The resignation of Kansas Attorney General Paul Morrison admittedly presents a golden opportunity for his political opponents to cast a few stones.

For the sake of the people of Kansas, however, it would be best to keep the political posturing on this matter to a minimum.

There is no question that Morrison showed poor judgment in his personal life and created an unfortunate situation in the Kansas Attorney General’s office. However, the primary goal of everyone involved now should be the orderly transition of this office to new leadership.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has met with the AG’s staff and is considering her options for filling the vacancy that will be left by Morrison’s departure on Jan. 31. Although she undoubtedly will try to appoint someone who will represent the Democrats well in the 2010 election race, she also understands the need to select a highly qualified individual whose personal life has been carefully examined for potential skeletons. The last thing she or anyone else in the state wants is a new attorney general who is vulnerable to the kind of scandal that brought Morrison down.

In the meantime, it’s counterproductive for certain state Republican officials or other pundits to continue to take potshots such as calling for Morrison to leave office immediately or trying to undermine the governor’s choice of a new AG before a selection is even announced.

Morrison is an easy target. His behavior was almost universally condemned by members of both parties. He is paying a huge personal price for his actions. It’s hard to imagine that he could ever re-enter politics, and even restarting his professional career likely will be a struggle.

It’s possible that Morrison’s political opponents helped bring the scandal to light, but the responsibility for this situation is Morrison’s alone. The responsibility of the governor and other Kansas leaders now is to restore confidence in the attorney general’s office and see that the business of that office is disrupted as little as possible.

That goal will be much easier to accomplish if the almost daily political carping about this situation can be put to rest.