By GottaLaff
NYT - Republicans Admit Palin Vetting Was Thin/IncompleteWhat a fine display of sound judgment.
"Republican officials said that though they had time to collect surface-level material on Ms. Palin and her husband, they had done no examination of the rest of her family."
Because they care....every election year.
McCain: "You know it just wouldn't be appropriate to have a festive occasion while a near tragedy or a terrible challenge is presented in the form of a natural disaster."
By GottaLaff
Additionally, this choice...
And completely silly...
By GottaLaff
I got this Comment in my e-mail notifications:
Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Cindy Lou Hensley McCain is offended":Anyone brave enough?
You folks (Chris - LMAO) are cracking me up with your comments to Cindy Lou Hoo. Priceless. I do sympathize with those of you who are struggling with finances, health care. I pray for you.
Do you really think that Cindy will see these posts? She needs to.
I have an IDEA!
Who's brave enough to register at johnmccain.com and post this link?
Any takers?
By GottaLaff
Palin: "I'm just an average hockey mom."More food for thought:
The Democratic response: "Hey think people want an average hockey mom from Alaska taking over in the event of John McCain's death?"
McCain advisors say meetings have been underway to consider options for the RNC program due to Hurricane Gustav.Wouldn't it just be the ironic-est if they missed the deadline? Okay, back to reality.
Advisors say no decisions have been made. [...]
For the purposes of getting McCain's name and Palin's name on the ballot, the convention must take place this week; lots of ballot deadlines hit very soon.
By GottaLaff
By GottaLaff
By GottaLaff
UPDATE: The MSNBC anchor just called Palin the "Cheerleader in Chief". "Her story is just about as straight out of Disney as you can get. ... Everybody has embraced her." "She's saying, You want to play the 50 state strategy game? We'll take it to all 50 states..." "You watch her speech and it energizes people. We can talk about experience later, but she energizes people."When John Sidney McCain is side by side with Sarah Louise Palin, he looks like he's taking her to the pony ride and watching her as she goes round and round the pony ring.
Lynn Sweet: She took it to the other side by saying, "You don't own change". She came across better than yesterday.
"She puts McCain in a really good mood." [ahem]
By GottaLaff
The videos (long, at 20 minutes and 14 minutes respectively), originally posted on August 14 by the Anchorage Daily News, are raw footage of Quaylin's press conference.
Alaska's former commissioner of public safety says Gov. Sarah Palin, John McCain's pick to be vice president, personally talked him on two occasions about a state trooper who was locked in a bitter custody battle with the governor's sister.We posted a video about this here.
In a phone conversation Friday night, Walt Monegan, who was Alaska's top cop until Palin fired him July 11, told the Daily News that the governor also had e-mailed him two or three times about her ex-brother-in-law, Trooper Mike Wooten, though the e-mails didn't mention Wooten by name.
Monegan claims his refusal to fire Wooten was a major reason that Palin dismissed him. Wooten had been suspended for five days previously, based largely on complaints that Palin's family had initiated before Palin was governor.
The events surrounding Monegan's dismissal currently are under investigation by the state's legislature. Palin has acknowledged that a member of her staff phoned a trooper lieutenant in an effort that could have been perceived as pressure to have Wooten dismissed and that her husband and other officials also had contacted Monegan about Wooten.
She has insisted, however, that she did not authorize the phone call and was not aware of it. She has said she doesn't believe any of the contacts amounted to pressuring Monegan. She suspended one of her aides after the recording of his discussions of Wooten with the trooper lieutenant became public.
Translation: After he was caught.
“The Governor did nothing wrong and has nothing to hide," the McCain/Palin campaign said in a statement, blaming the issue on the campaign of the Democratic nominee, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama. "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."
But the trooper controversy has been swirling around Palin for weeks, long before Palin was launched Friday into the bright lights of the national campaign.
Monegan, however, said that Palin raised the subject of Wooten with him herself on two occasions after becoming governor -- once on the phone soon after she took office and once in person not long after that.
Monegan also said that the governor's husband, Todd, talked to him several times about Wooten and that three top officials in her administration contacted him.
Monegan also disclosed for the first time that Palin sent him two or three e-mails that referenced her ex-brother-in-law and his status with troopers. Monegan declined to provide the e-mails because of the ongoing investigation.
