Yoo claims he ‘helped save Obama’s presidency’

By GottaLaff

Yoo gotta be kidding!

In an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal Wednesday titled "My Gift to the Obama Presidency," Yoo declared that he "may have just helped save [Obama's] presidency. How? By winning a drawn-out fight to protect his powers as commander in chief to wage war and keep Americans safe."

First John McCain claims Obama suspended his 2008 campaign, too.

Then someone on ClusterFox blames Obama for Nevada's domestic violence.

Now this? Concocting legal justification for abuse of power, and abuse of humans, is nothing to boast about, Sparky. And the only think you've managed to save is your own ass.

Yet another WTF moment. Welcome to Opposite World.

Federal Judge: Arpaio shredded controversial documents

By GottaLaff

Just the latest in a series of articles that illustrate what a peach Sheriff Joe is:

The police chief in Maricopa County Arizona, Joe Arpaio, could be sanctioned by a federal judge after checking that the controversial sheriff's office shredded documents related to a lawsuit that accused him of racial discrimination.

District Judge of the United States, Murray Snow said there was enough evidence to punish Arpaio, known as "the toughest sheriff in U.S.

All previous posts on Arpaio here.

H/t: Tiggrr1

Hey Dude

By GottaLaff

To the tune of "Hey Jude":

Hey Dude,
You made it worse.
Shared your wife's job
So you both blew it.

The Quitter who took you into her heart
Had a brain fart
And you both knew it, knew it, knew it, knew it!

Nearly 3,000 pages of e-mails "draw a picture of a Palin administration where the governor's husband got involved in a judicial appointment, monitored contract negotiations with public employee unions, received background checks on a corporate CEO, added his approval or disapproval to state board appointments and passed financial information marked 'confidential' from his oil company employer to a state attorney."

First Dude, you and the wife be in a heap o' trouble.

Other revelations from the emails:

• Palin "coached her staff on how to disguise the amount of electrical work needed at the mansion to hook up her new tanning bed."
• Palin and her staff "stewed over the refusal of the state Public Safety Department to provide a plane so the children could fly to Todd's family's home in Dillingham."
• A Palin aide searched for a public event to use as justification -- "I just need one" -- to charge the state for an airplane flight for Palin's daughter.

Ethics McWhoMe? was the very same person who vehemently denied ethics abuse/abuse of power charges, remember?

Dudes! WTF?

"Everything I do, I just assume it will be used against me."

By GottaLaff

All my previous posts about Sheriff Lunatic here.

You should really go read the whole thing. Here are some excruciating excerpts:

As conflicts between Maricopa County's Board of Supervisors and the sheriff and county attorney escalated in 2009, rank-and-file county employees were plunged into a yearlong emotional roller coaster. [...]

The grand jury is looking into allegations of abuse of power by Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his chief deputy, David Hendershott, in their dealings with judges and county officials.

Now, as they wait to see what will happen, a cross-section of county employees spoke with The Arizona Republic [...] [R]unaway fears were such that they worried that Arpaio's deputies would come after them as well.

And how fearful were they?

Unsure what or whom to believe, many county workers quit talking about sensitive matters on the telephone or in e-mails, even when using their personal home computers.

Conversation in hallways and elevators stopped.

Some feared they would be arrested while pulling into the same parking garage where deputies took Supervisor Don Stapley into custody.

Others worried that even minor infractions - a chipped windshield, having a beer before driving home after work - would be an excuse for deputies to pull them over or arrest them.

One Superior Court judge moved meetings with her staff and other judges to the chamber restroom, believing it would be a less likely spot for a listening device.

Not enough for you?

One employee was so rattled she could barely speak.

Oh, it gets worse:

Isham told his wife to be careful. No U-turns. Never leave the kids in the car when returning videos. Who knows what they might call child endangerment?

Budget supervisor, Ryan Wimmer:

"Everything I do," he said, "I just assume it will be used against me."

Let's hope all of this will be used successfully against Sheriff Lunatic. This is beyond belief.

H/t: Tiggrr1

First Bush, Now Palin Get(s) Motivated!

