Once Upon a Time in Anchorage…The Story of a Rally.
27 09 2008Are you ready for another installment in the tale of Troopergate? Good.
As you may recall, we last left our story as Alaska State Rep. Les Gara (D), (who for our purposes will be envisioned with a nice shiny helmet atop a feisty white horse), called on the Alaska State Troopers to look into possible criminal witness tampering in the state’s bipartisan ethics investigation, known as “Troopergate.”
When now Republican VP nominee Sarah Palin was merely our humble governor, she agreed to cooperate in this little investigation regarding whether her lust for vengeance on her ne’er do well Alaska State Trooper ex-brother in law, overtook her sense of ethics, resulting in the firing of the Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety who refused to fire him. Palin, for our purposes here, is a frequently-embarrassing, spunky Queen who believes she is chosen by divine provenance, and who overestimates her own abilities, and underestimates those who now have her locked away in a tower somewhere so she can’t actually talk to people. And lets have Monegan as our good hearted, straight shooting, sheriff of the forest. Throw in a quiver of arrows. Ex-brother-in-law? Hmmm. Bar-brawling, bodice-ripping rogue who somehow managed to marry and unmarry the royal family to his, and their, dismay.
Who says Troopergate is dull and complicated?
So now, enter our villains. Ed O’Callaghan, McCain lawyer and our arch-villain. Knowing that the Queen is gone, he insinuates himself right into the power vacuum, and starts to take over. He’s got the whole thing – black robes, creepy red eyes, charts and graphs, sunken face, and lots of nasty powerful spells.
He starts using his nefarious talents to suck the souls out of respected local townsfolk from whence he obtains his power:
Meg Stapleton, former local TV journalist turned vicious attack wolf, sinking her teeth into the neck of the local sheriff Monegan, and giving it a good shake. She is trained now, to attack on command, and revered public servants are her favorite meal.
Talis Colberg, Attorney General and Prince of the kingdom, who is now nothing more than a walking talking mouthpiece for O’Callaghan. Picture him as once vibrant and well-liked, now looking haggard, with a strange dead look in his eyes that lets you, as the viewer, know that the prince you once knew exists no more. He was no match for them.
Back to our plot. Les Gara (white knight) has gone public with his dissatisfaction and outrage. He and his fellow white knights Senators Hollis French and Bill Wielechowski have had it. Even a knight we’ve been pretty skeptical of, Republican Jay Ramras has decided to join the fight. O’Callaghan and his army of drones must be stopped.
Today, under the advice of Attorney General Talis Colberg, seven more witnesses in the case have defied their subpoenas to testify in the investigation. Why? Because Talis Colberg told them that they had options…they could appear…or not. They could obey the law….or not. He is the prince, after all, so why wouldn’t they listen to him? Well, they did listen, and they didn’t show up.
Not only this, but Colberg, under the evil spell of O’Callaghan, has now filed suit to declare the subpoenas illegal. This way, the people he told to ignore them, won’t have to go to jail (which they should) for breaking the law (which they did).
Fairbanks Republican Rep. Jay Ramras, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, charged “there is likely very irresponsible behavior coming from the attorney general.”
Anchorage Democratic Sen. Bill Wielechowksi, a lawyer who is on the Judiciary Committee, said he is not impressed, either. “I just can’t imagine any attorney advising a client that a subpoena is voluntary,” he said.
And Palin attorney Thomas Van Flein himself (henchman of O’Callaghan…kind of the second-rate bad guy who wishes he was the first-rate one. He’s got the black robes and the staff too, but they’re not as nice) has issued a press release to counter the one issued by Les Gara, calling for an investigation into potential witness tampering. Van Flein accuses Gara of all kinds of things that are “reckless” “false” “unethical” and “amazing”….but worst of all he associates Les Gara with…gulp…Barack Obama. And apparently, according to Van Flein, the unanimous bi-partisan investigation has “nothing to show Alaska or Obama for their efforts.”
