The war of words between Governor Matt Blunt and Attorney General Jay Nixon appears to be heating up. At a bill signing ceremony in his Capitol office, the Governor was asked about the adversarial relationship between the Administration and the Attorney General’s office, and he took advantage of the opportunity to criticize Nixon as someone who is costing the taxpayers money by suing state agencies. He added he does not believe the Attorney General is a very good attorney because he does not represent his client – the state – in a very responsible way. He accuses Nixon of gaining access to attorney-client privileged information and using it against his client. When pressed whether Blunt thinks Nixon is violating his constitutional duties in representing the state in legal matters, the Governor would only say Nixon is not an effective advocate for taxpayers. Blunt and Nixon are expected to face each other in the Governor’s race in 2008.