3 July 2009

By Richard Bernier

As we know, Governor Palin will not seek re-election for Governor of her home State. Governor Palin has done an outstanding job while as Governor of Alaska & we wish her well in the days ahead. Draft Palin for President is a "grass roots effort" with 1000's of citizens joining of efforts to encourage Mrs.Palin to seek the office of President in 2012. Please share our website with your friends & ask them to sign up to show their support for having Mrs.Palin to consider running for President. Go here to sign up today: www.draftpalinforpresident.com If you have stories you would like for us to post on the website to "why Governor Palin should run for President" please email them & we will post them in the days ahead. Thank you, DraftPalinForPresident.Com Media contact: Richard Bernier @ rdbnc@yahoo.com 828 301 9358

Gov.Palin Trip Outside Home State shows Palin's star still blazes

13 June 2009

By SEAN COCKERHAM

Trip Outside shows Palin's star still blazes ASPIRATIONS UNCERTAIN: Backers call her the future of the party; others not so sure. By SEAN COCKERHAM scockerham@adn.com Gov. Sarah Palin returned to the national stage in a big way this past week, rocketing back into the national consciousness with her David Letterman feud, slams on the Obama administration and drama with national Republican leaders. While Palin won't say if she is running for national office, there is no shortage of people offering advice and declaring her to be an inspiration or making her a punch line. Her trip to the Lower 48 over the past week has the country again fascinated. The passion of her supporters hasn't flagged a bit since last year's presidential election, burning far hotter than that of any other Republican presidential hopeful. They see her as the future of the party, an antidote to President Barack Obama. Yet she remains highly controversial and attracts intense criticism from non-supporters. "She is who people are talking about," said Matthew Dowd, a former top strategist for George W. Bush and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. "That trip demonstrated that whatever people's feelings about her, she is a point of conversation. So depending upon her, she has the potential to emerge as a leader of the Republican Party." For that to happen, though, Dowd thinks Palin needs to move beyond celebrity. She can do that, he said, by advancing a substantive values argument in her upcoming book. Another option, he suggested, would be to host an academic forum on economics in which she puts forth her own opinions. She's bright and charismatic but needs to prove substance, he said. "She's got to get back in the news sections and out of the style sections and People magazine coverage," he said. James Carville, the national Democratic strategist, said he wouldn't mind seeing Palin's profile grow. "Both as a Democrat and just as a person who enjoys being entertained, I can't get enough of her. I taught a class on the 2008 election at Tulane, and I had to get the students to stop me from talking about her because it was just too compelling. She doesn't always just sit on the edge of the cliff, she actually falls off it sometimes," he said. Carville said he doesn't think Palin is an act. "I think the depths of her beliefs are not in doubt, it's how curious and competent she is where the real doubt is," he said. "And it's not just policy. If it's 'no drama Obama,' drama just follows her around." CROWDS GATHER There's no disputing Palin's power to draw cheering crowds in the Lower 48. An estimated 20,000 people turned out to see her lead a parade in Auburn, N.Y., last weekend. She was featured prominently in interviews on Fox News Channel, CNN and NBC. But as in the presidential campaign, Palin continues to be very polarizing. On the national level, many seem to either love her or deeply dislike her. Her supporters will hear a Palin speech or interview and declare her brilliantly in touch with regular Americans and their values. Critics dismiss her as not being presidential material -- and worse. "She has crossed the line from political figure into celebritydom," said Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. "But she's also demonstrated how polarizing and controversial she is, even with the Republican leadership." Cheri Jacobus, a Washington, D.C., Republican strategist, said Palin has taken an unfair beating, one that she asserts would not have happened to a male politician. "The only reasons she is polarizing is because the Democrats and the media demonized her so much that they made her a polarizing figure," said Jacobus (who is not related to the former Alaska Republican Party activist with the same name). Jacobus said Palin inspires a growing group of enthusiastic activist conservative Republicans around the country, the kind of people who went to the "tea party" events. Palin is a star whether she decides to run for president in 2012, bide her time until 2016, or take another path, she said "The woman is worth her weight in gold in terms of fundraising," she said. "Whether it's 2012 or beyond, or she just wants to be the kingmaker and make buckets of money for the party, she really has a wide berth to work with." What Palin needs now is to "set up a professional operation at the staff level," Jacobus said. There was drama last week over whether Palin would attend a major congressional fundraising dinner after a scheduling spat with Republican leaders. Most controversial was Palin's fight with Letterman over jokes involving her daughter. Letterman made the initial comments on Monday night's show. It was still making headlines Saturday, overshadowing the news, at least on the national level, that the oil giant Exxon Mobil has joined in the project she's pushing to build a natural gas pipeline to the Lower 48. Ken Sunshine, a veteran New York public relations executive, suggested to the Washington Post that the fight could turn out to be good for both Palin and Letterman. "Letterman is a master of this, and he's milking it for all it's worth," Sunshine said, citing similar ratings-boosting "feuds" that Letterman has engaged in with Sen. John McCain and Oprah Winfrey. "But people often underestimate (Palin) and underestimate her following. She's exploiting this very smartly. She's speaking to her core base that feels maligned. ... It's extraordinary that she can bring this off." "Poor Mitt Romney. He's probably wondering, 'Where do I get some of this?' " IDEOLOGICAL OR PRAGMATIC? Palin also ripped Obama on her trip, saying his policies since taking office were sending the nation toward socialism. She told Fox News host Sean Hannity she's not happy oil prices are rising because "the fewer dollars that the state of Alaska government has, the fewer dollars we spend, and that's good for our families and the for the private sector." John Bitney, a high school classmate of Palin's who was a political adviser on her 2006 campaign for governor, said he sees parallels now with Palin's past runs for office. "It's very similar to her two previous runs for office in that she starts off working the more conservative right wing base to establish herself and build a network, an activist base involved in her campaign," he said. "Once you get established as a viable candidate, you have to then begin to broaden your message to win. You just can't stay stuck over on that end of the spectrum." Is Palin more ideological or pragmatic as a campaigner? "Going back to the mayor's race, going back to the governor's race, going back to the city council and going back to the Wasilla High basketball court, she likes to win," said Bitney, who worked in the governor's office as legislative director after her election. He had a split with Palin and is now an aide to Rep. John Harris, R-Valdez. Palin was not considered an especially partisan governor before she was chosen as the vice presidential nominee, and often got along better with the Democrats in the Legislature than the Republicans. Bitney noted that she didn't push social conservative issues when he worked for her during her first year as governor. She vetoed a bill that sought to block the state from giving public employee benefits like health insurance to same-sex couples, saying it was unconstitutional. OPINIONS VARY ON HER CHANCES Dowd, the former Bush and Schwarzenegger adviser, believes Palin was mishandled and inexperienced when she ran for vice president last year and was a drag on the ticket. But she can rebound, he said, offering the example of Hillary Clinton, a polarizing figure who recast her image and almost became president. "It takes time, though, and Governor Palin has to be careful about being in too much of a hurry," he said. The University of Virginia's Sabato said Palin has clearly made a decision to stoke the Republican Party's base and worry later about broader appeal. That is not a bad strategy, he said, and the general election will be more about Obama's popularity at the time than anything else. But he is doubtful that Palin could pull it off. "Yes, there are many very conservative GOP base voters who would cast a ballot for her, but that's not enough, even for the nomination. She would have to convince Republican activists that she could actually win in November. And she may deserve a Nobel Prize if she can accomplishment that," Sabato said. Palin supporters vigorously disagree with that kind of talk. They're committed to promoting her, with their energy seeming to only grow in the months since the November election. Greg Mueller, a national Republican consultant, said Palin has a huge grass-roots network and will have no problem raising money. He said Palin is a "softer version of Margaret Thatcher." She can unite the social, limited-government and foreign policy conservatives, he said, and could be just what the voters are looking for after they are disillusioned with the Obama years. "The more she is attacked by the Washington establishment and elite media and people like David Letterman, the more people are going to come out and support her," he said. He suggested Palin follow a Ronald Reagan model, leaving Alaska when appropriate, giving speeches in smaller towns and talking to local press. "Katie Couric doesn't have a lot of fans in Des Moines, Iowa, and Manchester, New Hampshire," Mueller said. "Sarah Palin does." Read Sean Cockerham on our Alaska Politics blog (adn.com/alaskapolitics) or call him at 257-4344.

Palin offers justification to energy veto

06/08/2009

By KTVA

June 5, 2009, Anchorage, Alaska - The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is now inviting states to comment on a draft document developed for measuring and demonstrating compliance with stipulations attached to universal building code provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Last month, Governor Sarah Palin vetoed the $28.6 million in federal stimulus funds tied to adoption of building codes by municipalities. DOE has repeatedly stated that some energy funds are directly tied to the statewide adoption of new federal energy-efficiency codes. [Section 410(a)(2); March 12, 2009, DOE Guidance Manual, p.8, p.10, 25-26, p.33-34, Attachment 3; April 24, 2009, DOE Guidance Manual, p.8, p.10, p.25-26, p.33-34.] According to the Palin administration, the 2009 International Conservation Code for residences and the 2007 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers' code for commercial buildings throughout the state, are cited as conflicting with Alaska's energy needs. Currently there is no statewide energy code. The administration suggests that compliance by all local jurisdictions would include even Alaska's 114 second-class and mostly rural communities. Codes they argue would, "regulate even the type of lighting that can be installed," which the administration believes would cost Alaskans thousands of dollars per new home or renovation. "We took issue with Washington's universal building codes mandate and said they were unacceptable for Alaska," Governor Palin said. "Eventually, bureaucrats at DOE admitted the requirements were 'not appropriate' and offered funding if I would just push the codes on all our communities. I believe in local control, so I said no. Now, in the most recently issued statement on the subject by DOE, the requirements are back, clearer than ever." Specifically the administration takes issue with the June 1, 2009, DOE "State Compliance Evaluation Rev 2" which states: "[Section 410(a)(2] The State, or the applicable units of local government that have authority to adopt building codes, will implement the following: "(A) A residential building energy code (or codes) that meets or exceeds the most recent International Energy Conservation Code, or achieves equivalent or greater energy savings. "(B) A commercial building energy code (or codes) throughout the State that meets or exceeds the ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007, or achieves equivalent or greater energy savings." "While the 'State Compliance Evaluation Rev 2' is not final, it demonstrates DOE's continued efforts to force federal energy codes, enforcement costs, and compliance costs that will act as a mandatory tax on Alaskans building or renovating a new home," Governor Palin said. "Alaskans should continue to have the freedom to adopt, not adopt, amend, or rescind any type of building code they choose." Also included in the DOE document are draft guidelines for policing building codes in remote, rural villages and in towns. This would include items such as checking whether communities require energy code documentation prior to issuing a building permit, conducting plan reviews for energy code compliance, and using inspectors specifically trained in the requirements of the energy building code. Suggested compliance methods include on-site audits of randomly selected communities and buildings by inspectors.

Governor Highlights Accomplishments of Legislative Session

April 20th 2009

By State of Alaska

April 20, 2009, Juneau, Alaska – Governor Sarah Palin thanked members of the 26th Alaska State Legislature for their work during the 2009 session. The session was highlighted by several positive pieces of legislation that will move the state forward. The governor is pleased with the work on several priority bills that passed this year, including legislation related to the budget, education and transportation. Budget The legislature worked with the administration to craft conservative budget bills that maintain essential state services, while reducing costs where possible in light of the state’s current revenue forecast. Governor Palin made significant reductions in the proposed spending plan for the next fiscal year, given the decline in general fund revenues projected for Fiscal Year 2010 -- from $5.3 billion estimated in the fall of 2008, to $3.2 billion in the spring of 2009. The leaner proposal reflected the governor’s fiscal philosophy of slowing government growth, keeping expenditures within the state’s means, meeting core spending obligations and saving as much as possible for potentially leaner times. The governor is concerned that the legislature chose not to fund certain public works projects related to resource development. The legislature also did not include funding for deferred maintenance and other projects while the state’s aging infrastructure is increasingly inadequate to handle population growth, and many of these needed projects could have been funded by matching federal funds that were available. “Responsible spending reductions and prudent use of reserve funds will help Alaska through the current economic conditions,” she said. “We must, however, continue to invest in infrastructure that will help develop our resources and our communities.” Energy Two key pieces of energy legislation were introduced this year aimed at reducing the high cost to consumers and providing for long-term reliability and more efficiently delivered energy. Governor Palin’s bill offers to bring Railbelt utilities together to ensure that the new power-generation projects that inevitably must be built can be realized with minimal impact to ratepayers. As a result of legislative hearings on this legislation, a landmark event occurred. On April 7, a joint meeting was held of the governing bodies of the six Railbelt electric utilities. They came together to discuss legislation and determined that they generally agree on consolidation of generation and transmission assets. They have committed to move forward through a task force that will meet over the next several months to prepare recommendations for the final legislation to be considered when the legislature convenes in January 2010. The governor also brought forward legislation and funding requests that lay the groundwork for an in-state gas pipeline. A four-phase plan for the development of an in-state pipeline was presented by the administration on March 3. Work continues on the legislation that will form the initial statutory framework for the development of the project. The legislature approved $7.1 million to continue work on the in-state gas pipeline. The legislature approved $100 million in FY2009 grant awards from the Renewable Energy Fund. The grants will allow utilities across the state to advance more than 80 generation projects utilizing wind, solar, hydroelectric, hydrokinetic, and bio fuels. Another $25 million in grants are included in the FY2010 capital budget appropriation bill. Education The Department of Education and Early Development budget includes $1.1 billion for Alaska’s 53 K-12 school districts and 129,000 students. The budget also funds $57 million in year two of a three-year increase for education, including: • $23 million for a $100 increase in the base student allocation from $5,480 to $5,580; • $22 million for an increase in funding for intensive-needs students from $49,320 to $61,380 per student; and • $12.4 million for an increase in the district cost factors that provide adjustments for the differences in the cost of providing education services across the state. The legislature also approved the administration’s request for $600,000 to assist school districts needing improvement particularly in the areas of reading and math. The funding allows the Department of Education & Early Development to hire a director of rural education to work with communities, organizations and schools to improve the academic success of rural and Alaska Native students. Transportation and Infrastructure More than 140 projects estimated at more than $1.2 billion are in the capital budget for highways, aviation, and transit infrastructure. The projects are expected to bring an estimated 12,000 direct and indirect jobs, fostering business growth throughout Alaska. The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development and the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities are operating apprenticeship programs and are working with contractors to ensure that as many of these jobs as possible go to residents. Other Legislation • Medicaid for Adult Dental Services – Once, adults enrolled in Medicaid were only eligible for dental care that addressed immediate relief of pain and acute infection, which often resulted in tooth extractions. In 2006, the legislature authorized an enhanced program that provided preventative and restorative services to needy eligible adults under the Medicaid program with a sunset provision. This legislation, House Bill 26, very similar to a bill introduced by Governor Palin, passed extending this valuable program and deleting the sunset provision. • State Investment in Education Fund – House Bill 172 ensures that Alaskans will have access to low-cost loans to finance their postsecondary education and training through the Alaska Student Loan Corporation, continuing a 40 plus year Alaskan tradition of investing in their future. • Child Support/Cash Medical Support – Senate Bill 96, introduced by the Senate Health and Social Services Committee with the full support of the governor, brings the state of Alaska into federal compliance with a new federal medical-support regulation that requires states to have guidelines addressing how parents will provide for a child’s health care needs through insurance, cash, or both. The legislation prevents the loss of nearly $85 million in federal funds that support children and families. The governor expressed disappointment over several pieces of important legislation that were held in committee this year, but she anticipates progress by the lawmakers next year regarding: • A parental notification bill which would have required a 48-hour prior notification to parents, legal guardians or custodians of a girl younger than 17 before she has an abortion; • increased eligibility for pregnant women and children under the Denali KidCare health insurance program; and • the governor’s bill to restrict certain investments of the Alaska Permanent Fund, the state's retirement systems, the State of Alaska Supplemental Annuity Plan, and the state’s deferred compensation program in companies that do business in Sudan. Additionally, the legislature did not include funding that would leverage federal and other funds and key priority development projects such as: • $15 million for federal highway and aviation match; • $1.2 million for U.S. Corp of Engineers Harbor Program match; • $22 million for Dalton Highway improvements; • $4 million for oil and gas reservoir study work; and • $3 million for western Alaska access. The governor remains hopeful that legislators will continue to work on these important bills and funding next session. “Resource development and infrastructure projects are essential to Alaska’s future,” said the governor. “I will work diligently with the legislature to fund these vital projects in the next legislative session.”

