Voices from the Flats – Will Palin Be Hit With Another Abuse of Power Finding?
By Geoffrey Dunn
Sarah Palin’s erstwhile attorney Thomas Van Flein issued another of his bizarre missives on Palin’s Facebook page yesterday in what appeared to be a strange portent of a forthcoming legal ruling ready to crash down on Palin.
In a commentary posted on a judge’s recent ruling in Alaska dismissing a suit filed by Alaska political watchdog Andree McLeod regarding Todd Palin’s emails, Van Flein–who has the expository grace of an Arctic muskrat–noted that “some claims and suits are pending and are getting resolved in time.” It hardly has the sound of justice triumphant, does it?
Van Flein concluded:
“There are, of course, some remaining issues to address….There will be times when Sarah Palin will have to take one for the team in order to continue on with her message to the country and simply resolve matters without having to incur crushing personal debt. That is the cost, unfortunately, of public life today. When that happens, read the details closely–like the details in this court opinion. Every time you do you will see that Sarah Palin has always acted with honest intent. You will see that again soon.”
It doesn’t sound like good news for the Thrilla from Wasilla to me. Van Flein and Palin have obviously been warned that another legal storm is on the horizon.
And what might that be? Sources of mine in both Anchorage and Juneau involved with Alaska’s Department of Law and the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC) are speculating that an ethics act complaint filed last year against Palin and the establishment of her Alaska Fund Trust is about to be settled–against Palin.
Nearly a year ago, on July 14, 2009, shortly after Palin resigned her governorship, Alaska Personnel Board attorney Tom Daniel issued a preliminary finding which found that:
“In light of the evidence that the governor expressly authorized the creation of the trust and the fact the trust website quite openly uses the governor’s position to solicit donations, there is probable cause to believe that Governor Palin used, or attempted to use, her official position for personal gain in violation of Alaska statute.”
Daniel’s finding did not sit well with the Palin camp. There have been rumors of hard-core legal pushback for the past year by Palin and Van Flein, who were reportedly furious over the finding and have proved unsuccessful in getting it reversed.
According to legal sources in Anchorage, there also have been rumors that attorney Tim Petumenos — who issued the infamous Troopergate finding in 2008 and who also handled the first ethics complaint filed by McLeod against Palin and found that a key member of Palin’s staff, Frank Bailey, get “training and counseling” on the Alaska Personnel Act to “prevent the potential for future violations of the act” –has been brought into the case. What the role of Petumenos would be given that Daniel handled the original finding remains uncertain. And there has never been an explanation as to why this complaint has taken more than a year to be resolved. So much for political transparency in the Last Frontier.
Meanwhile, watchdog McLeod says she “looks forward to the next step” regarding her legal case involving Todd Palin’s emails. She also had this to say about the pending ethics act complaint:
“I am outraged by the amount of time it has taken for the personnel board to mete out justice for Sarah Palin’s abuse of power relating to her legal defense fund. Palin reportedly amassed hundreds of thousands of dollars before she quit. It’s been over a year, and although we have strict laws that demand disclosure of these kinds of financial activities by our officials, the current administration refuses to get off the dime.”Alaskans still don’t know who gave how much towards Palin’s personal benefit while governor. Palin still needs to be held accountable for her misconduct while in office…quitting doesn’t make that go away.”
Award-winning writer and filmmaker Geoffrey Dunn’s book The Lies of Sarah Palin: The Untold Story Behind Her Relentless Quest for Power will be published by St. Martin’s Press.
kick her out of office..oh thats right she ,QUIT..taking her money is really going to make her go bald…hahaha…karma baby..i’m hoping it bites her in her cottage cheese filled butt
I guess it will be just another slap on the wrist for SP…seems like nothing sticks to her these days.
If it were you or I, we would be buried “under” the jail…but her, pay a fine and lie,lie,lie.
And those lemmings that follow her will never believe she did anything wrong, it is just the libs picking on her again.
News just hit that her legal defense fund has been deemed illegal.
The flying monkeys are revving up their wings & eating Wheaties. It’s what they do, it’s all they know. They have little voices in their monkey heads telling them to defend the Queen of Twit as a spiritual, cleansing crusade. Sometimes it’s difficult to know or recognize your enemy – but Sarah the Twit and her monkeys make this very easy! Thanks Sarah, you help out so much with our opposition research (a mandation for all forward thinking, planet-aware people)!
I couldn’t care less what, who or where the monkeys decide to dive bomb – I only care about regaining some trust in our state system of checks & balances, and the people who hold these positions. I have zero trust in the Gov’s Office, DNR, F&G and the Dept of Law right now. I used to work for the State of Alaska, and I am as horrified at the current behavior of many state employees as I would be if a family member disgraced the entire family in several horrific acts.
Do the right thing, SOA! And what the he11 is Petumenos doing in the middle of this? Whack job, bought off, brainwashed jerk.
findings being released Thurs
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20100624/us-palin-ethics-complaint/
Today is Thursday, it was written on Thursday – confusing is my first thought. Why not say “Today, Thurs June 24″, or “Thurs, July 1?”.
didn’t even catch that – well then hopefully we’ll see something soon since it’s only 12:30ish Alaska time, hope it isn’t next week. And given Van Flea’s attempted spin on FB I would bet on today. Think I’ll be having some popcorn for dinner
It says the investigator “plans Thursday to release” – poor writing. Sounds as if the investigator is using Thursday to plan a time to release the findings.
I hope, as you both do, that someone will clarify the release date.
I remember watching her resignation speech and thinking of someone who gets called in to the boss’s office knowing or fearing that the boss has finally discovered what a slacker and incompetent employee he or she is and quickly spits out, “You can’t fire me, I quit!”
