News and Observer: McCrory misstated Duke Energy holdings, sold stock after coal-ash spill
DURHAM (WTVD) -- Governor Pat McCrory responded Thursday to a report in the News and Observer that says he failed to disclose his ownership of Duke Energy stock this year in two state ethics filings and sold the stock after a torrent of bad publicity about the company's coal-ash spill.
"We haven't broken any rules or ethics violations or anything, and I was very transparent that I did own it," he said while taking part in an education conference at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel in Durham.
According to the News and Observer report, McCrory filed a new ethics and economic disclosure that now makes clear he owned at least $10,000 of Duke Energy stock on the last day of 2013, reversing disclosure filings he made in April and May.
But McCrory said Thursday he sold the stock before the report in question was filed, and his counsel simply missed the fact that he was supposed to report what he owned up to the previous December. He said the media was told about the stock ownership before, and he expressed surprise that it was front page news.
"It was amazing that it was a front-page headline above the fold. You guys are amazing," said McCrory.
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He acknowledged that the form was incorrect as filed, saying he is sorry his legal counsel misread it.
"We are being even more transparent and apparently we should have kept it on the form and we made that correction," said McCrory. "We were trying to tell the truth and we did tell the truth about when and what my 401k investments held."
N.C. State Political Science Professor, Andy Taylor says this issue, regardless of whether it was a mistake, is problematic for the governor who makes a point of holding his office to a higher standard.
"These kinds of issues really hurt you as an elected official because they even make your political friends say, 'Wow, you know, this kind of stuff makes me uncomfortable,'" said Taylor.
While this could have an impact in the court of public opinion, legal experts say it would be up to the State Ethics Commission to investigate for legal implications. If the SEC finds violations of the State Government Ethics Act, it could refer the case to the Wake County District Attorney.