2012 Draft Sarah Committee forms Executive Board

20 April 2009

By WWW.2012DraftSarahCommittee.Com

2012 Draft Sarah Committee forms Executive Board The 2012 Draft Sarah Committee (http://WWW.2012DraftSarahCommittee.Com/) formed an Executive Board of Directors last week which will help guide the committee members and thousands of supporters in their effort and sole mission to encourage Governor Sarah Palin to run for President in 2012. Formed in mid-November by co-founders Paul Streitz of Darien, CT and David L. Kelly of Colorado Springs, CO, the federally registered draft Committee has grown from just a handful of supporters to thousands across the nation. “Over the last five months we have grown rapidly and now have 27 State Organizers who are working hard on our mission and are the backbone of our grassroots efforts,” said David Kelly, Treasurer of the Committee. Kelly added, “It was time to take the next step in our organization and build a solid infrastructure within our group to help support our volunteers and keep our focus on having Governor Palin as our next President.” The (9) members of the Executive Board of Directors include Committee members from Alaska to Florida. The Board held an election for officer positions and elected Randy Highsmith as the new Committee Chairman. Highsmith was the Florida State Organizer. He has been heavily active within the Committee since its inception and is ready to lead and begin spreading the positive message about Governor Sarah Palin. Highsmith said, “Governor Palin represents so many everyday average working people. She shares our conservative values and is our standard barrier. That is why I am so passionate about our work and cause here at the 2012 Draft Sarah Committee.” Paul Streitz, co-founder and previous Committee Chairman, decided to step down from his post. His hard work and untiring efforts to build a solid foundation for the Committee have been greatly appreciated. Last week, several State Organizers held their first monthly “meet-ups” in their local communities. The meet-ups, which are public informal meetings of Sarah supporters, are intended to give all in attendance an opportunity to fellowship and network. Alaska State Organizer, April Moore, commented, “If brainstorming ideas with a group as committed and passionate as these folks in Fairbanks are is any indication, soon we will not be able to hold these meetings indoors! From our first meeting, we now have a Fairbanks Organizer and a Facebook Organizer. Volunteer, and there is a job you can do to help 2012 Draft Sarah Committee.” The committee hopes to have State Organizers in every state in the next few months and plans on becoming increasingly active in their communities.

Poll on Sarah Palin

5 April 2009

By Why Mommy is a Republican

Why Mommy is a Republican is conducting a new poll on Sarah Palin. Thought you might like to mention it on your site. Thanks. Why Mommy is a Republican is conducting a poll on views about Governor Sarah Palin. The poll is open to all. Please take a few moments to let us know what you think of Governor Palin. Pass it on to others, too! Visit the poll at this link. http://www.misterpoll.com/polls/428220 **READ BELOW** --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help Governor Palin get her message out by doing a radio show - Yes you can!! Free radio. Go to www.uswebtalkradio.com for more info.

A Tale of Two Governors

23 March 2009

By Lisa Baker Graas (Why is Mommy a Republican?)

A Tale of Two Governors This is a story of two governors and two weather-related crises. One promotes big government that failed to work as promised. The other promotes outreach by man to his fellow man and succeeded through setting a personal example. It's also the story of preservation of culture and tradition and challenges you to understand whose role it is to preserve it. When I heard that Governor Sarah Palin and Lt. Governor Sean Parnell had traveled with an organization called Samaritan's Purse out to Western Alaska on a relief mission, I didn't think much about it. That's just something people do when there is a crisis, right? Well, not always. In early February, my home state of Kentucky was hit with its worst natural disaster ever recorded. This beastly menace was in the form of an ice storm. Here in Grayson County, our local communities were reportedly hit the hardest and local officials were begging for volunteers to come in from other states. Read a report at Louisville station WAVE-3. God bless them, volunteers responded to the call. It was a frightening experience for many because of the magnitude of the onslaught and because it had come with little warning unlike the several days' warning that hurricane strike zones usually receive. Kentucky is covered with trees and not one of them wasn't bowed down from the weight of the ice or sliced like a bloomin' onion. Power was out all over the state. For several days there was no television, no video games, no microwaves or refrigeration – so we all learned lessons in the importance of our personal relationships. Even cell phone service was knocked out with the exception of one service. Stores were closed. People had to rely on what they already had in their cabinets. Tap water was unsafe and well pumps were without power so clean water was hard to come by for many. Many people were unable to leave their homes because of the danger of falling limbs or because fallen limbs blocked driveways and roads. Telephone lines were down. Some power poles were snapped like twigs. Neighborhoods organized crews consisting of the able-bodied to check on other neighbors known not to be able-bodied, some of whom were found in desperate conditions, without power and shivering in frigid temperatures. Imagine, for a moment, regular people helping regular people without the help of “Daddy Government”. As I was reading many days later how the Passionists got through it, I was inspired to comment that it was “a horrifically beautiful experience”. Indeed, it was. Kentuckians managed, with the help of each other and with the help of volunteers who came in from other states, to get through the worst natural disaster we had ever experienced, and it was largely without “Daddy Government's” help. During the height of the time of need the mayor of our county seat had one word for higher officials (e.g., Obama, FEMA and Democratic Governor Beshear). That word was “Disgusted”. It pretty much sums up the way everyone I know felt around here about “Daddy Government”. Thanks, Mayor, for saying that. Liberals who believe big government should play a primary role in disasters like this were disgusted because there was no response from “Daddy Government” to speak of. Conservatives who believe big government should just stay out of our way were disgusted by the fact that big government officials were claiming credit where none was due. A quote from Governor Beshear from the AP illustrates an unwillingness to admit that a practical test of his ideology ended in total failure: "We have had tremendous and quick response from President Obama and his administration. I don't think any of our folks that have dealt with disasters before ever recall as quick a response as we got last Wednesday." Yeah, right. Here's what really happened folks. Is Beshear a poster child for voter registration or what? Excuses abound but the fact is that Kentuckians weathered it without President Obama and, largely, even without Governor Beshear. [Note to Michelle Malkin: God bless you and other conservative bloggers for using your gift to perform a needed service. With power out and with cell services down, it was difficult to receive and send any information. You did the right thing. You promoted ground level volunteerism through your blog and I applaud you for that important outreach.] I'm not going to criticize our “big government” liberal officials for anything but hypocrisy. Sadly, many people across the state died, but we got through it.........together.........and, to be sure, with a lot of help from folks coming in from neighboring states. My own family evacuated to Nashville and everywhere we went, we were greeted with compassion from citizens. (God bless Tennessee, the Volunteer State!) I remember reading a comment by a resident from tiny Rabbit Flat, Kentucky, on the website of a Louisville news station wherein she pleaded for the government to just stay away because local residents in her community were all helping each other and everyone had been accounted for. Not everyone felt “Daddy Government” should stay away but this is a heavily Republican county in a red state and most people did express the same sentiment as that resident from Rabbit Flat. The overwhelming emotion was disgust in the face of “Daddy Government's” hypocrisy in saying he had fulfilled his promise. Kentuckians on the ground knew better. Now let's switch gears and talk about another governor dealing with harsh weather conditions. As I've noted, when I read the reports about Governor Palin and Lt. Governor Sean Parnell going out to the Russian Mission area of Alaska to deliver supplies to residents who were suffering due to harsh conditions, I promise you, I really didn't spend more than a few seconds thinking about it. I didn't think, “Oh, well, that's what governors do.” Believe me when I say that I thought to myself, “that's what Christians and all people of good will do.” I never imagined that anyone would respond to this mission of mercy on the part of a group of Christians and other people of good will with complaints that she showed a “lack” of compassion! That sure is some funny Kool-Aid you liberals are drinking these days. One person commented that this demonstrates that Sarah Palin has an inability to show empathy unlike Obama “who has the ability to empathize with people”. Huh???? The weird thing, though, is that absurd accusations have a way of grabbing my attention. Simply because they are absurd, they automatically make me think that there must be something to the story that I'm not getting! Absurdity doesn't compute with me and I have this strange desire to investigate absurdity because nonsense gets under my skin. It's just the way I am. I was compelled, therefore, to investigate further. My investigation of this absurdity found me looking into the accusations for clues regarding where these folks might be getting this anger. The complaints center around the plight of Natives in rural areas. Without going into details, let me just say that for personal reasons (and even theological ones) I have a soft spot in my heart for people who want to preserve tradition. When I read various complaints by liberals accusing Governor Palin as if she is responsible for the suppression of culture in rural villages, I had to notice and I had to investigate further. Their argument seems to be (and I invite them to provide me with more information if they think I am lacking it) that people shouldn't have to leave their rural villages for jobs. When the young people get older, it is said, they must move away for jobs and the preservation of culture suffers. It is, indeed, a sad reality for many. In shame I admit that I nearly bought the notion that somehow Governor Palin might not be responding adequately to the sufferings of those who want to preserve their traditional culture. I was actually worried about these people and thinking that maybe the liberals could be right that Governor Palin isn't that concerned about Native Alaskans. Thanks be to God that there is no such thing as “Sarah Palin Kool-Aid”. Also, I would be a pretty sorry Christian if I drank any political Kool-Aid, so I set my feet on the path to wisdom to investigate the claim. Just as I did on the predator control issue, I set out to find out what the heck is going on up there! I contacted two individuals who work for separate Native organizations so that I could understand more about Native Alaskans. As I write, I have heard back from one of them, Vicki Otte who is Coordinator of Get Out the Native Vote in Alaska. You MUST see that website. Doesn't it really grab you? I had not actually seen the website when I contacted her. I had found her through the national site at this link. Basically, I asked Vicki if she could please answer a few questions for me to help me get a feel for what things are like for Native Alaskans. She let me know up front that she is not allowed to express political positions due to the nature of her position in the vote project, so I asked her if she could answer questions about Natives in Alaska without addressing politics. She agreed and she sent me a .pdf file with the very impressive 2008 ANCSA Regional Association Economic Report. (I can't find a link to this report online but will send readers a copy via email upon request.) I found online that Vicki also happens to be the Executive Director of the ANSCA Regional Corporation Presidents and CEOs. (Note: I am not certain if she still holds this position or if she is a former executive director.) You can find some background information about her in the program of The 2006 Alaska Conference. With the arrival in my email box of the economic report, my feet were indeed set on the path of wisdom about the economic status of Alaska Natives. There is information about the ANSCA at Wikipedia, but basically, it is an association of Native Alaskans from various regions in Alaska. I believe there is also an association for Native Alaskans who don't actually reside in the state. This organization came about with the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. After reading this information and seeing the Get Out the Native Vote site, my view of Native Alaskans has been completely changed from thinking they were all suffering in poverty in remote areas to knowing that, hey, a program exists that is meant to ensure that they prosper as a people. If this economic report is any indication of Native economic prosperity in the macro, these are a thriving people. My research into the preservation of Native culture also showed that, again, these are a thriving people. I don't for a second pretend to believe that all Alaska Natives are rich or that all Native Alaskans are sufficiently able to preserve their traditional culture. What I do have is evidence that on the large scale, economic prosperity and preservation of traditional culture isn't a problem. Please, correct me if I am wrong about this, readers. As a faithful Catholic mother of four with friends who are parents and share my Faith, I understand on a personal level that there are problems with young people these days. I see teenagers who, sadly, don't share my great love for Sacred Christian Tradition and the culture that I have come to love. (See my website for Catholic parents who want their children to share their Traditional Faith. Yes, I'm pretty serious about preserving my Catholic culture. See my site review at Catholic Culture which is my favorite site online, hands down.) Liberals, of course, who proudly profess their sacred belief in cultural relativism will quickly note that Catholic culture is sub-standard. Hypocrisy abounds and hypocrisy is something that really offends me. If I were a hypocrite myself, I would demand that government step in to promote my sacred traditional culture...........but, friends, it is not government's job to preserve the Sacred Christian Tradition and culture in my family. It's my job. The charge from liberals is that economic prosperity must come to local villages so that young people won't be forced to travel far to where the jobs are. I have found, though, that many Alaskans in rural areas have work schedules that make it possible for them to continue to be active in their local communities and participate in the traditional culture. Governor Palin has expressed what I view to be a common sense dislike for having to hire out-of-state workers to fill jobs when Alaskans in rural areas are crying out for jobs to be brought there for the SOLE REASON of preservation of culture. Upon my coming to an understanding of all of these things, I was faced once again with the realization that the leftist bloggers have been engaging in absurdities. When you are a Christian (and Sarah Palin is a Christian, plain and simple), you can't do truly good things without getting hammered by people who hate Christianity and see themselves as the saviors of the world. And do you know why that's so? It's because Christianity itself is absurd to them. If only the liberal, cultural relativists and the haters of personal responsibility and good character would take the time to investigate what they see as an absurdity, they might be freed from their bitterness! Unfortunately, I think they are actually enjoying the attack mode too much. Since many of them are relativists who believe there can be no truth (except, of course, the "truth" that Christian culture is sub-standard), it is understandable that they would resolve within themselves that there's no sense looking for it. We can pray for them. So, now what? What do I think of what is going on in Alaska with Sarah Palin and the Native community? I think that together they can handle it. In fact, when I watched this video of Governor Palin addressing the Alaska Native Village CEOs, I realized that, once again, this woman has proven that she knows what the heck she is doing!!! I am certainly willing to discuss with anyone any disagreements they may have with me on this and I am prepared to hear new information that could make me think differently, but at this point, here is what I think. Like the predator control issue, Governor Palin and the people of Alaska have a pretty good handle on this issue. For more info go to: genuinegopmom.blogspot.com

Alaska vows to be part of the solution, not the problem

19 March 2009

By Unkown

March 19, 2009, Juneau, Alaska - Governor Sarah Palin submitted her federal economic stimulus appropriation bill to legislators today to provide jobs and needed infrastructure improvements in Alaska under the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Governor Palin is accepting just 55 percent of the available stimulus funds, all for capital projects. This amount includes the funds the state accepted last month for Department of Transportation projects. "We will request federal stimulus funds for capital projects that will create new jobs and expand the economy," Governor Palin said. “We won’t be bound by federal strings in exchange for dollars, nor will we dig ourselves a deeper hole in two years when these federal funds are gone. For instance, in order to accept what look like attractive energy funds, our local communities would be required to adopt uniform building codes. Government would then be required to police those codes. These types of funds are not sensible for Alaska.” The legislation does not include funding requests for government operating programs. Governor Palin has indicated the state will not stand in the way of local governments or other entities pursuing stimulus funds directly from the federal government. "The law requires me to certify that the requests I forward for legislative approval will meet the requirements of the ARRA to create jobs and promote economic growth," Governor Palin said. “Legitimately, I can only certify capital projects that are job-ready. Alaska has seen unprecedented increases in the level of state funding for education because that is our priority. I don’t want to automatically increase federal funding for education program growth, such as the National Endowment for the Arts, at a time when Alaska can’t afford to sustain that increase." "Simply expanding state government under this federal stimulus package creates an unrealistic expectation that the state will continue these programs when the federal funds are no longer available,” said Governor Palin. “Our nation is already over $11 trillion in debt; we can’t keep digging this hole.” Preliminary estimates for federal economic stimulus funds to Alaska state agencies are approximately $930.7 million. Of that total, the state requested allocations for transportation and aviation projects in February estimated at $262.6 million, although more was requested in contingency and other funds. With the additional $251.5 million in economic stimulus funds requested today, the proposed total capital spending is $514.1 million, or 55 percent of the state's estimated allocation. Funds that are available competitively or that go directly to communities or other organizations are not included in these estimates. "Our desire is to foster a discussion about what is true stimulus and what is just more federal interference in Alaskans' lives through the growth of government," Governor Palin said. "We think stimulus items devoted to government agency growth and program expansion ought to be examined in light of the funding needs already being addressed with our pending budget requests." Not counting the transportation stimulus dollars the governor requested in February, today's legislation requests $252.5 million for capital projects. Capital projects requested include $20.7 million for education and job training, $68.6 million for water and sewer projects and storage tank replacements, $3.0 million for the Alaska Vocational Training Center, $2.5 million for Fire Fuels and Forest Management, $39.6 million for public housing projects through the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, and $116.0 million for the University of Alaska Fairbanks Research Vessel. The bill also includes two $1.0 million placeholders for competitive grant opportunities for state agencies and the University. "We need to ensure that these stimulus dollars are used for job opportunities for Alaskans, while preserving the regular operating spending decisions through the normal budget process," Governor Palin said.

