(The Center Square) – Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown proposed and directly oversaw the production of a video made by his office featuring him mocking the social media posts of his critics during an active State Bar Association investigation into him.
It was an investigation where Brown twice failed to respond to bar investigators by the deadlines but was dismissed last week after The Center Square requested the status of the probe.
The emails obtained by The Center Square also reveal that the video production involved the AGO’s communication team. According to an Aug. 26 email from Communications Director Nina Jenskins sent to other members of the communication team, Brown conceived of the idea for him to read “mean tweets” on video.
The video production occurred days after AGO Solicitor General Noah Purcell sent a response on behalf of Brown to the WSBA that had been requested related to a bar complaint filed against Brown. The complaint alleged Brown had violated ethics rules for signing an amicus brief in support of private law firm Perkins Coie’s request for a temporary restraining order against President Trump’s executive orders cancelling the firm’s federal contracts and revoking its security clearance. The amicus brief did not disclose that the AGO had active contracts with Perkins Coie at that time.
Purcell’s response came nearly a month after a second deadline had been set by the WSBA, with the threat of an interim suspension of Brown’s license to practice law if he did not respond. That response was also sent the day after The Center Square reached out to the WSBA regarding the inquiry into Brown.
The WSBA had previously sent a letter in May asking for a response from Brown in June; the letters were sent to Angie Adams, Brown’s executive assistant who was the point of contact for Brown’s WSBA profile. According to emails obtained by The Center Square, Adams said she was out on vacation at the time the WSBA letter was sent.
On Aug. 29, Senior Disciplinary Counsel Henry Cruz wrote to Purcell, telling him he was overseeing the investigation into Brown.
A little over a week later on Sept. 8, AGO communications staff were sharing drafts of the video and discussing potential changes with Brown. Among those discussions was whether to include a “laugh track.”
“I vote for removing the laugh track,” Chief of Staff David Postman wrote. “I don’t think it is clear that it is there ironically and I found it distracting.”
In response, Brown wrote in an email that “I like the laugh track. Matches the late night show versions.”
“Yes, but they actually have audiences,” Postman replied.
The video was later posted that day on the AGO’s official YouTube account.
Last month, The Center Square reached out to Cruz to discuss the investigation after obtaining his communication with Purcell via records request. Hours after calling Cruz, he sent two letters to Purcell. One stated that the investigation against Brown had concluded with no further action taken. The second letter dismissed a separate bar complaint filed against Purcell for defending Brown as the Solicitor General.
The Center Square reached out to the WSBA for comment regarding the video and why no action was taken against Brown for failing to respond by their deadlines. In her response, Communications and Outreach Manager Jennifer Olegario wrote that “our ability to comment is restricted by the Rules for Enforcement of Lawyer Conduct. We have no public discipline records for Nick Brown. Accordingly, we are unable to respond to your questions.”
The Center Square reached out to the AGO to request an interview with Brown regarding the video, but did not receive a response.
When The Center Square contacted Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, for comment he wrote that “Nick Brown’s struggles stem from the fact that he’s more interested in being a celebrity than in being an effective State Attorney General. Spending his staff’s time–and Washington taxpayers’ money–producing sarcastic satire videos doesn’t do anything to protect constitutional rights, fight crime or protect consumers. The things the State Attorney General should be doing. Maybe spending taxpayers’ money on slick videos will help Brown run for higher office. Something he seems to covet. But it might just as likely backfire, because politicians don’t often succeed by making fun of the people they serve.”