Sarah knew things were coming to a head. She saw better opportunities looming, and wanted to avoid ruining them by sticking out her term because she feared her slacker ways and incompetence would come out if she stayed. She wanted to be out of the state as much as possible until things cooled down a bit. As long as she stayed Governor, the bigger the risk she could lose everything. Better to be a moving and remote target.
She also knew (and still knows) she could be in trouble if objective investigators looked into her past. That she has gotten away with most of it so long now, does not mean it will all go away. I believe there are civic-minded people who really want to clean up the state and will eventually achieve it. There will always be crooks and sham artists who use politics for their own end, but nailing Palin for her wrongdoing will be a huge symbolic step forward and send the messing to politicians such as Mayor Sullivan that the people are tired of being bamboozled and the law and ethics really mean something.
BTW, how can a woman who earned over 12 million dollars last year be facing “personal crushing debt” because of this? Maybe Van Flein is a prophet and sees her speaking fees and book sales diminishing once this ruling comes down.
ahem — “send the message” not “send the messing.”
I don’t know. “messing” seems to fit right in!
oh but the dang gubmint will be taking such a big chunk of that 12 million, I don’t know how she’ll be able to survive
hehe, gosh dang it, poor Sarwah baby.
boo f’ing hoo
Palin will get through that 12 million very quickly I suspect. Gryphen said recently that she has to give at least one speech a month to keep people quiet, and it appears as if those events she has planned to attend are having problems selling tickets.
And, (I know this is mean), I don’t think Bristol will be making too much money after her acting debut today.
Saw that preview of Bristol…would tell her not to quit her day job, but, what is her day job???
Guess it is okay for Bristol to go Hollywood but not Levi….wow!!
She can be facing crushing debt because she now has two houses, two cabins, two lake front properties, along with the airplane and boat, presumably at least two cars or trucks, and a new wardrobe every day with matching accessories, a personal lawyer, a nanny, several advisors, a PR staff, a snark writer etc.
The insurance on her dwellings, property and vehicles is probably more than the national average income, especially if you throw in the legal fees.
There are just so many times you can smack someone with an ax handle until something falls off… Maybe the new fencing on the ‘lake estate” will help with some of the catching, but not all..teehee.. gonna be a LONG summer for those fools…
Me? I keep hoping the release dates for the books by Dunn and by McGinnis will be moved up into early Fall (after all, if more breaks, there will be an audience for sequels) because that’s when the good stuff gets going. Okay, okay, so I admit, I am impatient. Big deep breath taken – will just wait for things to unfold as they will, darn it.
It’s kinda fun to imagine the pressure cooker building steam inside Palin’s unused brain cavity – moving the release to a later date is not giving her anything to sink her fangs into. She’s stomping, and thrashing, and gnashing like a good little Twit Troll.
Gee, that’s a rather large space – the unused brain cavity – in Sarah’s case, isn’t it.
Maybe that’s why it’s taking so long for her to go completely bonkers. I kind of think of this as a pressure cooker where Sarah’s fluids fill the large empty space – if there’s a lot of fluid in my pressure cooker, it takes a long time for it to come up to the point where steam’s escaping – of course, then it just goes nuts and can fry pretty quick if not monitored. The temp must be rising, you are right – the little topknot on the lid is shaking a bit now and again. Matter of time.
rattle rattle rattle!
“Will Palin Be Hit With Another Abuse of Power Finding?”
Please, God. Time’s a-wastin’!
$arah the teflontitterquitterfromwasiiler………the “Personnel Board” should be ousted for dragging this out for so long….what a joke!
They didn’t like what their own lawyer had to say and they were just hoping this would all go away, if only they could stall long enough.
Hats off to Andrea McLeod for being so stalwart and tenacious attempting to hold Palin accountable.
Ruh-Roh
“There will be times when Sarah Palin will have to take one for the team in order to continue on with her message to the country and simply resolve matters without having to incur crushing personal debt.”
If Van Flein was a good attorney- and knew the English language- he would know that “simply resolving matters” does not lead to “crushing personal debt.”
On a related note, now that Levi is back and Bristol has to give the abstinence thing, perhaps there is a reality show in the works. I might even watch it- as long as Martha Unalaska Yard Sign brought an unlimited supply of beer and popcorn.
Unlimited supply – how many are showing up? I could be a busy busy girl.
“…take one for the team…”
???!!! Who’s left on The Team? She’s kicked ‘em all Off the team bus…see ‘em all there Under the bus?!
Looks like the gravy train is about to derail…
Silly crowwoman — she is The Team.
It is today, Thursday as per the ADN:
http://www.adn.com/2010/06/24/1339431/settlement-of-ethics-complaint.html
However, I hold no hope of any real findings with TP giving the report. He will have done everything in his power to put Palin in a fake “rock and a hard spot” routine just to blow smoke. It’s why they called him in!
“Help us Obi-Wan Kenobi! You’re our only hope!” whined the Palin Twit Gang.
Yes, Geoffrey Dunn just said that it will be 2pm Alaska time.
She can run, but not hide– Just like any criminal. Hope they nail her.
Nah, not with this gang in power – but yes, it will happen. There will be some tiny hand slap played up as a big hit for the Twit Team. But, eventually this will all unravel and I hope a whole lot of people are fired when it does.
The report is supposed to be released at 2:00pm Alaska time. That would be 6:00pm EST.
Am I right in assuming that is in 30 minutes or so?
Well, only 8 minutes now…
I hope we are not going to be disappointed.
To be or not to be…..a private citizen?
That is the question…
Judge McKay’s ruling dismissing Andree McLeod’s suit regarding emails to Todd Palin was based on his premise that Mr. Palin was a “common sense advisor” to Gov. Palin. Her attorney, Van Flein, states that Todd’s role was ” a clear and obvious privileged consultative function and is analogous to a de facto state officer.”
But….but…The Petumenos “Troopergate” report (Personnel Board) contradicted Mrs. Palin’s guilty verdict of “abuse of power” found by the Senate Investigation of Troopergate (Branchflower) on the premise that Todd was a “private citizen.”