Far-Left Blogs Bash Bristol Palin Over Breakup With Baby's Father

13 March 2009

By Fox News - Bill O'Reilly "On the Record"

Far-Left Blogs Bash Bristol Palin Over Breakup With Baby's Father Friday , March 13, 2009 ADVERTISEMENTThis is a rush transcript from "The O'Reilly Factor," March 12, 2009. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated. BILL O'REILLY, HOST: In the "Personal Story" segment tonight: Reports out of Alaska say 18-year-old Bristol Palin will not marry the father of her child. Apparently the couple has parted ways. Now you may remember, Bristol became pregnant during the presidential campaign, and she and her mother were subject to brutal attacks by the far left. Well, nothing's changed. Led by the incredibly vicious MSNBC network and the off-the-chart hateful Web sites, garbage is flying: • "Bristol and her beau have apparently called off their engagement, making the product of their special night of conservative 'value swapping' in the back of a Chevy — son Tripp — one helluva elephant in the GOP's cathedral of morality." • "Reminds me again why I hate the hell out of Sarah Palin." • "Hilarious. An unmarried teenage mom with a kid (possibly two) whose mom wants to be prez." • "Let grandma raise the baby. She's sooo good at child-rearing." And on and on and on. Joining us from Washington, FOX News anchor Greta Van Susteren, host of "On the Record," who knows the Palin family well. You know, these are disturbed individuals. They're egged on by, you know, the people at MSNBC and Air America on the radio. But there's no excuse for this, is there? Click here to watch the segment! GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, HOST, "ON THE RECORD": Well, you know, you say that I, just as an aside, that I know them very well. The only way that I've met them is by interviewing them. So, you know, I don't socialize or spend a lot of time with them. But I do have a little bit of a sense having interviewed them multiple times. I'll tell you what's even more stunning, I mean, we sort of expect that kind of behavior on the Internet where people type and run like cowards. I mean, that's, you know, sort of the status quo these days. But I'll tell you what's more disturbing is I've had people in the news business come up to me as though they think I'm so close to the Palin family and sort of gushing with glee that this has happened to this poor kid, you know, as though they don't have children, as though this is so particularly unique. O'REILLY: Let me ask you about that. VAN SUSTEREN: I'm more scandalized by them. O'REILLY: I guess you don't want to mention their names, right? VAN SUSTEREN: No. But I mean, they live with themselves. They live with themselves. I'm just — I am appalled because this is an 18-year-old kid. O'REILLY: OK, wait, wait, wait, wait. OK. Let's walk through it though because you are raising a very interesting point. You know professional journalists who are happy that Bristol Palin is being humiliated once again and her mother and father are being held up to a spotlight negatively once again. They are happy about it. Do you ask them, Greta, why are you delighting in the misery of others? Why are you doing that? Do you ask them that? VAN SUSTEREN: No, Bill, because I think it's so pathetic. And I mean, I'm sort of a little bit amused as it relates to me sort of gush up to me like they think it's funny or, you know, they laugh at her. O'REILLY: Nobody would dare do that to me. I mean, you're much nicer than I am. But nobody would dare — because I would ask them that very question. Why are you reveling in the suffering of another person who you don't know, OK? VAN SUSTEREN: I guess you care more about these people than I do who do that. I mean, I'm frankly very dismissive. O'REILLY: I don't care about them, but I would hold them to account. VAN SUSTEREN: I'm totally dismissive of them. You know what? I check them off. O'REILLY: OK. VAN SUSTEREN: I just check them off, gone. You know, I just treat it differently. But you know, if you think about it, this is an 18-year-old who, when she did an interview with us, and I — the only time I've ever spent with her is what you saw on camera. There wasn't any even off-camera, I think, even a few minutes. And what she was trying to do is she was trying to get a message out there that she loves her baby, that it's very difficult, that she wished she'd waited until she was a little older, hoping to send a message out there that was one that would be instructive to other people. Instead you've got 45-, 55-, 65-, 35-year-old people, especially in journalism, who are just salivating at someone's misfortune. And that is what is so extraordinary to me. O'REILLY: All right. But here's the crux of the matter that everybody in America needs to understand tonight. John Edwards got in a lot of trouble. I didn't cover it. VAN SUSTEREN: He's a little older. He's a little older. He also had a wife and kids, but anyway. O'REILLY: Listen to me. Listen to me. This is important. John Edwards got in a lot of trouble, OK? Not here. We mentioned it. We didn't dwell on it, because we knew that Mrs. Edwards was suffering greatly. VAN SUSTEREN: Bill... O'REILLY: We don't have any use for John Edwards, but we — wait, wait, wait, wait. So we didn't do it, OK? I didn't get a lot of conservative hate mail. I didn't get a lot of right-wing "O'Reilly, you should have gone after him." I didn't get that. I didn't get it, OK? And this network, this network didn't go after John Edwards, FOX News. We reported it, and then we covered other things, out of compassion for a woman who with cancer… VAN SUSTEREN: Let me talk about that for a minute. O'REILLY: But the left, the left — hold it. The left does exactly the opposite every single time. Now, I'm going to tell you right now. There are right-wing kooks. I know it. But the far left in this country — and you can see it on display every night on MSNBC — is vicious, has no class whatsoever, will do anything to harm people with whom they disagree, Greta. That is the truth. Go ahead. VAN SUSTEREN: All right. Let me separate a couple things. First of all, John Edwards was a politician. He's not just a remote family member. O'REILLY: Sarah Palin is a politician. VAN SUSTEREN: Well, you're talking about Sarah Palin. I'm talking about — I'm talking about Bristol. O'REILLY: They're going after Bristol to get Sarah. VAN SUSTEREN: I'm not talking about — OK, all right. That's the first thing. The second thing is, is the whole sort of — the aspect with John Edwards is that, you know, he was a profound disappointment to many people. And he was raising very important points about the fact that there are people who are, you know, living in poverty. And he was basically taking the moral high ground out there about his own behavior. And his own behavior was of, now has turned out to be deplorable and even using an excuse, which was even worse, which was that his wife was in remission. O'REILLY: But we did not do exploit that situation. We did not do it. VAN SUSTEREN: I don't know if we even covered it on "On the Record," but I will confess, I certainly read about it. It's not as though I simply put it away and we covered it. I read about it. I read it. O'REILLY: You're getting my point here. You know what's going on. VAN SUSTEREN: I get your point. No, look, you know what? I'd be ashamed. I'd be ashamed to be so gleeful about someone else's misfortune like that. O'REILLY: It's horrible. It's horrible. All right. Check Greta out at 10, "On the Record." Watch "The O'Reilly Factor" weeknights at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET!

United States Surrenders in Iraq 2010

10 March 2009

By StudentsofAmerica Blog

United States Surrenders in Iraq 2010 President Obama announced that the United States will surrender to Al-Qaeda, Sadr's Army, Hezbollah, and Iran in Iraq. August 31st, 2010 United States Military forces will withdraw from Iraq. Why call it a "withdrawal" or "end of combat operations"? Because these words downplay the actuality of surrendering. There is a reason why we don't announce dates, now that every terrorist organization knows when the US is going to leave they are going to stop their operations, train, and build up their forces so that on Sept. 1st, 2010 every known faction from Al-Qaeda to Iran will invade and takeover Iraq. Why would President Obama make such a foolish public announcement, at least keep it secret between you and the Iraqi Government. Now that our surrender has a date every milita and terror group is going to go into hiding and wait it out that even our own Intelligence forces are going to lose track of them. Shame on President Obama for surrenduring to terrorism and giving a date for the fall of Iraq. Join the Conversation at StudentsofAmerica Blog

Michael Steele, Chairman of the Republican National Committee speaks out

Feb 7th 2009

By Michael Steele,Chair GOP

"This is Michael Steele, Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Democrats have controlled both branches of government for less than a month. And you have to wonder if all that power has gone to their heads. "For the last two weeks, they've been trying to force a massive spending bill through Congress under the guise of economic relief. "All of us -- Republicans and Democrats -- agree the government must act to kick-start the American economy. American families are doing their best to balance their own budgets and pay their mortgages. "The fastest way to help those families is by letting them keep more of the money they earn. Individual empowerment: that's how you stimulate the economy. "But the Democrats have a different philosophy. Instead of leaving money in the family checkbook, they want to send it to Washington, run it through a slow and inefficient government, and hope that does some good. "When families keep the money, they spend it, save it, or invest it. And the private sector economy benefits when families and businesses buy consumer goods or invest it for the future. But when Washington spends the money, some of it may flow into the economy, but all too often, much gets wasted. "Democrats in Congress want a one-trillion dollar spending bill. You've heard about the pork-barrel programs they want to fund... 45 million dollars for ATV trails and removal of fish passage barriers is one that caught my eye. Exactly what is a fish passage barrier and why does it cost 45 million dollars to stimulate the economy with it? "That's why Republicans in the House voted against uncontrolled spending. This is not a bragging point, but rather a statement that at least Republicans would stand with the American taxpayer. "But voting 'no' is not enough... and Republicans have offered innovative ideas to help struggling families and small businesses. We've offered plans to spark job creation and investment through lower taxes, to stop the taxation of unemployment benefits, and to help Americans keep their jobs and their homes. "The comprehensive Republican plan would lower taxes for all working American families. If you're married, the first 16,750 dollars you make this year will be taxed at ten percent. Why don't we cut that rate in half to give instant buying power to every working American family? "Good ideas... lots of them... all left out of this plan by the Democrats in Congress. "Republicans stand ready to work with reasonable Democrats to do what is right for America. "But it will take more than bipartisan words from the President. It will require fair-minded action from Democrats in Congress.

Governor Palin Issues Statement on Extremist Group

Feb 5th 2008

By Lisa Graas

Please visit www.genuinegopmom.blogspot.com to read more great news story, Lisa Graas shares insight to many people. We are very glad to have Lisa sharing news stories with the members here at Draft Palin for President. Thanks Lisa, Richard Bernier Again, please visit lisa's blog at www.genuinegopmom.blogspot.com

Governor Palin Issues Statement on Extremist Group

Wednesday, February

By www,genuinegopmom.blogspot.com

Wednesday, February 4, 2009 Governor Palin Issues Statement on Extremist Group In a previous post, I shared with you some information about a campaign sponsored by the political group "Defenders of Wildlife" to defame Governor Sarah Palin. The ad personally blames Palin for the aerial hunting of Alaskan wolves, a practice which the group deems to be cruel and unnecessary. Yesterday, February 3, Governor Palin issued a statement addressing this. The statement appears below in its entirety. February 3, 2009, Juneau, Alaska – Governor Sarah Palin released the following statement today in response to attacks by the Defenders of Wildlife: “It is reprehensible and hypocritical that the Defenders of Wildlife would use Alaska and my administration as a fundraising tool to deceive Americans into parting with their hard-earned money. “The ad campaign by this extreme fringe group, as Alaskans have witnessed over the last several years, distorts the facts about Alaska’s wildlife management programs. Alaskans depend on wildlife for food and cultural practices which can’t be sustained when predators are allowed to decimate moose and caribou populations. Our predator control programs are scientific and successful at protecting vulnerable wildlife. These audacious fundraising attempts misrepresent what goes on in Alaska, and I encourage people to learn the facts about Alaska’s positive record of managing wildlife for abundance. “Shame on the Defenders of Wildlife for twisting the truth in an effort to raise funds from innocent and hard-pressed Americans struggling with these rough economic times.” The statement by Governor Palin contains relevant information that is consistent with information provided about the program on the website of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, as well as reports to date from the Anchorage Daily News on the history of this issue and an admittedly cursory review of the ad's claims which I found today at FactCheck.org. While it is true that the issue of aerial hunting in general has been surrounded by a certain level of controversy for decades, there is far more to this story than meets the eye. This is a story about controlling predators, but on a grander scale than you may realize. In the larger story behind the issue of Alaskan efforts of responsible predator control, American public opinion is the prey and “Defenders of Wildlife” are the predator that has grown wildly out of control. The “Defenders of Wildlife” are apparently counting on public disapproval of aerial hunting as well as the general lack of awareness among the vast majority of Americans that (1) this is a “State of Alaska” issue, not a “Governor Palin” issue and that (2) circumstances in Alaska make this program necessary. What more proof that this is a personal attack on Governor Palin does one need than that the website where the ad is being marketed is called “eyeonpalin.org” rather than something to do with wolves, conservation or the State of Alaska? The ad is a smear. That is the plain and simple truth. (Admittedly, there is an alternative explanation which is that they believe Governor Palin is the only person who actually lives in Alaska, but I don't think they are that stupid.) Before I get into the deeper ramifications of all of this, I will share some basic background information on the core issue addressed by the “Defenders of Wildlife” ad. Alaska's predator control program is not sport hunting per se and the animal being killed is not just any animal. Further, the nature of the landscape in Alaska does not lend itself to alternatives easily. While the Alaska Department of Fish and Game predator control program does incorporate sport hunting, the program cannot reasonably be characterized as a “sport hunting program” because it was designed solely to prevent the decimation of moose and caribou herds that occurs when the predator population grows too large. Because of the gravity of the predator control problem and because of the nature of the Alaskan landscape which necessitates the use of aerial hunting, Alaska's current aerial predator control program is exempt from the federal law banning aerial hunting. Why use airplanes? In its white paper on the predator control program, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game describes the program's objective which arguably justifies the use of aerial hunting: “The initial objective in a control program is a reduction (not elimination) in numbers of predators in the shortest possible time, in a specified area, followed by maintenance of predators at this temporarily lower level to enable the prey population to increase.” There you have it. That is why airplanes are used. It's more efficient and precise. Now that you have the basics (and I do encourage you to read more on this at the website of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game), let's move on to the bigger problem of the culture war. Being a citizen of a wildlife-rich state where hunting and fishing are important, I can understand the frustration that Governor Palin and other Alaskans must be feeling as a result of this misinformation campaign by people who are not affiliated at all with any state wildlife department. Our state wildlife departments are the ones Americans have (I think, rightly) placed their trust in to manage our wildlife! Certainly, the record needs to be set straight, but in my book that isn't a matter of protecting Governor Palin at all. It is a matter of informing the public about responsible conservation as well as defending the lifestyles of those who rely on hunting and fishing as a matter of survival and culture. It's also a matter of speaking out on behalf of our state wildlife departments who work so hard every day to care for our environment responsibly and to educate others about conservation. Some people may think going to an Ashley Judd movie is the primo family experience, and that is their right if they choose to do that, but there are far more families in America in which hunting and fishing are a core part of family tradition and togetherness. “Defenders of Wildlife” can try to make this seem to be a criticism of Governor Palin, but in their attempts to take her down they are dragging down many more besides and on this we should not be silent. In Alaska as in other wildlife-rich states, many people prefer to use local meat sources. Reliance on local fish and game is obviously even more pressing in Alaska than in other states since otherwise a lot more meat would have to be shipped in from a long distance. Alaskans are famous for their self-sufficiency and for their independence. This, coupled with the fact that Alaska can have bountiful sources of meat (provided that the predators don't overpopulate), has led to the establishment of the predator control program. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and indeed all state wildlife departments, do an outstanding job of managing wildlife so that families may have plenty of fish and game to hunt, photograph and marvel at for generations to come. Alaskans (and many of us in the Lower 48) have a keen understanding of the role hunting and fishing can play in family life as well as the role that our state wildlife departments play in management of these precious resources. If you want to learn about Hollywood, ask someone who works there. If you want to learn about wildlife, ask your state wildlife department! Ashley Judd lends her "credibility" as a Hollywood star (an oxymoron in my book) by narrating one of the ads used by the group to criticize Palin for the predator control program. Like me, Judd is a native Kentuckian (although she was born in California) and seems to be proud of that fact. I do wonder about Judd's priorities, though, and whether or not she truly values Kentucky culture as much as she would have us believe. As a Kentuckian, I grew up accepting the fact that many people rely on hunting and fishing to put meat on the table. Our neighbors were avid hunters and the main meat course on their table was wild game roughly half of the time, if memory serves. They also raised pigs, pheasants and other animals for meat. In Kentucky as in Alaska, hunting is for sport and subsistence as well as a core component of local culture. Perhaps most people in the Defenders of Wildlife aren't aware of this, but as a Kentuckian Ashley Judd should be. I urge all Americans not to put your faith in Hollywood when it comes to wildlife management. The men and women of our state wildlife departments work tirelessly to maintain our environment and to pass on credible information about what you can do to ensure the protection of wildlife for generations to come. Here are a couple of links to get you started. Read more here: www.genuinegopmom.blogspot.com