Calls, e-mails, face-to-face = a big fat problem.
Monegan said he believes his firing was directly related to the fact Wooten stayed on the job. "It was a significant factor if not the factor," Monegan said.
No one from the McCain campaign ever contacted him to vet Palin as a candidate, Monegan said.
Who did they contact? "We don't talk about the vetting process," said Maria Comella, Palin's vice president campaign press secretary.
Of course not. Transparency is out of the question.
Palin's replacement for Monegan, Chuck Kopp, was forced to resign just two weeks after he was appointed because of a sexual harassment complaint that had been filed against him when he was the chief of police in Kenai.
Palin, in a news conference announcing Kopp's resignation July 24, said she was unaware that the Kenai city council had reprimanded Kopp as a result of the complaint and would not discuss how her staff had vetted Kopp before naming him to replace Monegan three days after Monegan was fired.
I sense vetting problems in Republican circles.
To be continued...Alaska's legislature is spending up to $100,000 "to investigate the circumstances and events surrounding the termination of former Public Safety Commissioner Monegan, and potential abuses of power and/or improper actions by members of the executive branch."
The investigation is supposed to wrap up by Oct. 31, just days before the Nov. 4 general election.
Palin will be deposed along with others in the governor's office and former administration officials [...] The special counsel just this week was trying to arrange Palin's deposition, French said.
French said Palin's new role as vice-presidential candidate won't change the investigation.[...]
Before she was governor, Palin pushed for a trooper investigation of Wooten over a number of matters, including using a Taser on his stepson, illegally shooting a moose, and accusations of driving drunk. At one point, Palin and her husband hired a private investigator.
Troopers did investigate, and Wooten was suspended for 10 days, later reduced to five. That took care of it, Monegan said. But the Palin administration and Todd Palin wouldn't let go, he said. [...]
Monegan said Palin called him on his cell phone one night in January 2007 about Wooten, but it wasn't related to her security detail. He said he had already met with Todd Palin about Wooten, whom he hadn't heard of before, and had looked into the family's complaints only to learn they already had been investigated. Palin seemed frustrated that nothing more could be done, he said.
"For the record, no one ever said fire Wooten. Not the governor. Not Todd. Not any of the other staff," Monegan said Friday from Portland. "What they said directly was more along the lines of 'This isn't a person that we would want to be representing our state troopers.' "
Palin again brought up Wooten in February 2007 as they were walking together to wish a state senator a happy birthday, Monegan said. He said he told Palin he had to keep her at arm's distance on the matter and she agreed.
By GottaLaff
ABC News' George Stephanopoulos reports: Democrats' attacks on her family's wealth are unfair and offensive, Cindy McCain said today in an interview airing tomorrow on "This Week with George Stephanopoulos."
So-o-o, those attacks on Barack's wife, his background, his so-called "celebrity" and presumptuousness were fair game? Got it. Moving along...
For nearly two weeks, Democrats have repeatedly hit Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., for saying he is unaware of how many houses he owns, calling the presumptive Republican presidential nominee out of touch with everyday Americans. In his acceptance speech at the Democratic convention on Thursday, Democratic nominee Barack Obama turned up the heat on McCain, saying he "doesn't know" about the lives of middle-class Americans.
Truth hurts, don't it, C Lou?
"I'm offended by Barack Obama saying that about my husband," said McCain's wife Cindy. When asked if Obama went too far in his criticism of McCain, Cindy responded, "I do. I do. I really do."
McCain also said beer the distributorship her father built, which is the source of much her family's wealth, typifies the American Dream.
I'll give her that one. It is true that Americans dream about having a life like hers. And dream... and dream...
"My father had nothing. He and my mother sold everything they had to raise $10,000," she said. "I'm proud of what my dad and my mother did and what they built and left me. And I intend to carry their legacy as long as I can."
Um, C Lou? Your legacy? Obama's legacy? No comparison. And the very fact that your legacy includes what they "left you" speaks volumes.
