Another Ethics Complaint Filed Against Sarah Palin. Cat Gate?

Another ethics complaint has been filed against Governor Sarah Palin today. The list of Palin’s “gates” is long, but this complaint swings open a new one. Cat Gate. And this cat has teeth.

It all began when Governor Sarah Palin lowered the start flag at this year’s Iron Dog Snowmachine race. More than 30 teams race 1971 miles from Big Lake to Nome tracing the northern Iditarod route on “snowmobiles,” as those outside Alaska call them.

Last year’s champions? None other than Alaska’s “first dude” Todd Palin and his teammate Scott Davis as the famous Team #22. Everyone knows that. John McCain even talked about it on the campaign trail!

Palin’s sponsor? Arctic Cat - a brand of snowmachine and related gear. Arctic Cat really wanted to sponsor team Davis-Palin this year. For obvious reasons that go above and beyond Todd’s defending champion status, they knew that “Team Palin” was getting lots of attention from Alaskans, and the national media. All eyes would be on that bright green Arctic Cat logo. Turns out there was even a photo shoot and article in Sports Illustrated this year focusing on the “first dude.” That’s some nice exposure; exposure that was worth $5000 for Arctic Cat to get permission to “brand” Todd Palin and his team.

But, as anyone who has taken time to consider “conflict of interest” or anyone who has read the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act (like, hopefully, our governor) knows, there’s a line that can’t be crossed. If the governor’s family benefits directly from a private sponsor, (like getting a $5000 check from them) and the governor shows up to take an official role at an official event, representing all Alaskans, it’s a big fat no-no to show up plastered like a billboard with the official “gear” and giant flaming logo of the company that’s been paying you money.

It might look like…..you’re for sale. Now don’t get me wrong, as far as Alaska politicians selling themselves, $5000 isn’t a bad price. We’ve had state legislators sell themselves for far less than that. But haggling over the price aside, this is just not within the bounds of the rules of the state of Alaska. Period.

If not, I have the feeling Juneau would be hosting the Pepsi Legislative session, and we’d have the 3M Speaker of the House and the Napa Majority Leader. There would be meetings of the Kinkos Judiciary Committe, the Fedex Budget, and the Veco Senate President. (Yes, I know we’ve had one of those already.)

And imagine you owned the competing Polaris dealership. You might be tempted to think…”Hmmm. If I offered Team #22 a couple thousand dollars more than they’re getting from Arctic Cat, maybe I’ll get Sarah Palin to wear my flashy logo suit in front of the cameras next year!” You see where this is leading.

Thus, the reasoning behind the ethics complaint filed against the governor today by activist and local blogger Linda Kellen-Biegel of Celtic Diva’s Blue Oasis. This will be the 11th complaint filed against the governor during her term in office. Other complaints have been filed by Anchorage resident Frank Gwartney, Wasilla resident Zane Henning, Anchorage resident Andree McLeod, and one or more who did not go public before filing their complaints.


[So, for those of you who have been playing at home since yesterday, speculating as to the specifics on "Implosion #5" I'll finish the cliffhanger sentence.

Today Governor Sarah Palin was stunned by.....the fact that people still haven't stopped paying attention to her unethical wardrobe choices.]

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A costly personal, vindictive Palin vendetta? You betcha

Let's ignore all of the emails, phone calls and sworn testimony from current employees of Governor Palin that show a bizarre obsession with getting the governor's ex brother in law fired. Lets for a minute ignore all of the evidence and assume that "Troopergate" is much to do about nothing.

Let's assume that the governor and her husband are being honest in their explanation that they were simply protecting their family and the public from a rogue trooper. Let's assume that the governor's public explanation of the phone calls to former Commissioner Walt Monegan from her, her husband and her staff were about honest outrage at a system that allows a dangerous trooper to continue carrying a badge and gun on Alaska's streets.

However, if the risk presented by Alaska State Trooper Mike Wooten was so grave, why didn't Gov. Palin do anything to protect Alaskans by letting them know? After all, if this story hadn't become public as a result of Monegan getting unceremoniously fired, not one Alaskan would have been been the wiser about this supposed rogue trooper.

For the better part of thirteen months Gov. Palin, her husband and a handful of her senior staff tried to get Wooten fired through legally impermissible means. Why didn't the governor or her staff spend that time crafting a beneficial public policy that would have protected the public against this trooper as well as future rogue troopers?

If the governor, her husband and her senior staff were truly concerned about their safety or the publics safety, why didn't they propose legislation to change the way the state troopers investigate themselves?

In hindsight, it's hard to understand that after a year of relentlessly pursuing Wooten, while claiming his punishment was a "slap on the wrist" they never once considered speaking about this situation in public. This past session there were over two dozen pieces of public safety legislation where the governor could have had a public platform to inform the public of her concerns, work with lawmakers to propose solutions and change state laws not just for Wooten but for future cases of accused trooper misconduct.

Rep. Bob Roses introduced House Bill 193 that reformed the Police Standards Council. Sen. Donny Olson introduced Senate Bill 45, dealing with punishment of peace officers. Both were passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Palin without one single public word about any fears or concerns she had about Wooten or the troopers.

The governor failed to propose new legislation, offer any amendments to existing legislation or even try to negotiate changes to the state troopers' new collective bargaining agreement. These facts raise questions about just how much of this pursuit of Trooper Wooten was fear and how much was vendetta.

According to the Branchflower report, Gary Wheeler, a member of the governor's personal security detail since her election, testified under oath that Governor Palin never said she was afraid for her safety concerning Michael Wooten.

With a second investigation now under way which will yield the same evidence, the governor finds herself, her husband, as well as the state, at risk for legal damages. Ironically, it was Commissioner Walt Monegan and his Deputy Commissioner John Glass who both warned the administration early on about the liability with their obsession.

Because Trooper Wooten had already been investigated and disciplined for the conduct raised by the governor and her husband, in the absence of new information or new allegations, re-disciplining him for the same conduct was illegal. Firing him, or in this case trying to get him fired for the conduct for which he had already been disciplined under the Murkowski administration, would almost certainly guarantee that Trooper Wooten would sue the state and that he would likely prevail.