Gov. Sarah Palin gives the state of the state address to a joint session of the Senate and House in the Capitol in Juneau

22 Jan 2009

By Governor Sarah Palin

State of the State Address Governor Sarah Palin Thank you. Our good Lieutenant Governor Parnell, President Stevens, Speaker Chenault, lawmakers, Native Leaders, my dear family, and all Alaskans. Thank you for this opportunity. First, please join me in thanking those who protect our freedoms that allow us to assemble – our good men and women in uniform – they are America’s finest, our U.S. military. It’s been quite a year since we last gathered in this chamber. Just two days ago we witnessed a shining moment in the history of our country. Millions of Americans are praying for the success of our new president, and I am one of them. His work is cut out for him, but if President Obama governs with the skill, grace and greatness of which he is capable, Alaska’s going to be just fine. We congratulate President Obama. And, for keeping the homeland safe, and being a friend to Alaska, I thank President Bush. 2008 was the year when America looked to Alaska, and one of our own sprang to national attention. There was political drama, controversy, lively debate, a few awkward moments and in the end, some disappointment. But what a glorious debut for a unique Alaskan - and we congratulate our former Senator Mike Gravel. [Gotta love that wonderful woman!] In the history of Alaska, it was also the conclusion of a long and distinguished Senate career. We thank Ted Stevens, and wish him all the best. We look forward to working with his successor Senator Mark Begich. The best to our new man in Washington. And to working with long-serving Representative Young and Senator Murkowski. Congratulations on her worthy committee assignments. Tonight, I’m pleased to see new faces here, and I appreciate all who have sworn to uphold our constitution. Newcomers, some say we have some pretty strong differences among us, and well – subtlety is not always one of our strong points. But we try to keep things friendly and civil, and we’ve been known to actually succeed. I used to wonder if the occasionally rough edges of politics were unique here under the Great North Star. But I ventured out a bit this past year, and I tell you that, as partisan quarrels go, ours really aren’t so bad. At our best, we are forthright in our opinions, charitable in our judgments and fair just like the people who hired us to work for them. Today, when challenges may seem as high as Mt. McKinley, and change as constant as the mighty Yukon flows, and political events send shockwaves through our foundation like the ’64 quake – what do Alaskans do? We climb Denali, we forge the river, we rebuild a stronger foundation on higher ground. When it matters most, lesser differences fall away. Just like family, Alaskans unite. It was this kind of determined action that turned the northland wilds into a territory, a territory into a state, and that state, across 50 years, into a land of industry, opportunity, and enduring beauty. And now that perseverance is needed again, as we go through a time of testing for our country – a time of economic worry for many Alaskans – a time of challenge to the wisdom and resolve of state government. Governor Wally Hickel said he feared more than any economic depression – a depression of the spirit. Alaska, it’s time we revive the optimistic, pioneering spirit that our founding mothers and fathers birthed in our State Constitution! As we celebrate statehood – let that spirit rise now, and our actions correspond as our founders intended. See, we have that choice, how to respond to circumstances around us. As public servants, will we draw from a servant’s heart the resolve to put pettiness and power struggles aside and work together for the good of the people? We have the choice. I speak for the entire Palin/Parnell Administration when I declare we choose optimism and collaboration and hard work to get the job done. It starts with a frank assessment of our economy and our budget. We have natural advantages to defer some effects of the global recession. Our banks have good liquidity, our credit market is relatively strong, home foreclosures are lowest in the nation. That’s the upside of a regional economy. The reverse side, our unemployment rate is about the national average – over seven percent, which means thousands of Alaskans need jobs. And when our budget is 90 percent reliant on the value of energy resources, there are consequences. Two years ago at this podium, I urged spending restraint. I asked that billions of surplus funds be deposited in state savings. This struck me as a simple precaution against, as I described it, massive single-year cuts down the road, if and when we faced tougher times. You legislators agreed, so we can now meet our challenge in a stronger position. And you understood the challenge is not just to think fast and change plans when the price of oil suddenly falls, affecting revenue by billions of dollars. The challenge is to follow a consistent plan despite inconsistent prices. With prudence, you built our reserves – that was good planning. This national economic downturn that’s spread to the energy market – it found us prepared. And that’s more than many states can say about their financial situation. When oil prices and state revenue are on the rise, as was the case, there’s temptation to assume it’ll go on rising forever, and to spend accordingly. Since prices fell, there may be an equal temptation to draw heavily on reserves or, for some, to be tempted to tap the permanent fund earnings or tax our hardworking families. No. With the budget, the aim is to keep our economy on a steady, confident course. The aim is – with discipline – we protect our reserves and promote economic growth. Now, unless the price of a barrel of oil dramatically increases, soon, we’re looking at a potential revenue shortfall in excess of a billion dollars this year. So with a close eye on price, we need to be willing to curtail spending as needed. If there’s a shortfall, there are options. It’ll take a cooperative spirit all around to see us through the uncertainty. I had proposed we start with an overall reduction of seven percent from last year’s expenditures. This is a real reduction, not just a reduction in the rate of spending increases – as cuts are often defined elsewhere. That’s transparency in budgeting – just as the public saw when we put the state’s checkbook online. We stand ready to work with lawmakers – who hold the purse strings – to amend the budget, as we receive revenue updates in weeks ahead. Last year, we all expected another surplus. But even then, with record high prices, I chose prudence and directed state commissioners to cut millions in operating costs. Finding efficiencies even during times of plenty – that’s common sense fiscal responsibility. Now obviously, circumstances have changed that even international seasoned oil experts could not predict, requiring us now to adjust even more. Therefore, I am implementing a hiring freeze, exempting public safety, and I am restricting non-essential purchases. These actions reduce the draw on savings as we monitor revenue for the rest of 2009. For too long, Alaska’s economy has struggled with fluctuating revenue due to global commodity prices. In a volatile economy, numbers are not fixed, but principles are. We’ve followed the same principles from the start of this administration: fiscal discipline, limited government, and responsible stewardship. At a time when other state legislatures are staring at multi-billion-dollar deficits, and when our federal government proposes a deficit in excess of a trillion dollars this year alone, we have all the cautionary examples we need in the virtues of living within our means. With less revenue, we have an obligation to spend less money. With our share of federal funds and Congress’ stimulus package, our obligation is equally clear: we must ensure these public funds serve vital needs – as is the case of infrastructure for our gas pipeline, needed by the nation; and the Kodiak Launch Facility, adding to national defense. President Obama pledged not to let this stimulus package devolve into the past familiar scene of politicians lining up for obscure earmarks. This is reform at work. Thankfully, in the state, these past couple of years we’ve allocated billions for roads, ports, schools, and other vital public works. That money hits the streets and grows the economy this year – so the private sector creates, and we keep, many thousands of good Alaskan jobs through this. We can stay on that path of investment in growth with continued support for essential construction projects that will – literally – build this state. Now, we can’t buy into the notion that for government to serve better, it must always spend more. Reductions we support are a chance to show the true measure in public policy. Simply increasing budgets every year, a common government practice, is no guarantee of success. More often, it’s an incentive to failure. Good public policy is accountable for results, and focused on critical priorities. We promised public education reform – so schools can plan ahead, and bureaucracies do not smother a school’s creativity or a student’s aspiration. We now take the next step in our three-year education plan – to offer every young Alaskan – rural and urban – the opportunity to learn and work and succeed in the world. We’ll fully forward-fund all our school districts with more than a billion dollars – that’s more than 21 percent of General Fund expenditures. Education is that high a priority. We’ll focus on early learning, vo-tech and workforce development, an enhanced University, streamlined operations, we’ll hold schools accountable, and we’ll encourage opportunities for students with special needs. One of the great privileges given to me last year was the chance to be a witness for the truth that every child has value; to say to special needs children that they are beautiful and loved. And needed. We learn more from them than they from us. Across America, a great change is coming in public policy affecting these children, and Alaska can lead the way. This is a part of the culture of life where every child is cherished and protected. In this chamber, we share a commitment to serious health-care reform. We’ve learned from experience that all the answers do not come from Washington. When Congress turns to health-care reform this year, we look to our delegation to make the case for greater competition, more private sector choices, and less litigation in the health-care market. But we’re not going to wait. Here, reform can move forward without delay. I look forward to working with you on adjustments to kid’s health insurance. We’ll fund more early screening – for example, for autism – because early detection makes all the difference. We’ll focus on preventing disease and promoting healthy living. I’ll ask that physical education be incorporated into daily school schedules, too. We have alarming levels of heart disease, diabetes, childhood obesity – and all of these maladies are on the rise. Now, I won’t stand here and lecture – for very long – but health care reform on an individual basis is often just this simple: we could save a lot of money, and a lot of grief, by making smarter choices. It starts by ending destructive habits, and beginning healthy habits in eating and exercise. In my case, it’s hard to slack when you have the ever-present example of an Iron Dogger nearby. But many of us could use a little more time in our great outdoors – and when you live in the Great Land, there’s no excuse. Protecting good health is largely a matter of personal responsibility, but government policy can help. Our new Alaska Health Care Commission will recommend changes that affect the well-being of Alaskans far into the future. So, a healthier Alaska via personal responsibility, and subsisting more on our pure and plentiful Alaskan food sources! It’s why we protect our waters and soils from pollutants, and it’s a reason we manage our wildlife for abundance. To ensure this, we’ve successfully brought the Habitat Division back into Fish and Game, as I promised. Our biologists have protected game by eliminating predators from calving grounds and we'll further protect herds, some of which are at precariously low levels of abundance - thus ultimately promoting the population growth of every species. We’re building viable personal use and commercial fisheries in some of the most controversial and complex fisheries in the world, dealing with half a dozen foreign countries, including Japan, Russia and Canada. We’re establishing sustainable seafood stocks, and limiting salmon bycatch in the trawl fishery. We’ve increased research on salmon runs, and we’re building new hatcheries for vibrant industry. As the largest and only Arctic state, we’re studying climate-change through our DEC-led subcabinet. And we’re suing the federal government for misusing the Endangered Species Act. There is an attempt there to use the ESA to impose environmental policies that should be debated and approved legislatively, not by court order or bureaucratic decree. Alaskans have shown through our protective laws that we’re willing and able to protect our magnificent wildlife, while developing our God-given resources, by using conservation laws as they were intended. We’ll challenge abuse of federal law when it’s used just to lock up Alaska. Vital projects now underway show how much science and technology have improved in a generation, greatly reducing risk to the environment. Continued work in Cook Inlet and on the North Slope, new drilling at Nikaitchug, new exploration in NPRA – these projects and more will be carried out with the safest methods. My administration has dramatically ramped up oversight. We demand the highest standards of stewardship and corporate responsibility, because we want to pass on this Alaska that we cherish to our children and grandchildren and beyond. And just as we strive to keep our environment safe, we’re dedicated to keeping Alaskans safe. We’ve finally filled vacant trooper positions this fall and we have several innovative initiatives moving, like a Highway Patrol Bureau focused on road safety and DUI enforcement. And I’m excited about the Troop to Trooper program, which offers our National Guard hometown heroes careers in law enforcement. These priorities should be a powerful incentive to think clearly and act decisively – not politically – in pursuit of funding them with our next economic lifeline: the gasline. Without revenues from developing clean natural gas, priorities can’t be funded, and we will deplete reserves within a decade. Working together, we’re developing a 10-year plan to keep a healthy balance in the Constitutional Budget Reserve. We’re laying up stores, until strong revenue comes in with the flow of natural gas to feed hungry markets here and outside. Unfortunately, some focus only on potential obstacles when they discuss projects like the gasline: the giants in the land preventing us from gathering fruit. But as I recall, we’ve already slain a few giants. Remember TAPS 30-some years ago? Alaskans were told the oil line was impossible. And then, all those years when this capitol was filled with talk about a $40 billion gasline, but that’s all it ever amounted to – talk, and closed door deals? Working with you, we shook things up, and passed Ethics Reform and AGIA and ACES. By inviting the private sector to compete for the right to tap our resources, we now have two major efforts underway to commercialize gas – without surrendering Alaska’s sovereignty. The big line will be the work of years. Last month we took another step closer to steel pipe when we signed the license with TransCanada-Alaska. To further develop, we’re commissioning preliminary work on a road to Umiat, and pursuing a road to Nome. We need access to our resources. Alaskans – especially in our smaller communities, the heartbeat of Alaska, with truly so much potential – we need jobs for income and achievement. Responsible resource development – including drilling, mining, timber and tourism – means more jobs, instead of more government. Now with the big line, every enterprise – every great thing worth doing – involves challenges. But we can be confident in this enterprise because it’s founded on the fundamental interests of our state and nation. America needs energy: affordable, abundant and secure. With international conflicts, war, and environmental concerns, laws and markets seek safe, clean energy, and that’s what we offer. The last president supported a gasline, and so does the new president. Because even the most promising renewable energy sources are years from general use, between then and now, we need a clean interim fuel to power our grid and heat our homes. Natural gas is ideal. In Alaska, all roads lead – well, really we only have the one, North – but it leads to the North Slope, and to the central importance of our North American gasline. America’s security, Alaska’s revenue, Alaskan careers, affordable fuel, even our ability to finally diversify our economy – all these hinge on the success of this great undertaking. I assure you: The line will be built – gas will flow – Alaska will succeed. Ironically, our people are blessed with owning the richest natural resources in the country; here we’re getting ready to flow four-and-a-half billion cubic feet of gas every day in a huge line; yet we’ve been more vulnerable than other Americans to every rise and fall in energy prices. Even though we own the resources. The solution for our state is much the same as for the rest of our nation – only the source is ours and much closer to us, so delivery can come sooner. We’re facilitating a smaller, in-state gasline with legislation we’ll hand you next month. My goal for this in-state line is completion in five years. It will carry 460-million cubic feet of gas every day to energize Alaska. Previously, we’ve relied on a diminishing gas supply from Cook Inlet, and expensive diesel, and a mix of government subsidies, and not enough conservation – but that is not sustainable. And it shouldn’t take another spike in energy costs to stir us into action. Alaska will help achieve energy independence and security for our country, and we can lead with a long-needed energy plan for America. But let us begin with energy security for ourselves. This includes meeting my goal of generating 50 percent of our electric power with renewable sources. That’s an unprecedented policy across the U.S, but we’re the state that can do it with our abundant renewables, and with Alaskan ingenuity. In our energy plan, for the first time, Alaskans will see cooperation among our utilities. We’ll introduce legislation creating the joint utility corporation to finally accomplish this. No more fractured efforts to generate power along the Railbelt via so many different utilities, headed in so many different directions. We will have coordinated power generation that will finally make sense for consumers. Energy is key. Governor Hickel spoke of the undeniable tie-in between energy and poverty, energy and peace and life. He said, “Our answers begin with energy. Freedom depends on it, so does hope.” For goals of hope, opportunity, and self-sufficiency, government is not the answer, but government can help with energy challenges. In villages, our weatherization programs provide jobs and reduce the cost of living. We continue to support bulk fuel purchases, PCE, power plant upgrades and many projects that foster opportunities and self-sufficiency. We’ve got to row together as one crew – that’s the only way to reach these goals. Now, we need more oil in the pipeline, too. So we strictly enforce state laws and contracts with oil companies. We’ll hold them accountable with those contracted commitments they signed, to develop our resources – as we are expected to keep our word to them. Our reformed oil production formula, ACES, helps them with strong incentives to keep capital re-invested, and it’s working with new developments, as DNR just announced a banner year for new companies entering our competitive oil and gas arena. Alaska, there will come a day when our success is not measured in barrels. The goal is multiplicity – an economy made strong by a wealth of petroleum, but no longer solely dependent on it. And again, the test of leadership is to be prepared. We need a plan. Business leaders, local officials, and other stakeholders, we all agree for our economic future, we need this. Like the saying, “Fail to plan? Then you plan to fail.” To that end, I issued an administrative order this week calling for the state’s first comprehensive economic strategy. Like our unprecedented energy plan rolled out this month, the Alaska Legacy Plan is the first of its kind. It will determine practical strategies to implement today and for the next 50 years. In the past, organizations have studied our strengths and weaknesses. They offered generalized suggestions for change. That’s good, we’ll utilize that. We propose a strategic action plan for private sector and government to stimulate and diversify the economy. We’ll need participation and common sense from those who make this economy run – namely, the small-business owners who do the hard work – they create jobs. That’s where the best ideas are. This will be the road map for activities and investments, to grow us strong, here in the Great Land of plenty. With our ideal, strategic position on the globe as the air-crossroads of the world; with our massive size, with stores of potential, with our spirit, with our people – together we will plot the course. I have confidence in Alaskans, in their judgment and groundedness. Even more so after the journey I completed on November 4th. I learned more about fighting the good fight, facing long odds, the need to protect family – my own and our Alaska family – and putting Country First even when voters put you second. Not unlike Alaska’s journey. When I took my oath of office to serve as your Governor, remember, I swore to steadfastly and doggedly guard the interests of this great state like a grizzly with cubs, as a mother naturally guards her own. Alaska, as a statewide family, we’ve got to fight for each other, not against and not let external, sensationalized distractions draw us off course. As an exciting year of unpredictable change begins, we, too, have our work cut out for us. And we’re all in this together. Just like our musk ox, they circle up to protect their future when they are challenged. We’ve got to do the same. So now, united, protecting and progressing under the great North Star, let’s get to work. Thank you. God bless. Governor Sarah Palin 22 Jan 2009