By GottaLaff

Barbie McLip$chmutz i$ jumping right into the How to Alienate Friend$ and Influence Moron$ pool:

Sarah Palin has joined the Get Motivated! speaking series, joining former President Bush as a previous speaker for the organization. Her topics:

• How to Successfully Manage and Balance Your Personal and Professional Priorities
• How to Overcome Obstacles with Creative Solutions
• The Secrets to Effective Decision-Making
• How to Have Grace Under Fire
• How to Become a Person of Influence

Let's take these one by one:

--Balancing personal and professional priorities is a snap for Barbie. She gave up reading, motherhood, and governing her own state to become a vice presidential candidate. Next.

--To get around legal findings, Barbie relied on Republican appointees and her usual doubletalk, as well as a spokesperson... and 3 words: Deny, deny, deny.

I have two words of my own: Section IV. From the TrooperGate report:

For the reasons explained in section IV of this report, I find that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 2952.110(a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.

--Barbie is good at one thing: Deciding to quit. And that's exactly what she did when she failed to show up for numerous engagements, quit her own vacation, and of course, when she abandoned her own state by blowing off her governorship.

--As for "grace" under fire, the time she got punk'd is the only time I remember Barbs showing a modicum of presence of what passes for a mind. Most of the time, she's been too busy accusing others of pallin' around with terrorists and arranging death panels, among many other things. That's anything but gracious.

--I'll give her this: She does have influence... on horny punditiots and weak-minded wannabes. The rest of us have somehow managed to avoid her lure. Or lore. Or lair. Or liar.

If anything, we're motivated to run in the opposite direction.

VIDEO: Sheriff Joe Arpaio investigated by grand jury, officials confirm

By GottaLaff



Maybe the eventual legal consequences will include a mandatory pink underwear prison wardrobe (one can only imagine the malfunctions):

Two Maricopa County executives said Thursday they will appear before a federal grand jury next week to testify about allegations that Sheriff Joe Arpaio
and others in his office have abused their power.

County Manager David Smith and Deputy County Manager Sandi Wilson said they met with representatives from the U.S. Attorney's Office on Wednesday to prepare for the grand jury.

Previous posts on this stellar example of law enforcement:

Sheriff Joe Arpaio Forces Woman to Give Birth While Shackled

VIDEO: Sheriff Joe Arpaio could be next Arizona governor?

Sheriff Arpaio Watch: Activist's Letter of Disgust to Eric Holder's DOJ Investigators

H/t: Tiggrr1

New Taser device can shock 3 people without reload

Noooo, no possibility of abuse here. Pam's been chronicling the previous instances of abuse here.

FOUNTAIN HILLS, Ariz.---- Taser International has introduced its first new stun gun since 2003: a device capable of shocking three people without being reloaded.

"This is as big a step as when firearms went from a muzzle loader to the revolver," company CEO Rick Smith said. "If I was a cop, I'd want to carry one."

(snip)

The new device was unveiled Monday at the Scottsdale-based company's annual conference with a demonstration by Smith and his brother, Taser International Chairman Tom Smith. Hundreds of law enforcement officers applauded after watching the two fire rounds of barbed wire at metal targets.

Fred Cheatham, an officer with Escondido police in California, said the new Taser seemed bulky but he liked that it could be fired three times without reloading.

"I can see a lot of applications for that," Cheatham said.

Added- Two items down in my RSS feed, "Police use Taser on deaf and disabled man".

Assailin' Palin: Sarah receives deluge of ethics complaints

By GottaLaff

You can hear my sorry excuse for a Palin impression if you catch My Tweet Spot on Jim Alger's radio show, "Common Sense", Friday (assuming there are no glitches). I'm all a-Twitter (pun intended) and really nervous, even though it's pre-recorded.

Anyway, here's a little something about the real Sarah (if, indeed, there is such a thing):

Since entering the national spotlight, Palin has been inundated by ethics complaints, most of them filed against her after she agreed to become Sen. John McCain’s running mate.

The complaints run the gamut, ranging from the governor’s use of state funds and staff to the workings of her political action committee and even to a jacket she wore to a snow machine race involving her husband.

It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly how many complaints have been filed because the state doesn’t keep count and the complaints are kept confidential by the attorney general’s office unless the state moves forward with a public accusation of wrongdoing. But in total there have been more than a dozen, and most of those have surfaced in the last seven months.

Now does that sound like someone America would want in public office? Heck no, also too moreover.

