Only one governor at a time, please

The  News & Observer is reporting this morning that former gubernatorial candidate and state Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr is challenging actions taken by former Gov. Mike Easley after Jan. 1. Orr, who heads the N.C. Institute for Constitutional Law, is a constitutional specialist and one of the brightest guys to ever seek the governor's office (OK, so brilliance was not what the voters wanted). He says the governor's term ends on Dec. 31 following a gubernatorial election. Although Gov. Bev Perdue was not inaugurated until Jan. 10, she was, in fact, the governor as of Jan. 1, 2009.

If Orr is right, the actions Easley took between Jan. 1 and Jan. 9 are invalid. During that time, he appointed a couple of Superior Court judges, voted with the Council of State to sell bonds and finally came to his senses on state e-mails, reversing policy and ordering state employees to retain copies of e-mails. Perdue is already reviewing the e-mail policy, but the big issues might be the judicial appointments, one of which went to a close political ally.

It will be interesting to see how Orr's lawsuit progresses. Thus far, Orr has not had a good track record in persuading the state Supreme Court, on which he served with distinction, that his verbatim, clear-intent interpretation of the Constitution on such matters as business incentives and the lottery is correct.

Even if Easley was the legitimate governor until the inauguration, it's clear that his successor is off to a good start in her term. Perdue has taken quick action to open up state records and processes and to tackle the state's looming fiscal crisis. She will still face a test when her open government efforts clash with legislative leaders of her own party, which is probably inevitable. However, give her credit for a good first week. I have been skeptical about Perdue's ability to bring about change in Raleigh, but she's started off on the right track, and that's encouraging.