Sarah Palin - A True American Hero

22 Jan 2009

By Seth Adam Smith

Sarah Palin - A True American Hero Despite the image that the liberal media has painted of her, Sarah Palin stands tall as an American hero; staying true to her pro-life convictions, her belief in God and her support of families with special needs children. Perhaps one of the most frustrating things of this election was the media coverage of Sarah Palin. Stepping out of obscurity, she became an overnight sensation, frustrating daydreaming Democrats and loud-mouthed liberals. Her appearance on the national stage seemed almost to overshadow Barack Obama's historic nomination for President and as such, she was massacred by the media. They ripped into her family, her faith, her education, her record, the cost of her clothes and even published nasty and disgusting rumors about her. Coverage of her was clearly biased, full of menace and left America with a tarnished image of a wonderful woman who got caught in the ugly world of politics. The truth of the matter is that Governor Palin is a true American hero. She's a self made woman from a working class family. One that worked hard in school, earned scholarships, started a family with her high school sweetheart, helped run a business, got involved in the PTA, city counsel and eventually became mayor of her hometown. She then went on, against all odds, ran against her party, became Governor of her state, took on the oil companies, had one of the highest approval ratings of any politician in the union (before the Democrats sent an army of investigators to tear her down after her nomination) and went on to become the first Republican VP pick. But laying that aside, her convictions, in the face of extreme adversity, is truly remarkable. Her pro-life stance while having a son with Down Syndrome is not something that can just be tossed aside. Nor can one ignore how she has been able----despite all the odds being stacked against her----to smile, carry on and keep moving forward, after having your entire personal life portrayed in the most negative (and in some cases, blantantly false) light possible. Truly, we have just seen a TRUE American hero. This video was made to honor Governor Palin. Please share it with as many people as you can and help people see what 'heroism' truly means. Please paste this to watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UM0fl7-tBtc Sincerely, Seth Adam Smith www.youtube.com/sethadamsmith Also besure to read Adam's blog @ sethadamsmith.blogspot.com

Sarah Palin best celebrity people want as neighbour

02 January , 2009

By sify.com/news

Sarah Palin best celebrity people want as neighbour New York: Britney Spears is No 1 on list of celebrities people don't want next door while Alaska governor Sarah Palin has been named the most desirable neighbour. The pop star landed the top spot in the Zillow.com poll, reports the New York Daily News. Some 2,000 people were questioned for the real-estate site's survey, and one in five said they wouldn't want to live near Spears. Comedian Rosie O'Donnell came second. Joe the Plumber of 2008 election fame, Lindsay Lohan, Pacman Jones and disgraced ex-Gov. Eliot Spitzer were among those who really need big fences. In the survey, 13 percent said Oprah Winfrey would make a good neighbour, followed by Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, and Tina Fey.

Clinton and Palin Encourage Women Politicos

12/31/08

By Ronni Mott

Clinton and Palin Encourage Women Politicos Sen. Hillary Clinton and Gov. Sarah Palin are an inspiration for women’s increased involvement in politics, a recent poll reveals.by Ronni Mott December 31, 2008 Women believe that Sen. Hillary Clinton and Gov. Sarah Palin crashed a few glass ceilings in the Nov. 4 general elections. Despite the media treating them unfairly, concentrating far too much on hairstyles and clothing, the majority of women voters say that the two politicians have paved the way for more women to run for office in the future. Those opinions and more emerged from Lifetime Television’s “Every Woman Counts” poll, which surveyed 600 women nationwide from Nov. 21 through 24, 88 percent of whom cast their votes in the November presidential election. The survey included questions asking why the women voted the way they did and their expectations for the incoming Barack Obama administration and 111th Congress, and zeroed in on the Clinton and Palin candidacies. “Women, traditionally, don’t look all that different from men in the way they feel about the issues and what they place in importance,” said Dr. Ashleigh Powers, assistant professor of political science at Millsaps College, who is studying women and politics in Mississippi. Nearly three-quarters of women polled said the economy must be the first order of business for the new president and Congress. That’s not particularly surprising given the turmoil of the global markets and recessions worldwide, but it represents a left turn from the top issue just one year ago: education. This year, every other issue—the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, health care, education—paled in comparison to the economy. Most women, about 60 percent, trust Obama to represent them and their values, but women’s issues, including pay equity, also took a back seat to the state of the economy. “It seems that the economy, for everyone, is the key issue. So that is about what we’d expect, I think,” Powers said. Half the women surveyed say that the downturn has already affected them, with more saying it will in the future. Rising energy costs were particularly troublesome. Among women who are currently retired or stay-at-home, a third believe they might have to re-enter the workforce to cover household expenses. “Women suffer more in difficult economic times than men do, so focusing on that, concentrating on equal pay and health care (are) all good things that I saw in the (survey) summary,” said Jenni Smith, president of Mississippi National Organization for Women. She said that NOW is in the process of finalizing its legislative agenda for the 111th Congress, and is including many of the items that the poll revealed as women’s concerns. She emphasized that the economy is most definitely a women’s issue. The majority of women voters (57 percent) made their decisions based on the candidates’ positions on the issues, with experience, values and party ideology all lagging behind. The historical significance of the 2008 elections entered into women’s voting decisions, with roughly a third of women who voted for Obama saying they considered his potential to become the first black U.S. president. Of McCain voters, Palin’s prospective position as the first woman vice president swayed only 17 percent. Even fewer Republican voters, 9 percent, voted for the McCain-Palin ticket because of Palin’s gender. Lifetime’s “Every Woman Counts” campaign launched about a year ago with three major goals: to get women registered and to the polls, to get them to run for office and to keep women’s issues in the political forefront, said Meredith Wagner, executive vice president of Lifetime Networks, during a Dec. 3 media teleconference. The gender double standard is alive and well in politics, the poll revealed, with 65 percent of all respondents—crossing every demographic and political line—saying the public has different yardsticks for male and female candidates. The American people take women candidates less seriously, they said, and the media gives them less serious coverage. Voters perceive them as not having enough experience, or not being tough enough for political office. “It was a post-gender election in terms of women looking beyond their gender as voters, but not in how women believe that male and female candidates were treated differently,” said pollster Kellyanne Conway of WomanTrend during the teleconference. But the women surveyed were not immune to the stereotypes, believing it’s easier for men to address weighty issues on the campaign trail like national security, terrorism and the economy. “There’s kind of an assumption of legitimacy for men in these areas that you don’t see for women,” Powers said, adding that often women who would otherwise be eligible don’t seem to have political ambitions. The same double standard seems to permeate every woman’s campaign. An August Pew Research study indicated that while Americans believe women have more of what it takes to be leaders—honesty, intelligence, compassion and so forth—less than six percent believe women make better political leaders than men. In the Lifetime poll, women agreed that qualifications should trump gender as Obama chooses his advisors. Smith said she would like to see the Obama administration continue to ensure that women are included at the highest level of government. “President-elect Obama, through his Cabinet-level appointments, anyway, has made it clear that he is committed to having diverse voices, including women and people of color,” Smith said. Women on both sides of the aisle thought the media did not provide enough information about Palin’s and Clinton’s policy positions, especially when covering Palin. Asked to compare coverage of Clinton and Palin to other candidates, 64 percent said the media was more negative about Palin than anyone else, with half the women saying the coverage was not substantive as well, focusing on their hair and wardrobe instead of where she stood on the issues. “We hope that the media executives who are looking at (future coverage of women candidates) see that we don’t want to be discussing clothes and ankles,” Smith said. “We want to see the substance, the discussion on their positions and the issues.” Still, women see the 2008 elections as a step toward electing the first female president in their lifetimes by a margin of more than 12 to one, and feel Clinton and Palin will encourage more women to run, having demonstrated that women have what it takes. Younger women especially, they said, will be more likely to take an interest in politics because of the two top female candidates in 2008. “They see (those campaigns) as an avenue in a way that they might not have before,” Powers said. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jackson Free Press posted by Heyoka! on 12/31/08 http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/index.php/site/

Sarah Palin Wins Conservative Of The Year

12-22-08

By Ann Coulter

Sarah Palin Wins Conservative Of The Year Sarah Palin wins “Conservative of the Year” Award for 2008 from HUMAN EVENTS for her genius at annoying all the right people. The last woman to get liberals this hot under the collar would have been … let's see now … oh, yeah: Me! The entire presidential election year was kind of a downer for conservatives. Once the “maverick” John McCain won the nomination, the rest of the year was like watching a slow motion car crash. Except at least a slow-motion car crash is occasionally entertaining. So it was going to be a long year. Until Palin.When McCain chose our beauteous Sarah as his running mate, the maverick was finally acting like a real maverick -- as opposed to the media’s definition of a “maverick” which is: “agreeing with the editorial positions of the New York Times.” Pre-Palin it had been one race -- boring old “You kids get off my lawn!” John McCain versus the exciting, new politician Barack Obama, who threw caution to the wind and bravely ran as the Pro-Hope candidate. And then our heroic Sarah bounded out of the Alaska tundra and it became a completely different race. This left the press completely discombobulated and upset. They didn't know whether to attack Sarah for not having an abortion or go after her husband for not being a sissy. I assume Palin was chosen because McCain had heard that she was a real conservative and he had always wanted to meet one -- no, actually because he needed a conservative on the ticket, but that he had no idea that picking her would send the left into a tailspin of wanton despair. But if anyone on the McCain campaign chose Palin because she would drive liberals crazy, my hat is off to him! True, Palin made some embarrassing gaffes. She complained that we didn’t have enough “Arabic translators” in Afghanistan -- not realizing the natives don’t speak Arabic in Afghanistan, but rather a variety of regional dialects, the most common of which is Pashtun. Speaking to military veterans one time, Palin said, “Our nation honors its unbroken line of fallen heroes -- and I see many of them in the audience here today.” She bragged about passing a law regulating the nuclear industry that it turned out never became a law at all. Some days Palin said Venezuela's dictator Hugo Chavez should suffer "regional isolation" -- but then on others she’d say she supported the president’s meeting with Chavez. She told one audience about recent tornados in Kansas that had killed 10,000 people. In fact, a dozen people were killed in the tornados. She referred to the “57 states” that make up the U.S. Speaking of her eldest daughter’s pregnancy, she said Bristol was being “punished” with a baby. As you probably know -- or guessed by now -- none of these gaffes were uttered by Palin. They are all Obama gaffes. Luckily, he made them to a star-struck press that managed not to ask him a difficult question for two years. It seemed like the media would introduce an all-new double standard each day throughout the two glorious months of Palin’s candidacy. I don’t remember, for example, zealous inquiries into the supposedly peculiar religious practices of any candidates in past elections. No one in the press touched on Sen. Joe Lieberman’s religious beliefs when he was Kerry’s running mate. (Nor, while we’re on the subject, was the media particularly interested in the beliefs of the religion that inspired the 9/11 attacks on America.) But the press snapped right back into their anti-religious hysteria for a candidate who was a Pentecostal! The same media that couldn’t be bothered to investigate Obama’s ties to former Weathermen or Syrian Nationalist Tony Rezko was soon hot on the trail of a rumor that Palin’s church had a speaker 30 years ago who spoke in tongues! Let me think now: Were there ever any unusual or otherwise noteworthy speeches or sermons given in churches where Obama worshipped? Hmmm … it's on the tip of my tongue. Liberals also suddenly decided that a woman with children could not handle the stress of higher office. Until Palin reared her beautiful head, this is precisely the sort of thinking liberals would have denounced as the Neanderthal, backwards, good old boy network attitude that had created a “glass ceiling.” Let’s consider the facts: Palin’s oldest son was about to be under the tender care of Gen. David Petraeus after being shipped off to Iraq. Her next oldest child was about to be married and probably would prefer that her parents butt out. That left three children under the age of 15, which was almost the same as Obama had. So Palin had one more child -- and a lot more executive experience -- than the guy at the top of the Democrats’ ticket. (I suspect what liberals were really mad about was that if Palin became Vice President, she probably would have hired a nanny who was a U.S. citizen.) Having indignantly rejected experience as a presidential qualification in the case of Obama, liberals had to raise questions about Palin’s experience gingerly. But, in short order, they threw caution to the wind and began energetically criticizing Palin for her lack of experience. I call that two … two … two standards in one! Like most Democrats, both Obama and Biden boasted of their humble beginnings, while having fully adopted the attitudes, pomposity and style of the elites. Meanwhile, Palin is the sort of genuine American that brings out the worst, most egregious pomposity of liberals. For weeks, Carl Bernstein was showing up on TV to announce: “We still don’t have the date of first issuance of her passport.” Members of the establishment would be astonished to learn that more Americans have guns than passports. Liberals were angry at Palin because they thought she should look and act like Kay Bailey Hutchinson: Upper crust, prissy and stiff. Palin had a husband in the Steelworkers Union, a sister and brother-in-law who owned a gas station, and five attractive children -- one headed for Iraq, one a Down’s syndrome baby and one the cutest little girl anyone had ever seen. In a nutshell, Palin was everything Democrats are always pretending to be, but never are. She didn’t have to conjure up implausible images of herself duck hunting as Hillary Clinton did. Nor was Palin the typical Democratic elected female official who went straight from college into politics, like Nita Lowey. Despite their phony championing of “women’s issues” (i.e. abortion) there was not one Democrat woman who could win a head-to-head contest with Palin. Especially not if we got to see their faces. Democrats may have a fleet of women politicians, but they don’t have a deep bench of attractive ones. You don’t even think of most Democratic woman as women: Rosa Delauro, Nita Lowey, Patty Murray, Janet Napolitano -- and the list goes on. Oh, sure, there are the odd female Democrat sex kittens -- your Janet Renos, your Donna Shalalas -- but they're the exception to the rule. After Palin gave her barnburner of a speech at the Republican National Convention, a friend of mine in a liberal industry told me his friends were aggressively confronting him demanding to know if Palin was raised by a secret cult of Christians that taught children nothing but Creationism and public speaking. Oh, how I wish he had said “yes.” Imagine the aneurisms! I think what liberals were trying to say was: Gosh, she’s an exceptionally attractive mother of five! The Obama campaign was so alarmed by Palin’s speech, it loudly dismissed the speech saying she didn’t write it. At least that’s what a press release written by an Obama campaign staffer said. Indeed, the first words out of every Palin critic's mouth were: "Good speech, but she didn't write it." So I guess all liberals were reading the same talking points written for them by the Obama campaign. At least Palin pays her speechwriters. Neil Kinnock is still waiting for his check. Speaking of Joe Biden, he said that Palin’s speech had a lot of style but little substance. Inasmuch as Biden was Obama's running mate, I think that meant he liked it! A newspaper in Boston responded to Palin’s speech by interviewing hairdressers who criticized Sarah's hairstyle. (Where were these people after Joe Biden's speech?) Trendy dinner party opinion soon demanded that all liberals take up the cry that Palin must let the press have a whack at her. Almost immediately after she was introduced to the nation, the cry went up: “When are we going to be allowed to ask Palin questions?” Palin’s refusal to meet with the press for one week after being chosen as McCain’s running mate was evidently more maddening than Obama's refusal to appear on Fox News for almost the entirety of his campaign. Everyone acted as if Obama’s feat of running for President for two years constituted a complete and thorough vetting. It might have been, except that the entire media had apparently agreed: “OK, none of us will ask Obama about Tony Rezko, William Ayers, and Jeremiah Wright.” Hillary was hissed by the audience for mentioning Rezko at a Democratic debate and George Stephanopoulos nearly lost his career for asking Obama one William Ayers question at another. Osama bin Laden was more upset about the Rev. Jeremiah Wright than liberals were -- especially after "Jeremiah Wright videos" passed "al Qaeda videos" for most total viewings on Youtube. (He was kicking himself for not coming up with that “God Damn America” line first!) Who cares if Palin was qualified to be President? She was running with John McCain! There was no chance that ticket was going to place her anywhere near the presidency. In fact, I can’t think of a better place to put someone you wanted to keep away from the White House than on a ticket with McCain. Palin was a kick in the pants, she energized conservatives, and she made liberal heads explode. Other than his brave military service, introducing Sarah Palin to Americans is the greatest thing John McCain ever did for his country. But unless Palin is going to be the perpetual running mate of “moderate” Republicans who need conservative bona fides, she will need to become wiser and better read. Even Reagan didn’t run for President in his 40s. (True Obama is in his 40s, but we are not Democrats.) Perhaps Palin’s year is 2012, but I would recommend that she take a little more time to become older and wiser. She ought to spend the next decade being a good governor, tending to her children so none of them turn out like Ron Reagan Jr., and reading everything Phyllis Schlafly, Thomas Sowell, Ronald Reagan and “Publius” have ever written. (She also might keep in mind that HUMAN EVENTS was Ronald Reagan’s favorite newspaper!) In time, HUMAN EVENTS’ 2008 Conservative of the Year will be ready to be our President and someday can sweep into office and dismantle all the heinous government programs Obama and the Democrats are about to foist on the nation. Who knows? She might even be able to run as the candidate of "hope" and "change." Our Thanks To Everyone At Team Sarah For All Of Your Votes by Ann Coulter 12/22/2008

