DICK CHENEY CRONY FORCED OUT OF LSU'S TOP JOB

From the New Orleans Times-Picayune:

LSU checked O'Keefe's absences, spending

BATON ROUGE -- Former Louisiana State University Chancellor Sean O'Keefe's forced resignation followed a wide-ranging probe of his job performance, including his time away from campus for non-school engagements, the way he dealt with other school administrators, his handling of the "Forever LSU" capital campaign and the use of a campus account to rent a suite for the 2007 Sugar Bowl, according to documents released by the LSU System.

Those issues were among 16 questions about O'Keefe's tenure that LSU System attorney Ray Lamonica compiled in response to public records requests for the personnel evaluation that began under LSU System President William Jenkins, who recommended O'Keefe's hiring in December 2004, and continued under current President John Lombardi, who accepted O'Keefe's resignation letter Jan. 16.

The actual evaluation remains sealed under an exemption to Louisiana public records law that shields some personnel records.

More here.

Okay, so while this comes as something of a surprise - everybody in Baton Rouge seemed quite happy with O'Keefe's performance - the odd sense I had when he got the job during my first semester at LSU is now feeling vindicated and self-righteous. That is, O'Keefe is a well known friend of Vice President Dick Cheney: whatever your politics are, it is now fairly undeniable that Dick is one corrupt son of a bitch--if you don't take that statement at face value, just click through the Cheney link; at the very least, the sweetheart deals the White House has made with Dick's "former" company, Halliburton, would make the entire Louisiana political system blush.

Now, I fully understand that simply knowing a criminal doesn't make one himself a criminal. However, birds of a feather and all that. Groups of friends have shared norms and values. When one of Dick's buddies showed up at LSU right after I did to take control of the largest institution in the state, it was hard not to think that he was going to run the university just like Dick runs the government, as a personal bank account to use for friends and power brokers, and with no personal accountability.

So, even though it has not yet been publicly revealed exactly why the very popular Chancellor was so quickly made to resign, you've just got to wonder. O'Keefe really does seem to be a nice guy--he even flashed a genuine smile at me one day when I walked past him on campus last year. It would be a shame to find out that he's as big of an asshole as his buddy and mentor up in D.C.

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