Is Commissioner Purcell channeling Comic Colbert?

I have followed the coverage of the Sunshine Law suit that was filed by Jay Purcell since it first made news in May 2008.

This week his attorney, J.P. Clubb, filed two legal briefs on Mr. Purcell's behalf. The first, requests that the recent defeat of his lawsuit be reconsidered by the Missouri Court of Appeals and the second -- assumes that the first one will be denied -- asks that the case be transferred to the state Supreme Court.

Talk about an optimist.

That's a little like going to the doctor for an annual exam, but first swinging by the funeral home to pick out the shade of satin you want to have in your coffin.

Of course, Mr. Purcell is not the only pessimist in County government. It would also appear that Presiding Commissioner Gerald Jones is a bit of a defeatist himself. In a recent article regarding the County Jail's perennially malfunctioning air conditioning, Mr. Jones said that the estimates to fix the system were projected to be $131,000 last fall, but he expects the cost to exceed that. The county is just now taking bids.

That's kind of like taking your car to the body shop, and telling the mechanic "I need a dent fixed, but only have $200 in my checking account." How likely do you think it will cost $200?

It also seems a little bit of a boneheaded thing to tell a reporter. Now everybody knows! Oh, sure some of that information may already be public, if you can find it or if the estimated cost isn't buried in some line item within the County budget. And just because the county estimates that the air conditioning work will cost at least $131,000 doesn't mean that competitive bidding won't bring it in lower. I suppose it could happen and the Commissioner could be wrong.

Or perhaps, this is actually a very sneaky method for Mr. Jones to tip off his cronies in the Good Ol' Boy Legacy Network as to how much they can expect to get from the county to repair the system. Could he be using the media to further GOBLN's nefarious goals? Why that would be diabolical if it were true! I wonder if Mr. Jones happens to have a white Persian cat?

But I digress. This blog isn't about who is or who isn't a member of GOBLN or if Mr. Jones is actually a Bond villain or even the fact that two of our three commissioners appear to be a bit pessimistic.

No, this blog is about the law suit that Mr. Purcell filed against the County Commission charging that they violated the Missouri Sunshine Law by holding a closed meeting to discuss a road easement issue and a disciplinary hearing about an elected official. State law says those types of discussions should be conducted in public and not in a closed meeting.

Where this lawsuit get unorthodox really fast is when you consider that Mr. Purcell is a member of the Commission that he is suing. It was reported in May 2008 that he "isn't suing himself, as a member of the commission," but he's suing the commission "as a private citizen and taxpayer."

OK.

While reading over this latest chapter of the lawsuit, I realized that Mr. Purcell's unconventional litigation techniques reminded me of somebody.

Comic Stephen Colbert.

Stephen Colbert plays "Stephen Colbert," an egotistical caricatured version of conservative political pundits on his nightly faux news show -- The Colbert Report -- on Comedy Central.

One recurring feature that Colbert has on his program is called "Formidable Opponent" where he debates a topic against the only person he deems truly worthy of his opposition: himself.

Citizen Purcell suing the government body of which Commissioner Purcell is a member, reminds me of this feature.

Citizen Purcell: I do declare you should not have closed that meeting. You broke the law. Shame on you and those other Commissioners!

Commissioner Purcell: You are wrong, good sir! We debated issues of a sensitive nature that needed to be discussed behind close doors.

Citizen Purcell: Perhaps. But how do you explain the fact that the Commission talked about disciplining Auditor David Ludwig in a closed meeting on April 17, 2008? According to the Sunshine Laws, disciplinary hearings about elected officials must be held in public.

Commissioner Purcell: I suppose 'whoops!' is not a good answer? I guess we just didn't think about it... say , you were also at that meeting. Why the heck didn't you bring up the legality of closing the meeting at that time?

Citizen Purcell: Uh, well, I didn't consider the Sunshine Law either until the Southeast Missourian brought it to the Commission's attention after the fact. And besides that, I was a Citizen. I shouldn't have been there in the first place IF it was a closed meeting WHICH it was. And how the heck did I get by the three-armed deputies at the door?

Commissioner Purcell: That's a good question. How did you manage to pull that one off? You must have been good, Citizen Purcell, really good. A tip of the hat to you. I would say that you sir, are truly a formidable opponent. But I do have one question. Why sue? Why not ask the commissioners to apologize. Everybody makes mistakes. Even politicians.

Citizen Purcell: I know. I guess it was a kind of shoot-from-the-hip decision and once I started the lawsuit, I couldn't really back down. That would be a sign of weakness and I'm not backing down from that #$&^*!*$%@*!* Gerald no matter how much it costs me or the county. By the way, you're not taping this are you?

Commissioner Purcell: Uh, why no.

Click.