It seems students aren’t the only ones stressing out as finals approach.

President John La Tourette must be feeling a little tired and ornery, too. He blasted student Regent Jim Mertes for a report given to the Student Association and then took some shots at the state’s auditor general.

As the SA Senate gracefully bowed out for another lackluster year, Mertes presented a compilation of fact-finding reports authorized by Illinois Auditor General Robert Cronson.

The synopsis is NIU broke about 25 rules. Some are worthy of serious concern and some are not.

But La Tourette’s comments about Mertes and Cronson certainly raised more than a few eyebrows.

La Tourette started with the smaller tiger, saying the outspoken student Regent has busted a gut all year to paint NIU as irresponsible, at the very least.

In all fairness the president, Mertes has been a thorn in a lot of sides this year. His determination not to be just another puppet NIU and the Board of Regents must appease is something officials aren’t used to dealing with.

It’s actually surprising La Tourette and others have been able to bite their tongues for so long. Mertes has caused a lot of headaches. Some of the pains were warranted while others were brought on by Mertes’ flashy style and confidence.

La Tourette went even as far as saying Mertes and Cronson don’t know anything about basic accounting.

Ouch.

Now, Mertes might not know too much about accounting. One could go even so far as to say Mertes, a law student, doesn’t know much about anything or he wouldn’t be an aspiring lawyer.

But the auditor general? The guy who has been doing the job since 1974? The position in which he is given a 10-year term, an Illinois Constitution guarantee of not having a salary cut, and can only be booted for specifically breaking a statutory provision and then only with a three-fifths vote of the House and the Senate?

Ouch again.

La Tourette said NIU’s working on some of the 25 practices Cronson took exception with, but other findings are simply a “test of reasonableness.”

It’s tough being in the spotlight. As a politician, which is only one of the many hats La Tourette must wear as President, he must be especially wary of saying the wrong thing at any time.

If anything goes wrong at NIU, La Tourette’s head is a short stroke away from falling. That’s the nature of the presidency and the spotlight.

But La Tourette slipped up big-time. Taking a swipe at Mertes is no big deal. Taking on the state’s officer in charge of making sure all the numbers add up in state agencies isn’t something that will be shrugged off lightly.

Officially, Cronson isn’t commenting on the remarks. Actions might speak louder than words in some places, and in the political arena, no words are a pretty good indication that action will follow.

La Tourette’s paper on “How I Spent My Summer Vacation” should make for interesting reading.