Greene fires director of state GOP

State Republican Party executive director Jeff Hartley was fired Tuesday by outgoing party chairwoman Enid Greene , who said he was spending too much money.

"This is about money — he was and had been spending far too much money," Greene said.

But Hartley called his termination "a personal, petty, mean, vindictive act by someone who has a reputation for doing such things" and who doesn't understand political party finances.

He hopes his termination is temporary. Hartley, who is married with children, said he had talked to several top GOP officeholders Tuesday, and they all ensured him that they would persuade the new party chairman to reinstate him.

"I was told to just ride it out, and (party leaders) say they will make sure I'm back in," Hartley said.

Greene said she had expressed her concerns to Hartley several times about state party finances since taking over for former party chairman Joe Cannon last November. Cannon resigned as chairman knowing he would soon be named editor of the Morning News. Greene was then vice chairwoman of the party, and party leaders named her to fill out Cannon's term. Greene will not run for her own chairmanship in June.

"I was told (in November) that the party was $180,000 in debt," Greene said. It is not uncommon for a political party to end a campaign season with some debt. "But come February, suddenly it jumped to double that," Greene said.

She added her actions were not personal, "but I had to do what is best for the party."

Hartley agreed that party debt grew. "That's because we didn't have all of the invoices" in November for work done on behalf of GOP candidates.

But Greene's anger over the higher number "comes because she doesn't understand how parties operate," Hartley said. "She was absent during the 2006 elections — rarely came into the party offices — and now this."

She said she didn't act on Hartley's employment earlier because after she decided not to run she expected GOP Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. to back Fred Lampropoulos for party chairman. And Lampropoulos — who ran for governor himself in 2004 — wanted to keep Hartley on.

"I deferred to the governor and Fred," she said.

But late last week, Lampropoulos dropped out of the chairmanship race. Then on Friday, Huntsman announced that — contrary to tradition — he would take no sides in the chairmanship election, scheduled to go before state GOP delegates in the June party organizing convention.