“As we've been saying, the number of ethics complaints filed against the governor and her staff — as well as the tortured logic they contain — continue to constitute the most disturbing trend in Alaska politics,” said Palin spokeswoman Sharon Leighow in a recent statement after one ostensibly confidential complaint was sent to the Anchorage Daily News and other news outlets.

That is so funny, because, see, I've was just thinking how Sarah Palin is the disturbing trend in politics.

“In the past several months, we have seen an orchestrated effort by the governor’s opponents to make differences of opinion and ideology almost criminal,” said Mike Nizich, the governor’s chief of staff, in a statement. “Governor Palin has spent a considerable amount of time and money fighting ethics complaints – and no charge has been substantiated. I hope that the publicity-seekers will face a backlash from Alaskans who have a sense of fair play and proportion. I served six previous governors, and I’ve never seen anything like the attacks against Gov. Palin.”

Isn't that precious how they're wishing bad things on fellow Americans? Is that what Palin means by "mavericky"?

Many of Palin's opponents have taken advantage of the low bar for filing and used it as a license to highlight their grievances with the governor.

“The number of complaints is a function of the misconduct of Governor Palin, Todd Palin and certain state workers,” said self-described government watchdog Andrée McLeod, who has filed four complaints alone. “Governor Palin constantly blurs the lines between her personal and political interests and the interests of Alaska and Alaskans. Alaskans are fed up and are finally doing something about it.”

There ya go. Those are the real mavericks. Ooo! Ooo! Idea! Let's elect all of them to office.

Bob Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies, a California-based think tank that studies government reform and campaign finance issues, noted that Palin’s high-profile may be generating the extra scrutiny since Alaska’s ethics laws aren’t all that different than many other states.

That must be it. It's her high profile-itude that's the culprit. Breaching ethics has nothing to do with it.

The business of defending against the claims has been expensive. In late April, Palin was forced to form a legal defense fund in an effort to pay for more than $500,000 in legal debts accrued by the governor — though much of it stems from the “Troopergate” episode surrounding her attempts to fire a state trooper who was once married to her sister.

"Over the past months it became increasingly clear that supporters of Gov. Palin needed to help defend against the onslaught of frivolous attacks against her,” said Trustee Kristan Cole, a Wasilla native and Palin friend, in a statement. “These baseless accusations are designed to inhibit her ability to focus on the issues Alaskans truly care about and force massive personal debt on her and her family.”

Blame the accusers. Blame her high profile. Blame the motive. But whatever you do, don't blame Pitiful Palin for her abuse of power.

Jon Stewart Has The Power

I didn't even realize this! Chris has been shilling his new book on MSNBC lately, and I thought it was just that, his new book. Oops, guess not.

Remember when Chris Matthews was on "The Daily Show" and Jon Stewart roasted him for the title of his then-new book, Life's a Campaign? "No, it's not," Jon told him, and the segment turned into what Matthews later called "the book interview from hell," or something like that. Well, the book is finally just out in paperback and, lo and behold, Chris has changed the title! To The Hardball Handbook.

HA! Via Greg.

Jane Harman: Release alleged calls, uncensored; "This abuse of power is outrageous"

By GottaLaff

Jane Harman calls their bluff:

Rep. Jane Harman (D) today sent Attorney General Eric Holder a letter demanding that any transcripts of intercepted calls be released -- uncensored -- so that she can verify her claim that she never discussed a quid-pro-quo deal, as has been alleged by CQ and the New Times.

She also wants an investigation into NSA intercepts of members of Congress -- and what she calls "selective leaks."[...]

Here's her letter...

Dear General Holder:

I am outraged to learn from reports leaked to the media over the last several days that the FBI or NSA secretly wiretapped my conversations in 2005 or 2006 while I was Ranking Member on the House Intelligence Committee.

This abuse of power is outrageous and I call on your Department to release all transcripts and other investigative material involving me in an unredacted form. It is my intention to make this material available to the public.

I also urge you to take appropriate steps to investigate possible wiretapping of other Members of Congress and selective leaks of investigative material which can be used for political purposes. As you know, it is entirely appropriate to converse with advocacy organizations and constituent groups, and I am concerned about a chilling effect on other elected officials who may find themselves in my situation.

