Troopergate continues!! The scandal that just won't die!

[exlrrp]

The scandal that just won't die!! Obama is right---you can't make this stuff up!! And its fun to follow it along---in the Anchorage Daily News they have a whole section on it that covers it from the beginning: http://www.adn.com/troopergate/index.html Its great, gives you the whole overlook by the local paper. And a terific video showing all of Palin's flipflops and retractions.

Well, well, well, this is getting to be quite the soap opera. Just telling the tale gets long.
To start with, there was a real low class type who was also an Alaskan State trooper, one Michael Wooton (who was NOT a Democrat or liberal, definitely)

Wooten got in a very acrimonious divorce from Sarah Palin's sister. Palin and her family, including her husband Todd, then began a long cascade of complaints against Wooten in just about every arena. It was real nasty, so nasty the judge in the divorce case ordered them to stop it: "Disparaging will not be tolerated—it is a form of child abuse," the judge told a settlement hearing in October 2005," http://news.uk.msn.com/newsweek.aspx...mentid=9532055

That badmouthing went on though and retaliation attempts went on also. Palin and her family tired to get Wooten fired every which way they could, including lobbying Walt Monegan, the AlaskaCommissioner of Public safety, Wooten's boss. There's too much evidence of this to go into here--read the articles in the ADN. But there certainly was a long and extended campign to get him fired, incuding illegally acessing his personnel file.

Palin fired Monegan, he says for not firing Wooten. She says not, she wanted the dept to go in another direction. But the guy she hired, Chuck Kopp, was a repriimanded sexual harasser, so she had to let hiim go two weeks later. http://www.adn.com/news/politics/story/475539.html This says a lot about Repulican vetting procedures.

The Republican controlled Alaskan legislature wanted an investigation of Monegan's firing and its legislative comittee (8 Repubulicans and 4 Democrats) started one by hiring a private investigator http://www.adn.com/legislature/story/471366.html http://www.adn.com/monegan/story/478090.html

Initially Sarah Palin agreed enthusiastically to participate in the investigation. The ADN has a nice video of her right here http://www.adn.com/troopergate/index.html where you can hear and see her saying: " I will fully cooperate with any investigation...... I have nothing to hide....I look forward to any kind of investigation...I want them to ask me questions...Hold me accountable!....this all happened before I was governor...no one from my administration made any contact with (Monegan) about trooper Wooten..." [Quotes all taken from video]

Within days Palin was retracting and backpedaling. Turns out the committee had dozens of emails and records of phone calls between Monegan and members of the Palin family and members of her staff like Frank Bailey. It turns out that Bailey DID call Wooten and demand Monegan be fired with Palin's apparent backing and it was recorded. --the recording is on the video. "...Palin says she never asked Bailey to make the call, which she called "just wrong." ..."

And so is Palin's retraction where she states that the committee has the emails and that Frank Bailey was suspended from duty (he's back now, after paid leave)http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/539516.html Bailey claimed that Palin NEVER told him to do this. (Question---why was a public employee so involved in Palin's sister's divorce?)

The world changed for Sarah Palin when McCAin named her as his veep----and so did her atttitude about this investigation as the video quoted makes clear.

Immediately Alaska was flooded with high paid Washington lawyers trying to get the investigation blocked. The first thing that happened was that suit was filed by 5 Alaska Repulican legislators represented by "The Texas-based Liberty Legal Institute" to block the investigation claiming bias. this suit was rejected in court: http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/544566.html

All of Palin's staff refused to cooperate with the legislative investigator, evidently on advice of the Attorney Genral ( A PALIN APPOINTEE!!!) Palin now insists thhat the correct place for this investigation is by the State personnel board { ALL Palin appointees!!} where it will be private----this after calling for transparency, which you can hear in the video. its welll explained here: http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/535188.html "Of the two Alaska investigations into abuse-of-power allegations against Sarah Palin, the governor has chosen to cooperate with just one: the one that guarantees secrecy...."