Sarah for Senate?

December 22, 2008

By By Josh Kraushaar - Politco.Com

If Sarah Palin wants to run for the Senate, a race against Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) in 2010 might give her a golden opportunity to win. A newly released poll shows that Palin would trounce Murkowski if she challenged her in a primary. The poll, commissioned by the Daily Kos, shows Palin leading Murkowski by 24 points, 55 to 31 percent, in a hypothetical primary matchup. Palin still has sky-high approval ratings in Alaska: 60 percent of respondents said they view Palin favorably, while 38 percent view her unfavorably. A 51 percent majority of Alaskans said they viewed Murkowski favorably, while 43 percent viewed her unfavorably. Palin has given little hint of her future intentions, but she has experience taking on the Murkowski family. She was elected governor of Alaska by handily defeating Lisa Murkowski’s father, then-Gov. Frank Murkowski, in the Republican primary. The governor took criticism in the campaign for (among other things) appointing his daughter to his Senate seat when he was elected. For her part, Lisa Murkowski is preparing for the fight. She told Politico’s Manu Raju earlier this month that Palin would face a “tough election” if she jumped in the race. And Murkowski cited her seniority and service as the ranking Republican on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee to dissuade Palin from running. “If she were to kind of move me over, if you will, to run for national office again at the expense at this seniority that’s been built, I don’t know if Alaskans would look too favorably on that,” Murkowski said. The poll also tested several general election matchups, including a Senate rematch of the 2006 gubernatorial race between Palin and Democrat Tony Knowles. Palin would defeat Knowles by 14 points, 53 to 39 percent. The poll, conducted by Research 2000, surveyed 600 likely voters between December 15-17. It has a four percent margin of error. http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/1208/Sarah_for_Senate.html?showall

Chief: Gov. Palin's home church damaged by arson

Saturday, December 1

By AP News

AP News Saturday, December 13, 2008 Gov. Sarah Palin's home church was badly damaged by arson, leading the governor to apologize if the fire was connected to "undeserved negative attention" from her failed campaign as the Republican vice presidential nominee. Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at $1 million, authorities said Saturday. No one was injured in the fire, which was set Friday night while a handful of people, including two children, were inside, according to Central Mat-Su Fire Chief James Steele. He said the blaze was being investigated as an arson but didn't know of any recent threats to the church. Authorities didn't know whether Palin's connection to the church was relevant to the fire, Steele said. "It's hard to say at this point. Everything is just speculation," he said. "We have no information on intent or motive." Steele would not comment on the means used to set the fire. Pastor Larry Kroon declined to say whether the church had received any recent threats. "There are so many variables," he said. "I don't want to comment in that direction." Palin, who was not at the church at the time of the fire, stopped by Saturday. Her spokesman, Bill McAllister, said in a statement that Palin told an assistant pastor she was sorry if the fire was connected to the "undeserved negative attention" the church has received since she became the vice presidential candidate Aug. 29. "Whatever the motives of the arsonist, the governor has faith in the scriptural passage that what was intended for evil will in some way be used for good," McAllister said. The 1,000-member evangelical church was the subject of intense scrutiny after Palin was named John McCain's running mate. Early in Palin's campaign, the church was criticized for promoting in a Sunday bulletin a Focus on the Family "Love Won Out Conference" in Anchorage. The conference promised to "help men and women dissatisfied with living homosexually understand that same-sex attractions can be overcome." The fire was set at the entrance of the church and moved inward as a small group of women were working on crafts, Steele said. The group was alerted to the blaze by a fire alarm. Outside temperatures were minus 20 as firefighters battled the blaze. Steele said a multi-agency task force was being assembled to investigate the fire. Wasilla, the governor's hometown, is 40 miles north of Anchorage.

Governor Sarah Palin's Church Severely Damaged by Arson

Sunday, December 14,

By Associated Press

ANCHORAGE, Dec. 13 -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's home church was badly damaged by arson, leading the governor to apologize Saturday if the fire was connected to "undeserved negative attention" from her campaign as the Republican vice presidential nominee. Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at $1 million, authorities said. No one was injured in the fire, which was set Friday night while a handful of people, including two children, were inside, according to James Steele, the Central Mat-Su fire chief. He said the blaze was being investigated as an arson. Steele said he didn't know of any recent threats to the church, and authorities did not know whether Palin's connection to the church was relevant to the fire. "It's hard to say at this point. Everything is just speculation," he said. Pastor Larry Kroon declined to say whether the church had received any recent threats. Palin was not at the church at the time of the fire. She stopped by Saturday, and her spokesman Bill McAllister said in a statement that the governor told an assistant pastor she was sorry if the fire was connected to the "undeserved negative attention" the church has received since she became the vice presidential candidate Aug. 29. "Whatever the motives of the arsonist, the governor has faith in the scriptural passage that what was intended for evil will in some way be used for good," McAllister said. The 1,000-member evangelical church was the subject of intense scrutiny after Palin was named Sen. John McCain's running mate. Early in Palin's campaign, the church was criticized for promoting in a Sunday bulletin a Love Won Out conference in Anchorage sponsored by Focus on the Family. The conference promised to "help men and women dissatisfied with living homosexually understand that same-sex attractions can be overcome." The fire was set at the entrance of the church and moved inward as a small group of women worked on crafts, Steele said. The group was alerted to the blaze by a fire alarm.

Governor Sarah Palin discusses energy with Obama, Biden

Dec 2008

By Morris News Service, Alaska

Philadelphia, Pa. - Governor Sarah Palin participated in a joint meeting Dec. 2 with President-elect Obama, Vice President-elect Biden and many of the nation's governors on key issues including Alaska energy projects. The Governor also met separately with Vice President-elect Biden and senior staffers to President-elect Obama. In a two hour meeting, Governor Palin stressed the need for a pipeline from Alaska's North Slope to carry natural gas to North America markets. She emphasized that the project has enjoyed bipartisan support in the Congress and the Alaska State Legislature. "This was a very productive opportunity to discuss how Alaska's North Slope gas can help put America on the path to energy independence," Governor Palin said. "I was able to share Alaska's message with dozens of other governors and incoming federal officials." An Alaska natural gas pipeline is expected to deliver at least 4 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas to North American markets as soon as 2019. The Commissioners of Natural Resources and Revenue will sign the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act license awarded to TransCanada Alaska Company, LLC and Foothills Pipe Lines Limited in Fairbanks on Friday.

Sarah Palin might have courted Google searches, but that didn't transfer to votes in the presidential election

12 December 2008

By Murad Ahmed, Technology Reporter

Google has published its annual round-up of most searched terms today, revealing that the public spent much of the year procrastinating on Facebook, energised by the Large Hadron Collider and obsessing about the downfall of a bank in Iceland. Each year the search engine giant compiles its “zeitgeist” list, uncovering the most popular keywords among billions of Google queries. One of the fastest rising search terms of 2008 was “Large Hadron Collider”, reflecting the way in which the giant atom-smasher that promises to reveal the secrets of the universe captured the public imagination as it was switched on in September. In the UK, "Large Hadron Collider" outranked even “Obama”, despite the American Presidential election's domination of the airwaves and front pages for weeks before his election win on November 4. Globally, the president-elect was beaten by his vanquished rival for the vice-presidency, Sarah Palin. The Governor of Alaska topped the the worldwide list of fastest rising queries. Mr Obama was only sixth in the list of top climbers, just behind the late Heath Ledger, who played the Joker in the latest Batman remake. He died in January after taking an overdose of prescription drugs. The economic crisis led to a rise in searches for Icesave, the Icelandic bank whose collapse led to the British Government compensating thousands of customers who faced losing their savings. Icesave, the online British arm of Landsbanki, was the fastest rising finance term this year, higher than Natwest, Halifax or Barclays. Unsuprisingly, the word most frequently searched for was Facebook, the social networking website. In the UK there are 12.6 million active users — about a third of the online population. Other popular websites dominate the list of top search terms, such as YouTube, the world’s largest video-sharing website, and eBay the popular online auction site. The fastest rising term in UK searches was iPlayer, the BBC on-demand service, which in its first year was viewed 237 million times. As this article is loaded with popular search terms, The Times fully expects that this piece may be heading the top of the results from one of your Google searches very soon. Top UK search terms 1. Facebook 2. BBC 3. YouTube 4. eBay 5. games 6. news 7. Hotmail 8. Bebo 9. Yahoo 10. jobs Fastest rising UK search terms 1. iPlayer 2. Facebook 3. iPhone 4. YouTube 5. Yahoo Mail 6. Large Hadron Collider 7. Obama 8. Friv 9. Cam4 10. Jogos Fastest rising global search terms 1. Sarah Palin 2. Beijing 2008 3. Facebook login 4. Tuenti 5. Heath Ledger 6. Obama 7. Nasza Klasa 8. Wer Kennt Wen 9. Euro 2008 10. Jonas brothers

Palin Went Down to Georgia & her popularity is undimmed

15 December 2008

By Marjorie Dannenfelser

12/15/2008, Volume 014, Issue 13 It looks like Sarah Palin won't be fading away. Not if Saxby Chambliss has anything to say about it. "I can't overstate the impact she had down here," said Chambliss shortly after his surprisingly solid 15-point victory in the December 2 Georgia Senate runoff. Chambliss, who went from a 49.8-46.8 percent lead on November 4 to a 57-43 victory over Democrat Jim Martin in the runoff (Georgia law requires an absolute majority), credited Palin with helping his campaign "peak" with four hugely attended election-eve rallies. "All these folks did a great job coming in," he said, referring to an all-star cast of Republicans who made appearances on his behalf. "But when she walks in a room, folks just explode." Despite the best efforts of the media, left-of-center feminists, and a brigade of political elites, including more than a few Beltway Republicans, to write obituaries for Palin's national political career, she continues to be the second biggest phenomenon of the 2008 election cycle, behind only the president-elect. "I am not going to Washington to seek their good opinion," she said in her convention acceptance speech, referring to the media. And gain it, she did not. But their disdain--like that of the abovementioned elites--seems only to fan the firestorm of support for her. Witness the independent "Team Sarah" website, started September 15 by the Susan B. Anthony List, the pro-life group I head. Every time Palin is hammered by the media, this stable of online supporters grows. Our Facebook-style political networking site has grown from 50 members to 60,000 in less than two months, the biggest surges coming when Palin-bashing crests. These are highly motivated grassroots activists, some involved in politics for the first time, some seasoned types, all awaiting the next Palin project. Some of the most eloquent are women ecstatic over the new brand of feminism Palin represents: populist and pro-life. There is no other woman on the national political stage like her--and hasn't been in recent times. To whom could she be compared--Geraldine Ferraro, Hillary Clinton, Barbara Boxer, Dianne Feinstein? She doesn't begin to fit this cookie-cutter model of pro-choice, pro-gender-quota woman in politics that left-feminism has served up. But Palin has forebears in American politics. She looks a lot more like the early suffragists than anyone on the national stage now, especially in her pro-life stance. Susan B. Anthony, for whom my organization is named, for instance, called abortion "child murder." Elizabeth Cady Stanton called it a sickening symptom of women's mistreatment: "When we consider that women are treated as property, it is degrading to women to treat our children as property to be disposed of as we see fit." Under media attack and scrutiny, Palin and her family became a kind of microcosm of America's "crisis" abortion debates. Her Down Syndrome baby Trig and her pregnant teenage daughter are witnesses to the life-affirming attitudes the early feminists held. And Palin operates in a grievance-free environment. She likes being a woman. It is apparent, attractive, and typical of what most American women feel, or would like to. She gives every appearance of loving her role as a wife and mother of a bunch of kids. She lives as if she believes in the natural complementarity of men and women, rather than the supposed enmity and competition of the sexes depicted as universal by left feminism. She is feminine and she is confident. This confidence is what gets under the skin of the old-guard feminists the most. How could she? She takes her femininity and pro-life position and strides confidently right through those doors they feel they opened. And it drives them to distraction that millions of American women either love it or are intrigued by it. Finally, after all these years, we see a confident, successful, feminine woman no more afraid of barriers than the hardest-core liberal feminist. Put another way, her attractiveness is her authenticity. Perhaps that's the upside of the "hokey" epithet pundits throw at her. She does not try to be somebody she is not, and she has resisted the professional image packagers that threaten to unravel her appeal. The crowds that flock to see Palin wherever she goes have found something different in her: authenticity, charisma, and hope. Too bad these qualities are "different" in American politics, but the palpable craving for them explains much of people's continuing interest in her. Palin's contribution to the Chambliss campaign's impressive closing kick is evidence of two things. Grassroots America does not want her to go away, and she has no intention of doing so. Marjorie Dannenfelser is president of the Susan B. Anthony List and cofounder of Team Sarah. The SBA List and Team Sarah communicated through mail, phones, and radio with 400,000 registered pro-life voters in the Georgia Senate race. http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/897qplyo.asp

Voters in the US state of Louisiana have elected the first Vietnamese-American member of Congress.

