Pa. Senate Exploring Removing AG Kathleen Kane; Tom Wolf On Board

Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane speaks with members of the media after her arrangement before a district judge, Thursday, Oct. 1, 2015, in Collegeville, Pa..

The Pennsylvania Senate will look into removing embattled Attorney General Kathleen Kane from office, Senate democratic leader Jay Costa said today. And Gov. Tom Wolf is on board with the plan.

“As Governor Wolf has said for months, he believes Attorney General Kane can no longer serve as attorney general and has called for her to resign,” Wolf spokesman Jeff Sheridan emailed. “With her law license now suspended, the governor’s administration has been engaged with Senate leadership to discuss ensuring that the citizens of Pennsylvania have an effective and properly functioning Office of Attorney General.”

Kane was charged in August with offenses including obstructing the administration of law, conspiracy, perjury and false swearing. She was hit with another perjury charge earlier this month.

Her law license was officially suspended on October 21st though her spokesman said little would change.

“She said that virtually everything she does is either administrative or ministerial, and she intends to continue doing those things,” Chuck Ardo said to reporters. “And the 2 percent of what the attorney general does that may require a valid law license, she has asked senior staff to take care of.”

Costa told AP the bipartisan, six-member committee will look into whether Kane is able to do her job as attorney general with her law license suspended.

Activist Gene Stilp, who has sued Wolf and the Pennsylvania Senate in an attempt to get them to remove Kane from office, said the governor should remove Kane from office. And, like virtually everyone else in Pennsylvania politics, Stilp says Kane should just step down.

“Kane could save the citizens of the Commonwealth a lot of time and money by resigning today and fighting her personal legal battle while not in office,” Stilp said. “She has jeopardized the advance of justice at the [Office of Attorney General] by being a criminal defendant and now does the OAG further harm by claiming she can still do 98% of the job as a suspended attorney.”

Kane has repeatedly said she will stay in office while she fights the charges. Yesterday, she released 48 pornographic and/or crude emails found in state Supreme Court Justice J. Michael Eakin‘s private email account.

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