Better late than never?
Yes – especially when it comes to Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s belated decision to request an investigative audit of the state Department of Education’s finances under former state Superintendent Ryan Walters.
It was an open secret that tax dollars were paying agency staffers devoted more to Walters’ quest for national political prominence than to educating Oklahoma’s 700,000-plus public school students.
It also was widely known that agency insiders alerted state and federal investigators to Walters’ shenanigans when distributing federal funds to school districts and programs.
And – lest we forget – a 2023 state audit laid blame on Walters for $1.83 million in questionable pandemic relief spending while he served as Gov. Kevin Stitt’s cabinet secretary for education.
That audit’s results were so troubling that Drummond assembled a multi-county grand jury that didn’t return indictments, but did scorch the future superintendent’s actions as “indefensible.”
In writing state Auditor Cindy Byrd last week to request the new investigative audit, Drummond reminded her – and the public – of Walters’ history:
“You are well aware that the former Superintendent has a documented history of mismanaging tax dollars, as it was your office that exposed Mr. Walters for granting ‘blanket approval’ for families to purchase non-educational items …
“Given the former Superintendent’s well-established history of mishandling tax dollars, combined with new and ongoing allegations of misspending, I am now ordering an investigative audit of the Oklahoma State Department of Education.”
All of which begs this question: Why did it take Drummond so long to seek the state education department audit?
Drummond hasn’t explained that. Nor is he likely to do so. At least nothing more than plain political porridge about finally receiving enough troubling information to warrant the first step: a forensic audit.
What is clear, however, is electoral politics urged him to delay action until after Walters left office Sept. 30 to become CEO of an Olympia, WA-based anti-teachers’ unions group, Teacher Freedom Alliance.
Drummond, as you know, is campaigning to be Oklahoma’s next governor. His first step is to secure the Republican nomination in June 16’s primary … which requires winning over loyal Walters’ supporters who tend to wield disproportionate power in low-turnout GOP primaries.
By waiting until after Walters’ departed of his own volition – then tossing the political hot potato to Byrd – Drummond clearly hopes to lessen risk of becoming the lightning rod for Republican voters who thought an anti-Christian, baby-eating Deep State drove Walters from power.
Even if Byrd’s office can complete its deep dive before the primary – something highly unlikely – Drummond has positioned himself to reasonably argue he will require more time to review its results before determining whether another grand jury is warranted.
Smart politics? Maybe. But in the process, Drummond may well have thrown Byrd under the proverbial bus.
Byrd, who is term-limited, is seeking election to a different office next year: lieutenant governor. She needed another Walters’ investigation like she needed a migraine because, as a Republican, she, too, must contend with Walters’ diehards in the primary.
It’s not difficult to imagine the audit becoming a distraction from the usual lieutenant-governor-candidate debates over economic development and tourism.
Indeed, her office’s response to Drummond’s letter suggests she was blindsided, receiving it about a half-hour before Drummond’s public announcement … from an unfamiliar email address.
“In the past, the AG would call or visit Auditor Byrd before requesting an investigative audit,” her spokesman Andrew Speno told the Tulsa World. “Given the seriousness of this request, I think direct contact from the AG would be in order. Why the AG suddenly chose an intermediary to communicate with Auditor Byrd, I have no idea.”
The plot thickens. Stay tuned.
Image: Screenshot from Walters’ X account, touting his “accomplishments” as state superintendent.
