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John Morrison on Principles & Values
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Tacke affair raises questions of Auditor's personal interest
Newspapers across the state have reported that State Auditor John Morrison had a 1998 affair with the wife of Kalispell businessman David Tacke . In early 2003, Morrison alleged that Tacke had illegally sold more than $6 million in Venue Tech stock.
Morrison's office agreed to terms [settling the case without fines or prison time].Then, in Jan. 2005, federal prosecutors stepped in where the auditor had backed off and indicted Tacke on charges of mail fraud and money laundering. He was convicted
that summer and sentenced to 9 years in prison.
In contrast to the auditor's lax prosecution of Tacke-and failure to recover any money for Montana investors in the process-the US Attorney's office put Tacke away on essentially the same charges. That
disparity raises the question of whether Morrison put personal interest in the way of his public duty. Why the auditor's office softened its approach is the question at the crux of a story with the potential to make or break Morrison's senate campaign.
Source: John S. Adams, Missoula Independent, "Morrison Affair"
May 11, 2006
Acknowledges an extramarital relationship
Last week, many Montanans were shocked to learn that Morrison had troubles of his own. He acknowledged a newspaper's report that he had been involved in an extramarital relationship with a woman in 1998,
and that later he had to excuse himself from involvement in an investigation of the woman's fiance for securities fraud.
Source: Daily Interlake, opinion page
Apr 13, 2006