Here's the response we were hoping for:
The Obama campaign is not backing down. "The fact that John McCain does not know how many houses he owns when millions are struggling to stay in the only house they have shows he's out of touch with the lives of real Americans," said Obama spokeswoman Linda Douglass Saturday afternoon. "McCain is promising to double down on the economic policies of George W. Bush which have benefited corporations and CEO's while leaving middle-class families behind. John McCain just doesn't get it."Neither does C Lou.
By GottaLaff
The Republican criticism doesn't stop:
"It's a wild gamble, undertaken by our oldest ever first-time candidate for president in hopes of changing the board of this election campaign. Maybe it will work. But maybe (and at least as likely) it will reinforce a theme that I'd be pounding home if I were the Obama campaign: that it's John McCain for all his white hair who represents the risky choice, while it is Barack Obama who offers cautious, steady, predictable governance."
-- Former Bush speechwriter David Frum
By GottaLaff
By pollster Del Ali, the president of Research 2000.Clear? Clear.
Sarah Palin will wow cultural conservatives in areas where they may not have come out to vote before the selection. This is right out of Karl Rove's strategy of getting more of your own to show up and vote.
However, in many of the swing states that Bush carried in 2004, there were anti gay ballot measures to motivate the cultural conservatives to vote. There are very few of these measures on the ballots in those key states in 2008. Palin may not be enough for them to get out and vote. Clearly Rove felt in 2004 that Bush would not have been enough, thus the ballot measures.
In fact, as Palin's cultural views become better known -- she oppose abortion in all cases and opposes the use of birth control pills and condoms even among married couples -- she will undoubtedly scare the hell out of the soccer moms and 98% of Hillary voters. In fact, many of these women may feel insulted by this choice in that McCain and the GOP think they are stupid and would bypass their own interest (reproductive and economic) to vote for the ticket due to gender and anger that Hillary was not the nominee.
In my estimation as a pollster and analyst, while historic for the GOP in selecting their first woman on a national ticket, this choice may be the worst selection by a major party nominee for President in modern times.
By GottaLaff
We here at The Political Carnival don't believe in polls. We never even so much as glance at them. Our Commenters scoff at them, and we find them to be meaningless and inaccurate. That said...
From the Department of Neener Nanner:The first national polls on John McCain's pick of Sarah Palin yesterday came out today from Rasmussen and Gallup -- and contrary to what the GOP probably hoped, she scored less well with women than men.
What? Since when do men like beauty pageant contestants? Never mind.Here's a finding from Gallup: Among Democratic women -- including those who may be disappointed that Hillary Clinton did not win the Democratic nomination -- 9% say Palin makes them more likely to support McCain, 15% less likely.
From Rasmussen: Some 38% of men said they were more likely to vote for McCain now, but only 32% of women. By a narrow 41% to 35% margin, men said she was not ready to be president -- but women soundly rejected her, 48% to 25%. [...]
Overall, voters expressed a favorable impression of her by a 53/26 margin, but there was a severe gender gap on this: Men embraced her at 58% to 23%, while for women it was 48/30.And by a 29/44 margin, men and women together, they do not believe that she is ready to be President.
Duh.Gallup is now out with its own initial poll. It also shows women with a slightly less favorable view of Palin. An excerpt from USA Today:
And how about that Obama speech the other night?
There is wide uncertainty about whether she's qualified to be president. In the poll, taken Friday, 39% say she is ready to serve as president if needed, 33% say she isn't and 29% have no opinion.
That's the lowest vote of confidence in a running mate since the elder George Bush chose then-Indiana senator Dan Quayle to join his ticket in 1988. In comparison, Delaware Sen. Joe Biden was seen as qualified by 57%-18% after Democrat Barack Obama chose him as a running mate last week.....
Among all those surveyed, 35% call Obama's speech at Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium Thursday night excellent, 23% good, 15% "just OK," 3% poor and 4% "terrible." Sixteen percent say they didn't see it and 14% have no opinion. That's higher than the ratings for acceptance speeches by President Bush and Democrat John Kerry in 2004, by Bush and Democrat Al Gore in 2000 and by Republican Bob Dole in 1996.Thumbs up overall.
Asked about the Democratic convention's impact, 43% say it makes them more likely to vote for Obama, 29% less likely. Nineteen percent say it won't make a difference.
By GottaLaff
By GottaLaff
Keep 'em coming!
