University of Virginia Files Suit Against Ken Kookinelli

I am proud that my Alma Mater, the University of Virginia, has decided to fight back against Virginia AG Ken "Kookinelli" Cuccinelli's efforts to intimidate legitimate research that goes against his knuckle dragging religious beliefs. The fact that Kookinelli is Virginia's AG is embarrassment enough without him trying to destroy the prowess of the state's top colleges and universities. Even faculty at UVA's arch rival Virginia Tech are outraged at Kookinelli's heavy handed attempt to kill academic freedom. Both Blue Virgina and the Richmond Times Dispatch are carrying coverage of UVA's decision to fight back. Given the fact that UVA has some of the best placed and most influential alumni in Virginia, attempting to trash the university still strikes me as idiocy. But then Kookinelli isn't playing with a full deck of cards in my estimation. Here are highlights from Blue Virginia:
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Academic freedom is essential to the mission of our Nation's institutions of higher learning and a core First Amendment concern. As Thomas Jefferson intended, the University of Virginia has a long and proud tradition of embracing the 'illimitable freedom of the human mind' by fully endorsing and supporting faculty research and scholarly pursuits. Our Nation also has a long and proud tradition of limited government framed by enumerated powers which Jefferson ardently believed was necessary for a civil society to endure."
This is the preliminary statement of a petition filed today by the University of Virginia to "set aside" the Civil Investigative Demands (CIDs) issued to the University by Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II on April 23, 2010.
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In announcing today's filing, University President John T. Casteen III said the University intends to protect academic freedom. Casteen said that issuance of the CIDs "has sent a chill through the Commonwealth's colleges and universities - a chill that has reached across the country and attracted the attention of all of higher education."
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Rector John O. Wynne said that the University is prepared to fight for the right of its research faculty to engage in debate and free expression without fear of reprisal. "We are fighting for preservation of the basic principles on which our country was founded," he said.
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The University's petition, which was filed in Albemarle County Circuit Court this afternoon, is the first step in a legal process to set aside the CIDs. In addition to challenging the CIDs on academic freedom grounds, the petition also argues that the attorney general exceeded his authority under the state's Fraud Against Taxpayers Act.
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Ann Hamric, chair of the Faculty Senate and a professor in the School of Nursing, said she was deeply grateful to University leaders for mounting a vigorous defense of academic freedom. "I join with my faculty colleagues in applauding this action from our president and Board of Visitors," she said. "Academic freedom is crucial to the academic life of our (and any) university."
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Kookinelli is a fool in my opinion, but a very dangerous fool. The sooner he can be outed as a closet case or otherwise driven from office, the better for both Virginia and the nation.