Let me be absolutely clear: I never contacted the Department of Justice, the White House or anyone else to seek favorable treatment regarding the national security cases on which I was briefed, or any other cases. You may be aware that David Szady, the FBI's former top counterintelligence official, is quoted in the media saying of me "…in all my dealings with her, she was always professional and never tried to intervene or get in the way of any investigation."

Sincerely,
JANE HARMAN

Get out the Kleenex: Sarah Palin's Legal Bills Pile Up

By GottaLaff

Anchorage Daily News is reporting that Sarah Palin is in debt up to her earmarks... but c'mon! None of this is her fault! It's a witch hunt, that's what it is! And... and... ::sniffle:: now how's she supposed to ::snerfle:: come up with all that money to pay off her legal fees? Waaah!

Gov. Sarah Palin owes more than a half million dollars to an Anchorage law firm that has defended her against ethics complaints, and she may create a legal fund to pay the bill, she said Friday.

Legal bills have mounted fighting complaints that she called partisan, false and frivolous, starting with "the politically motivated Troopergate probe," Palin said in a written response to questions.

She said the legal bills all stem from her actions as governor.

"I must defend against these baseless ethics accusations out of my own pocket as the use of public monies to do so could itself violate state law," Palin wrote.

"On August 29, it seems the political landscape changed in Alaska. Now, it seems in order to do this job as Governor, with the political blood sport some are playing today, only the independently wealthy or those willing to spend their income on legal fees to defend their official actions in office ... can serve," Palin said in the written response to Daily News questions.

On Friday in the written statement, attorney Thomas Van Flein wouldn't give a precise number but said it was "a substantial debt." Palin said she didn't have an exact figure yet but "the debt is over a half a million dollars." [...]

In all, Palin said, there have been 10 ethics complaints, counting Troopergate, though she did not provide a list. [...] Out of the 10 complaints, Palin said six have been dismissed, one had "concluded," and three are pending. [...]

Palin made $131,891 last year, counting her $125,000 salary and expense payments she collects when she's away from Juneau, according to the disclosure. Todd Palin made $86,150 from his two jobs, as a commercial fisherman and a BP production operator.

"Obviously we cannot afford to personally pay these bills -- and really no future governor should feel the sense of financial vulnerability at the hands of those with a political vendetta bent on personal destruction," Palin wrote. "Some have suggested a legal fund to pay these bills. We'll have to pursue that."

Sporst Illustrated: "There is something masterful about Todd Palin"

By GottaLaff

That romantic, starry-eyed Sports Illustrated! Every month a new infatuation, the little strumpets:

[A]s part of SI's web "bonus," the venerable sports mag featured a profile of Todd Palin and his participation in Alaska's annual Iron Dog--a snowmachine endurance race through the frozen western half of the state billed as the "toughest in the world." [...]

In his article, "The 'First Dude' in His Element," Donahue proclaims:

There is something masterful about Todd Palin. He is almost invariably calm, and he is handsome and rock-steady in an affable, unobtrusive way. He is the perfect political husband.

Donahue was clearly taken by Palin and his partner, Scott Davis, referring to their "lean, gym-sculpted physiques."

Gives the term "snowmachine endurance" a whole new meaning.

But S.I.'s crush is superficial. They, as so many blinded by lust do, ignore what lies beneath Todd's big, bad, macho six-packy surface.

They skip right over this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, and this.

In spite of those remarkable holes in his coverage, Donahue does allow that there's "a political resonance to the whole [Iron Dog] scene."

On two race sleds are bumper stickers reading AMERICA. LOVE IT, DEFEND IT, OR GET THE HELL OUT. On another there's a mock ALASKA TERRORIST HUNTING PERMIT, good through 2050, with the license number 9-11-01. Tina Fey is not here amid the wafting aroma of two-stroke motor oil. Neither is Michelle Obama.

[...] When Sarah Palin was named John McCain's running mate, husband Todd was heralded as a "world champion" athlete. Donahue's description of the Iron Dog reveals it for what it is, something closer akin to a long-distance motorcycle poker run, with a handful of requisite rest stops along the way, during which the contestants eat hardy meals, refuel, sleep in warm beds and, that's right, even shower along the way.

It's quite a cast, but World Class athletes? [...] [I]t looks more like a slow-pitch softball team to me--or something that belongs on the wall of the local post office.

