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The lights are all blinking red.

Every reporter and pundit should have to declare if they ever vacationed with a billionaire.

We’ll be taking my thoughts and prayers to the ballot box.

Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

Republicans choose power over democracy, every day.

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If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

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Washington Post’s Catch and Kill, not noticeably better than the Enquirer’s.

Joe Biden can go out like FDR, not by dying in office, but by crushing the fascists.

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I am pretty sure Katy Tur wasn’t always such a bootlicking sycophant.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

You are here: Home / Elections / Election 2008 / Troopergate Update

Troopergate Update

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The Alaska Daily News comes out swinging:

Sarah Palin’s reaction to the Legislature’s Troopergate report is an embarrassment to Alaskans and the nation.

She claims the report “vindicates” her. She said that the investigation found “no unlawful or unethical activity on my part.”

Her response is either astoundingly ignorant or downright Orwellian.

Page 8, Finding Number One of the report says: “I find that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.”

In plain English, she did something “unlawful.” She broke the state ethics law.

Well, yeah. I have to admit that of all the things that have happened the last eight years, Palin’s response the other day still stands out to me. At least the Bush administration paid lip service to appearances and couched their lies in bullshit in an attempt to confuse people. Palin would have none of that- she just came out and flat out denied what the report said. It was and is stunning.

In other news, via Andrew Halcro, Walt Monegan is, as Halcro notes, returning fire:

In a bold move, former Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan filed a request with the personnel board on Monday for a “Due Process Hearing To Address Reputational Harm”, inflicted by Governor Sarah Palin.

Monegan’s attorney Jeff Feldman wrote in his filing that while Monegan does not contest the goveror’s right to discharge him from his position as commissioner, the governor is not entitled to make untrue and defamatory statements about her reasons for discharging him.

You can read the request here (.pdf), and, as always, this is good news for John McCain.

Reader Interactions

25Comments

  2. 2.

    DrDave

    Going back to Hitchens’ essay yesterday:

    It turns out that none of her early claims to political courage was founded in fact, and it further turns out that some of the untested rumors about her—her vindictiveness in local quarrels, her bizarre religious and political affiliations—were very well-founded, indeed.

    Sarah Palin remains a gift that keeps on giving. And God Bless Her for it. And God Bless John McCain, too. Because it was his superior judgment that brought her from the northern wilderness to us.

  6. 6.

    Ella in NM

    I am seriously wondering if Palin might end up being impeached when she gets home after losing the campaign for John McCain.

    How will she and Toddy make the payments on their lakefront home, then? Oh wait–she should be getting around $2000 a month in Social Security Disability for that poor baby…

  7. 7.

    RememberNovember

    Go Walt! Take your good name back! That lakefront home, btw was allegedly built with materials and labor from the "Recreation Center"

  8. 8.

    Zifnab

    To be fair, the report also makes recommendation that no charges be filed and further investigation be dropped. So if I were Sarah Palin, I might assume I had just been cleared of all wrong-doing as well.

  9. 9.

    Ned Raggett

    Actually, this is starting to look really interesting:

    The state Personnel Board investigation of Gov. Sarah Palin’s firing of Walt Monegan has broadened to include other ethics complaints against the governor and examination of actions by other state employees, according to the independent counsel handling the case. The investigator, Tim Petumenos, did not say who else is under scrutiny. But in two recent letters describing his inquiry, he cited the consolidation of complaints and the involvement of other officials as a reason for not going along with Palin’s request to make the examination of her activities more public. Two other ethics complaints involving Palin are known. One, by activist Andree McLeod, alleges that state hiring practices were circumvented for a Palin supporter. The case is not related to Monegan’s firing. The other, by the Public Safety Employees Association, alleges that trooper Mike Wooten’s personnel file was illegally breached by state officials.

  10. 10.

    Ned Raggett

    @Zifnab: if I were Sarah Palin, I might assume I had just been cleared of all wrong-doing as well.

    I would too, if I were illiterate and/or hadn’t ever heard of civil lawsuits. Both possibilities appear to apply in her case.

  12. 12.

    cleter

    If you are a governor, and make a losing bid for national office and have to slink back to the state capitol coated in loser-stink, things don’t usually go so well for you. Ask Mike Dukakis. If I was Palin, I’d be really worried about the phrase "an embarrassment to Alaskans and the nation" in that article. I’d expect some stormy time with the state lege, and a bruising primary fight in the 2010 governors race.

  13. 13.

    jcricket

    It’s really funny to me how she thinks she can ignore repercussions on the home front with all this. A severe disconnect is at work.

    She won’t be impeached or recalled, but her ability to get stuff done is pretty shot. The Republican leadership in the Alaska legislature already had it in for her (not on ideological grounds, of course) and this isn’t going to make it better.

    They’ve burned so many bridges and left a wide, wide trail of destruction that this report only touches the surface of. Remember that many people who were subpoenaed to testify, resisted. And none of Palin’s "private/public" emails have been "discovered" (I mean so in the legal sense) yet.

    If you think a report just based on the information from the victims (those public employees pressured by the Palins) is bad, wait until you see the evidence from the Palin’s themselves. By that I don’t mean the lies in their self-serving testimony, but things like emails, contact logs, how they found out sensitive information through illegally rifling through personnel records, etc.).

    Basically, if you think Monegan is the only abuse of power, unethical or illegal act for the Palins, you got another thing coming.

  14. 14.

    jcricket

    Anyone know what the penalty is for violating that statute?

