Gov. Robert Ehrlich continued to disagree with Democratic Attorney General Joseph Curran over his role representing both the chief executive and the legislature.
“You can?t represent the General Assembly and the governor,” Ehrlich said in an interview. “That represents an inherent conflict of interest, especially when the governor and lawmakers are at odds over legislation, as they were repeatedly in the last four years.”
In an interview with The Examiner published today, Curran said there is “not really” a conflict in the role of representing the General Assembly and the governor.
“The constitution gives us that role,” Curran said. “We defend all the laws that are passed by the General Assembly that are presumed to be legal.”
Curran?s office has recently defended and appealed two laws enacted despite Ehrlich?s vetoes. One was the so-called Wal-Mart bill, placing higher taxes on companies that don?t spend at least 8 percent of their payroll on health insurance. That law was overturned by a federal judge as a violation of federal law, and Curran has appealed that decision against Ehrlich?s wishes.
The second was the law implementing early voting, which was rejected by the state Court of Appeals.
That law was defended by Curran?s staff in Circuit Court, where it was upheld, and on appeal.
“I want to have a positive relationship with my lawyer,” Ehrlich has told Republican gatherings.
