ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A month after she became governor, Sarah Palin’s staff ushered Alaska’s public safety commissioner into her private office.
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But Palin wasn’t there. Her husband, Todd, had called the meeting. He was frustrated his ex-brother-in-law, Mike Wooten, remained on the job as a trooper, and he prevailed upon the commissioner to get rid of him.
"I thought that was odd and made me a little uncomfortable,” said Walter Monegan, the commissioner, who later was fired.
The January 2007 meeting was part of a pattern of pressure that she and her husband applied on state officials to try to get the trooper fired, according to an Alaska legislative report. The report said those contacts amounted to an abuse of power and a violation of ethics laws.
But while the condemnation of now-vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin was the conclusion, the nearly 300-page report was more about her husband. Todd Palin spent about 50 percent of his time in the governor’s office, making phone calls, participating in meetings or just hanging out, said Gary Wheeler of Gov. Palin’s security detail.
"Any time I needed to get information to the governor, I would always go through Todd,” Wheeler told investigators.
But in an affidavit he provided to investigators, he made no apologies: "We are each other’s best friend. I have helped her in her career the best I can, and she has helped me.”
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What was Cindy McCain addicted to that resulted in her losing the charity she founded?
Michael, OKC, so I guess you speak for everyone about religion. I don't think you speak for the majority, only your concept of religion. When you make statements about other religions, you have no clue what you are talking about.
I have to take issue with a few different things about Governor Palin, even if we leave this Troopergate mess completely alone. First of all, she hid her own pregnancy (the most recent, with Trig) for seven months. Do you want the VP - or, heaven help us, the President - hiding something like that from you for seven months? I have children of my own, and I understand waiting until the first trimester's done, but wow ... SEVEN MONTHS. I'm just not sure that's a "national security" issue that warrants that kind of secrecy. Then there's the whole thing with her unwed teenage daughter being pregnant ... so much for the "abstinence only" thing, eh Sarah? I realize that kids are going to do what THEY are going to do, but am I the only one sensing major policy failure here? On a related level, I have to applaud Governor Palin for keeping to her own beliefs as regards abortion. I respect and admire her for that. However, I don't respect or admire her trying to take choice out from under every other American woman. Get your laws off my body, lady! And this thing about having rape victims pay for their own rape kits just boggles the imagination. I was personally offended that the GOP kids had Senator McCain actually name this woman his running mate. Apparently they think it's all about the plumbing!
I still cannot lose sight of the fact that Sarah Palin beleives in "speaking in tongues" and there is a video on YouTube of an "African Witch Doctor" laying his hands on Sarah Palin in the Wasilla Bible Church and casting out any demons or witchcraft from her body! I realize that there are some Pentecostals out there who beleive in this "speaking in tongues" business, but for the majority of us this is nothing more than a big dog and pony show. Those of you who are supporting McCain need to think long and hard about this, Sarah Palin would be a very FRAGILE heartbeat away from being the president of the USA should something happen to McCain, God forbid. Do you want a Vice President or a President that beleives in this "speaking in tongues" stuff and can you trust the nuclear codes to a woman who believes that an African witch doctor can cast the "demons" out of her body? Seriously.
I would feel waaay more comfortable with Ms. Henry. She has never advocated for Oklahoma to withdraw from the USA or been a member of a group that advocated for same.
The legislative probe began as an investigation into whether Sarah Palin improperly fired Walter Monegan for resisting efforts to fire Wooten. The report concluded Monegan’s firing was legal, because Palin had the right to choose her top administrators, but the pressure Palin and her husband exerted to try to get Wooten fired was improper.
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Leave a comment. Log in below or sign up (it's free).Editor's note: It is not our intent to offer comments on crime or fatality stories.