So, as we Alaskans dodge the lightning bolts flying from the staves of our new evil overlords, and try to avoid being trampled under the hooves of the fighting squadrons of lawyers, legislators and spokespeople, we wonder what tomorrow will bring.
That’s the day that the citizens have decided to grab their torches and pitchforks, and a whole bunch of rally signs, and head to the public square. They want the stonewalling stopped. They want the evil overlords out of their town. They want the people who urge citizens to break the law held accountable. They want their government back. Many Mudflatters will be there, among the crowd. I’ll be there too. (I’m the village scribe that lives in that little cottage on the edge of town, and goes through a lot of quills and candles).
How will the story end? Well, today’s chapter, yet to be written, should be interesting.
If you want to have a hand in writing it, be there TODAY!
Anchorage Downtown Park Strip – SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 27
12:00 – 2:00pm, between I Street and L Street, by the Veteran’s Memorial.
Bring your signs, bring your fellow citizens, bring your voice!
*A kindred rally will be held at the same time, same day in Soldotna! 12-2 at the “Y”.
September 27th, 2008 at 4:53 PM
gizmoNo Gravatar (16:28:59) : I’m getting this email from various sources. Don’t know how legitimate it might be. Bobby Kennedy is saying that 1/4 of the voters in Colorado have already been eliminated from participation in the November election. He also claims that 750,000 voters (mostly Democrats) are being excluded in New Jersey. If this is all true, a major crisis is brewing….. pj
Gizmo, you have published a fairly accurate transcript of the first part of the “Ring of Fire” Air America show that was on 9/20/2008. I can’t at this time attest to its authenticity, but we all have been hearing about various registration scams the Rethugs have been pulling. You can hear it here:
http://airamerica.com/node/86106
September 27th, 2008 at 4:54 PM
DB, The baby was born 8 monthe later!!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 4:57 PM
The Rethugs will not get away with stealing democracy again!!!! Ever!!! People are not going to take it this time!!! It could get very nasty, so they better think twice about deception!
I’ve heard of other things they are doing, but I can tell you, as mad as a lot of people are now…let them try to still this election!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 5:00 PM
DB: I think it was covered before, but yes, Track was born eight months after her wedding, so yes, presumably she was pregnant before getting married. Uh-huh.
AKM: Keep us posted on the rallies. I worry about you folks, but I also think it must be a good thing, to bring ’sunshine as disinfectant’ to the unique politics of a unique place. I wonder, do you think Alaska will be forever changed (has been changed) as a result. I think the liberal/progressive community has come together in a way that has never happened before and that is a wonderful thing. I think this election is doing that for many of us.
Meanwhile, ‘Troopergate’ is turning into bad television, really. If you don’t laugh you have to cry. Spot any witches today?
Meanwhile, in some polling MN has turned from blue to ‘toss-up.’ So I have my work cut out for me. Not sure what’s going on, I need to check with the local DFL office.
Randomly, I was at the public library today and there was a kid’s book, ‘When the Wolves Came Back to Yosemite.’ Great story about how the wolves have been essential to the health of Yosemite park, and how it was failing and out of balance without them. If you are at the library, check it out.
Even the WSJ is saying this bailout stinks if there is no equity or accountability. I guess if nothing is done by 1 October things could get really bad. How can so many have been wrong about how to run things? Culture does indeed flow from the chief executives, that’s part of the answer.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:00 PM
Geese Whalebone Palin:
8 months? was he early? I know it was a pretty rushed affair (when the Palins found out they needed witnesses, they just asked two elderly strangers to stand in for them, right?)
has this already been discussed and I just missed it? it seems like a pretty big thing not to be mentioned, coupled with the hasty marriage. Do you know the exact dates of the marriage and birth?
September 27th, 2008 at 5:01 PM
Geese whalebone, et al.
Not sure very many people will think it terribly relevant that Sarah’s first baby was born 8months after she was married.
This opens us up to attacks that we’re being unfairly personal. but there are plenty of other lies to cover.
For instance, Andrew Sullivan has been searching for evidence of trade missions with Russia, and finds none. Anybody know of any?
