition has
been put off until at least Wednesday or Thursday.

So, which one is it? Is the deposition unnecessary, or is it necessary on Wednesday or Thursday?

Let me answer the question for you: it's freeking necessary. The fact that the AG can thwart the testimony of the person who can put this whole issue to rest is a testimonial to the climate of government secrecy that has been continually documented. Let's think logically--if Busch and Miller did things by the book, they would be in the papers every day clamoring for this lady to testify to clear their name.

What is clear is that the AG is buying more time to mount their legal roadblock to the Republican action:

The attorney general's office also plans to file a motion Monday to
challenge a Republican effort to block the tax increases from going into effect
this week, including an increase in the state sales tax from 5 percent to 6
percent.

Also this week, the tobacco tax is set to increase from $1 to $2, the
vehicle titling tax will jump from 5 percent to 6 percent, and the certificate
of title fee will increase from $23 to $50.

Guillory said Sunday that a court stay on the new taxes would "cause undue
hardship in the state."

I'm no lawyer, but I would guess that the new taxes are more difficult to repeal now that they are in effect, and increasingly so as time goes on.

It's a good thing the Constitution is on our side.