By GottaLaff
Dozens of protesters held signs Saturday criticizing Gov. Sarah Palin for turning away federal economic stimulus money they said is vital for education and other services for Alaskans."Mama Grizzly, you forgot your cub," said one sign.
"We need a governor, not a presidential candidate," said another.
She's miserable at both, and she's rarely visible in her own state, so really, what's the difference?
Many asked for money to fund building projects, or urged passage of particular bills.
But the dominant issue was Palin's purported rejection of $288 million, or 31 percent of the $931 million the state is eligible to receive under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Palin supporters and her budget director, Karen Rehfeld would have none of that! And by "that", I'm referring to the accusations and the protests.
In fact, the administration hasn't yet rejected a single dollar of the stimulus funding, Rehfeld said in an interview from Juneau on Saturday.
She sent an e-mail Friday to all legislators promising that state agencies "will continue to complete the necessary paperwork and applications and meet the specific deadlines" to collect all the stimulus money pending a public debate on whether to keep it. [...]
Some Democrats have accused the Republican governor, who ran for vice president last year and could be a presidential candidate in 2012, of turning away the stimulus money to raise her star with conservatives.
Grabby McLimelight? Ambitious? Really? Why, that's preposterous!
Palin aides and supporters, however, say she just wants a good public discussion -- a "timeout," as Palin called it Thursday -- on the merits of taking certain money related to schools, energy programs and social services. [...]
Nearly everyone who testified at Saturday's hearing urged the lawmakers to do what they can to snag all the stimulus dollars.
Legislators have the power to seek any money that Palin rejects, though the governor retains veto power on whatever projects the legislators try to fund.
I'm picturing Grabby wearing a little moose-hide holster that she had custom designed to hold her very own, very special, dyed-to-match veto pen.
She sees a lot of things that don't really exist... like the word "president" preceding her name.Deanna Youngren, a special education teacher at Hanshew Middle School, told legislators the students need the federal dollars.
"I'm really concerned that our governor has chosen to pander to her political pipe dream as opposed to ..." Applause in the Anchorage Assembly chamber, filled beyond capacity, drowned out the rest of her statement. [...]
Rep. Les Gara, D-Anchorage, said Palin "got some really bad advice" on the stimulus money."She's seeing strings attached that really don't exist," he said.
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