Everyone is sending Corporation Commissioner Jim Irvin messages, none of which appears to be getting through.

Last year, a jury hit Irvin with a $60 million award to a firm that claimed Irvin inappropriately interfered with its attempt to buy another utility. Jurors said their "message" to Irvin was that the award would have been lower had they the power to make the Republican commissioner resign.

Irvin responded: Jury awards are meaningless. Let's wait to hear what a judge says.

OK. Now, U.S. District Judge Roslyn Silver has whispered in Irvin's ear, too. She says the jury award can stand, even though federal guidelines for punitive awards indicate the penalty assessed against Irvin may be excessive.

There is no indication Irvin is getting Silver's message either. Which, reading between the lines, suggests she too thinks Irvin was way, way out of line when he tried to block the purchase of Southwest Gas Corp. by Houston-based Southern Union. He instead favored a weaker offer by Oneok of Oklahoma, which had agreed to pay an enormous fee to Irvin's former aide if the buyout deal went Oneok's way.

The cost of defending Irvin, borne until recently by state taxpayers, has been enormous. Lawyer fees and judgments in this case have approximated $5 million. Then, earlier this year, Irvin - which is to say, taxpayers again - was in the soup again in an unrelated case. The state picked up a settlement tab exceeding $400,000 in that. Again, for acting inappropriately in office.

Perhaps some day science will discover a gene that causes one to meddle in business not his own and to oppressively bully and badger underlings. In the meantime, Irvin has been deemed eminently culpable by a jury and, now, a judge. Which part of "GO!" does this fellow not understand?

The Legislature, which is not impressed with Irvin's claim that responsibility for his shenanigans belongs to the state, has hired an investigator. Attorney Mel McDonald is looking into the possibility of impeachment, the only apparent means of dragging Irvin, kicking and screaming, from his office.

We won't know until fall whether McDonald will recommend that the Legislature oust Irvin, but the trend lines are not good for the commissioner.

The legal system already has concluded Irvin was in the wrong. Now he faces a possible political trial where even the dubious evidence Irvin offered in court will prove less helpful.

Who, exactly, does this political millstone expect to support keeping him in office?

We've said this many times before, but a person so impervious to the obvious needs to hear it time and again: For a change, save the taxpayers some money, Mr. Irvin. Leave office now.