12-07-2008

By BBC News

Voters in the US state of Louisiana have elected the first Vietnamese-American member of Congress. ---------------------------------------- Anh Joseph Cao, a Republican, defeated the incumbent Democrat Representative William Jefferson, who faces trial on bribery and money-laundering charges. Lawyer Mr Cao was born in Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City, and came to the US with his family at the age of eight, after the end of the Vietnam War. The election, delayed by Hurricane Gustav, was one of two in Louisiana. Both resulted in victories for the Republican Party. Mr Cao won 50% of the vote in the 2nd congressional district, which includes most of New Orleans, to Mr Jefferson's 47%, state officials said. Strong campaign: Analysts say the Republicans ran an aggressive campaign to take the seat from Mr Jefferson, 61, who is accused of soliciting millions of dollars in bribes and using his office to broker business deals in Africa. In a search of his home, FBI agents said they found $90,000 in bribe money in a freezer. Mr Jefferson, who has been in Congress since 1991, denies the charges and a trial date has not yet been set. Mr Cao, 41, has never held public office before. His father was an officer in the South Vietnamese army who spent seven years in a communist prison before moving to the US. "The people of the 2nd District have spoken. We want new direction. We want action. We want accountability," Mr Cao told supporters. Mr Jefferson blamed low voter turnout for his defeat. In the 4th Congressional District in western Louisiana, Republican John Fleming narrowly beat Democrat Paul Carmouche in the race to replace retiring 10-term Republican Jim McCrery. Both polls were postponed because of Hurricane Gustav, which pounded Louisiana in September. Mr Jefferson's defeat will not seriously affect the balance of power in the US House of Representatives, where Democrats hold a strong majority of the 435 seats. ----------------- Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/us_elections_2008/7769795.stm

TROOPERGATE: Governor's office says report was to be made public, not deposition.

12/06/08 03:31:56

By LISA DEMER

Access denied to Palin's testimony TROOPERGATE: Governor's office says report was to be made public, not deposition. By LISA DEMER ldemer@adn.com ----------------------- As far as Gov. Sarah Palin is concerned, Troopergate is behind her and she won't release to the public testimony she gave in an investigation into whether she violated ethics laws in firing her public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan. But the day she testified, Palin's attorney said she wanted to make her testimony public. She gave her only testimony in the matter on Oct. 24 while on the vice presidential campaign trail. Her attorney, Thomas Van Flein, said at the time that she wanted to release a transcript of her sworn testimony. Reached this week, Van Flein said he hadn't talked to Palin about releasing it since then. "That's their call, I guess," he said. The governor has maintained she did nothing wrong and that Monegan was dismissed for reasons unrelated to her concerns about her ex-brother-in-law, trooper Michael Wooten. She called Wooten a "trooper time-bomb" and complained to Monegan in an e-mail that Wooten had tasered his stepson, drank beer in his patrol car, and shot a moose without a permit and yet was still on the street. Palin's husband, Todd, as well as administration officials, repeatedly talked to Monegan and others at the Department of Public Safety about Wooten. Monegan has said he believes he was fired in part because he wouldn't get rid of the trooper, and one investigation into the matter came to the same conclusion. Palin cooperated with only one of two investigations into the circumstances of Monegan's dismissal, the one by the state Personnel Board, which she said was the proper venue for an ethics investigation and which cleared her. She didn't cooperate with the separate investigation by the state Legislature, which found she abused her power by failing to rein in Todd Palin and others but still had the right to fire Monegan. When the Personnel Board investigation began, Palin said she wanted it made public. "The people of Alaska -- and of the nation -- deserve to have a decision from the proper tribunal putting their minds at ease that suggestions of misconduct that have circulated on the Internet and in some media outlets are not true. I therefore am waiving the confidentiality that usually covers personnel board complaints," Palin said in a statement released by Van Flein on Sept. 2, just days after she was named John McCain's running mate. Palin is simply ready to move on, her deputy press secretary, Sharon Leighow, wrote in an e-mail exchange this week. "Governor Palin waived her confidentiality to release the Personnel Board report -- not her deposition," Leighow wrote. "Two investigations concerning this matter have been conducted and concluded; we are not going to relitigate this in the media now. The politics are over and behind us. In both investigations, the investigators found that the governor acted with her proper and lawful authority in dismissing Walt Monegan. We are moving forward now and not looking back at a matter which has distracted Alaskans from the key issues at hand; the price of oil, the state of our budget and resource development in Alaska, including the ultimate construction of a natural gas pipeline." The governor's office also refused to release a transcript of Todd Palin's deposition and other key documents that were part of the Personnel Board investigation but not included as attachments to the official report. For instance, the governor's office wouldn't provide copies of e-mails among top administration officials, the governor and her husband that were sent in the days before an infamous call by Palin aide Frank Bailey to a trooper lieutenant about Wooten. In the call, which was recorded, Bailey said, "Todd and Sarah are scratching their heads. You know, why on earth hasn't, why is this guy still representing the department?" Palin has said she never authorized the call. The e-mails are not public because of reasons including "executive privilege," the governor's office said. The governor's office also declined to release notes from a meeting of Palin administration officials assessing Wooten's ability to return to work after being off on a worker's compensation claim. The Personnel Board investigation, by prosecutor-turned-defense lawyer Tim Petumenos, said the notes could be read to mean that officials talked about the possibility of assigning Wooten to duties "that would cause him to resign." The notes are exempt from the state public records law because they relate to a confidential personnel matter, the governor's office said. As to the governor's testimony, Leighow said: "This matter is closed. We see no public purpose in artificially prolonging this controversy." Find Lisa Demer online at adn.com/contact/ldemer or call 257-4390. LISA DEMER ldemer@adn.com -------------------------------- Find Draft Palin for President T-shirts for only $9.00 in our store. http://www.draftpalinforpresident.com/members/store

Governor Palin proposes new funds to benefit children $5 MILLION IN NEW MONEY

12/05/08 04:16:09

By SEAN COCKERHAM

By SEAN COCKERHAM scockerham@adn.com www.adn.com ------------------- Gov. Sarah Palin is calling for more state spending on children's health insurance, preschool and other programs, even as Alaska oil prices and state revenues plunge. Cash flow into the state is shrinking as oil prices drop below $40 a barrel, the lowest level in nearly four years. Most state general fund money comes from taxes and royalties the state makes from oil. But Palin said the state can afford more than $5 million in new spending on areas like Head Start, obesity prevention, a test program of half-day preschool, and expanded Denali KidCare insurance. "That means more working families will have health coverage. This isn't done lightly, a decision like this, and we know there will probably be some healthy debate stemming from some opposition in the Legislature over this," Palin said. Palin will release the rest of her proposed state budget next week and said not to expect any significant cuts. She downplayed the danger falling oil prices pose to the state budget, saying Alaska is in a far better position than other states. Palin claimed the state could still end up with a surplus even if oil averages $45 a barrel over the next several months. David Teal, the state Legislature's chief budget analyst, said that is possible for the current fiscal year that ends in June. But he has doubts. "Oil is falling pretty fast; we don't know if we're going to have a surplus or a deficit," Teal said in an interview. Palin's new spending plan, though, would start in the next fiscal year -- when Alaska oil prices would have to average at least $20 a barrel more than now to balance the budget. The state has put billions of dollars into savings accounts, however, and the governor's office said there is no "imminent threat to government services" even at lower oil prices than this. Palin's health proposals unveiled Thursday don't come close to the sweeping policy changes proposed by some legislators who are promoting universal health care. The governor established a commission to provide recommendations on putting together a health care plan for the state. Anchorage Democratic Sen. Bettye Davis said Palin's proposals are a beginning, but not enough. "I'm pleased she is at least admitting we need to move from where we are," Davis said. North Pole Republican state Rep. John Coghill said he's worried Palin's plan to increase Denali KidCare goes too far in expanding an entitlement program outside the welfare system. He said he'd like a co-pay or some other incentive for people not to rely indefinitely on the state system. But Cogill said he probably would not fight the increase, and expects that it will likely make it through the Legislature. Lawmakers have scrapped for years over Denali KidCare, which provides health insurance for lower income children and pregnant women. Palin last year opposed the push to increase coverage -- even though the state was enjoying a huge surplus at the time from high oil prices. It's one of dozens of policy calls that came under scrutiny as the governor became a national figure in the wake of her nomination this summer for vice president. Palin, pressed on why she's now changed her position, kept repeating that it is an opportunity for more children to be covered. A major issue last year in the debate was that lawmakers feared the federal government might reduce its 70 percent share of the program. There's more certainty now in the federal match. The proposed increase -- taking Denali KidCare eligibility to 200 percent of the federal poverty level instead of 175 percent -- is estimated to bring about 1,300 children and about 225 pregnant women into the program. Palin also called for an $800,000 increase in Head Start preschool programs and another $2 million for the state Department of Education & Early Development to try a pilot program for half-day preschool. The state preschool would include up to 500 children spread around the state. School districts would get the money through grants. The idea is to target kids who do not have access to preschool otherwise, according to state officials. Palin said some cost savings will come with the end of a teacher performance cash incentive program that the teachers union said was badly flawed. ------------------------------------------------------ Draft Palin T-Shirts just $9.00 - visit our store!! www.DraftPalinForPresident.com

Rebuilding the Republican Party with Governor Sarah Palin

5 December 2008

By www.draftpalinforpresident.com

Please take 4 minutes and watch this video, it shows just how much Americans are backing Sarah Palin. Rebuilding the Republican Party (paste) http://www.tlaurl. com/159 Also, thank you for the GREAT response so far to the message we sent out a few days ago. If you missed that email, here is some of it below. Log into your members area http://www.draftpal inforpresident. com/members and click on the STORE link at the top (you will only see it once logged in). Once there, pick out a T-Shirt and/or Sweat Shirt. Buy one for you, one for your spouse or loved one, and buy some for Christmas presents. The money made (while not much at those prices) will go to buy needy children Christmas. We here at Draft Sarah Palin For President will match all funds up to $1000. That's right, every dime of profit plus our match, will go to buy as many kids as we can Christmas. Plus as an added bonus, 5 lucky buyers will be picked at random and receive a FREE signed copy of Sarah Takes On Big Oil. So you can do 3 things at once, Buy your Christmas for loved ones, help buy Christmas for needy children, and have a chance to win a FREE copy of the new book Sarah Takes On Big Oil. So stop by the store today. Please try to place your order well before Christmas so we can have time to ship it to you and so we can have time to buy the children Christmas.Log in today! http://www.draftpal inforpresident. com/members Also, if you want a copy of the book Sarah Takes On Big Oil, follow the directions below.Go to this link.http://www.tlaurl. com/160 Once you purchase the book and fill out the PayPal info, there will be a special area to leave special instructions. In that space please put "I saw the book on Draft Sarah Palin For President" and they will give us a $9 commission. We will then take all that money and donate it to either buy more Christmas for needy children (if purchased before Christmas) or after Christmas we will donate it to Children with Special Needs Foundation. The point is you can get a GREAT book and help kids out at the same time. You will find that we are not in this for money, we really want Sarah Palin for President of the United States Of America! Spread The Word! Our Voice Will Be Heard! Draft Sarah Palin For President 2012

Senator discounts Palin as rival - RUMORS: Governor's spokesman says the story didn't start with her.

(12/03/08 23:08:29)

By The Associated Press

The Associated Press Gov. Sarah Palin has indicated she's open to a presidential run in 2012, but her spokesman said Wednesday she has never stated she would first seek the Senate seat held by fellow Republican Lisa Murkowski. "I have never heard it come up. More than that, I'm unaware of why we're even talking about this," spokesman Bill McAllister said. He was referring to comments made by Murkowski that Palin would have a hard campaign beating her, an incumbent with rising seniority in the Senate. "I can guarantee it would be a very tough election," Murkowski said in an interview published this week on Politico.com. Murkowski was appointed in 2002 by her father, Frank Murkowski, who held the Senate seat for more than two decades before he was elected governor. She will become Alaska's senior senator after the recent loss by Ted Stevens, the Senate's longest serving Republican ever. Frank Murkowski served just one term as governor before he was defeated in the 2006 primary by Palin, who went on to beat other rivals including former Democratic Gov. Tony Knowles. Palin could run for a second term in 2010. But that's also when Lisa Murkowski is up for re-election for a seat with potentially more national exposure for Palin. Mike Brumas, a spokesman for Murkowski, told The Associated Press on Wednesday the senator has nothing more to say on the matter. Murkowski told Politico that a Senate race would be risky for Palin. A loss could hurt a presidential run while a win would erase any seniority by Alaskans in the Senate -- and Palin would have to launch her presidential bid right away. "If she wants to be president, I don't think the way to the presidency is a short stop in the United States Senate," Murkowski said. Murkowski told Politico that she had not spoken with Palin about whether she will run and said the topic might be "more media-generated than what actually might be the thought process in Juneau right now." McAllister said he wonders why anyone is putting any weight to speculations of a Senate run by Palin. "Certainly the governor hasn't mentioned it," he said. http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/v-printer/story/611017.html ---------------------------------------------------------- Find Draft Palin T-shirts only $9.00 @ www.draftpalin.com >>>>>(members area only)

Media Can't Understand Why Palin's Still Popular Internet Search

2008-12-02

By By Warner Todd Huston

Media Can't Understand Why Palin's Still Popular Internet Search By Warner Todd Huston ===================== This particular Palin report is funny for it's cluelessness, but a spokesman for the Internet search engine company Lycos is astounded that people are still interested enough in Governor Sarah Palin to put her name in the search field of an Internet search engine like Lycos or Google. After all, we have Obama, now, the spokesman says. Why do we need Palin info still? The quotes from Kathy O’Reilly, a spokeswoman for Lycos, were reported by Politico [1] last week and goes to show that the appeal of Sarah Palin is still little understood in many quarters. Sarah Palin has stayed in the list of the top 5 Internet searches since she was chosen as John McCain's running mate in October. [With luck, the blind may see. O:-) ] The scope of the GOP ticket’s loss -- and the role her critics assigned to her in that defeat -- hasn't cooled interest in Palin. She ranked as the No. 2 top news search at Ask.com this week and No. 2 (after Obama) among newsmakers on the AOL 2008 year-end hottest searches list, and she occupied two slots on Politico's list of the site's 10 most searched terms. Palin also ranked fourth among Yahoo searches, behind "Black Friday," a Czech model and a contestant on the hit television show "Dancing with the Stars." She was the only politician on the Yahoo top 20 list. To Lycos spokesman O'Reilly, though, it's all a mystery. "People are still searching for her in record numbers," said Kathy O’Reilly, a spokeswoman for Lycos. "How bizarre is that? Obama is the president-elect after the most historic election of all time and you'd think he would be dominating search activity and he only now is going ahead of her." "It's astounding that someone who should have faded into the background [LOL!] after the election is not only making headlines but being searched for in record numbers online," said O'Reilly. "People still have a fixation with her, for whatever the reason." Politico also makes a mistake that is ubiquitous in the media. The polarizing role she played in the presidential campaign may also be driving the enduring fascination with all things Palin. Who says she was "polarizing"? The media does. Again this is a use of false authority. Since they say she is "polarizing" she is. But, it isn't really because of what she did, what she said or how she campaigned that was really "polarizing." This claim of polarization is the determination of the anti-Republican, anti-conservative media and they all echo it dutifully. Just as the media proclaimed the war in Iraq lost -- until it was won -- just as they proclaimed John McCain's campaign finished several times before he actually won the nomination, and just as the press universally assumes the "fact" of global warming, the media relies on its false authority to proclaim the "truth" of a situation and then they all echo the claim in unison. Even when proven wrong, they simply move on to proclaim the next "truth" and promulgate that as an authorized determination that defies debate. Still, it is amusing that this Lycos woman and Politico just don't understand why anyone would be interested in Sarah Palin. After all, they have all determined that she is finished, right? And we have The One to save us. So, who needs her? Published on NewsBusters.org (http://newsbusters.org)