Monegan even warned Chief of Staff Mike Tibbles back in the spring of 2007, "Do you want Trooper Wooten to own your house?"

A misguided and costly personal vendetta? You betcha.

Probe turns to workers' compensation claim

by Jason Moore
Monday, September 22, 2008

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The investigation into Gov. Sarah Palin's firing of Walt Monegan is looking into whether Palin influenced a workers' compensation claim from her former brother in-law.

Alaska State Trooper Mike Wooten had his benefits denied three months after an injury forced him out of work. It became part of the probe after the adjuster who handled Wooten's case tipped off the Legislature's investigator.

Back in January of 2007, at a car accident scene, Wooten slipped and injured his back. He applied for and received workers' compensation.

But in April, the state ended the benefits.

"(They) said that he was not entitled to any further benefits at that time, because their doctor said he could go back to unrestricted work," said Wooten's attorney, Chancy Croft. "His doctor was still telling him, 'No, you can't.'"

The form announcing the denial of benefits was signed by Johanna Grasso of Harbor Adjustment Service, which handles the state workers' comp claims.

Grasso is also the person who testified to the Legislature's investigator, Stephen Branchflower, that she was told by the owner of the company that the governor or governor's office wanted Wooten's claim denied.

The governor's spokesman, Bill McAllister, said Wooten's workers' compensation file is confidential, but if it wasn't they could show how Grasso is not telling the truth.

"We can show you the whole chronology including documents with the name of this employee, former employee, of the firm who apparently gave some sort of a statement to Mr. Branchflower indicating that her recollection of events is false," McAllister said.

"The person is a governor, not the queen," Croft said. "She can't go around dispensing out workers' compensation."

Croft said he knows of no interference by the governor's office in Wooten's case.

"This was a pretty normal workers' compensation case," he said.

Wooten returned to light duty shortly after his benefits were denied, and full duty in December of last year.

Meanwhile, the state Personnel Board has also hired an investigator to look into the issue, after Palin filed a complaint against herself and said that was the proper body to do the investigation.

The board hired Anchorage attorney Tim Petumenos, and while fighting the Legislature's inquiry, the McCain-Palin campaign says the governor will cooperate only with the Personnel Board investigation.

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Get out of town....

McCain-Palin campaign accused of co-opting department of law



Todd Palin refuses to testify
by The Associate Press
Thursday, September 18, 2008

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Todd Palin says he will not testify about abuse of power allegations against his wife, Gov. Sarah Palin.

Todd Palin no longer believes the Legislature's investigation is legitimate, said McCain-Palin spokesman Ed O'Callaghan.

Independent investigator Stephen Branchflower subpoenaed Palin, who was to appear Friday before Alaska lawmakers on the firing of Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan.

The Palins and the governor's staff are under investigation because some suspect Monegan was fired for refusing to dismiss an Alaska State Trooper who had gone through a bitter divorce with Sarah Palin's sister.

A key lawmaker also said Thursday that the stonewalling of witnesses is likely to stall the probe until after Election Day.

Sarah Palin welcomed the investigation at first, but she has opposed it since becoming the Republican candidate for vice president.

This is a breaking story.

Hacked Yahoo Email Account

Did the internet just cause Sarah Palin to destroy state's evidence? The potential Veep is in a bit of trouble for conducting state business using her personal, unarchived email address (gov.sarah@yahoo.com) instead of her official account (which is, of course, subject to laws requiring the retention of government records). Emails from that Yahoo account are already being sought in connection with the Troopergate investigation. Palin email account: gov.palin@yahoo.com. It looks legit! The offending posts, screenshots, heretofore unseen family photos, and emails have all been deleted from Imageshack and 4Chan. But we have them. You want to read Sarah Palin's email?

Ok, sad thing first: a good Samaritan reset the password and tried to alert Sarah. But he also posted the new password, causing multiple people to try to log in at once, freezing the account for 24 hours. And now, the account has been deleted! Which is, as we said, maybe destruction of evidence? So for now this is, we think, all we'll get to see from this email account (if anyone finds evidence of saved emails, let us know.)

The full timeline of events, with corroborating evidence of the legitimacy of these screengrabs, is here. Here's why it all looks convincing:

The emails to Ivy Frye, a Palin aide who's mentioned in the earlier email stories specifically wondering how best to hide her correspondence with the governor.
The attached contact list (below) features an email address for husband Todd Palin that is legit. As well as an apparently genuine phone number for Bristol Palin and an address for Beth Leschper, Palin's deputy communications director.
The email from Amy McCorkell, a known associate of Palin's from Wasilla who might have the governor's personal email address.
Emails to and from Lt Governor Sean Parnell about a local radio talk host.
Calls to the phone number listed for Bristol Palin apparently go to her voicemail.
The public profile for the gov.palin address dates its last update to April of this year—well before she became McCain's running mate. So if it's a hoax, it's a hoax that began long before anyone outside of Alaska cared about Palin.
We haven't seen these family photos before. Have we?
The previously accessible public profiles for gov.sarah@yahoo and gov.palin@yahoo were both deleted at the same time.
Here are the screenshots of the emails saved before the account went dark, along with the contact list. It's newsworthy and we will not be taking it down!

Check out screenshots

You Decide

Not a Democrat smear! This has been a pattern for Palin.

The Case For or Against Sarah Palin

Some women have serious policy disagreements with Sarah Palin or think she might be unqualified to be a heart beat from the presidency. Sarah at best should resign for if only the appearence she might care to raise her 4months and 7 and 14 year old children. However, she will not resign or blink for her family, let alone the fact she has abuse of power and ethics charges against her.

Woman of America; Liberal or Conservative thinkers you are smarter than the woman who wants to be the Vice President of the United States of America That's my point
On the vice presidency:


"But as for that v.p. talk all the time, I'll tell you, I still can't answer that question until somebody answers for me what is it, exactly, that the v.p. does every day?"

--July 31, 2008, CNBC's "Kudlow & Company"


On Iraq:

"I've been so focused on state government, I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq. I heard on the news about the new deployments, and while I support our president, Condoleezza Rice, and the administration, I want to know that we have an exit plan in place."