Must be nice to have legal decisions swing your way just by changing the official status of your husband between the cases. Palin’s lawyers make the term “pettifoggers” look noble.
Nice write up of this question by Patrick (who’s a lawyer):
http://palingates.blogspot.com/2010/06/alaska-judge-rules-that-todd-palin.html
Hahahahaha
Hahahahahahahaha
Love this, love this, love this.
Iceberg HO!!!!!!
It couldn’t happen to a nicer person, bless her pea-pickin’ little heart.
Drumming fingers…2p…Palin is a deadbeat! Oh, we knew that already.
This is my forecast on the outcome, Missy Quittypants will be slapped on the hands and not make any consession to admitting doing anything wrong.
zyggy, try as she might, I think this one is out of her control. She quit over this one, methinks.
that and all the money she made as a civilian.
Or, she’ll do like she’s done before: ignore the *facts* for *her* fiction. The finding was she DID violate the law [was it misuse of power that she was found in violation of?] *BUT* she announced to the world, that she had been totally cleared/vindicated of all charges — she announced -repeatedly– that there was/has been *no* finding –ever!– of *any* wrong doing on her part.
And people ‘bought’ it. Even with the report/findings *readily* accessable to anyone with a computer, people –incredibly– bought *her* version! Even with “find [her] in violation” staring people in the face, even with it staring at them off the page and/or screen in black and white, they still took *her* word that she’d done n.o.t.h.i.n.g wrong [and, oh, since she'd --as she'd said all along-- done n.o.t.h.i.n.g wrong, please to send her money to help pay for the 'frivolous' charges, also, too.] Incredible!
Even if she’s found as guilty as sin, she’ll announce she was found innocent — that she’s been completely exonerated of all charges. And, once again, the media will follow *her* lead and ignore the actual findings — so will the public at large. MOST sad, that. beth.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20100624/us-palin-ethics-complaint/
ILLEGAL!!!
and yes,they make it sound like she’s going to say “oops”.
Ya know – that picture of Palin on this post is a rarity – she has her mouth shut. Isn’t it lovely?
Lovely? uh, no.
But it is a big improvement.
What we really need is a great big piece of duct tape over her mouth. Wapped around her wrists and ankles would be an extra-special bonus.
Here’s the update: “An investigator for the Alaska Personnel Board says a legal defense fund set up for Sarah Palin when she was governor was illegal.
“Investigator Timothy Petumenos said Thursday the Alaska Fund Trust inappropriately used the word “official” on its website, wrongly implying Palin’s endorsement as governor.
“Palin’s attorney says she will return the funds.
“Petumenos, however, found the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee acted in good faith and relied on the advice of lawyers when setting up the fund.”
Sounds to me like she got off once again.
What I mean by “getting off” is that all she has to do is return the money. She herself wasn’t to blame – it was those tacky lawyers. (Can’t you just see that she would see it that way?)
If I steal a TV and say I was borrowing it when I got caught, that makes it no less illegal than if I say I stole it. She got caught. This isn’t a little trifling matter like the travel expenses she got caught stealing. This is millions of other peoples’ money. Millions.
Way to go Andree!!!
I disagree. The finding did not say she stole anything. She herself was simply following the advice of attorneys who apparently told her the Fund and its representation on the website was legal.
I agree that she has paraded her little self around asking for funds for legal fees she knew weren’t needed, really. However, she will use the language of this finding to say, once again, that she was innocent (when just found to be not personally guilty – innocent is a totally different legal concept than not being found guilty or personally liable).
I don’t think it will bring her down. It is another link in the chain that will eventually sink her, but it’s not enough to do the job because of the way the finding was worded and will be spun.
My concern is: does she simply return the remaining funds or all the money already dispersed. I hope it is the latter because that will sting.
Stapletongue says she did nothing illegal or unethical because money wasn’t distributed.
ADN said money was distributed.
Following that logic, if a thief steals something, then gets caught, does that mean he’s not guilty of theft? She obviously intended to distribute the money, or she wouldn’t have set up the fund in the first place.
Ethical people do the right thing even when no one is looking. Too bad Ms. P missed that lesson.
No, I think you have to get your lawyer to “borrow” it for you. Then you’re clear. And since your lawyer didn’t actually steal it on her own behalf, you just give back the TV and she’s clear too.
I think.
Here’s the ADN’s take: http://www.adn.com/2010/06/24/1339431/settlement-of-ethics-complaint.html
Did you see the fool in the comments section who said this was just a “bookkeeping error”? LOL! Good God there are morons everywhere!
Yeah, what an idiot.
Bookeeping errors are things like transposed numbers, or posting to the wrong account. Bookeeping errors do not create illegal slush funds on “accident”.
Exactly what I thought – but hey, every chink is a chink which attracts more chinks! Have you ever noticed that if you hurt yourself somewhere, like a knee or elbow – that you keep hurting the same place repeatedly as though it is a magnet for distress.
Palin is a magnet for distress – all of her! Sooner or later, the blows will topple her stupid twitiness.
Looks like she’s gonna have to pay back the money….no harm, no foul, right?
http://www.adn.com/2010/06/24/1339431/settlement-of-ethics-complaint.html
So very sad …
Palin to return defense fund donations
She should return the money, it was illegal to take that money. And nope, she didn’t do anything wrong, po’ Missy Quittypants, she’s a victim once again. Victim my ass, she is a smart person, she is just to money hungry to care.
Good job Kim for going after this grifter.
She may have to pay back the money, but she was able to keep it for how long? And how much interest did it create for her? Isn’t that profiting from an illegal act?
Good point. I hope they figure in any interest earned on the monies and make her return that as well.
Also, too – to whom is she to return the money? To the real victims who fell for her twaddle or to the state?
Too bad she doesn’t have to pay for the state’s legal costs to investigate this mess.
