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Kathleen Kane mercifully decided not to seek re-election this year, finally attaching an end date to the tragicomedy that was her term as the state’s top prosecutor.
The attorney general’s announcement this week in Scranton rightfully should have gone a step further; Kane should have immediately resigned. As she noted, her school-age sons need her, and the commonwealth deserves a full-time attorney general.
Mired as she is in controversy and legal entanglements, Kane arguably cannot effectively deliver on either front. Nevertheless, Kane pledged on Tuesday to continue “fighting corruption regardless of the personal cost to me.” The cost very well might be her legal career.
Once mentioned in Democratic circles as an appealing candidate for governor, Kane today faces criminal charges related to the alleged leak of secret grand jury information. Former employees have filed suit against her. Impeachment remains a possibility.
But the jury remains out – and probably will long after her term concludes at year’s end – regarding why this Scranton native, once considered a rising star on the state and even national political scenes, came crashing so quickly back to earth.
Critics fault her supposed insecurities, inexperience and vindictive streak. But supporters contend, as the first woman to hold the attorney general post, Kane disrupted the old-boy network and consequently became its target for humiliating payback. (So far, the only evidence made public lends credence to Kane as fearless crusader; she has released batches of emails allegedly exchanged between government workers, including certain state Supreme Court judges, that contain sexist, racist and otherwise tasteless messages.)
Regardless of the reasons for it, Kane’s term can best be summarized in one word: bizarre.
She had a string of early successes after her election in 2012, including the closure of the “Florida loophole” on guns and the startup of drug and child predator units. Then things began to fall apart.
There were accusations and counter-accusations, a wordless appearance before a Philadelphia newspaper’s editorial board (during which her lawyer did all the talking), a traffic mishap and resulting concussion that caused her to stay home and the reported discord in her personal life. Kane filed for divorce. At the moment, she doesn’t have a law licence; the court has suspended it. All this would sound eerily like a telenovela plot if it contained a twin’s sudden appearance. Oh, wait, Kane has that too; her twin sister joined the attorney general’s office years prior to Kane’s arrival.
The attorney general might one day be found innocent of the charges against her and have the sweet vindication of saying, ha, I told you so. If not, then Kane should have exited the office much sooner.
Meanwhile, Pennsylvania requires someone in the post who can vigorously prosecute, not someone who is compelled almost daily to defend.