Peter Nickles

Mayoral contender Vince Gray may not want to answer any questions on whether D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee would stay or go if he was elected, but he is clear on one thing — someone has to get rid of Attorney General Peter Nickles, and soon.

In a press release issued by his campaign this afternoon, Gray called on Mayor Adrian Fenty to relieve Nickles of his duties:

Unfortunately, it’s become increasingly clear that Peter Nickles not only sees himself as the Mayor’s lawyer, but also as the Mayor’s political hatchet man, and enabler of the Mayor’s cronyism.

Gray also stated that the Attorney General should serve the city, and not only the mayor, a distinction Nickles had not been able to make. “His politicization of the office is inappropriate at best, and illegal at worst. And by protecting the Mayor’s cronies, he has put the interest of the Mayor squarely ahead of the interest of his actual client,” added Gray.

Beyond the many criticisms of Nickles that have come from various members of the D.C. Council, Gray was likely peeved at criticisms leveled against him in late June by Nickles regarding his record as the city’s human services director in the 1990s. While Nickles claimed he was only speaking as a “citizen,” the line of attack closely mirrored talking points rolled out by Fenty at various mayoral forums over the last month.