--March 21, 2007, Alaska Business Monthly


"Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [American soldiers] out on a task that is from God. That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."

--June 8, 2008, Wasilla Assembly of God Church


On creationism:

"Growing up with being so privileged and blessed to be given a lot of information on, on both sides of the subject--creationism and evolution. It's been a healthy foundation for me. But don't be afraid of information and let kids debate both sides."

--October 25, 2006, gubernatorial debate


On global warming:

"A changing environment will affect Alaska more than any other state, because of our location. I'm not one, though, who would attribute it to being man-made."

--August 29, 2008, Newsmax


On energy:

"I think God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that."

--June 8, 2008, Wasilla Assembly of God Church


On receiving $1.8 million in federal earmarks for the city of Wasilla:

"FYI This does not include our nearly one million Dollars from the Feds for our Airport Paving Project. We did well!!!"

--June 14, 1999, Wasilla City Council Informational Memorandum 99-62


On that "Bridge to Nowhere":

Question: "Would you continue state funding for the proposed Knik Arm and Gravina Island bridges?"

Palin: "Yes. I would like to see Alaska's infrastructure projects built sooner rather than later. The window is now--while our congressional delegation is in a strong position to assist."

--October 22, 2006, Anchorage Daily News


On library books she doesn't like:

"What would your response be if I asked you to remove some books from the collection?"

--October 1996 conversation with librarian Mary Ellen Emmons, Anchorage Daily News

On the secessionist Alaskan Independence Party:

"Your party plays an important role in our state's politics ... keep up the good work, and God bless you."

--2008* video address to Independence Party's convention


On Ivana Trump:

"We want to see Ivana because we are so desperate in Alaska for any semblance of glamour and culture."

--April 3, 1996, Anchorage Daily News


On running Wasilla:

"It's not rocket science. It's six million dollars and fifty-three employees. "

--October 1996, Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman


On being governor:

"I will unambiguously, steadfastly, and doggedly guard the interests of this great state, as a mother naturally guards her own. Like a Southeast Eagle and her eaglets, or, more appropriately here in the Carlson, like a Nanook defending her cub."

--December 4, 2006, inaugural address

On the prospect of becoming a candidate for vice president:

"It kind of cracks me up. It is so far out of the realm of possibility and reality."

--August 14, 2008, Financial Post



*In the magazine, the year of the address is listed as 2006. It is 2008.

Alaska state business done on the Yahoo mail server.

IF THE QUESTION is whether personal e-mail accounts should be used for state business by Gov. Sarah Palin and her staff the answer is obvious.

And that answer is no. Such a practice does not ensure that public information will be saved and appears to be a neat way around Alaska’s public records law.

Her spokesman, Bill McAllister says, according to the Daily News’s front-page story by Lisa Demer this morning, that he does not hear any “public clamor for access to internal communications of the governor’s office.” Unfortuntely, who cares what he has heard or not heard?

Those communications, unless properly classified as protected by executive privilege, if sent on state equipment, on state time, by a state employee, belong not to the governor’s office or McAllister, but to the people of Alaska.

The idea of the law is to make as much information as possible available about government to average person, not to make such information unavailable.

Unfortunately, it appears this administration for some time has been trying to keep the public in the dark by mixing public and private e-mail accounts to cover its tracks, and there is no telling how long, or if, those messages are being saved. So much for any pretense of “clear and transparent.”

“And I don’t think the public expects us to inundate them, flood them, with all kinds of communications that they don’t need, when in fact, the final decisions will be public, will be documented, will be substantiated, and they always have been.”

Trust us, he seems to say, we’re from the government and we know what you need to see.”

Alaskans deserve better.

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Sarah appoints Friends and Family

This article is by Jo Becker, Peter S. Goodman and Michael Powell. [NYT]


WASILLA, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin lives by the maxim that all politics is local, not to mention personal.

So when there was a vacancy at the top of the State Division of Agriculture, she appointed a high school classmate, Franci Havemeister, to the $95,000-a-year directorship. A former real estate agent, Ms. Havemeister cited her childhood love of cows as a qualification for running the roughly $2 million agency.

Ms. Havemeister was one of at least five schoolmates Ms. Palin hired, often at salaries far exceeding their private sector wages.

When Ms. Palin had to cut her first state budget, she avoided the legion of frustrated legislators and mayors. Instead, she huddled with her budget director and her husband, Todd, an oil field worker who is not a state employee, and vetoed millions of dollars of legislative projects.

And four months ago, a Wasilla blogger, Sherry Whitstine, who chronicles the governor’s career with an astringent eye, answered her phone to hear an assistant to the governor on the line, she said.

“You should be ashamed!” Ivy Frye, the assistant, told her. “Stop blogging. Stop blogging right now!”

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Alaska Lawmakers Vote To Subpoena Todd Palin

Alaska lawmakers voted Friday to subpoena the husband of Gov. Sarah Palin, the Republican vice presidential candidate, in a move that transformed a messy state personnel issue into a national campaign controversy.

The lawmakers acted at the request of Stephen Branchflower, who is in the midst of an investigation into the governor's dismissal of the state's director of public safety.

Branchflower said he also wants to interview the governor, but omitted her from the 13-person list of subpoena targets he presented to the lawmakers overseeing his investigation.


Branchflower said Todd Palin is "such a central figure. ... I think one should be issued for him."

Thomas Van Flein, a private attorney hired to represent the governor, did not immediately return calls for comment.

Two Democrats and one Republican voted for the subpoenas, rejecting attempts by the other two Republicans on the panel to delay them until after the November election.

Sen. Charlie Huggins, a Republican from Palin's hometown of Wasilla, appeared in camouflage pants on a short break from moose hunting to cast his vote. He lamented the political maneuvering that he saw as trying to interfere with the investigation.

"I see all this duck-foot action under the water," Huggins said. "Let's just get the facts on the table.

The Legislature hired Branchflower to examine whether Palin ousted her public safety commissioner in July because he had refused to fire state trooper Mike Wooten. Wooten went through a messy divorce from Palin's sister, and the investigation essentially is looking at whether Palin used her power to try to settle a personal score.