(go here for an interactive look, or click on image to enlarge)

Sigh. Ain't puppy love grand? Then again, familiarity breeds contempt.

Rachel Maddow Show - Salon's Glenn Greenwald On Dick Cheney

Yeah Glenn!!!

Bristol's fiance Levi's (illegal?) apprenticeship raises questions about Palin

By GottaLaff

Can this family avoid scandal for even one lousy day? Happy New Year, Palins/Johnstons:

An Alaska talk show host and frequent critic of Gov. Sarah Palin claims in a column in the Anchorage Daily News that an apprenticeship Palin said her daughter's boyfriend is serving in Alaska's North Slope violates federal regulations.

Dan Fagan, who also publishes a Web site, thealaskastandard.com, said Levi Johnston's reported service as an electrical apprentice on Alaska's North Slope while he is enrolled in correspondence courses to complete high school violates federal regulations, which require a high school diploma.

Here are excerpts from Dan Fagan's piece:

Have you noticed how our governor seems to have convinced herself only some of the rules apply to her?

This attitude was really at the heart of Troopergate. It also allows her to do things like take cash from the state for spending more than 300 nights in her own home in Wasilla.

Now it appears the governor may have found a new way to skirt the rules. How is it possible that the governor's soon-to-be son-in-law, Levi Johnston, is working as an apprentice on the North Slope?

The governor, in trying to dispel rumors the father of her grandchild is a high school dropout, released this statement this past week [...]

You can read my original post about that here.

But federal regulations require all members of apprentice programs, union or otherwise, to first obtain a high school diploma, something the governor's soon-to-be son-in- law does not have. [...]

Bo Underwood, who heads up ASRC's electrical apprentice program, confirmed Johnston is indeed enrolled as an apprentice. Underwood claimed not to know whether a high school diploma is needed to be an ASRC apprentice and said he would check on it. But federal regulations clearly state a high school diploma is needed before entering an electrical workers apprentice program. How is it the man who runs the program does not know that?

Underwood also claimed not to know whether there is a waiting list for the ASRC apprentice program he runs.

As the McClatchy piece asks, how did Baby Daddy Levi get into the apprenticeship program if similar programs have long waiting lists?

Rebecca Logan, executive director of Associated Builders and Contractors, an organization that also has an electrical workers apprentice program, says waiting lists always accompany apprenticeship programs. Her organization's electrical apprentice program, one of only three in the state, has a waiting list of at least 100 people.

Favoritism? Linked to Grandma DimBulb? What?! Nevah! That would be-- Oh, what's that word again? Oh yes-- unethical.

Did Levi Johnston bypass the rules to get into a coveted program because of his soon-to-be mother-in-law? We don't know the governor's involvement. Eventually she will have to address the controversy.

Yeah, 'cause she's always been so good about doing that. Dream on, Fagan.

I believe 2009 will be the year more and more Alaskans will come to realize Sarah Palin is in way over her head as governor, doesn't always play by the rules, and is, at times, less than honest.

It would be about time. They're way-y-y behind the rest of us.

A poll commissioned by TheAlaskaStandard.com and conducted by Dittman Research shows the governor is losing some of her appeal. When respondents were asked whom they would vote for between Lisa Murkowski and Sarah Palin in a 2010 race for the Senate, an overwhelming number said Murkowski. According to the poll, Murkowski would beat Palin by a margin of 56 percent to 23 percent.

I sense slippage. Do you sense slippage? Say, around 33%'s worth? Now about 2010:

That's the year TransCanada will hold its open season. Chances producers will commit hundreds of billions of dollars to ship gas through the TransCanada pipeline instead of their own; I'd say 1 in 10.

Meaning AGIA. will be exposed for the silly policy it is several months before the governor is up for re-election.

Chances Palin is elected to a second term as governor, I'd say 3 in 10.

Schadenfreude? Priceless.

Palin around with abuse of power

By GottaLaff

Pitiful Palin could be in a heap-o'-trouble if Alaskans for Truth get their way. They're an awesomely wonderful group that includes many Mudflatters, Celtic Divas, Shannyn Moorers, and Motley Meese. More power to 'em:

[A] group led at least partly by left-leaning bloggers and that staged a big anti-Palin rally during the election - Alaskans for Truth - is calling on the Legislature to run with the Legislative Council's "Troopergate" report, which found Palin abused her power. (As opposed to the conflicting Personnel Board investigation, that cleared her.)