    Sadly, it’s like a $5,000 fine and some kind of censure/rebuke. But the problem for Palin is two-fold.

    One, she’s resisting and pushing others to resist as well (which itself is probably another crime).

    Two, this is not the last investigation – and the more she resists, the more the rest of the GOP will "toss her overboard" by impaneling investigations into her behavior. So far they (AK GOP) have demonstrated a reasonably "independent" streak – or it might just be Palin hatred. Either way, works for me.

  15. 15.

    schtum

    I’ve been hoping Ayers would sue the McCain campaign for slander and/or libel. He seems to be reformed, if not repentant, but I have to imagine the last few weeks have interfered with his ability to ever land a decent speaking gig again.

  16. 16.

    gang green

    “I am not a ‘defendant.’ The court lacks territorial jurisdiction over me.

    Sarah’s defense, as instructed by her Alaska Independence White Supremacist Party overlords.

  17. 17.

    gwangung

    I’ve been hoping Ayers would sue the McCain campaign for slander and/or libel. He seems to be reformed, if not repentant, but I have to imagine the last few weeks have interfered with his ability to ever land a decent speaking gig again.

    Like G. Gordon Liddy’s? Don’t think so…

  18. 18.

    jake 4 that 1

    I say again, sending McPOW’s crack squad of lawyers up there to take control of the situation was a huge mistake. Especially since Queen Jadis was traipsing around the country claiming to be a Washington Outsider and a fighter of corruption.

    If Camp McPOW had left this alone she might at least have a split decision. Instead the entire panel (majority Republican) gave her the thumbs down and all Palin can say is they’re all a bunch of doggone Obama supporters also and also I didn’t do nuthin’ wrong, though, so there. But!

  19. 19.

    Ned Raggett

    Meantime, there’s also stuff like this going on.

    Gov. Sarah Palin’s rural adviser resigned Monday amid criticism of the governor’s record on hiring Alaska Natives. Rhonda McBride, who is not an Alaska Native, made the announcement in an e-mail to several Native leaders, saying there need to be more Native voices in Palin’s administration. "I definitely think it would help to have an Alaska Native in this position," McBride told The Associated Press.

  20. 20.

    Brachiator

    @Ned Raggett:

    It’s really funny to me how she thinks she can ignore repercussions on the home front with all this. A severe disconnect is at work.

    .

    I don’t think she ever saw the problem with her actions, and the national GOP not only whispered in her ear that she was untouchable, they unleashed a cleanup squad to try to pressure everyone into keeping silent on the Troopergate issue. Being the official pro life Christian Hockey Mom of the Republican Party endows her with permanent hero status as far as her supporters go.

    It will be interesting to see whether Alaskans also fall for this okey doke.

  21. 21.

    Pooh

    @Brachiator:

    Maybe. And certainly with some swathes it does (and those swathes are larger on a percentage basis than in many other places). But we are somewhat touchy up here, and we don’t like being made fun of by everywhere else. And Palin is causing us to be made fun of. To the extent people see the mockery as justified (estimated at 40% and rising…) this is a problem for her.

    Also, the house thing has potential to be a big Big problem for her. The local feeb has quite a lot of recent experience in this area (VECO, Stevens the Elder, Stevens the Younger, etc…), plus the Wasilla rink is something of a sore spot, given the cost overruns (largely due to the fact that she just decided to fucking take it – this is probably why she didn’t say she disagreed with Kelo in the Couric interview – she obviously doesn’t…)

    I mean, the local mouthbreather columnists have/are starting to turn on her,

  22. 22.

    jhaygood

    Palin is right! It’s obvious that the legislative board that wrote this report about Palin’s actions was stacked not only with a minority of partisan Obama supporters, but with a majority of partisan McCAIN supporters. How could she ever get a fair shake from a panel filled completely with supporters of her political opponents?

    She knows in her GUT what is true.

    Palin 2012!

  24. 24.

    oh really

    From the beginning (when McCain picked Palin), I’ve both suspected and hoped that her performance in this campaign would not only not launch her on a national trajectory (of course it is helpful if she and McCain lose), but would hurt her back in Alaska.

    The gifts she brings to the campaign are all too obvious — she’s stupid, ignorant, dishonest, inarticulate, and a consummate bimbo. She’s in way over her head and much too stupid and arrogant to realize that.

    If McCain loses, which seems reasonably likely at this point, then part of the blame will be attributable to Palin. Of course, the spin will be that McCain was victimized by the economy. Unfortunately for him, that is, at best, only partly true. He has been victimized by an economic crisis brought about by adherence to policies and an ideology supported by McCain/Bush that caused the crisis.

    Anyway, if McCain/Palin lose, then the bloom will be off the Bimbo rose. National exposure has made it obvious to most people (including, I’d be willing to bet, a lot of people who pretend otherwise) that she is totally unqualified for the vice presidency (even if she’s never called on to fill in for McCain) and worse, unqualified, both as a matter of intellect and temperament, to be governor of Alaska or even mayor of Wasilla.

    The Modern Republican Party is a bizarre entity, but above all Republicans want power, and it could be that the love affair with Palin will be short-lived. If not, that could be a good thing for the Left — is anyone really afraid of Sarah Wolf(hunter) anymore? She’s guaranteed to widen the rift between cultural/religious Wingers and the fiscal conservatives (some of whom have been to college and actually think the brain and learning are good things).

    Is it unthinkable that the team of Bush, McCain, and Palin could seal the fate of the Modern Republican Party and send it straight to oblivion (where it belongs)?

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