James Harris Is The First Casualty Of The FBI Investigation Of The Blunt Administration

As the Arch City Chronicle reported on Friday, James Harris is on his way out at the Governor's office. Harris will be continuing the political consulting business that he has maintained throughout his tenure in Governor Blunt's office.

Here is the AP story on it.

Harris is at the nexus of the ongoing FBI probe of the Blunt administration. Harris has personally received questionable payments that appear to be directly tied to the award of fee offices

Harris also figures prominently in the ongoing investigation of lobbying practices inside Bluntworld. In fact, there is one Jefferson City lobbying firm that operates out of his house.

It will be interesting to see who's payroll Harris ends up on. He's clearly politically radioactive at the moment, so the only reason that anyone would pick him up is because of pressure from Bluntworld. And Bluntworld would obviously be pressuring people because they can't affort to have Harris angry and talking in the midst of a federal investigation.

Only time will tell if this offloading by the Governor was handled in such a way as to avoid intefering with the federal investigation, which could be a new crime in and of itself.

If Harris is smart, he will have a very candid conversation with his criminal defense lawyer about his options given the Governor's decision to shove him overboard. Surely Harris is smart enough to recognize that Blunt's decision to move him out of the office is just the first signal as to what the Governor's ultimate legal and political defense will be.