The group calls on lawmakers to:

-- Censure Palin.
-- Seek contempt charges against Todd Palin and state officials "who willingly ignored the Legislative Council's subpoenas during the investigation."
-- Hold hearings on whether the governor and Todd Palin committed perjury in their statements to the Personnel Board's investigator.
-- Investigate whether Attorney General Talis Colberg committed witness tampering.

Also.

Dear Editor:

By GottaLaff

The L.A. Times letter-writers do it again:

Which is more offensive, a McCain supporter's opinion that to be Kansan-Kenyan is to be Arab, or McCain's opinion that being Arab is an accusation to be defended with the words "No, no ma'am. He's a decent family man"?

Next:

Palin has a lot of nerve trying to influence the firing of public employees. Who does she think she is, the U.S. attorney general?

Zing!

VIDEO-- IWRC* Palin: Gramm-pa McCain will end ‘abuses of power’ in Washington.

By GottaLaff


Hahaha! Ohhhhahahahaa ::deep breath:: haaahahahahahaaa! Whew! Wow.

Two words: Section IV. From the TrooperGate report:

For the reasons explained in section IV of this report, I find that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 2952.110(a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.

*"In What Respect, Charlie?"

IWRC* Palin jumps the shark

By GottaLaff

Via Mudflats, we see that IWRC* Palin inhabits her own planet, a planet of one:

Here is the transcript of a five minute conference call with Sarah Palin, Meg Stapleton, the Anchorage Daily News, and local TV stations KTVA, and KTUU. The journalists got one question each with no follow up. [...] [It comes] after the Branchflower Report on the Troopergate investigation was released, stating that she had abused her power as governor. As a matter of fact, let’s review Finding Number One as it is written:

“For the reasons explained in section IV of the report, I find that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.11(a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.

“The legislature reaffirms that each public officer holds office as a public trust, and any effort to benefit a personal or financial interest through official action is a violation of that trust.”

Remember, that the Legislative Council, made up of TEN Republicans and FOUR Democrats voted unanimously to begin the investigation, and unanimously to release the results of the investigation. Continuing with the transcript (emphasis is Mudflats'):

Stapleton: Sure governor, go ahead.

Palin: OK cool.

Well, I’m very very pleased to be cleared of any legal wrongdoing … any hint of any kind of unethical activity there. Very pleased to be cleared of any of that. Todd did what anyone would have done given this state trooper’s very, very troubling behavior and his dangerous threats against our family. Todd did what I think any Alaskan would do.

And he, Todd did what the state’s Department of Law Web site tells anyone to do if they have a concern about a state trooper. And that’s you go to the commissioner and you express your concern. And Todd did what our personal detail asked him to do. Bob Cockrell early on as I was elected and was asked are there any threats against ya, and Todd brought the concern as I did to Commissioner Monegan about the state trooper’s threats. He did what any – I think — any rational person would do so again, nothing to apologize there with Todd’s actions and again very pleased to be cleared of any legal wrongdoing.

(Stapleton invites the first question).

ADN: Governor, finding No.1 on the report was that you abused your power by violating state law. Do you think you did anything wrong at all in this Troopergate case?

Palin: Not at all and I’ll tell you, it, I think that you’re always going to ruffle feathers as you do what you believe is in the best interest of the people whom you are serving. In this case I knew that I had to have the right people in the right position at the right time in this cabinet to best serve Alaskans, and Walt Monegan was not the right person at the right time to meet the goals that we had set out in our administration. So no, not having done anything wrong, and again very much appreciating being cleared of any legal wrongdoing or unethical activity at all.

ADN: Have you read the whole report? (No response; Stapleton invites question from KTVA reporter).

KTVA-Channel 11: … The report that came out yesterday, do you think that the end result is partisan?

Palin: Yeah, I did think it did turn into a partisan circus to tell you the truth. Yes I did. You know from Day One it’s been the Personnel Board that clearly laid out in state statute there — Personnel Board deals with any issue of question regarding a governor, a lieutenant governor or an attorney general in the state of Alaska. What this legislative investigation — quote unquote — turned into was a political circus.