John McCain's choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate stunned and divided Alaska political leaders on Friday. Supporters said she was a shrewd choice, but others argued Palin has no business being a heartbeat away from the presidency. [...]The reaction wasn't so rosy elsewhere. State Senate President Lyda Green said she thought it was a joke when someone called her at 6 a.m. to give her the news.
"She's not prepared to be governor. How can she be prepared to be vice president or president?" said Green, a Republican from Palin's hometown of Wasilla. "Look at what she's done to this state. What would she do to the nation?"
Wait! That name! "Lyda Green... where have we heard that before? Oh, I remember now.
Well, when you think about it, when you're 72 it's a little hard to move fast.But Anchorage Democratic state Sen. Hollis French said it's a huge mistake by McCain and "reflects very, very badly on his judgment." French said Palin's experience running the state for less than two years hasn't prepared her for this.
Alaska Democratic Party chairwoman Patti Higgins, attending her party's national convention in Denver, said she was shocked to hear the news this morning.
"In this very competitive election for them to go pick somebody who is ... under a cloud of suspicion, who is under investigation for abuse of power. It just sounds like a pretty slow start to me," Higgins said.
By GottaLaff
What a mistake, indeed:
You gave the media what it always claims it wants: Surprises. Original thinking. News.Oh, pay no mind to them. She's a mother of 5 (did you know, for the umpteenth time, that she has a Down's Syndrome infant?), one of her kids is being shipped off to Iraq (did you know, for the umpteenth time, that it's on SEPTEMBER 11th?), she's commander in chief-ready (did you know, for the umpteenth time, that she's commander in chief of the Alaska National Guard?), and, for the umpteenth time, she's a hockey mom (did you know that was relevant?)!
What a mistake.
In trying to reclaim your maverick brand, you appear to have pushed an unknown, unformed and under-vetted politician onto the world's biggest political stage. [...]
Before noon Friday -- just after McCain grinned woodenly through Palin's coming-out rally in Ohio (Why did he keep fiddling with his fingers and wedding ring?) -- some of the nation's biggest news organizations had reporters winging to Anchorage and nearby Wasilla, the town Palin led as mayor just a couple of years ago.
Journalists' BlackBerrys buzzed with leads: What about that state trooper, her former brother-in-law, who Palin was accused of having fired? What about those charges from a local paper of cronyism in her career as a local politician?
But one person's solid conservatism -- opposing abortions, even in the cases of rape and incest; denying human contributions to global warming; supporting the teaching of creationism in public schools -- is another's extremism.Ooo, there's that nasty "extremism" word popping up again.
You have to wonder how deeply McCain's team delved into any of these issues, though, given that even political hands in her own state say they had no inkling she would be the vice presidential designee.Nobody ever said depth has been one of J Sid's strong suits.
Republicans peddled their deep respect and admiration for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (Wasn't she the GOP antichrist just a few weeks ago?) and said it was certain Clinton Democrats would want to support Palin.I hope neither of them uses the word "bitter". I hear that doesn't play well with some people.
That last tortured political construction was appearing more unlikely by midday Friday, when video surfaced of Palin calling the New York senator "a whiner."
You have to wonder why McCain went to such lengths to surprise the media and the world.
Operatives for two of the vice presidential also-rans -- Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty -- groused they had been "manipulated" and strung along to shroud the real choice.
But the wall-to-wall coverage seems grossly out of proportion to the significance of the office.And to the person in question.
By GottaLaff
Of all the introductions of the notables at the Tubbs Jones rites - Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown and Hillary Rodham Clinton, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and Cuyahoga County Commissioner Jimmy Dimora, among others - the loudest and longest round of applause went to Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.
By GottaLaff
Here are some excerpts from a piece in the L.A. Times. Personally, I'm not sure emphasizing small dead animals and thousands of antlers from larger dead animals is the way to appeal to Hillary supporters, although I could be wrong. Wink:
Born in Idaho, she moved as a baby to Alaska with her science teacher father and school secretary mother, part-time trappers who seemed to personify the quirky Alaska spirit. (Her father, Chuck, to a Vogue magazine reporter recently angling for an interview: "Come on over, unless you have a problem with small dead animals." The magazine reported that a thousand caribou antlers were piled near the driveway of their home.)Her dad teaches science. I guess he didn't teach Sarah Louise well enough. Now on to her governing style:
During her tenure, the flashes of the future governor arose: not terribly communicative, running a little roughshod.Great qualification for commander in chief, a job in which communication is obviously discouraged. Who needs clarity when it comes to global conflict? Or hasn't George W. Bush's term made that point strongly enough?