September 27th, 2008 at 5:03 PM
Not sure very many people will think it terribly relevant that Sarah’s first baby was born 8months after she was married.
I agree!!!! Just sayin’!!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 5:03 PM
DBNo Gravatar (17:00:21) : has this already been discussed and I just missed it? it seems like a pretty big thing not to be mentioned, coupled with the hasty marriage. Do you know the exact dates of the marriage and birth?
DBNo, sorry to say, this is old news, not much reported in the MSM, and sorta overshadowed by all the other cockroaches crawling out from under SP’s carpet.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:05 PM
The Rule of Law
http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/principles/law.htm
If McSame doesn’t lose on this one, there will be a revolution in this Country.
These subpoenas are legal instruments of law under the laws of the State of Alaska.
Bench warrants should have already be issued, and deputies should be waiting at the airport to arrest Todd Palin for contempt of court. They should have already picked up those residing in Alaska.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:05 PM
Oh wow. Aol has picked up the story of the rally. They have pictures. I did not look at them all but one of my favorites was the sign of Palinochio. Aol and Cnn are part of the same media family. This should be making MSM.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:06 PM
lemonfair:
I’d disagree that we’re being unfairly personal. I was a HUGE Edwards supporter and now all hopes of him ever reaching office are crushed because he had an affair.
If Palin really did have a shotgun marriage and now Bristol is in the same situation, shouldn’t it reflect on the Palins’ morals the same way Edwards’ actions reflected on his? True, infidelity is different from an accident, but either both are personal, or both are a reflection of your character and responsibility.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:08 PM
AnneinWA (15:33:51) :
I am LIVING with a lifer! However, my initial mission today was to strike up nonthreatening conversations with folks living near me – that I don’t even know. I don’t know about you, but I don’t appreciate it when someone comes riding in on her dapple-chocolate horse (couldn’t resist) and starts slamming me with their talking points.—————
Not sugesting you shove it in their face just giving you a few local reasons YOU might want to vote for Obama. These are some of the reasons I switched from being a republican, they are the same reasons my mother, my three living aunts and even, heaven help me, my three red neck brothers are supporting Obama these are all former republicans who I am sorry to say voted for George Bush. My uncle is fence sitting at the moment this is a man who can make me want to scream in frustration with his conservitive views which he spouts regularly, is really leaning away from McCain and more to Obama. This side of my family has been living out in the bushes since before Washington was a state. I don’t fight with people I give them the reasons for my choice on a local close to home level they probably haven’t considered, they can then can then digest the information and do what they want with it. I listen to their points of view as well, I live in an area where conservitives are as common as, dare I say it, mosquitios while they will not change my choice non threatening visiting is good.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:22 PM
This is going to bite mcsame, et. al big time, as well it should.
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/09/27/Palin_aides_ignore_subpoenas/UPI-10341222563439/
September 27th, 2008 at 5:24 PM
MarshallAKNo Gravatar (16:05:20) :
THANKS for the video – and the entertainment. I mean…I had to laugh. I know it’s not a funny situation, but your song made it impossible not to snicker and snarl at the same time!
YES WE CAN ANNE!
September 27th, 2008 at 5:26 PM
http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/538881.html
Monegan releases e-mails PROVING that Palin’s aides knew about his trip to DC.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:27 PM
Shout out from Florida — keep up the great work Alaskans!
September 27th, 2008 at 5:30 PM
More Rally details…
Shannyn Moore was there and was absolutely fabulous! Hysterically funny and spot on with her comments. She is really quite beautiful inside and out. There is a link to her blog above somewhere – check her out if you don’t know about her. I hope they put her on Olberman again – she could do her own show!
Celtic Diva from Blue Oasis was also there and thanked all the Alaska and Progressive bloggers out there. I hooted when they mentioned Mudflats, of course. I had a little pair of yellow boots on the corner of my sign…
And here’s some context for you. The speakers were, for the most part, not too well known. Why? Many of the folks contacted and asked to speak said they are afraid of retribution!!! I’m sure AKM knows more about all of that and will share it with us…I mean WTF!
