LIvengood traces e. coli scandal into Nixon's inner circle

Is it possible the timing of Gov. Jay Nixon's announcement of a cleanup plan for the Lake of the Ozarks has something to do with the the revelation that Nixon's inner circle knew about e. coli infestation in the lake a full four weeks before that information was revealed to the public.

The Springfield News-Leader's intrepid political reporter, Chad Livengood, in an article posted this evening, quotes a former DNR official as she saying she relayed the information to Nixon communication aide Jeff Mazur May 29:

E-mails previously obtained by the News-Leader indicate DNR staff had a press release ready around May 29 to announce the high levels of E. coli. Testing conducted on May 26 found E. coli levels exceeded safe limits for swimming in 29 of 55 cove sites tested. Since then, new test results have indicated E. coli levels have dipped under the federal limit, according to DNR.

Nixon has previously said nobody in his office knew about the dangerously high levels of E. coli until June 23 when DNR Director Mark Templeton met with the governor's chief of staff, John Watson. At that meeting, Watson ordered Templeton to release the results, according to Nixon.