The ax falls again in Salem


Maybe I jinxed him, but just as I started blogging about the state's bond issues, Oregon's chief financial officer has left his job. Nobody's saying why, but George Naughton is out, and his deputy will be "filling in," whatever that means.

Trained as a lawyer, Naughton's been in state government since 1995. Originally part of the budget management office, he moved to Health and Human Services as a health policy analyst, and then he worked in Land Conservation and Development. Ex-Governor Ted Kulongoski appointed him state budget director, and he was promoted to chief financial officer more than a decade ago. Naughton is well known among state budget officers around the country.

He was the also the state's chief operating officer for a short time when Michael Jordan resigned in the thick of the Cylvia Hayes scandal in 2015. Jordan is now the chief administrative officer at Portland City Hall (cough).

Naughton seems like a team player. If he knows where the bodies are buried, it seems like he would never tell. There must be a reason Governor Kohoutek wants him out, but from this distance it's hard to make out.

I'd love to hear what he has to say about the crooks at the liquor control commission. Maybe the criminal investigators will ask him.

Comments

  1. Naughton won’t talk because he most likely signed a non-disclosure agreement and received a payment north of $200,000 for doing so.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He'd talk if subpoena-ed, but ha! Ha! This is Oregon. That will never happen.

      Delete
  2. Could it be that he’s a straight white guy that used the wrong pronoun in front of highly connected friend of the power structure

    ReplyDelete

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