There was a guy there in a Nixon mask and suit, doing the double peace sign with a sign around his neck that read:
“Stonewall It. Plead the Fifth. – Palin Truth Squad – we learn from the best.”
There was also a faux Sarah there, glasses, lipstick – one of those plastic mask thingies – someone got a shot of the two of them together, I missed it.
Off for Birthday dinner – Later Mudpups…
September 27th, 2008 at 5:34 PM
Chin Trout Palin (NJ)No Gravatar (16:25:02) :
Hi Annie in WA– Our son is great, actually– he’s only 17 (can’t vote) but he sent $$ in to support Obama/Biden! Overall, too, he’s a great kid. Sounds like you have an “Alex P Keaton” in your house–(remember the very Republican son in the Family Ties show in the 80’s, starring Michael J Fox) You know, it’s good though that he’s involved– whoever he supports!
___
Chin,
Sometimes I think it’s a good thing he is involved. However, he is 42-years-old and gets his news from TV and his wife’s fundamentalist family (nothing against ANYONE’S religion!). I simply think pulling his head out of his…uh…small array of sources for a while and doing a bit of research might be enlightening.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:40 PM
Debbie AKA Commando coalfire PalinNo Gravatar (17:08:54) :
I live in an area where conservitives are as common as, dare I say it, mosquitios while they will not change my choice non threatening visiting is good.
___
Deb
My situation is much like yours. I only found ONE neighbor who is an Obama supporter but afraid to put up a sign (if we could find any!). I am gonna have to make one! Are you residing in Washington now?
September 27th, 2008 at 5:40 PM
I expect Palin to perform well in the VP debate.
ESPECIALLY since the bar is being put so very, very low. At this point, if Palin just shows up she is beating “expectations.”
Let’s help our side and Joe Biden out by not making it so easy for Palin to beat expectations. It is not fair to expect so little of a VP.
Palin is spending a LOT of time being coached, memorizing lines, and practicing how to deliver them. She will do GREAT! It is not like she will be taking a test where she doesn’t know the answers. She has a TEAM of educated, politically sharp, partisans MAKING UP THE ANSWERS. Daily, if not hourly, rehersing. Palin will be WELL REHERSED. Ready for . . . moose. Able to DELIVER zippy coherent REHERSED ANSWERS no matter what. She WILL do well. Plus she is attractive, so she will get cut some slack on that alone. She and her handlers plan to use every edge.
HIGH EXPECTATIONS for Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Governor Sarah Palin. The higher the expectations, the farther she has to fall.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:42 PM
I’m trying to put a rally of 1000 people in Alaska into perspective for those of us not from Alaska.
Starting with the question – how many people live in fairly easy driving distance of Anchorage?
I’m finding on the web that most of Alaska’s population of 600,000 lives in South-central Alaska – the area that Anchorage is in. I don’t know if that is all easy driving distance, but it’s a place to start.
40% of Alaska’s population – 260,000 people – live in Anchorage. So, to probably overestimate the population of South-Central Alaska, let’s say 400,000 live in driving distance.
If 1000 people were at the rally, that is 1 of every 400 people in the area.
4 Million people live in the greater Seattle area. If 1 of every 400 people in the greater Seattle area came to a rally there, there would be 10,000 people at that rally.
Again, I don’t know the area. Please correct my numbers, etc. I’m trying to put this in perspective for those of us not familiar with Alaska.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:43 PM
The rally was mentioned on the CBS tv news this evening, but no video, and no numbers cited.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:47 PM
ohiovoter, HamletMills, Cassie Jeep, LJP, and anyone else who kindly answered about Palin-speak,
The quote I asked about came from ABC news, which quoted Palin word for word. Like they believe it will matter to those who only vote Republican and Anti-Abortion. From http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/09/palin-gets-the.html
I am glad to hear that she does Palin-Speak, not Alaskan-Speak. It so underlines her likeness to our beloved Bush. GAG.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:48 PM
Anne in WA–
I was 39 at the last election — I voted for Bush (believed Colin Powell at the UN meeting w/ the WMD photos) I’ve since changed my party affiliation to independent, and then to Dem (in NJ you have to declare to vote in a primary)–so, there is hope for your son– (and, hopefully, my in-laws) and most importantly, our country!