One member of Palin's administration was caught on tape discussing personal information about Wooten, raising questions of how he knew those details.

The investigation -- known as "Troopergate" -- began before Palin was chosen as Sen. John McCain's running mate. Since then, Palin's supporters have argued that the investigation is politically motivated, and urged lawmakers to turn the matter over to the three-member State Personnel Board, which is appointed by the governor and charged with handling ethics complaints.

Palin has said she fired the commissioner, Walt Monegan, over disagreements about budget priorities. Monegan said he received repeated e-mails and phone calls from Palin, her husband and her staff expressing dismay over Wooten's continued employment.

Branchflower also asked for a subpoena for the phone records of one Palin administration official, Frank Bailey. Bailey was recorded calling an Alaska State Trooper lieutenant and discussing confidential information about Wooten, including his job application and worker's compensation claim. In a deposition taken by Palin's attorney, he testified that he never saw Wooten's file, but instead received the information from Todd Palin.

Questions for Palin

This week, she'll finally emerge from her protective shell

Published: September 8th, 2008 10:04 PM
Last Modified: September 8th, 2008 11:37 AM

There's no polite way to say it: Sarah Palin has been hiding out from hard questions. It took 10 days from when John McCain announced his pick until the McCain campaign agreed to schedule Palin an unscripted interview with a serious journalist.

ABC landed the big "get" with Palin. She'll talk to Charlie Gibson of "Good Morning America" later this week.

McCain's camp has handled their vice-presidential pick like some celebrity who will only deign to give an interview if conditions are favorable. McCain campaign manager Rick Davis told Fox News Sunday, Palin would take questions "when we think it's time and when she feels comfortable doing it."

Palin has accused Barack Obama of being a me-first celebrity candidate for president. At least he has been facing media questions for the past 18 months.

Here are some of the questions Palin should be answering, for Alaskans and the rest of the country:

• You present yourself as a Republican maverick who took on your own party's corrupt political establishment. In November's election, your party is running an indicted U.S. Senator, Ted Stevens, who is awaiting trial on charges he accepted more than $250,000 of unreported gifts from the state's most powerful lobbyist. Will you vote for his opponent? Will you urge Alaskans to help you change Washington and vote him out of office? If not, why not?


• Sen. Ted Stevens' trial is still pending; he has declined to say whether he would accept a pardon from President Bush before Bush leaves office in January. Do Alaska voters deserve an answer to that question before they cast their vote for or against Stevens in November? What is your position on a president pardoning a public official before a jury has ruled on guilt or innocence?

• Alaska Congressman Don Young appears to have won his Republican primary, even though you endorsed his opponent. Will you vote for your fellow Republican Don Young, who has spent over $1 million on legal fees without telling his constituents what sort of legal trouble he is in?

• Why have you reneged on your earlier pledge to cooperate with the Alaska Legislature's investigation into Troopergate? Are you going to be accounable as you told the Alaskan people you would?

• In spring of 2004, the Daily News reported that you cited family considerations in deciding not to try for the U.S. Senate: "How could I be the team mom if I was a U.S. senator?" What was different this time as you decided to run for vice president?

• As governor of Alaska, you have not pushed for laws or regulations that put your personal views on abortion, same-sex marriage and creationism into public policy. As vice president, will you push to outlaw abortion, restrict same-sex marriage and require the teaching of creationism?

• If you were a fully qualified vice-presidential candidate from the get-go, why did you wait more than 10 days to face reporters?

• McCain spokesman Rick Davis told Fox News the media didn't show you enough "deference." How much deference do you expect to get from Vladimir Putin or Hugo Chavez?

• You have said victory is in sight in Iraq. In July 2007, when you visited Kuwait, you said, "I'm not going to judge the surge." In the March 2007 issue of Alaska Business Monthly, you were asked about the surge and quoted saying:

"I've been so focused on state government, I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq. . . . While I support our president, Condoleezza Rice and the administration, I want to know that we have an exit plan in place."

Define "victory" in Iraq? What is the exit plan?

BOTTOM LINE: The nation deserves to hear Palin's unfiltered answers to serious questions. She wants to be your VP. It's not really what she is going to say that should really matter- It's what she has done and the incompetence behind it.

Alaskanomics

Sarah Palin's Alaskonomics
By Michael Kinsley

Sarah Palin thinks she is a better American than you because she comes from a small town, and a superior human being because she isn't a journalist and has never lived in Washington and likes to watch her kids play hockey. Although Palin praised John McCain in her acceptance speech as a man who puts the good of his country ahead of partisan politics, McCain pretty much proved the opposite with his selection of a running mate whose main asset is her ability to reignite the culture wars. So maybe Governor Palin does represent everything that is good and fine about America, as she herself maintains. But spare us, please, any talk about how she is a tough fiscal conservative.

Palin has continued to repeat the already exposed lie that she said "No, thanks" to the famous "bridge to nowhere" (McCain's favorite example of wasteful federal spending). In fact, she said "Yes, please" until the project became a symbol and political albatross.

Back to reality. Of the 50 states, Alaska ranks No. 1 in taxes per resident and No. 1 in spending per resident. Its tax burden per resident is 2 1/2 times the national average; its spending, more than double. The trick is that Alaska's government spends money on its own citizens and taxes the rest of us to pay for it. Although Palin, like McCain, talks about liberating ourselves from dependence on foreign oil, there is no evidence that being dependent on Alaskan oil would be any more pleasant to the pocketbook.

Alaska is, in essence, an adjunct member of OPEC. It has four different taxes on oil, which produce more than 89% of the state's unrestricted revenue. On average, three-quarters of the value of a barrel of oil is taken by the state government before that oil is permitted to leave the state. Alaska residents each get a yearly check for about $2,000 from oil revenues, plus an additional $1,200 pushed through by Palin last year to take advantage of rising oil prices. Any sympathy the governor of Alaska expresses for folks in the lower 48 who are suffering from high gas prices or can't afford to heat their homes is strictly crocodile tears.