But he added that Palin has proved to be, as she was in Wasilla, "not a great communicator." She has alienated enough Republicans that "without a very large contingent of Democrats supporting her positions, she can't get anything accomplished," Harris said.Ringing endorsement. With every news tidbit, John Sidney McCain inspires more and more confidence in his judgment to make wise choices, whether it be in vice presidential picks or abysmal policies.
By GottaLaff
Palin has been my governor for two years now, and I'm worried about Sen. John McCain's judgment in picking her as his running mate.Some testimonial.
If the country could see Wasilla, the town of which she was mayor-- this job being half of her resume-- they would also question McCain's judgment.
I and most of my neighbors are absolutely stunned by this choice.
Wow, you know it's bad when you've lost Politico.
Presidential scholars say she appears to be the least experienced, least credentialed person to join a major-party ticket in the modern era.
So unconventional was McCain’s choice that it left students of the presidency literally “stunned,” in the words of Joel Goldstein, a St. Louis University law professor and scholar of the vice presidency. “Being governor of a small state for less than two years is not consistent with the normal criteria for determining who’s of presidential caliber,” said Goldstein.
“I think she is the most inexperienced person on a major party ticket in modern history,” said presidential historian Matthew Dallek.
(snip)
If elected vice president, Palin would appear to have the least amount of experience in federal office or as a governor since John W. Kern, Democrat William Jennings Bryan’s 1908 running mate, who had served for four years in the Indiana state Senate and then four more as city solicitor of Indianapolis. The Democratic ticket lost to Republican standard bearer William Howard Taft and running mate James S. Sherman by an Electoral College spread of 321-162.
(snip)
The first thing that hits me,” said Stephen Hess of the Brookings Institution," is that it suggests that John McCain is a gambler. This is a high roller decision.”
“The next thing you have to ask yourself: Is it worrisome to have a gambler in the Oval Office? That’s an important question," he said, “perhaps more important than anything else today.”
By GottaLaff
"What was he thinking??"Made my day.
Very surprised this is coming from Politico. Pretty much spot on, go read the explanations of the points here.
1. He’s desperate.
2. He’s willing to gamble — bigtime.
3. He’s worried about the political implications of his age.
4. He’s not worried about the actuarial implications of the age issue.
5. He’s worried about his conservative base.
6. At the end of the day, McCain is still McCain.
Every single person opining on or stumping for the Democrats should immediately remove the phrase "pro-life" from their vocabulary. The woman believes that a teenager raped by her father should be forced to give birth. Screw the life of a ravaged child for a mass of blastocytes. That's not pro-life.
Holy crap. Background here. But what did we expect?
UPDATE- We need to get this around- please reddit or digg it or whatever social bookmarking you do. More people (women) need to hear this. Just hit the share button right under this and submit it to one of many social bookmarking sites.
Spot on.
Female narrator, over dreary music: “Well, he’s made his choice. But, for the rest of us… there’s still no change. McCain doesn’t get it, calling this broken economy ‘strong.’ Wants to keep spending ten billion a month in Iraq.”
Then it shows McCain walking with Bush in the Rose Garden: “And votes with George 90 percent of the time.”
And McCain presenting Palin at their Ohio rally: “So, while this may be his running-mate…”
And Bush hugging McCain: “…America knows this is John McCain’s agenda.”
And a photo of the White House: “And we can’t afford four more years of the same.”
Then Obama says: “I’m Barack Obama. And I approve this message.”
It's started. That is what Joe Watkins just said to whoever the D talking head was just now on MSNBC. I wasn't really listening (sounded pretty pat up until then), but I caught that and then Contessa Brewer did the "Well, as a working mother myself...".
This is going to be tricky. They're using her uterus as a bludgeon.
Here's some stuff so you don't have to go hunting for it.