Go Obama/Biden 08
September 27th, 2008 at 5:51 PM
testing
September 27th, 2008 at 5:52 PM
Re: the wedding — I thought the Republicans said that “families are off limits in this campaign” ??
(Just ANOTHER lie ?!?!)
September 27th, 2008 at 5:52 PM
VP Debates – Her MO in the Gubernatorial debates was to have an elaborate system of note cards behind the podium which she would flip through to get to the right subject. She has that TV commentator ability to glance at a script while talking to the camera/audience. If the moderator lets her get away with a general answer on say energy, defense, solar power, etc she’ll look good. If she gets pressed for specifics or if an answer is on in her cards, she’ll slip back in to that no verb, no subject, no point babble.
When debating Knowles and Halcro for Gov, they tried to draw her out from behind the podium, but to no avail.
Let’s all hope for a good moderator.
September 27th, 2008 at 6:00 PM
Chin Trout Palin (NJ)No Gravatar (17:48:17) :
Anne in WA–
I was 39 at the last election — I voted for Bush (believed Colin Powell at the UN meeting w/ the WMD photos) I’ve since changed my party affiliation to independent, and then to Dem (in NJ you have to declare to vote in a primary)–so, there is hope for your son– (and, hopefully, my in-laws) and most importantly, our country!
___
Chin,
You give me hope! Thanks…and YES WE CAN…we have to!
September 27th, 2008 at 6:03 PM
galwhohashadenough!No Gravatar (15:47:10) :
Woohoo nice to see some stories of the rally coming in. As I was waiting patiently I went over to view http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/ and to my absolute amazement it seems that Florida has moved from light pink to a light blue tinge. Great commentary from the blog. I just did a little happy dance. To all of you in Florida keep up the good work!!! Your actions are being rewarded:)
__________________________________________
look at indiana—- look at indiana! it was red then slight red for the longest time! don’t stop people!
September 27th, 2008 at 6:11 PM
Andrew Halcro has a link to a tape from the 2006 Governor Debates up on his blog. I watched about half of it (it is the full debate). Palin wasn’t that bad. Not at all. Either McCain has turned her into a drooling mass of meaningless words in less than 4 weeks or perhaps they’ve been setting us up with low expectations in the hopes of delivering a surprise. With McCain one never knows what low and creepy levels he’ll stoop to just to win.
September 27th, 2008 at 6:49 PM
hindsite – I’ve lived in Boston and the tony suburbs thereabouts, and I live now near Perry County, pennsyltucky – a place where large appliances are often on porches, where amc javelin in the front yard doesn’t have any tires (or trunk hood), where many people don’t have most of their teeth, where there’s a deer rifle in every house and three on the gunrack in the pickmeup truck, where little girls are tougher than their daddies, where a mother’s brother may also be her uncle or grandfather, and where banjos can be heard on those warm summer nights…
No one really cares if a mudpuppy is a back bay elitist or a backwoods hicks. We all want the same thing: a return to a sane and competent government and a one-way ticket back to Wasilla for Sarah Palin.
September 27th, 2008 at 6:50 PM
Lila,
It depends how far you define as “driving distance”. Anchorage has only one road leading in from the north, and one from the south. To the south, there are no real population centers worth mentioning for over 120 miles. To the north, we have the Mat-Su valley, which contains the now world-famous Wasilla, and much smaller Palmer. Both these towns are about 45 minutes or more from Anchorage. After them, the population gets very sparse very quickly. So, I’d say 300K-350K within “driving distance” from Anchorage.
On a related topic, while I agree that Sarah’s performance with Katie Couric was cringe-worthy, I wonder how much was due to her trying to recall/regurgitate talking points, versus speaking from the heart. In other words, if the questions were more geared towards how she would handle situations if she were president, versus defending John McCain’s record.