As if it couldn't support itself, Alaska also ranks No. 1, year after year, in money it sucks in from Washington. In 2005 (the most recent figures), according to the Tax Foundation, Alaska ranked 18th in federal taxes paid per resident ($5,434) but first in federal spending received per resident ($13,950). Its ratio of federal spending received to federal taxes paid ranks third among the 50 states, and in the absolute amount it receives from Washington over and above the amount it sends to Washington, Alaska ranks No. 1.


Under the state constitution, the governor of Alaska has unusually strong powers to shape the state budget. At the Republican National Convention, Palin bragged that she had vetoed "nearly $500 million" in state spending during her two years as governor. This amounts to less than 2% of the proposed budget. That's how much this warrior for you (the people) against it (the government) could find in wasteful spending under her control.

One thing Barack Obama and McCain disagree on is an oil windfall–profits tax. McCain is against it, on the theory that it is a tax and therefore bad, and also that it would discourage domestic production. Obama is for it, on the theory that if oil companies can make a nice profit when oil sells for $50 per bbl., they can still make a nice profit when it sells for more than $100, even if the government takes a bit and spreads the money around to those who are hurting from higher oil prices.

Although Palin's words side with McCain in this dispute, her actions side with Obama. Her major legislative accomplishment has been to revamp Alaska's windfall-profits tax in order to increase the state's take. Alaska calls it a "clear and equitable share" tax. The state assumes that extracting oil from the tundra costs about $25 per bbl. and takes as much as 75% of the difference between that and the sale price.

Why is a windfall-profits tax good for Alaska but not for the U.S.? Well, it's obvious, isn't it? People in Alaska are better than people in the rest of the U.S. They're more American. Although there are small towns and farms and high school hockey teams in the lower 48, there are fewer down here, per capita, than in Alaska. And there are many more journalists and pollsters and city dwellers and other undesirables who might benefit if every American had the same right to leech off the government as do the good citizens of Sarah Palin's Alaska.

Wallace did not ask McCain about ethics investigation into "reformer" Palin

Summary: On Fox News Sunday, Chris Wallace did not ask Sen. John McCain about the current ethics investigation of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, despite McCain's statement that Palin is "a reformer" and highly ethical, his selection of her as his vice-presidential running mate "brings a spirit of reform and change that is vital now in our nation's capital."


On the August 31 broadcast of Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace did not ask Sen. John McCain about the current ethics investigation of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, despite McCain's statement that Palin is "a reformer" and that his selection of her as his vice-presidential running mate "brings a spirit of reform and change that is vital now in our nation's capital."

The New York Times reported on August 29 that Palin recently became the subject of an ethics investigation "into whether Ms. Palin had fired a top law enforcement official [Walter Monegan] in her administration because he had failed to dismiss a state trooper who was involved in a divorce with Ms. Palin's sister." The Times reported that McCain's "campaign is portraying her [Palin] as a champion of ethics reform for taking on members of her own party whom she saw as beholden to special interests. But just a few weeks ago she became the subject of a state ethics investigation." According to the Times, "[t]he inquiry by the Legislature centers on what Mr. Monegan later described as pressure from members of Ms. Palin's administration and her husband, Todd, to fire Mr. [Mike] Wooten [Palin's former brother-in-law]. The governor herself also raised the subject of Mr. Wooten with him, Mr. Monegan has said." The Times reported that Palin "initially denied there had ever been pressure applied to Mr. Monegan," but later "disclosed [that] there had been more than two dozen inquiries from members of her staff to the public safety department about" Wooten. From the Times:

As part of her efforts to demonstrate that she welcomed the Legislature's inquiry, Ms. Palin asked the state's attorney general to look into the accusations as well. Ms. Palin initially denied there had ever been pressure applied to Mr. Monegan.

This month, however, she released an audio recording of a top aide's questioning of a police lieutenant about why no action had been taken against Mr. Wooten. Ms. Palin also disclosed there had been more than two dozen inquiries from members of her staff to the public safety department about him, but she said she had played no role in the inquiries.

Excerpts of the audio recording released by the governor showed Frank Bailey, the state's director of boards and commissions, pushing Lt. Rodney Dial in February about Mr. Wooten.

"Todd and Sarah are scratching their heads, 'Why on earth hasn't this, why is this guy still representing the department?' " Mr. Bailey said to the lieutenant.

Additionally, an August 31 Washington Post article reported that after Palin "took office in December 2006," she "appointed Monegan, who'd just retired as Anchorage police chief after five years, to be public safety commissioner, a cabinet position. In January 2007, Palin's husband, Todd, a commercial fisherman, oil company worker and champion snowmobile racer who was now first gentleman of Alaska, invited Monegan to the governor's office. Todd Palin asked Monegan to look into the Wooten matter. Monegan did and later told Todd there was nothing he could do because the matter was closed." According to the Post, Monegan claimed "that Palin called him a few days later on his cellphone, and that he told her the same thing. She brought it up again in February 2007 in the state capitol building and Monegan warned her to stay at arm's length. Monegan said Palin mostly backed off, but kept raising the matter indirectly through e-mails. In the fall of 2007, Monegan said he alerted her to a bad jury verdict against a trooper in rural Alaska, and she replied by mentioning Wooten, but not by name." The Post also reported that after repeated phone calls regarding Wooten from members of Palin's staff, "Monegan became more concerned and warned each caller about exposing the state to litigation from Wooten. ... Meanwhile, Todd Palin continued to collect evidence against his former brother-in-law and lobbied for his dismissal, records and interviews show." The Post reported that "State Sen. Hollis French (D) said that both Republicans and Democrats authorized the hiring of a former prosecutor to determine whether Palin 'used her public office to settle a private score' " and that "[t]he legislative report is due in October."

From the August 31 broadcast of Fox Broadcasting Co.'s Fox News Sunday:

WALLACE: Let's start with your choice of a running mate. Of all the people you could have chosen, of all the Republicans leaders you've known for years -- straight talk -- can you honestly say that Sarah Palin is the best person to put a heartbeat away from the presidency?

McCAIN: Oh, yeah. She's a partner and a soul mate. She -- she's a reformer. I don't particularly enjoy the label "maverick," but when somebody takes on the old bulls in her own party, runs against an incumbent governor of her own party, stands up against the oil and gas interests -- I mean, they really are so vital to the economy of her -- of the state of Alaska.

