Ed Martin: Lawsuits are a "great way" to influence the public discourse

Last week, we posted audio of Ed Martin stating that his ongoing legal battles are intended to be a "nuisance" (his words, not mine) for the Secretary of State, Attorney General and State Audtior. We've had a lot of interest in Martin's comments, and concern that Martin may be violating ethical guidelines regarding frivolous lawsuits.

In any event, Martin seems to be pretty unapologetic about using the legal system to fight his political battles. Here's another Martin clip from an earlier Roundtable for Life meeting:

The key language from Martin:

We think that the lawsuits are a great way to influence public policy and the public discourse.

I'll give you an example. I have a friend of mine who is, you know, sort of agnostic on these issues of pro-cloning. He emailed me and said, "You know, I work for a biotech company. Every time you guys file one of these lawsuits, it makes them crazy because they don't know what to make of the environment in Missouri.

And, I think [inaudible] the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

We want to be a squeaky wheel.

...So we're going to keep the lawsuits up...

If Martin and the Roundtable want to put out press releases and work to influence public opinion, rock on.  I don't agree with their public policy goals, but I certainly support their right to make a fuss.

Abusing the court system like this is an entirely different matter.