KTUU-Channel 2: Governor, so good to hear from you. Do you approve of the way that your campaign has handled themselves here in Alaska? We’ve had a lot of people voice concerns about what they call attacks of good people in our state while you are away.

Palin: Well I haven’t heard of any attacks on good people in Alaska from our campaign. If you have specifics there, maybe I could answer specifically. But no, in John McCain’s mission here, in taking the high road, as you’re going to see too with a lot of unfair shots he has taken in this campaign with some of his opponents’ supporters, McCain and I taking the high road, being positive. I wouldn’t support nor would I condone taking shots at any good Alaskans.

KTUU-Channel 2: Let me answer your question since you asked for specifics.

Palin: Sure.

KTUU-Channel 2: Walt Monegan was called “rogue.” How do you feel about that?

Palin: Rogue isn’t a negative term when you consider that in a cabinet you need a team effort going forward with a governor’s agenda. And our agenda has been to find efficiencies in every department and make sure that we are serving the people of Alaska to the best of our ability given the resources that we have. And remember I fought very hard to increase funding for state troopers so that we could fill positions there and goals not being met that included not being able to recruit and retain all the state troopers that I wanted to best serve Alaska. That could be characterized I think as a cabinet member who – it’s not a negative term I think — being rogue in terms of not meeting those goals.

Palin: Hey, thank you so, Meg. Thank you so much. Thank you also to our local reporters up there in Alaska. Even hearing your names make me feel like I’m right there with you at home. It’s good to get to speak with you. Let me talk a little bit about the Tasergate issue if you guys would let me and, Meg, you want me to just jump right on in there?

The shark has been jumped.

So let’s recap. The report states she has abused her power as governor, and she’s really glad she’s done nothing wrong. Todd did what any “Alaskan” would do. She thinks the mostly Republican legislative council has turned into a partisan circus, but she hasn’t heard anything about attacks on anyone in Alaska from her campaign. The McCain campaign is taking the high road and being positive. And being a rogue cop isn’t a bad thing. Any questions?

If you want to read Lisa Demer’s full account, and hear the interview in the Governor’s own voice: CLICK HERE.

*"In What Respect, Charlie?"

IWRC* Palin: "You got to read the report, sir."

By GottaLaff

How folksy! IWRC* Palin is using the same clumsy grammar as W. (Once again, Bush III) "You got to"; how quaint. But what's even more Bushtastic is her lapsing right into denial and cherry-picking, resulting in a warped interpretation of events, just like her role model:

Sarah Palin on Saturday denied abusing her power or violating state law in the dismissal of Alaska’s Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan, putting her at odds with the findings of a state ethics report that determined she did abuse her power as governor.

As the Republican vice presidential nominee departed her Pittsburgh hotel on Saturday morning, a reporter asked Palin if she abused her power in firing Monegan, which was the conclusion of the state investigator's report released late Friday.

“No, and if you read the read the report you will see that there was nothing unlawful or unethical about replacing a cabinet member," Palin responded before boarding her campaign bus. "You got to read the report, sir."

Here's the thing, IWRC, you are allowed to "replace" someone as governor. But according to the report we "got to read", you are not allowed to do this:

"Gov. Palin knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda," the report states.

IWRC, you got to go.

*"In What Respect, Charlie?"

Can IWRC* Palin wink her way out of this one?

By GottaLaff

(sorry to keep using this photo, but it always seems to fit the posts)

The news about Alaska panel finding that IWRC* Palin abused her power in firing Walt Monegan was a Friday night drop. But it wasn't too late to make it to Rachel Maddow's show, Larry King, and others.

Over the weekend, it will brew, or stew, or smolder, or whatever culinary term we can think of. There are still e-mails to be examined, and details of TrooperGate to be discovered, studied, and rehashed by the media.

There aren't that many days left until November 4th. This was great timing. And all the "you betchas" and winks in the world can't deflect this one.

As I type this, Larry King just announced the Gramm-pa McCain Official Spin:

The governor acted properly, blah blah, but it was a partisan inquiry run by Obama supporters, blahblah. The Legislative Council overreached, made a tortured argument, blahblah. Palin will continue to cooperate.

Continue to cooperate?

Oh, and it's all Obama's fault. He's a terrorist, he held her at knife point and he made her do it.

*"In What Respect, Charlie?"