Gov. Tim Pawlenty and his fellow Republicans think filing ethics complaints against Democrats who were paid by corporations is fair play because the same tactics have been used against the governor. But the move can be best described with a phrase uttered by GOP Chairman Ron Eibensteiner himself: &uot;downright silliness.&uot;

It all started with an ethics complaint against Pawlenty. DFLers think payment he received for consulting work performed for a political supporter could constitute an illegal campaign contribution.

The GOP argues that being paid for services rendered should not be considered a campaign contribution. By firing back at Democrats who also were paid by corporations, they’re trying to illustrate that point.

There’s a real concern here that the GOP is ignoring. How can we be sure that Pawlenty actually did any work for the company that paid him? How can we prevent corporations from giving candidates cushy and ill-defined &uot;consulting&uot; jobs with nice &uot;paychecks&uot; (wink-wink)? When a candidate works full-time for a company, it’s pretty easy to see that the arrangement is valid.

There’s no such assurance in the case of Pawlenty’s consulting work.

The state campaign finance board dismissed most of the complaint against Pawlenty, which partly exonerates him, but one facet of the DFL complaint was referred for further review.

It’s unclear whether Pawlenty is really guilty of anything significant. The GOP attempt to confuse the issue doesn’t help us get to the bottom of it. This whole episode may have revealed a loophole that could allow candidates to bypass campaign finance laws. That’s something that should be taken seriously.