September 27th, 2008 at 7:14 PM
Great post on the continuing Troopergate saga. I just read on the KTUU that Frank Bailey has returned to work. At least he is sctually working for his pay now. I suppose he can be cast as one of the Queen’s inner circle of lackeys. The one who is so loyal and willing to do her bidding until one day when he goes a bit too far…
http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=9083182
September 27th, 2008 at 7:30 PM
“It would be fantastic,” said a McCain insider. “You would have every TV camera there. The entire country would be watching. It would shut down the race for a week.”
You gotta love that one. They are equating the shot-gun marriage of a couple of errant teenagers with the wedding of Charles and Di. Yeah right, the entire country will be watching…
When did a shot-gun wedding morph from something rather embarrassing to an epic event?
September 27th, 2008 at 7:35 PM
Joy from Wisconsin aka Chisel Dustup PalinNo Gravatar (18:11:22) :
Andrew Halcro has a link to a tape from the 2006 Governor Debates up on his blog. I watched about half of it (it is the full debate). Palin wasn’t that bad.
The difference is in that debate she was talking about things she is familiar with. Sarah Palin is not familiar with world affairs. I get the feeling that she paid very little attention to what was going on in the world around her. She seems to be the kind of person who is centered only on herself and how her immediate world affects her. I’m betting that any one of us was more knowledgeable about what is happening in the world around us than Sarah Palin was when she first hit DC.
September 27th, 2008 at 7:38 PM
In the Land of DisbeliefNo Gravatar (17:52:52) :
VP Debates – Her MO in the Gubernatorial debates was to have an elaborate system of note cards behind the podium which she would flip through to get to the right subject. She has that TV commentator ability to glance at a script while talking to the camera/audience.
Please tell me that they are not going to allow her to bring notes into the debate. That kind of defeats the purpose, don’t you think?
September 27th, 2008 at 7:40 PM
@lila:
There is no way that there are 400,000 w/in easy commute of Anchorage. If Anchorage has 260,000, Wasilla – 50 mi out – has about 6,000, Eagle River/Chugiak/Peter’s Creek – 15 to 25 mi out – has about 15,000 (perhaps that’s generous? can’t remember numbers), Girdwood/Indian 15-25 mi out- has about 2,000, Palmer – 40mi? out – about 3,000?
Alaska is huge and there are lots of places that you have to get to via air (Juneau, the capital, cannot be reached via car, several other good-sized cities in SEast). Fairbanks is quite large (for Alaska) and is about 6 hours away by car. Kenai & Soldotna are good-sized cities/towns but are 3+ hours away by car. The towns above that I gave numbers for are really the only ones within easy commuting distance.
September 27th, 2008 at 7:50 PM
Just watched Tina Fey open SNL as Sarah Palin – it was brilliant.
September 27th, 2008 at 11:55 PM
Just found this on CNN – Protest outside of the pub Sarah Palin went to to watch the debates in Philadelphia. looks liks she will pull out before her debates…..she really should
http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-95763
September 28th, 2008 at 1:54 AM
[...] Once Upon a Time in Anchorage…the Story of a Rally (Mudflats – [...]
September 28th, 2008 at 10:55 AM
Those of us who live down here on the Kenai Peninsula had a supporting rally to our friends and soul mates in Anchorage. We did our best to show that there are some Alaskans who think Palin is a sad joke. We are in deep red territory here so it took some bravery. We got quite a few honks and waves and only a few flip-offs. One idiot yelled,”white power” at us but we kept smiling and waving our signs.
It was a beautiful day and some people took a lot of pictures of our efforts too! We had a good time and will gladly do it again at a moments notice.
We are so mad that the powerful McCain lawyers have taken over our state!
September 29th, 2008 at 12:41 AM
You are doing your nation a tremendous service…and keeping us laughing. No small task.
All I know is where there is smoke there is fire, and there’s a whole lot of high powered McCain smoke up there trying to make this go away.
freelevi.org !!!!