At least the state’s legal costs didn’t come from state taxpayers – another misspeak by Ms $Palin.
Excellent point!
The contributors.
Meg Stapletongue has written something about it on Palin’s facebook.
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=401885808434
Don’t worry folks, they have set up a new account where you can donate!!
OMG, Meg is saying the people who challenged Palin are the ones who twisted the law! Setting Sarah up to be a victim is one thing, but attacking people who knew this was going to be found illegal is quite another.
Okay, my head is spinning – Meg is saying that President Obama’s President Obama’s “personal law firm as an “independent” investigator” first, and then only because Palin’s team set up staunch resistance did the Personnel Board hire a truly independent investigator. Uh-huh. Right. Poor Sarah, each time she ran into the big, bad Obama.
Redwood Palinizer rightly points out that a new account has been set up.
What I found rather lame was this: “If you want to, you can contribute to the new fund. In the meantime, we will try to contact you to get your donation returned from the old trust.” That phrase, “we will TRY to contact you” doesn’t play well with me. I beg it will be a half-a$$ attempt.
BTW, am I remembering incorrectly? Weren’t those “legal fees” essentially paid for by the state anyway?
Everyone knows she is making millions and she is still asking for others to pay her bills. Unbelievable, disgusting, pathetic, sickening etc.etc.
$360,000 donated with max donation amount of $150 divides out to a minimum of 2573 donations, and that is if everyone donated the max $150. With all of the much lower donations that I’m certain came in she could be looking at paying back nearly 10,000 people! I hope that the trustee kept good records of names, addresses and amounts donated so that checks can be forwarded to all of the good and kind people that gave their hard earned cash to the Grifter Ex Gov!
Somehow I doubt that the accounting system for the Fund Trust was this “ironclad”. Perhaps those that donated will just tell their beloved Sarah to keep the money and put it towards a larger fence, or some snowmachines, or some Botox, or something else that their Queen adores. Wonder if there is a loophole for that?
She is “taking one for the team” alright. Give me a break. She’s only collected around $33,000 since she resigned. Pretty pathetic if you ask me. Looks like they have already spent some of the money, I thought they weren’t allowed to do that?
Van Flein gave her bad advice? Shocking!
Oh, my goodness, Meg says not a penny was spent. Hope she stands by that and it is true – otherwise, another can of worms just cracked open.
ADN said money was spent. AKPETMOM posted the link above.
Cool.
Not a penny was spent “on behalf of the Palins” the phrase went.
Oh, and it was seven prominent, nationally known lawyers who were to blame, not Van Flein.
Do you think the Palin team will go after those lawyers for reimbursement and punitive damages?
Wasn’t one of these lawyers Greta V’s husband – or am I mixing this up with something else?
The good news today is…she was labeled toxic by the poll which is actually more damaging than the poll results. You know she’s having a twitty hissy fit over that one! This one – she’s been preparing for. That one – boot to the head! Distress magnet…
This won’t help the toxicity problem. No one believes politicians who claim they knew nothing. And it is like singing past the graveyard to already have a new fund set up and a new Beg letter out, people see that as High Hubris.
she has to return the money, but it wasn’t her fault it was those silly lawyers she trusted.. (gak)
and the website is still up! http://www.thealaskafundtrust.com/donate/
I saw that earlier, lol, they are a stupid bunch of folks, but then look who they are working for. LOL
Petumenos still has a long way to go to redeem his professional integrity after the disgrace of his handling of the Personnel Board’s inquiry into Mrs. Palin’s abuse of power and ethical lapses in Troopergate. His reputation is soiled nationally. I’ll bet he wishes he could do it over.
Kudos to Andree McLeod and all the other truth-seekers.
Yes, thanks to courageous citizens such as Andree McLeod and all the Alaskan bloggers who kept these issues alive and who keep publishing the details, for it is in the details that the cracks in her veneer first came to be.
You know, that’s an interesting point. Since Snowbilly is now noticeably rich, and since the AFT was so blatantly illegal that trying to whitewash it might have actually brought in the Feds, it’s possible that part of this Kabuki might be an attempt to restore some of Tim’s lawyer cred.
Of course, that would mean that Quitty was capable of accepting a result that would do someone else some good, but would only be neutral for her.
Forget I said anything.
I skimmed Meg’s letter. Wow, defensive much? Signed with “…….I know a lot more about legal funds now” GIVE ME A FREICKEN BREAK. It said something stupid like; (paraphrasing) “…Sarah could quit or fight and she choose to fight for Alaska.” Uh, no she didn’t, she quit and tried to keep the money and it took a ruling for her to say she was going to give it back.
So if she didn’t quit, she’d be quitting by staying? Or is it she quit and didn’t quit by quitting?
Wow. And to think there are actually people who think she’s qualified to run this country.
Just wow.
I think that the bigger issue is that there has never been an accounting of the fund, as require by law. We have no idea how much money was withdrawn to pay for legal fees, or anything else, since there are no reports. At best, Sarah took a couple of hundred thousand, not all that much for an Alaskan millionairess. But, there should be a real accounting by a third party, not by Sarah’s BFF.
It was stated in the press release that no money was taken. I sort of tend to believe this since if she had used any of the money, they would have come down harder on her. When the charge was brought against her last year, I think she knew she better not touch the money, but then she was rolling in money.
ADN says $87,680 was spent.
Sounds like she is allowed to keep the money donated after she resigned, a whole $33,000! So, she should have to come up with the extra $54,680.
Poor thing, half a speech worth.
that litt grifter, but I’m glad she has to give it back, lol and I bet she’ll be crying as they pry it from her hands. She has to be livid about the finding, but , and shehad to have know she wasn’t getting out of this charge.
So Palin has to give back the money, and that’s it? That’s kinda like making a bank robber give back the $500,000 he stole from the bank and then letting him walk away without any repercussion.