So much for "hold me acccountable" She wants the "investigation" to be done by people she appointed---AND HAVE IT DONE IN SECRET!! So much for the transparency she claims to want. "Less than a week after balking at the Legislature's investigation into her alleged abuse of power, Gov. Sarah Palin on Monday indicated she will cooperate with a separate probe run by people she can fire...." http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/534119.html

The bipartisan legislative comittee then subpoenaed 13 individuals, including Palin's husband Todd. All of them have, so far, refused to apppear. Apparently on the advice of the AG Colberg, who also filed suit to block the investigation. This was also rejected by the court.

I've had to skip a whole lot---its a terrific story: family vendettas, The Sister In Law From Hell, deniakls and retractions. Read the whole Anchorage Daily News series---its local coverage, the biggest paper in ALaska.

Where it stands now is this: the big news was that the 5 legislators suit, combined with AG Colberg's suit was thrown out in court on Thursday: "An Anchorage judge Thursday refused to halt the Legislature's investigation of Gov. Sarah Palin and denied the Alaska attorney general's challenge of legislative subpoenas..."http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/544566.html

Its now at the doors of the AK Supreme Court, who has agreed to hear it. http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/545448.html "...The Alaska Supreme Court has agreed to hear an emergency appeal from lawyers seeking to shut down the Legislature's investigation of Gov. Sarah Palin. Friday's action came the day after Anchorage Superior Court Judge Peter Michalski threw out their lawsuit attempting to halt the Legislature's investigation of Palin, the Republican nominee for vice president. Texas-based Liberty Legal Institute and Anchorage attorney Kevin Clarkson filed the suit on behalf of a group of Alaska Republican state legislators opposed to their colleagues' investigation, which has come to be called Troopergate...."

Gee, a real emergency appeal---theyre trying to block an investigation that Palin originally agreed to with complete enthusiasm. Watch the video reffed above in the local paper, hear the quotes, read all the articles referenced here. Theyre trying to block a fully transparent, bi partisan investigation by elected representatives (primarily republicans, who are in charge of both houses of the legislature) in favor of a secret investigation by Palin appointees.

this will no doubt, be the final appeal---I can't imagine them taking it to the US Supreme Court....but maybe. Ive been way surprised in this case already---I expected it to get tied up in court untill after the election. Seeing it happen before the election is a real surprise. But it shows there are a surprising number of AK repubs with some pretty good sense and principles. they don't want McCain's high paid lawyers and the "Liberty League" of texas telling them how they have to run their government. the whole thing is becoming an embarassment to them, I'm sure.

What will the Supreme Court do? Its also dominated by Repubs, one of them a Palin appointee.

One thing for sure is that, based on the fierce resistance to it, I think the palin camp knows this will be a real sinker for her. they have all the evidence, so they know whats coming. Whjats rally funny is that if she hadn't beeen appointed veep by MccAin, no one wouldd have ever heard of this. There's really no "crime" here in the sense that she could go to jail (tho others of her staff might) but there's some real impeachable offenses here.

it all looks real bad for someone who is claiming to be above corruption, a reformer. It looks like she used her office to retaliate against an individual. Its definitely proven that her staff were contacting Monegan about it---on taxpayer time!!

And now she's trying to run away from the accountability she enthusiastically asked for (its on the video!) by having it settled in secret by her appointees. this is Palin's view of justice. i thinkthe AK Supreme Court will reject it---just read the article on the judge rejecting the suit on Thursdayy---it gives his reasons why not and I think theyre going to stand up: "...Michalski, in dismissing their lawsuit Thursday, ruled the conduct of the investigation did not violate the right to fairness. He found the Legislature has the right to investigate, and issues such as whether that happens through a council or committee are not for the courts to decide and is "business to be left to the legislative branch."
The judge Thursday also threw out a lawsuit filed by Alaska Attorney General Talis Colberg. Colberg, a Palin appointee, was attempting to persuade the court to quash the Legislature's subpoenas ordering state officials to testify in the investigation...."

I don't think the AK Supes are going to disagree with that and then its going to be bad news for Sister Sarah. All those state employees and her husband---and HER will have to testify. and then it will all come out---before the election.
Well, I'll give odds of 3 to 5 anyway. The Supes are, after all repugs---but I think Alaskans are getting dam tired off having the MccAin campaign run their state.