Mary Easley’s appeal shows it’s about the money

Opinion

July 2, 2009

Anonymous The Daily Southerner Thu Jul 02, 2009, 12:02 PM EDT

After all the collateral damage inflicted in the firefight over Mary Easley’s cushy job, you’d think she’d want to walk away from it all as fast as she could.

But no, the former first lady may want to reclaim her sweet deal and continue working at N.C. State University, in a job that appears to have been a cozy political payoff orchestrated by her husband, former Gov. Mike Easley, and his well-connected friends. Or maybe it’s simpler than that – maybe she just wants the money.

So far, the ruckus over the Easley sweetheart deal has wrecked, or substantially altered, the careers of the university’s chancellor and provost, and dethroned the chairman of N.C. State’s board of trustees. And that’s before probes by a federal grand jury and the state Attorney General’s office have been completed.

Mary Easley’s job, bringing in guest speakers and setting up a public-safety leadership program, isn’t the entire focus of the investigations. But it’s certainly one prominent target of the inquiries, which also are reportedly looking into gubernatorial coastal land deals, the first family’s use of dealer-owned cars and extensive use of friends’ private aircraft.

But Mary Easley doesn’t appear inclined to lie low. On Monday, she sent a letter to the university, announcing that she intends to file a formal grievance over her dismissal and “with respect to any severance, notice or hearing which she may be due under NCSU’s policies, regulations and rules.”

Ah, severance. She didn’t get any money when her program got the ax. She’s out a sweet salary – about $850,000 over five years, or $170,000 a year.

It appears that she feels no sense of embarrassment or shame – not about the job itself, nor about the pall this scandal is draping over North Carolina’s reputation. She’s yet to say a word about this controversy, letting her lawyer make a few comments on her behalf.

It’s beginning to appear that, from the Easley perspective, this is all about the money, and everything else can take a back seat.

All of this makes us wonder what’s next. Will Mike and Mary try to get the state jet back?

— The Fayetteville Observer

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