Oh my. This Wagner-Cathcart scandal may have some legs. The News Journal is reporting today that Wagner helped Cathcart get his new job as Delaware City manager by telling a Delaware City councilman that Cathcart was in the clear. This is the same report that Wagner has been accused of suppressing.
While investigating an office run by fellow Republican Richard C. Cathcart, state Auditor R. Thomas Wagner helped Cathcart secure a job as town manager of Delaware City.
At Cathcart’s request, Wagner contacted a wavering councilman looking for reassurance that the unfinished audit would find no wrong-doing by Cathcart.
…
Yet, Wagner contacted Delaware City Councilman Paul Johnson on June 8, moments before council was to vote on whether to hire Cathcart for the manager job that pays $80,000 per year.
The call left Johnson with the impression that Cathcart was in the clear, despite the investigation being incomplete. Johnson reported Wagner’s remarks to the full council before it voted unanimously to hire Cathcart.
So far, Wagner’s defense had a whiff of credibility. It is plausible that something in the report was not done to standards. However this latest story does give some more weight to the accusation that Wagner was covering for his friend.