Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
A state employee who ran against Rep. Greg Hughes says Hughes was so angry she ran against him, she feared she'd lose her job. It's the latest revelation in a House ethics investigation that continues on Capitol Hill.
It's hard to know exactly what's going on because it's all happening behind closed doors. But today, lawmakers heard testimony that Hughes and other lawmakers tried to intimidate a political opponent to drop out of the House race against him.
Hughes is the Republican in the hot seat and mostly lets his attorney talk for him. However, that attorney refused to talk to us today, except to say KSL's coverage has been unfair to his client.
"You owe him a personal apology. And when you're willing to do that, I'll talk to you again," attorney Tom Karrenberg said.
We wanted to ask him about Margaret Bird, who, like most witnesses, declined to talk to us as she left the committee room.
The only glimpse we have of what's going on in the committee room comes from attorneys for the Democrats who brought the charges against Hughes. Each day, they e-mail some of the testimony from some of the witnesses who are talking that day.
Bird is director of the School Children's Trust and employed by the State Board of Education. Earlier this year, she ran against Hughes and lost in the Republican primary.
Following an education committee meeting this year, Bird writes in her testimony that Hughes "berated" her supervisors and insinuated "there could be consequences for my employer if I opposed Hughes."
Others are testifying about that same conversation.
Bird says two other lawmakers described as Hughes' "close legislative colleagues" tried to persuade her not to run against Hughes. One even "personally instigated an audit of [her program], the School LAND Trust Program, immediately at the end of the session."
What is Hughes' response to Bird's allegations? That's what reporters wanted to ask, but got turned away.
Meanwhile, lawmakers on the ethics committee are also getting conflicting views on whether Hughes misused legislative staff by requesting a controversial memo about school vouchers from staffers. Hughes formed a political issues committee, the Informed Voter Project.
Last year, the Office of Legislative Fiscal Analyst, which has a duty to provide impartial analysis, generated figures about the cost of vouchers.
According to the ethics complaint filed by three Democrats against Hughes, those numbers, more favorable to school vouchers, were later used in a pro-voucher ad but differed from an earlier set, which were included in the official voter information pamphlet. [VIDEO:Watch the pro-voucher ad].
Today, GOP Sen. Curtis Bramble told reporters it was him -- and not Hughes -- who requested the memo. In recordings from floor debate from the 2007 general session, Bramble does indeed make that request.
Bramble says there were never any "revised" numbers and that the numbers used in the ad were the ones he had requested in the memo, not Hughes.
State School Board Chair Kim Burningham submitted written testimony saying he believes Hughes was responsible because he was officially listed as the "responsible officer" for the voucher group which ultimately used the numbers.
We believe this hearing could be wrapping up in the next few days.
Hughes has filed an ethics complaint against Democrat Phil Riesen for leaking the ethics charges against him to the media. Riesen's attorney says he's been told testimony on that part of this case could begin tomorrow.
E-mail: jdaley@ksl.com