I mean, yeah the implication is that she broke the law but I wish the punishment would have been more severe.
Actually, the Personnel Boards findings have her free and clear – all the lawyer’s fault.
Yup, it’s never the Teflon Barbie’s fault is it?
Teflon Barbie…tee hee. I like it.
only in alaska is ignorance of the law a pass on stealing from rubes.
Another thing Palin is dealing with today – the speech tomorrow at Stanislaus where the press will be allowed. I happen to think she’s going to do a repeat performance of her reaction when asked about the original Troopergate findings:
“Governor, did you abuse your power?” Palin paused as she boarded the bus and responded, “No, and if you read the report you’ll see that there was nothing unlawful or unethical about replacing a cabinet member. You gotta read the report, sir.”
After calling them the Lamestream Media, tomorrow will find her kissing their @sses so they will repeat her personal propaganda over today’s findings, word for word…
She’ll want this attention in order to cover up the “Toxic” word, and the speech protesters. She’s so sleazy, but oh so predictable! Day by day, more catch on to her. Day by day, she seems nuttier and weirder.
Reckon she’ll actually show up?
…as the worm squirms… (apologies to worms, who, in their defense, make the compost so much sweeter)
I feel extra venom itching my teeth tonight…
I SO hope that someone (preferably a student), asks her to produce Trig’s birth certificate. I mean, she said she had done so already. Where is it?
3/5 kids in “brushes” with the law of natural consequences, putting up with a leaking roof in the governor’s mansion for TWO YEARS rather than getting Tawd to FIX IT (or request that someone come fix it for the Governor), the invasion of McGinniss’s privacy (photo posted on Facebook), ethics charge after ethics charge…when is this woman going to go down in flames?
Meg must have owed Sarah a BIG FAVOR or something, having to pen this diatribe so long after quitting her job as the only friend of the Quitter Half Term Ex Gov…..can you imagine the conversation?
“So Meg, ya know, you were kinda the one that told me that this fund was okay ’cause of all the lawyers sayin it was okay and stuff and even me makin my best friend the trustee was okay and we could do this and now, well, I’m kinda in trouble it seems. So, Meg, ya owe me a facebookin’ entry to ‘splain to people how this came to be a thing that was bad rather than good.”
MEG: “If this is what it takes to finally get you off my back I’ll do it, as a matter of fact, I’ve had this facebook post written for a few months now. I just had a notion that it might become necessary, so I had it prepared. See ya Sarah, I’m going back to raising my child. And I don’t just pretend, I actually quit YOU to raise my child. Foreign concept, I know, but thanks for everything. I’m hoping that now my soul will be cleansed and belong to me now. I’ve changed my email and phone numbers and sold myself out for the last time. Regards, Meg”
I enjoyed her sign off before the P.S.
It said: “Now – back to motherhood for me! And common sense.” I realize she was intending for it to reflect her belief that the whole ethics and fund challenge was not common sense, but I preferred taking it as “Gosh, after this command performance for the Queen of Wasilla, I am going back to being a mother and back to where common sense reigns supreme.” I know, I was only wishful thinking, but . . . .
Funny! My own take (but yours was enjoyable) is that Meg is a wannabe – she’ll always answer Sarah’s call to draw more blood from her veins. She was pushed away, but will always want to be back in her darling Sarah’s stink bubble. Her soul is sold.
Yep, there are certainly a few ways to look at it but this one stuck in my head. I’m only home on the forefront of breaking news because of “girl troubles” that have given me the day off….aside from the girl troubles, it’s nice to be around for this breaking story!
CBS / Katie Couric just ran a short blurb about the situation and it was intro’d with ( something like ) ” One small word made a difference in the outcome” , with the word being ” Official” .
Supposedly, if “Official” hadn’t been used then it wouldn’t have been illegal .
They do not do their homework and I swear, they’re just making me crazy.
argh.
oy. and ………*** sigh ****
vey.
They are all afeared of Palin calling them the Lamestream Media so they are licking her legs. It’s pretty disgusting, but predictable. This is how Palin operates – through criticism and manipulation. She chuckles maniacally when it works because she catches people off guard with her nastiness, putting them on the defensive. Soon, however – she’s out of her little meanie girl tricks, and they’ve all been used up. It’s why the public is tiring of her.
She really is stuck in high school – Palin probably thinks that her arrested development is really a gift from God because it gives her power over those who have learned civility and discourse. We watched this play out here, and now it’s deja vu on the national level. We learned, so will they! Just hurry up dammit!
Did you see the photo of the cue cards she was reading in the spread about Palin’s personal photographer? There is a slide show — keep clicking until you see this one. The link to the slide show is at the end of the article.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/24/sarah-palins-personal-pho_n_624026.html
I can’t remember if this was to be a joke or not, but it sure sounds like something Sarah would say for real. In the cue cards, (photo #12), she is supposed to say “No candidate for office is above criticism. However, I should warn you that, come January 20th, when I am sworn in as Vice President, you guys had better knock it off. Otherwise, we’ll have to get NBC’s broadcast license is revoked.” Even as a joke, it has a warning. I fully believe Sarah and McCain would have tried to quash all criticism. After all, Cheney wanted to do just that. So glad he didn’t have more power.
oops – should read “. . . we’ll have to get NBC’s broadcast revoked.”
Probably was supposed to be a joke. Yeah, as funny as a nosebleed.
This was planned, too, also. Let me get back to you if I can find someone who cares about this story and these photos…
I want a personal $2. check from the fund – plus interest
Just did that to get on the mailing list ….
hahahah..I liked that.
Keep us posted, eh?
This whole thing has been known about and in the works for some time. There would not be a new Legal Defense Fund webpage out and about and on the internet same day as the legal proceedings had not Palin and her lawyer known about this coming down the pike many months in advance. Same with Meg’s “prepared” facebook. This thing has been in the works for at least two or three months, and most likely as long ago as her breathless resignation from the Gov Office. A website that is secure and takes payments and has such in depth information regarding this legal decision does not happen overnight.