I mean, it's remarkable. It's a remarkable person, and I've watched her record and I've watched her for many, many years as she implemented ethics in lobbying reforms. And, I mean, she led on it. She didn't just vote for it. She led it. I've seen her take on her own party.

Look, one thing I know is that when you take on your own party in Washington, you pay a price for it. You do. You pay a price for it. And she's taken on the party in her own state. She take -- she took on a sitting governor and defeated him. And so I've -- I'm so pleased and proud because this is a person who will help me reform Washington and change the way they do business. And that's what Americans want.

WALLACE: But let me ask you --

McCAIN: Sure.

WALLACE: -- about the concerns that a lot of voters --

McCAIN: Sure.

WALLACE: -- who had never heard of Sarah Palin before yesterday are asking. Compared to, say, Tom Ridge or Joe Lieberman, why is Governor Palin superior in dealing with national security and foreign policy?

McCAIN: Look, those people you talk about, Joe and Tom Ridge and Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee, they're wonderful people, and I'm grateful for the opportunity that I've had to know them and work with them. But look, what this brings is a spirit of reform and change that is vital now in our nation's capital.

Eighty-four percent of the American people think the country's on the wrong track. In our party, we have corruption. We have former members of Congress residing in federal prison. So, it's not surprising to me that we've seen an incredible invigoration around our party and around the nation, not just Republicans, but Democrats. And by the way, in the last day and a half or whatever it's been, we have raised $4 million on the Internet. I wish I'd have taken her a month ago.

WALLACE: But you have said that the existential threat we face, the threat to --

McCAIN: Sure.

WALLACE: -- our existence, is Islamic terrorism. Foreign policy is job one for the commander in chief.

McCAIN: Sure.

WALLACE: You have criticized Obama as being, quote, "dangerously unprepared" to be president. In the sense of national security and foreign policy specifically, isn't Sarah Palin even more dangerously unprepared?

Evidence will show there are many such conversations of intimadation and cohersion by this governor and her administration. This was the only recording that Sarah wanted to release after doing an inappropreiate investigation on herself using her appointees as the investigators. Yeah, that's ethical, no abuse of power there.

Palin, is facing yet another ethics investigation

The GOP candidate for vice president, Gov. Sarah Palin, is facing
yet another ethics investigation back in her home state of Alaska. An
ethics complaint obtained by NBC News was filed Wednesday by the
police officers union in Alaska, requesting a probe into possible
wrongdoing by the governor or her office. It was brought on behalf of
state trooper Mike Wooten, an ex-brother-in-law of Palin who is at the
center of the "Troopergate" scandal.

The complaint alleges that the governor or her staff may have have
improperly disclosed information from Wooten's personnel records. The
complaint alleges "criminal penalties may apply."


John Cyr, director of the union that filed the complaint, told NBC
News, "It seems obvious to us somebody has improperly accessed
[Wooten's] personnel file." Governor Palin is that somebody.

Palin is stonewalling the Investigation

Palin's stall
Governor is stonewalling the Troopergate investigation



(09/05/08 00:11:45)
Gov. Sarah Palin is taking the wrong approach to Troopergate. She should be practicing the open and transparent, ethical and accountable government she promised when running for governor and boasts about now that she's on the national stage.

Instead, Gov. Palin has begun stonewalling the Legislature's attempt to get the bottom of allegations that she, her family or staff violated ethical or state personnel rules.

As a result, the Troopergate allegations hang over Palin's future and cloud her candidacy for vice president.

The allegations are that she, her family or administration improperly pressured then-Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan to fire Gov. Palin's ex-brother-in-law, state trooper Mike Wooten, who had been in the middle of a custody dispute with Palin's sister.

In July, when legislators started talking about conducting an investigation, Palin denied any wrongdoing and said she welcomed an investigation.

"Hold me accountable," she said.

The Legislature took her up on that offer. But this week, she basically told the Legislature, "Never mind."

Palin's lawyer has asked the Legislature to drop its investigation. He had the governor file an ethics complaint against herself, in a bid to turn the entire matter over to the state Personnel Board, which would hire an independent investigator.

This is not an open and transparent attempt to establish Gov. Palin's accountability. It is an attempt to drag out the investigation until after voters decide the fate of her vice-presidential bid.

Instead, Gov. Palin should honor her pledge to cooperate with the Legislature's investigation, conducted by former state prosecutor Steve Branchflower.

She could start by telling aide Frank Bailey he has to talk to the legislative investigator. She should fire him if he doesn't.

Bailey was caught on an audio recording of a phone conversation with a Public Safety Department official, in which Bailey pushed to get Wooten fired.

Bailey was put on paid leave, not fired. A spokeswoman for Palin said that while Bailey is on the state payroll, Palin can direct him to cooperate with the legislative investigation.

So why is Bailey still on the payroll, after he bailed on a scheduled interview with the legislative investigator Wednesday?

The Legislature hasn't given its investigator the power to subpoena, or compel, testimony of witnesses. Subpoenas appeared unnecessary, since it appeared the governor and administration would be cooperating.

That's over. It's time for the subpoenas.

The Legislature's investigation is supposed to be wrapped up by Oct. 31. That's obviously poor timing from the standpoint of the McCain-Palin presidential campaign, coming just a few days before the national election.

Instead of trying to delay the whole thing, Palin should take a cue from U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, who asked that his corruption trial be moved up so it would be completed well ahead of the November general election. Voters deserve to know the outcome of Sen. Stevens trial and the investigation into Palin.

When this investigation into Troopergate started, Gov. Palin's response was refreshingly open. Since she became the Republican candidate for vice president, her approach has changed for the worse. America deserves the same openness and ethics from vice-presidential candidate Palin that she promised to Alaska voters in 2006.

BOTTOM LINE: Gov. Palin is stonewalling on Troopergate; the Legislature should issue subpoenas.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'Threat'?

Palin's lawyer tries to play Secret Service card

Gov. Sarah Palin's lawyer, Thomas Van Flein, made an absurd threat in his battle to get the Legislature to back off its ethics investigation of the governor and her staff.

