Seemingly ending his slow motion train wreck of a political career, Bill Postmus resigned from his position as San Bernadino County Assessor:

Embattled San Bernardino County Assessor Bill Postmus, once among the county’s most powerful politicians, resigned today under pressure of corruption allegations, an arrest on suspicion of drug violations and two investigations into his department.

Postmus’ attorney Stephen Levine delivered the letter of resignation about 2:30 this afternoon to San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors’ office. His resignation is effective at noon Feb. 13.

“It is with tremendous sadness that I submit this letter which announces my resignation from the office of San Bernardino County Assessor,” Postmus wrote. (SB Sun 2/6/09

Postmus was on his way out one way or another, with a recall effort picking up steam.  You would think this would be the end of Postmus’ political career, but he is a Republican, and they are into the redemption stories.  But, I wouldn’t hold your breath on this one, there are just a ton of skeletons in Postmus’ closet.  In a way, you have to feel for the guy, he is seemingly losing a battle to addiction. But with so many lies abound, there is no doubt that the county is better off without him.  You can find his full letter here(PDF), and a statement (PDF) from GOP SB County Board of Supes Chair Gary Ovitt.

I hate to interrupt the all budget all the time vibe we have going on here, but this was really too juicy to pass up.  Yesterday, San Bernadino County Assessor Bill Postmus was arrested and charged with several felonies related to drug charges and possible money laundering.  We’ll see more as the case proceeds, but it has become clear that at the very least, Bill Postmus is addicted to methamphetamines.

Postmus isn’t the first to become addicted to meth, and surely won’t be the last.  Meth has ruined lives up and down the state. It has decimated rural populations where meth labs sprout up faster than they can be eliminated.  Even after psueodephedrine, the main ingredient in the original form of Sudafed, was made a controlled substance, it is cheap and easy to manufacture.  Well, an asterisk thrown in there on the easy part, because on occasion the meth labs end up like this photo, you know, big fiery explosion. And in California, the problem is particlurly acute.  Not only in rural parts of the state, where the problem was bad enough back in 2000 for McClatchy to write up a whole series on the problem in the Central Valley, but also in the cities.  It has hit the gay community particularly hard, where it has become a party drug.

And this is where Postmus comes in, it seems Postmus has been hiding secrets for most of his life.  

More about those secrets over the flip.

It’s not hard to do a little sleuthing on the Internet to find compelling evidence of his sexuality now.  In fact, today the San Bernadino Sun sees fit to mention it in the portrait they published today:

One of his closest friends said Postmus’ meth addiction stems from the years he has spent hiding his sexual orientation, attempting to resist “carnal pleasures” and cloaking his sexual identity as a gay man from not only voters, but his family, friends and political allies. (SB Sun 1/16/09)

And one lie begets another.  It is very hard to lie about something as central as sexuality and remain honest elsewhere.  Lying breeds lying, and it became a habit for Postmus.

He began his political career quite young, running for Supervisor, and winning, at the age of 28. He was billed as a reformer at a time of scandal, and was swept into office.  He worked hard, but questions always loomed:

After he left the Board of Supervisors, he eventually ran for, and won, the position of Assessor in 2006.  He kept a long line of attractive young men around him, and towards the end, actually doing all of his work for him.  His largess eventually failed to keep friends, and now even his top deputy, Adam Aleman has flipped on him.  He’s expected to be the star witness in any case against Postmus:

A yearlong grand jury investigation led to a criminal investigation by the district attorney and the arrest June 30 of Adam Aleman, once Postmus’ most trusted confidante and top assistant. Aleman is standing trial on six felonies, from destroying evidence to falsifying documents, in what investigators say was an attempt to mislead the grand jury. (SB Sun 1/16/09)

In the end, Postmus was overcome by the lies and the drugs.  Despite two stints in rehab, he kept coming back. Like so many other victims of meth, he simply could not break the addiction.

I’m not one to go on “outing” rampages, as I think we all have the right to be as open about our sexuality as we care to be.  Consenting adults should be able to do whatever we damn well please within the confines of our own bedrooms. Yet, there is a very real danger to one who hides the truth. It is the risk that they will go beyond the bounds of the law and good ethics to protect their secret.  It is hard work to protect a secret like that, and Postmus is an example of what happens when it all comes crashing down.