Kudos for the Palin camp for keeping this a quiet as they have, but she’s still dirty and guilty and, well, stupid. That’s what offends me the most, her utter stupidity and lack of interest in improving herself intellectually. Money can’t buy smarts, and that must smart!
Love your comment overall, and particularly the last line! LOL!
By Jove! I think you’ve got it! Of course they have known of this all along, but you could be right that MegaMouth wrote this and gave up all rights to her penned snark attacks when she got booted.
She has the gall to start another legal defense fund when she is raking in the dough time and time again? This off the new defense fund website: “But Governor Palin cannot do this alone. She needs your help. Please contribute to her legal defense fund, so that she can continue her work.”
Excuse me? I am speachless, truly speachless. She isn’t Governor any more or have I missed something? Does this new fund make it easier to transfer it from one fund to another? Her legal fees are a drop in the bucket for her now. What makes me additionally annoyed is her (or mouthpiece Stapleton) rant about the investigator being an Obama political influencer. The audacity!!!
I guess now we can conclude why the funds allocated through SarahPAC went to for website design. Arrgggg, the gall.
Well Go Andree!!!! for pushing it to the end, even though this was not the end I wanted. So goes Teflon Barbie. She bailed this week on the personal appearance in Omaha BTW, what a shocker! I take comfort in realizing that her 15 minutes are finally fading– it appears that the flying monkeys are the only ones left, and their numbers appear to be decreasing, also, too. We are reaching moderates and independents, and the toxic poll numbers should be reassuring.
In an interesting aside, I was given a life size cardboard cut out thing of the Grifter as a (sick and twisted) joke, and this October she will be spray painted white and used as a Silent Victim representing a woman who has been killed as a result of domestic violence. I like that. Almost as well as my donation to Planned Parenthood in her name….
I love that so many have donated to Planned Parenthood in her name! Thanks for recycling and for donating. I doubt Sarah would support either Planned Parenthood or the victims of domestic violence. She sure didn’t support rape victims.
Perfect! Not much is funnier than using Sarah to represent a silent victim – irony at its best!
It was actually Kim Chatman, rather than Andree that filed this complaint re the Alaska Fund Trust.
Then, thanks to Kim Chatman!
Dang it…Go Kim!!!! And Andree keep doing what you do so well!
Could someone help me understand this statement from the ADN’s article previously cited above?
“In the settlement, signed by Palin, she agrees ‘to continue to decline to accept funds donated prior to the date of her resignation from the governor’s office’.”
Does that mean she won’t continue to decline funds donated after her resignation? I would think the Fund would be dismantled now that she has another up and running. Or do you think her statement (her attorney’s statement, actually) means she thinks she can keep funds submitted after her resignation as govenor?
That is rather a nonsensical statement, no? As in “I will decline to accept funds donated prior to the date of her resignation from the governor’s office” which was, what July 3, 2009? So, what, are there checks still sitting around not cashed? Food stamp vouchers sitting around unused? Money orders from her minions not yet deposited? Credit cards that have not been processed?
Yep, I’m with you here, it’s been nearly a year. Any efficient business or trust or fund created to provide cash resources to someone would have certainly had payment processed by now. Any person that balances a checkbook or checks a credit card statement must have certainly noticed that Saint Sarah had not processed their heartfelt donation. The food stamps and the cash? Well those people would not have noticed.
But, remember back when Chuck Heath talked about all of the boxes of gifts and envelopes lying around unopened after the ’08 campaign? Could it be that Sarah has left many unopened envelopes addressed the Alaska Fund Trust unopened and up to now unaccounted for?
Could it be that she knew she’d have to pay the money back at some point and decided (or had Kristan Cole decide) not to open those envelopes or cash those checks that arrived prior to her resignation?
That is certainly what it sounds like. Palin knew she could only GTM (get the money) that was offered and dated AFTER SHE QUIT HER JOB AS GOV! Thus, all of the payments that came dated prior to 7/3/2009 will not be processed (surely this is true, right?)
If you don’t cash cheques within six months, then I thought they were invalid?
Sarah? At, say, the (hypothetical) Bank of Wasilla? They probably see extra zeroes.
Her new fund says it is partially set up in order to provide refunds for the first fund! OMG! I thought most of the money was frozen, not spent. She should only owe $54,000 because all the other money was frozen.
http://www.sarahpalinlegaldefensefund.org/faq.php
Okay, so is she now saying she wants money to fund the refund effort?
Shouldn’t an independent source be auditing the refunds? Is she going to be allowed to transfer the money over to this new fund to disperse from it? Will she use part of the refund or new incoming funds to pay for the legal costs of refunding the funds submitted to the illegal site.
I assume the statement “Donations can only be used for the declared purposes of the trust, namely legal expenses incurred by or on behalf of Sarah Palin, her family, and her staff.” implies that any money donated now will be used to cover the cost of dispensing refunds.
(Whoa – the room is starting to spin.)
Who is the Trustee who has the sole authority to authorize anything? We know, thankfully, that Sarah is not the Trustee because it says so. Could Todd be the Trustee? I hope not.
Also – I had to chuckle when I read through the FAQs because I wondered if this is a way to raise money to allow her to continue to do questionable things that will be challenged in court? It’s sort of a “well, I know it’s coming, so let’s pay forward now”-kind of fund. Not exactly a great way to start the Presidential campaign season, is it?
Plus – why is she still using the term “Governor” on this new site.Second FAQ answer: “Governor Palin is not the trustee of the fund. She has sanctioned the use of her name and image for the website and trust to help raise funds for her legal defense.” Isn’t that almost as bad as using the no-no word “official,” because her bots will think her title “Governor” is official.