Van Flein said legislative investigator Steve Branchflower tried to call First Gentleman Todd Palin directly on "a secure and confidential line. This represents a serious security breach that we may be obligated to report to the Secret Service."

Hello? Branchflower is acting on behalf of the Legislature. That's a security breach?

Lawyers are supposed to vigorously represent their clients, but claiming that a legislative investigator's phone call may be a security matter worthy of Secret Service attention is ridiculous.

Gov. Palin should keep her legal attack dog on a shorter leash.

BOTTOM LINE: More obstruction from Palin in Troopergate.

Read More

Investigation into Palin Now on Fast Track

Sources Tell ABC News that Report Will Be Released Almost Three Weeks Early
By LEN TEPPER
September 5, 2008

ABC News has exclusively learned that Alaska Senator Hollis French will announce today that he is moving up the release date of his investigation into whether Gov. Sarah Palin abused her office to get the Alaska public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, fired. The results of the investigation were originally scheduled for release Oct. 31 but will now come almost three weeks earlier, according to sources.

Alaska state senator Hollis French, who is running an investigation of Gov. Sarah Palin, says the McCain campaign is using stall tactics to prevent him from releasing his final report by Oct. 31st.
(The Associated Press)The announcement is set for 9 a.m. AKDT time.

BREAKING: Palin Business Shut Down by State

The WaPo is now reporting that Sarah Palin and her husband were part owners of a business that was shut down by the state for noncompliance with state regulations:

State records show the business ran into trouble with Alaska's division of corporations business and professional licensing after Palin became governor of the state in 2006.

A Feb. 11, 2007 letter to the governor's business partner advises that the car wash had "not filed its biennial report and/or paid its biennial fees," which were more than a year overdue.

The warning letter was written on state letterhead, which carried Palin's name at the top, next to the state seal.

On April 3, 2007, the state went further and issued a "certificate of involuntary dissolution" because of the car wash's failure to file its report and pay state licensing fees.

How can this woman be trusted to run the U.S. government if she can't even run a carwash in Anchorage with plenty of help?

To keep track of the Palin Veep Circus

* She has a 4 month old child with special needs and not going to stay home to take care of it.
* She has a pregnant 17 year old daughter who is going to marry the father of the child. (as if that makes everything OK and acceptable!)
* The high ranking Conservative legislators in the State of Alaska are revealing Sarah's lack of credibility and competence.
* She's in the midst of an ethics and abuse of power investigation.
* Her position on the "bridge to nowhere" changed repeatedly despite what she announced in Dayton.
* She's just fine with abortionsto this day for 12 year olds to be able to have an abortion without their parents consent.

And it is early yet today.

Oh Boy

OK - the Palin baby speculation is inescapable at this point. The left-leaning Daily Kos posted an item Friday called "Palin faked "pregnancy"? Covering for teen daughter?"

It's a version of a rumor - long simmering in Alaska -- that Palin's daughter Bristol was pregnant and the governor somehow covered it up by pretending to have the baby (Trig) herself.

Here's a story we wrote soon after the birth. At that point, the questions were all about whether Palin should have flown back to Alaska to give birth. In the story, Palin's doctor talks about the labor and addresses questions raised at the time about Palin's decision to board a jet and fly to Alaska from Texas when she showed signs of early labor.

"The stage of her pregnancy was not apparent by observation," said an Alaska Airlines spokeswoman. The doctor, Cathy Baldwin-Johnson, said she induced labor once Palin was at the hospital.

What's the McCain campaign say? Nothing so far. They've been called and e-mailed for an on-the-record response, but haven't heard back.

What's Palin's in-state spokesman, Bill McAllister say?

That it's not true. "The answer to that is no," he said.

"But beyond that, I don't know, why should we even have to say anything," he said.

McAllister was an Anchorage TV reporter before working for Palin. He said Palin once approached him - before people knew she was pregnant - assuming he'd been hearing rumors.

"She said it's not true about Bristol," McAllister said.

At the time, the rumor would have been that Palin's daughter was pregnant.

How does McAllister know it's not true?

Meantime, this is all a plotline straight out of a recent season of Desperate Housewives.



Picture from March 14

(The day of birth was April 18.)



Here is a picture from March 14:



The Same Picture is Available Here:


Sarah Palin does not look remotely pregnant.

Read What Alaskans are Saying

Sarah's Weaknesses and Threats

Weaknesses

Many of Palin's claims to fame that she has trumpeted over the last few years that we have already begun to hear parroted on the national media have been over blown and her lack of experience has already become target number one for Democrats.

These weaknesses will be exposed by Democrats, who, flush with cash this election cycle will have ample resources to do opposition research on Palin's real record.

A reformer? While Palin was out spoken against the likes of Randy Ruedrich, Greg Renkes and Frank Murkowksi, as were others, her role was more of a whistle blower than a reformer.

Ethics legislation that was passed in 2007 was two years overdue and supported by the same legislators who looked the other way during the events of the previous administration that pointed out th existing loopholes in the state's ethics laws.

It took the FBI raids in August of 2006 and the indictment of former lawmaker Tom Anderson months later to force lawmakers to finally close the loopholes they had ignored for years.

Cleaning up the Republican Party? Even after her much publicized battle with GOP party chairman Randy Ruedrich over ethics, she remained silent at the 2004 Republican State Convention while Ruedrich was re-nominated unanimously.

This past spring at the 2008 Republican State Convention, Palin in her speech to delegates pushed for replacing Ruedrich but her calls were unanswered. Palin supporters who wanted Ruedrich out simply couldn't attract enough Ron Paul supporters who seemed more concerned with revoking the Patriot Act and legalizing Marijuana.

Another weakness is Palin's habit of tailoring the facts of a situation to meet her political needs.

Yesterday in her Dayton acceptance speech, Palin stated, "...I championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. In fact, I told Congress -- I told Congress, 'Thanks, but no thanks,' on that bridge to nowhere. If our state wanted a bridge, I said we'd build it ourselves."

This was not true.