Sarah Palin was my mayor
How McCain picked Palin
McCain’s ‘Hail Sarah’ Pass
Palin Probe Could Mean Election-Eve Trouble for McCain
Sarah Palin
Some things you didn't know about Sarah Palin
Forbes.com claimed Palin "oppos[es]" earmarks -- but her administration said it requested them this year
Not very computer literate these people. Seems Sar was trying to clean up her Wikipedia page, hoping no one would notice. Stupid Googles.
Via the wonderful E&P. Ouch.
In fact, as the governor herself acknowledged in her acceptance speech, she never set out to be involved in public affairs. She has never publicly demonstrated the kind of interest, much less expertise, in federal issues and foreign affairs that should mark a candidate for the second-highest office in the land. Republicans rightfully have criticized the Democratic nominee, Sen. Barack Obama, for his lack of experience, but Palin is a neophyte in comparison; how will Republicans reconcile the criticism of Obama with the obligatory cheering for Palin?
Most people would acknowledge that, regardless of her charm and good intentions, Palin is not ready for the top job. McCain seems to have put his political interests ahead of the nation’s when he created the possibility that she might fill it.
By GottaLaff
On the Wonk Room, Ben Furnas reports that, ironically, Gov. Sarah Palin’s (R) financial portfolio is managed by none other than financial giant Smith Barney, which helped finance Enron Corp. The “reform-minded” Palin has now signed up to vouch for McCain’s Norquist agenda of $300 billion in tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy.What a find she is.
By GottaLaff
Pop quiz: Whose husband is a BP employee?BP's problems in Russia continued Friday.
A Russian environmental agency announced that it would inspect a large oil field in Siberia, the Samotlor, which is controlled by BP's joint venture, TNK-BP. The announcement came a day after Russian security authorities arrested a TNK-BP employee on charges of industrial espionage.
Since writing the above sentence, I went to Moscow Times and found the latest story is secret talks to hammer out a permanent deal. Interesting I'd find that headline today, of all days, because it sure wasn't looking good for the partnership before today.
The future of petroleum supply is the Arctic Circle, and most of that belongs to Russia. Palin and her BP-employed husband ought to particularly understand that. What makes no sense about this ticket is McCain's apparent desire to actively antagonize Russia, as he's done long before the recent events in the Caucasus (and before we found out about Scheunemann's lobbying for Georgia). I can only wonder what McCain's adviser-handlers are really up to, or if the team's incompetence really is worse than we thought.
By GottaLaff
"There was a slight look of revulsion on her face as McCain got closer to her. Of course, she could be pregnant again.... not by him of course!"
--Gore Vidal
By GottaLaff
The White House said Friday that President Bush will not attack Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama when the president speaks at the Republican convention on Monday because Bush has "got class."So that's what he has got.
By GottaLaff
(Relevant quote at about 2:50. She apparently likes the word "cool")
Sarah might want to do a little research:
Before we get to complacent, remember: Dan Quayle won.In general, when someone applies for a job, they know what it is. If someone offers you a job, they will hopefully be able to explain to you what your duties are, if you didn't know already.
I bring this up because last month Sarah Palin said:"As for that VP 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 VP does every day?"Some people think the Democrats should be worried about Palin as a pick. But me, I have to wonder: if John McCain still can't count houses, and Sarah Palin doesn't know what she'll do with her days if she wins, how worried should we be?
By GottaLaff Here's another scathing assessment (Republicans are not happy): I think it's an unserious -- even fairly offensive -- choice. McCain isn't even officially his party's nominee yet, and he's already treating his presumptive office with disdain, and making executive decisions that seem like they've been phoned in or made in a panic. Don't tell me it's his "brave" choice because she's a woman -- the Republican Party has many women more qualified for the Vice Presidency. I don't agree with them on issues, but they'd be more qualified. This choice is indeed akin to choosing Quayle -- it smacks of choosing someone because they won't get in the way, or because all the other potential candidates were too personally threatening. It's just a bad choice, period.
And here are some bonus quotes, kids!
Via an e-mail from Jeff Stein (can't link, I don't know his sources):
And from a March 2007article in Alaska Business Monthly:ABM: We've lost a lot of Alaska's military members to the war in Iraq. How do you feel about sending more troops into battle, as President Bush is suggesting?
Palin: I've been so focused on state government, I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq.
.jpg)