Tim Crawford from SarahPac also running this new one. Plot thickens!
ADN states that $87,000 plus of the fund was spent since March on attorney fees.
1) If she spent that much on lawyers defending the trust, why didn’t she start out with lawyers who knew how to set up a trust legally in Alaska in the first place?
2) How does Palin have such a remarkable facility for retaining lawyers who don’t know the LAW?
3) Why was she allowed to use money in the AFT while its legality was still being disputed?
4) Why was she allowed to continue to solicit donations for the AFT while its legality was still being disputed?
This whole case stinks like a dead fish in the hot sun. She acted in “good faith,” my arse!
She acted in good faith?
According to HuffPo: “Palin’s friends and supporters created the Alaska Fund Trust”.
Apparently the new fund has been set up Sarahpac.
@maddow Why is New Sarah Palin defense Fund run by SarahPAC people? website says no affiliation but Tim Crawford runs both.
Arghhh. I am really through with all things Palin. Nothing ever brings her down. Nothing ever makes even the slightest dent in her bumpit. She doesn’t care. So what if she has to pay back less than $400,000? She doesn’t care. It will come from someone else’s pocket anyway.
Honestly, I’ve had it with her. And her “ilk”. They can all lie, cheat and steal and the media doesn’t care. And the very few real journalists out there are fighting a losing battle. I hate to say it, but truth and integrity are just a few feet from being buried six feet under. And so many people are providing the dirt to cover it all up.
It’s a shame that Art Linkletter passed away because he could do a show called Moronic Politicians say The Darndest Things and NOBODY CARES. And Sarah could win a portable nail polish dryer at the end and get to wave good-bye to the studio audience.
This wasn’t a very intelligent response to the topic, but after reading all the political garbage lately, I’m feeling a bit brain cell-deprived. And I have to go to a family reunion next month where at least 75% of my relatives will extol the virtures of Palin, Bachman, Rand and probably Angle (because this WILL BE IN NEVADA) and I will be forced to drink beer and hang out by the public restrooms smoking cigs with my mom (who hates Palin as much as I do) for the entire day. Because the alternative is much, much worse. Yes, even worse than Bud Lite and Marlboros.
I really need a vacation from this stuff. Unfortunately I have to also deal with my boss’s unhappiness for buying BP stock and no longer getting a dividend. Poor guy. He really seems clueless as to why.
Sorry for the rant but Palin gets richer while I get more insane. It really irks me. And makes me want to kick whiskers on kittens.
I’ll join you for the beer and cigs.
“Palin solicited the money claiming she needed help paying legal fees to fight ethics complaints filed against her as governor. But the findings of the independent counsel note “a contract for legal services was issued by the state of Alaska to Clapp, Peterson, VanFlein, Tiemesson & Thorsness to represent Gov. Palin in connection with these matters for up to $100,000 at public expense.”
http://alaskadispatch.com/blogs/palin-watch/5787-get-me-the-money
I’m not exactly sure what this means, but I am throwing it out there. Does it mean that she misrepresented how much her legal fees were?
Irishgirl,
I’ll try to smuggle a decent ale or lager in and you’re more than welcome to join my mom and me for cigs and ranting.
As far as the name of the legal services, um, well, I think that would be a gynocolical medical group that specializes in “pubic service”. But I actually had to pay for mine. Oops, TMI. Sorry!
And I really can’t believe that SP would misrepresent her legal fees. I mean she has such “honest intent”. You know, she intends to be honest but then thinks “Nah, I don’t even know what “intend” means. Is that when I tend my lawn in the confines of my garden? Whatever.”
NO PUBIC OPTION!!
And, have you considered being, you know, “sick” for the family reunion? Or are there folks you won’t get to see otherwise? Or kids that need to see their relatives? It’s tough when you feel that you have to go, and you’re so outnumbered..
Saw this comment on HuffPo….(paraphrasing here) Palin claimed last year that the AFT was formed by friends and she knew nothing about it. Now her camp claims it was formed by lawyers.
Hee hee……another set of stories that aren’t quite straight.
Andree McLeod – This voter from the lower 48 wishes to applaud you for your commitment to ethics and your perseverance in the face of much pressure. You have endured much at the hands of Sarah Palin and her supporters. Once again you have been vindicated.
Extra kudos for being a Republican and holding Sarah Palin, Republican, to Alaska’s ethics laws. Too many people – both Republican AND Democrat – put party loyalty ahead of principle.
Good summation by Mr. Dunn on HuffPost.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/geoffrey-dunn/palin-guilty-of-major-eth_b_624863.html
Oops! Sarah Palin committed so many ethics violations I can’t keep straight who files which complaint. Kim Chatman deserves the credit for pursuing the AFT ethics voilations. So Kim – This voter from the lower 48 wishes to applaud you for your commitment to ethics and your perseverance in the face of much pressure. You have endured much at the hands of Sarah Palin and her supporters. You have been vindicated.
Andree – You still get kudos from me. And Celtic Diva – kudos to you, too. And to any other filers of ethics complaints. trying to keep Palin behaving ethically was quite a chore!
Here’s a passage from the ADN article that Palin-bots will cling to:
“Petumenos found the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee acted in good faith and relied on the advice of lawyers when setting up the fund, and recommended no further sanctions. He said the evidence supports Palin’s contention that she did not “knowingly” break state ethics law with the legal defense fund.”
In other words – Palin is again the innocent one, poorly served by those around her. Watch for her to publicly wring her hands over the terrible advice she got and cry pitiful “tears” for her lack of experience in such things but oh, she never meant to deceive anyone!
SIGH. It just never ends.
However, this paragraph shows intent to deceive on Palin’s part so I’m not sure how Petumenos came to the conclusion that she acted in good faith:
“Palin’s personal lawyer, Tom Van Flein, “strongly advised” that the trust be vetted by the Alaska Department of Law to make sure it was legal under Alaska ethics law, Petumenos said in his report.