Not only did the state keep the money that was earmarked for the bridge to be used on other transportation projects, but Palin had been a strong supporter of the bridge during her gubernatorial run in 2006, claiming Alaska needed to seize upon the seniority of its congressional delegation.

According to the Ketchikan Daily News on August 8, 2006, 'People across the nation struggle with the idea of building a bridge because they’ve been under these misperceptions about the bridge and the purpose,' said Palin, who described the link as the Ketchikan area’s potential for expansion and growth.

Palin said Alaska’s congressional delegation worked hard to obtain funding for the bridge as part of a package deal and that she 'would not stand in the way of the progress toward that bridge.'”

And again on September 29, 2006, she told the Ketchikan Daily News, "Part of my agenda is making sure that Southeast is heard. That your projects are important. That we go to bat for Southeast when we’re up against federal influences that aren’t in the best interest of Southeast.'

She cited the widespread negative attention focused on the Gravina Island crossing project. 'We need to come to the defense of Southeast Alaska when proposals are on the table like the bridge and not allow the spinmeisters to turn this project or any other into something that’s so negative,' Palin said.

Yesterday, it took bloggers less than a few hours after her acceptance speech in Dayton to call her on the claim that she turned back the federal earmark for the bridge to nowhere.

Palin will need to learn that reporters are hanging on her every word and that the level of scrutiny from the press will be relentless.

The lack of domestic and foreign policy knowledge will become problematic if Palin doesn't become a fast learner. During her twenty months in office as governor she has introduced no major policy issues dealing with health care, education or public safety.

With Americans worried about mortgage payments, health care and the cost of energy, Palin will need to offer them more than just glittering generalities.

As a close observer of her administration, Palin has had a habit of holding press conferences surrounded by the crutch of her staff.

When questions get too detailed, she anxiously looks around the room for someone to save her. This won't be possible when she is standing on her own.

And foreign policy will be one of her biggest challenges, especially standing toe to toe against Sen. Joe Biden who is considered by many as an expert on foreign affairs. With geo-political events just one match away from becoming a raging bonfire, Palin needs to be able to articulate an understanding of the global conflicts and possible solutions.

Palin's lack of foreign policy is already becoming foder for late night comedians. Friday night Jay Leno poked at Palin's lack of foreign experience.

"Tonight on the show we have Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson who just got back from Beijing. You know what that means don't you? It means she has more foreign policy experience than Sarah Palin," Leno joked.

But jokes aside, with McCain's age being a factor, the phrase being a heartbeat away from the presidency takes on new meaning. Palin will need to get up to speed on a tremendous amount of issues fast.


Threats

The most obvious threat is that Sarah Palin is not qualified to be the President of the United States. With John McCain at age 72, he would be the oldest President ever elected. This means the Vice President slot will be watched extremely close.

There are a number of other threats as well that Palin faces if she doesn't realize the rules have changed and the stakes are high. The scrutiny she is under will be unlike anything she has ever been through before.

During the gubernatorial campaign throughout Alaska, if a reporter showed up to cover an event, that was a coup. Today she won't be able to go to the grocery store without press following her and noting what she is buying.

Palin won't be able to say one thing one week and another thing another week. As soon as she does it will be a bit on The Daily Show with John Stewart.

Palin has had the comfort of being treated very respectfully by the Alaska media and some might argue with kid gloves. No more. She will have a pack of two dozen reporters following her every move and hanging on her every word. With the concern about her inexperience already coming into play, the press will be listening and waiting for any slip up to pounce on.

She has also exhibited a quick temper with those who question her. Time to grow a really, really thick skin. Every one of these reporters is looking for a better story than their colleague, which means nothing is off limits.

Finally, she needs to learn and learn fast. During the campaign in 2006 my biggest surprise was that Palin's message on issues never matured between January and November.

In April of 2006, Palin and I shared a cup of coffee together in the Captain Cook coffee shop. We had just been at a debate up at the University of Fairbanks the night before and she said although the was impressed with my ability to state policies and figures, when looking out over the audience, she wondered to herself if having a grasp of that really mattered.

In October of 2006, at a health care debate at UAA late in the campaign, while Tony Knowles and I waited backstage to go on, Palin sat in the corner with two of her aides trying to force feed her health care information. She ended up walking on stage with an arm load of health care reports.

The fact was that having a grasp of policies and figures didn't matter. Because at the end of the day, policies and figures didn't win the election; Palin won the election by being the candidate that people liked the most, not the candidate that knew the most.

The threat is that she will try and apply that same recipe to running on a nationwide platform and I don't think that will help her and will be highlighted by the press and in the media.

But the biggest unknown threat remains the ongoing investigation regarding the firing of former Public safety Commissioner Walt Monegan.

The fact that McCain selected Palin even though this investigation has just begun, shows that either Palin has convinced them that this is much to do about nothing, or the McCain camp feels they can spin the outcome if it's bad.

According to Lisa Demer at the Anchorage Daily News, the McCain campaign says Palin “was never directly involved” and blamed the controversy on the campaign of the Democratic nominee, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama.

“The Governor did nothing wrong and has nothing to hide. It’s outrageous that the Obama campaign is trying to attack her over a family issue. As a reformer and a leader on ethics reform, she has been happy to help out in the investigation of this matter, because she was never directly involved,” the campaign said in a statement.

However, for the first time on Friday, Monegan offered confirmation that he felt he was fired by Palin due to his refusal to fire her ex brother in law, State Trooper Mike Wooten.

“It was a significant factor if not the factor,” Monegan said.

In addition, Monegan confirmed publicly what we reported on this blog yesterday about the existence of emails he received directly from Palin regarding Wooten.

This of course contradicts Palin's claim that she was never directly involved.

"Monegan also disclosed for the first time Friday that Palin sent him two or three e-mails that referenced her ex-brother-in-law and his status with troopers but he wouldn’t provide them because of the ongoing investigation," reported the ADN's Demer.

The investigation will take even more turns as there are reports now that the Palin administration has ceased cooperating with special investigator Branchflower and some Palin staffers are talking about jumping ship before it starts to sink.

This remains a constant threat and one that will not go away anytime soon.

They say a week is a lifetime in politics; what happens the next nine weeks will make Alaskan history for a lifetime.

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