But Palin instead chose to follow the advice of another attorney who recommended against seeking input from Palin’s ethics supervisor, the attorney general, and instead to simply contest the “inevitable” ethics complaint when it came, Petumenos wrote.”
Palin was strongly advised by her personal lawyer to have the trust vetted by AK Dept of Law. How hard would that have been? She couldn’t wait to make sure it was legit BEFORE grasping for the money? She was the Governor – didn’t it occur to her that perhaps she SHOULD make sure this was all on the up and up? Clearly not. She chose the easy way, the expedient way – consequences be damned.
Plus – she was made aware that there would be “inevitable” ethics complaints! Come on – how much more clearly can this show that at best, Palin is “flexible” when it comes to rules she chooses to follow and at worst, has an alarming disregard for ethics in public office.
A true christian does not act in such a cavaliar fashion with those who trust them with their money – why? Because a true christian knows that God is watching, even if no one else seems to be.
Generally, if you ask a sufficient number of lawyers, you’ll eventually find one that will tell you what you want to hear. Sometimes, you have to work your way down to some pretty shaky folks, but hey, it’s a legal opinion.
What I find remarkable about this “finding” is that it flips the normal rule about personal responsibility (so beloved by Republicans) on its head. The normal rule is: you are responsible for the consequences of your actions. If you took those actions based on bad advice, you may have recourse against the bad advisors, but you are still responsible. (A simple example: if you, a “small person” took on a mortgage, that was very likely to cause you to default, because of misrepresentations by your mortgage broker, you may be able to recover something from the broker; but in any case you will still be responsible for the mortgage). Or, as it has been said for centuries “Ignorance of the law is no excuse”.
Except, apparently, if you are Sarah Palin, in which case ignorance of the law (as well as most other subjects) is an excuse.
Blah. I’m too aggravated to write coherently. Sorry.
“Except, apparently, if you are Sarah Palin, in which case ignorance of the law (as well as most other subjects) is an excuse.”
If I may, for Pain supporters, ignorance is a VIRTUE.
From per diem spice’s newest fraud trust website: “Can I send a check by mail? Yes……”
Here are my checks:
Lie – check
Cheat – check
Steal – check
Whine – check
Complain – check
Make excuses – check
(from coach’s rules: 2 sets of 3):
NEVER lie, never cheat, never steal
DON”T whine, don’t complain, don’t make excuses
I heart Kim Chatman, Andree McLeod, AKM, Shannyn, Linda, and ALL those holding government accountable!
Thank you for reminding me of the Per Diem thing as well!
This woman can not be trusted with money! I used to work for a job that allowed per diem when I travelled. I only ever claimed when I was traveling out of town for at least ONE night of overnight stay – not when I slept in my own bed and worked at my own home.
Honestly – Palin is a total fraud.
And an idiot. Yes, thanks to all those holding her feet to the fire. But I’m not sure anything will ever stick to her. Her believers will just cry victim (again) and dig deeper into their wallets. Her opposers will continue to dig for more evidence of wrong doing and coverup. Nothing has changed. But I hope I’m wrong.
This finding of wrongdoing is big!! Congrats to Kim, and to Andree if she was willing to take over via power of attorney. Let’s keep this momentum going…
I worked for the State of Alaska for 25 years (20 in child protection investigtion, 5 as an Investigator III with the Dept. of Commerce) and one of our principles was “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.” So even if a person didn’t KNOW they had broken a law, or even if they did it on the advice or behest of someone else, they still got dinged. But I guess this standard is only for stressed, low-income parents who didn’t have a clue how to discipline their kids, or for some hapless licensed professional who made a mistake and hoped no one would notice. Apparently, La Quitterella and her cohorts operate under different standards.
Yup. Laws are only for “small people”.
Of course, Sarah Palin is an idiot.
God, I’d love to see how they’d react in the Big House when she requested “bendable straws.”
Let’s hope it happens — soon.
According to Mr. Dunn, “Sarah Palin’s erstwhile attorney Thomas Van Flein issued another of his bizarre missives…”
Why is Dunn referring to Van Flein as Palin’s former, previous, attorney? Does he know something that we don’t?
O/T…wonder if Palin’s evangelical fans would continue to support (worship) their phony modern-day Esther, IF they saw her flashing Baphomet (Devil Horn) Signs w/underage Willow looking on, as Mommy gives occult shout out?
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7Bqr1I5gzyk/S695P4oJNFI/AAAAAAAAEVg/7SbwHJf0o3A/s1600/palinhorns.jpg
See how deep Team Palin rabbit hole goes…Anatomy of Sarah L. Palin
http://intheknow7.wordpress.com/2010/05/11/anatomy-of-sarah-l-palin-re-post/
Slightly O/T…Joe McGinniss (Palin’s summer guest) was the cover-up author assigned by Global Mgt. Team to write book covering up The McDonald-Fort Bragg Drug Smuggling Case involving Global Mgt. Team (NWO, Illuminati) drug smuggling operation within U.S. military during Vietnam War in his “The Selling of The President” which gave him icon status! Joe McGinnis is the man who helped “paper over” 10yrs of U.S. Gov’t drug smuggling! So…if Joe doesn’t “dig up any more dirt” on the Palin’s…we’re to believe there MUST NOT BE ANY?!? Sure. The whole “fence-gate” saga is yet another well executed PsyOp (disinfo/distraction) for the masses. Don’t you see that Sarah L. Palin is Global Mgt. Team GO- TO-DISTRACTION? Palin’s primary role when she first emerged was to cover for Rothschild agents Bernake & Paulson while they looted U.S. Treasury – see SITREP (SP003) at end of Anatomy of Sarah L. Palin…
http://intheknow7.wordpress.com/2010/05/11/anatomy-of-sarah-l-palin-re-post/
Be Well & Stay Vigilant