Governor Sarah Palin credited for landslide win in Georgia

Wednesday, December

By 3 December 2008

Palin credited for landslide win in Georgia Chambliss: ‘Dynamite’ Palin turned out vote Newly reelected Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) credited Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin with firing up his base and allowing him to cruise to a victory over Democrat Jim Martin. Chambliss heaped praise on Palin, saying she has a “great future” in the GOP. “I can’t overstate the impact she had down here. All these folks did a great job coming in,” he said, referring to former presidential candidates Mike Huckabee and Rudy Giuliani. “They all allow you [to] add momentum to where we were in the campaign. But when she walks in a room, folks just explode.” Party leader credits Palin, majority for GOP victory in Georgia “The margin you see in this race, I think you can attribute to her involvement in the end,” McKoon said. Biden to Palin: With the race over, ‘no one pays attention to me’ “I might point out, as I told you when we walked in, since the race is over, no one pays attention to me at all … Maybe you will walk outside with me or something later and say hello to me,” Biden said, Perry, Sanford and Palin fight for Taxpayers at Philly Conference Republican Govs. Rick Perry of Texas, Mark Sanford of South Carolina and Sarah Palin of Alaska, led a spirited debate about the pitfalls of adding to the $10.7-trillion federal debt. “They warned that the U.S. economy could collapse”, said Governor Paterson Palin Power: Former Vice Presidential Candidate Attracts Most Attention At The Governors’ Meeting The most exciting politician at the National Governors Association (NGA) conference was not President-elect Barack Obama, D, nor was it the former movie action star, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, R-Calif. The politician everyone wanted was Alaska’s Gov. Sarah Palin, the former Republican vice presidential candidate. “I still have great concerns, when much of the economic problem that we are facing today perhaps was caused by too much debt that solving those problems will not come from incurring more debt”, said Palin. Paste this link to watch video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4Due4f4YsQ

Watch full video from Governor Palin's visit on Monday for Senator Chambliss

1 December 2008

By www.wjbf.com channel 6

Former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin stopped in Augusta, Monday morning, stumping for Senator Saxby Chambliss in Tuesday’s runoff with Democrat Jim Martin. Click here to watch full video: (paste link below) http://www.wjbf.com/jbf/news/state_regional/state_govtpolitics/article/live_streaming_sarah_palin_visits_augusta_to_rally_for_chambliss/9092/

Chattanooga: Huckabee presses GOP values during visit here

Monday, December 1,

By Elizabeth Ryan

Monday, December 1, 2008 Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has not yet decided to make another run for the presidency but said he’s not sure he or any other Republican candidate could overcome the popularity of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. “Sarah Palin is, first of all, an effective governor,” he said. “The reason people like her is because they feel she’s authentic and that they can relate to her.” Speaking at a Sunday event at Hamilton Place to promote his new book, “Do the Right Thing,” Mr. Huckabee declined to name Gov. Palin as the presumptive 2012 GOP nominee. He did outline a vision for the future of the Republican Party that included leaders who share many of Ms. Palin’s social values. “What I’d be looking for in 2012 is the candidate that best represented our views and a consistency and authenticity about being pro-life, pro-family, strong for the Second Amendment, strong for lower taxes, more parental control, not government,” he said. Mr. Huckabee attributed the widespread Republican losses in November to the party’s failure to stem corruption, balance budgets and control spending. The $700 billion Wall Street economic rescue plan was an example of the recent betrayal of Republican values, he said. “The bailout was unfortunate,” he said. “There are so many small-business operators here in Chattanooga and all over this region, and every month they wonder if they can stay in business, and they know they can’t call Washington and say, ‘You all send me a check.’” He also stressed the importance of Tuesday’s runoff in Georgia between Democrat Jim Martin and incumbent Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss. “The Georgia race really should determine the future of the U.S. Senate,” he said. “If there’s a filibusterproof Senate, it means that things can just ram through, like liberalized abortion laws, restrictions on our Second Amendment rights. It could mean higher taxes with no back stop, no way to stop it.” Spokesman for the Martin campaign Matt Canter argued, however, that what Mr. Huckabee called a “balance of power” others might call “gridlock.” “The election here is about whether or not Georgia has a leader that is working with America’s new president to turn this economy around,” he said. “Saxby Chambliss and his allies are running around this state promising to block, to obstruct Barack Obama’s economic recovery plan. They’re running on gridlock. More gridlock in Washington.” Elizabeth Ryan www.timesfreepress.com

Bring Palin back in 2012, poll says

November 29, 2008 7:

By Alex Leary

Bring Palin back in 2012, poll says By Alex Leary, Times staff writer Published Saturday, November 29, 2008 7:19 PM ============================================= No sooner had Barack Obama won the presidential election than pundits started looking to 2012 and possible Republican challengers. A Gallup Poll asked people to rank the top 10 candidates they would like to run. Topping the list: Sarah Palin (67 percent), Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee. Second to last: Gov. Charlie Crist (23 percent), one below former Gov. Jeb Bush (31 percent). The telephone poll was taken Nov. 5-16 and included 799 Republicans and GOP-leaning independents, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/state/article920456.ece ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Palin will bein Savannah Monday to back Chambliss

Sunday, Nov. 30, 200

By From: www.thestate.com

(The (Hilton Head) Island Packet) Former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin will be in Savannah on Monday to support incumbent U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss in his runoff election, a contest that could determine the balance of power in Washington. Chambliss, who squares off Tuesday against Democratic challenger Jim Martin, holds one of two Senate seats still up for grabs in this election season. If Martin wins and the Democrats pick up the Georgia seat, they will be one vote away from gaining a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. In this Nov. 4, 2008 file photo, Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska, acknowledges the crowd during an election night rally in Phoenix. Oprah wants her, and so do Letterman and Leno. Fresh from her political defeat, Sarah Palin is juggling offers to write books, appear in films and sit on dozens of interview couches at a rate astonishing for any first-term governor, let alone a Hollywood star. - Elise Amendola, File /AP Photo That means a Republican minority would have a much harder time stopping Democrats from pushing bills through the Senate, and the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama would have the numbers in Congress to get legislation passed more easily. The rally, along with three other events Monday in Georgia, are advertised at the top of Chambliss’ Web site. Palin, a GOP superstar who returned to her job as Alaska’s governor after the election, already is being mentioned as a possible 2012 GOP presidential candidate. Palin is scheduled to speak at 11 a.m. in the Savannah Civic Center. Obama has done a radio ad for Martin, and he’s also recorded a mass phone call urging voters to come out Tuesday for the Democratic candidate. So far, Obama has not indicated that he will come to the Peach State on behalf of Martin.

Trashing Palin is Damaging the GOP

November 29, 2008 3

By Kristofer Lorelli at www.race42008.com

Trashing Palin is Damaging the GOP Posted By Kristofer Lorelli Last evening, I read one of the most [1] sensible posts in the last two months on R42012. The 80+ comments that followed have left me depressed. Not because of the subtle sexism and anti-Palin rhetoric, but because of the oblivious attitude many on this site have towards the current functional state of the GOP. I am going to take Adam’s post one step further and accuse some (the minority) elite/east-coast Republicans of unknowingly sabotaging the party and any near-future hopes of regaining control of congress or the White house. Are you offended? Then let me explain the reality of the situation to you. Expect President Obama and the DNC to raise $2 billion dollars over the next four years. Expect the Obama/DNC email distribution list to reach 20 million (from the current 13 million) and their online donors list to grow from the 3 million current supporters. Today, the Republican party is in much poorer shape than it was post-Watergate and we are on the verge of handing the Democrats a filibuster-proof Senate majority. It may take our party 8 years to match the Democrats in terms of fundraising and volunteer lists. IMO, 2006-2008 may not have been rock-bottom for Republicans and we may experience further defeat. Many conservatives believe that the 2010 mid-term elections will be a repeat of 1994, but do not hold your breath. In the eyes of the voting public, the words, ‘Republican’, ‘corruption’ and ’DC’ are virtually indistinguishable. We are just as ill thought of as we were in 2006 and might still be just as negatively perceived in 2010, when there are even more vulnerable Republican seats up for re-election then there were in 2008. Is there any hope for the GOP? What do we have in our arsenal to compete with this Obama/DNC machine and halt the slide in our shrinking memberships lists and volunteer organizations? Answer: Sarah Palin. Let us put aside the 2012 campaign for a moment and review why Sarah Palin is critical to saving the Republican party from further electoral losses. Currently, Governor Sarah Palin is the only Republican politician who is in high demand on the talk show circuit, has galliardising support, is directly or indirectly responsible for developing massive email distribution lists, growing the online presence of conservative chat rooms, networking site and blogs and has the ability to fund-raise at the level of President Bush. Since the Nov. 4th election, most of the new conservative blogs and sites have been created on behalf of Sarah Palin or created by administrators supportive of Palin and/or her conservative positions. The online growth (blogs, youtube, conservative social networking) is Palin motivated and Palin targeted. The three largest national pro-Palin organizations, [2] http://www.draftpalinforpresident.com/, [3] www.teamsarah.org and the [4] http://www.nfrw.org/links.htm have nearly 300,000 members. All three groups have a national organization, a fundraising apparatus and have utilized their membership lists, technology and networking capabilities to work on behalf of Senator Chambliss. DraftPalin and teamsarah only developed their networks in the last 45 days. These three sites, in combination with the other pro-Palin sites/blogs and networks will easily exceed the 1 million membership mark before the end of next year. The online Palin movement is the only conservative network to adopt identical technology and networking platforms as the successful Obama Presidential campaign. The Palin movement will be the critical factor in saving many Senators and House members in 2010, which is why liberals want Palin to become insignificant and shun from the national stage. See a transcript from a recent [5] Limbaugh show for further explanation. Still do not believe me about Palin, then read this [6] from Politico. Three weeks after the Republican ticket suffered a sweeping defeat at the polls, Sarah Palin continues to dominate search engine queries, cable news and online video sites. The only American politician who generates comparable interest is President-elect Barack Obama. No one else is close. Palin was the most popular Lycos search from the week she joined the ticket continuously through last Sunday, The Alaska governor now ranks fourth, just one spot below Obama, on the weekly Lycos 50 list. In September, the Anchorage Daily News reported a 928 percent spike in traffic, according to Nielsen Online. Her mid-October “Saturday Night Live” appearance drove the show’s highest rating in 14 years, and her Oct. 2 debate with Joe Biden was the most watched vice presidential debate ever — drawing more viewers than any of the three presidential debates between McCain and Obama. She ranked as the No. 2 top news search at Ask.com this week and No. 2 (after Obama) among newsmakers on the AOL 2008 year-end hottest searches list, and she occupied two slots on Politico’s list of the site’s 10 most searched terms. Palin also ranked fourth among Yahoo searches she sat for an interview with Greta Van Susteren of Fox News and delivered the show’s largest audience of the year. According to the Project for Excellence in Journalism, Palin was the second-leading newsmaker for the week of Nov. 10-16, trailing only Obama and ranking ahead of President Bush, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and McCain in the number of stories about her. Some web sites and GOP activists/politicians have provided some excellent suggestions to improve the Republican party, election strategy and online and grassroots conservative activism, but without growing membership lists, fundraising dollars and motivated activists, the ideas will not materialize into success. Like her or not, Sarah Palin is the only net-positive national representative we have at the moment. Next time you decide to repeat your Keith Olbermann talking points on Sarah Palin, remember which national GOP candidate is stumping across Georgia for Senator Chambliss, on the eve of the election. It is not President Bush, former President Bush or Senator John McCain, it is Governor Sarah Palin. A wise choice, Senator Chambliss. For more info visit www.race42008.com

Sarah Palin: A digital Superstar

Sat Nov 29, 6:51 am

By Charles Mahtesian

By Charles Mahtesian Three weeks after the Republican ticket suffered a sweeping defeat at the polls, Sarah Palin continues to dominate search engine queries, cable news and online video sites. The only American politician who generates comparable interest is President-elect Barack Obama. No one else is close. Palin was the most popular Lycos search from the week she joined the ticket continuously through last Sunday, some two weeks after the election, when she was dethroned by Paris Hilton, the celebutante whom John McCain famously compared to Barack Obama. The Alaska governor now ranks fourth, just one spot below Obama, on the weekly Lycos 50 list. “People are still searching for her in record numbers,” said Kathy O’Reilly, a spokeswoman for Lycos. “How bizarre is that? Obama is the president-elect after the most historic election of all time and you’d think he would be dominating search activity and he only now is going ahead of her.” Palin has been the subject of intense online fascination since her introduction as the Republican nominee on Aug. 29. In September, the Anchorage Daily News reported a 928 percent spike in traffic, according to Nielsen Online. Her mid-October “Saturday Night Live” appearance drove the show’s highest rating in 14 years, and her Oct. 2 debate with Joe Biden was the most watched vice presidential debate ever — drawing more viewers than any of the three presidential debates between McCain and Obama. The scope of the GOP ticket’s loss — and the role her critics assigned to her in that defeat — hasn't cooled interest in Palin. She ranked as the No. 2 top news search at Ask.com this week and No. 2 (after Obama) among newsmakers on the AOL 2008 year-end hottest searches list, and she occupied two slots on Politico’s list of the site's 10 most searched terms. Palin also ranked fourth among Yahoo searches, behind “Black Friday,” a Czech model and a contestant on the hit television show “Dancing with the Stars.” She was the only politician on the Yahoo top 20 list. A recent YouTube clip that featured her being interviewed while, unbeknownst to her, a turkey was slaughtered in the background was the site's most-viewed clip over the last week. Two of the top 10 video moments of 2008, according to Truveo, an online video search engine, also involve Palin — a “Saturday Night Live” skit that mocks her and the governor’s ill-fated interview with Katie Couric of CBS. “It’s astounding that someone who should have faded into the background after the election is not only making headlines but being searched for in record numbers online,” said O’Reilly. “People still have a fixation with her, for whatever the reason.” Palin's continuous presence in the news has played a role in the unabated levels of search activity. First she was buffeted by anonymous criticism from the McCain camp after the ticket's defeat, then she cut a high profile at the National Governors Association meeting one week later. In between, she sat for an interview with Greta Van Susteren of Fox News and delivered the show's largest audience of the year. According to the Project for Excellence in Journalism, Palin was the second-leading newsmaker for the week of Nov. 10-16, trailing only Obama and ranking ahead of President Bush, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and McCain in the number of stories about her. “As long as she’s still in the mainstream media, it will continue to fuel her presence online. She’s sort of fanning the flames just by showing up,” said Phil Noble, president of PoliticsOnline and a pioneering consultant in online politics. “The other issue is that at some point people become permanent celebrities. She may have just reached that status.” The polarizing role she played in the presidential campaign may also be driving the enduring fascination with all things Palin. “People are projecting their values onto Sarah Palin, and in some sense, she reflects them back,” said Mark Corallo, a Republican media strategist. “She’s a conservative, she’s young, and she’s attractive. She speaks to something that’s been missing from the Republican Party.” David All, a Republican new media consultant, notes that the uninterrupted attention offers Palin an unprecedented political opportunity even if a good portion of the curiosity comes from her detractors. “There’s a heckuva lot of wind out there for Sarah Palin. Now she has to put up a sail to catch it,” he said. “She can use that Internet bully pulpit to help change the hearts and minds of folks. She has a unique opportunity to build up something massive.” ----------------------------------- Please visit our store were we now have Draft Palin t-sirts just $9 bucks

Palin back on campaign trail

26 November 2008

By By Michael Rovito

Palin back on campaign trail By Michael Rovito Frontiersman Published on Wednesday, November 26, 2008 7:43 PM AKST MAT-SU — Gov. Sarah Palin is going back on the campaign trail next week. The former vice presidential candidate is scheduled to join Georgia Sen. Saxby Chambliss for his Dec. 2 run-off election in a still undecided contest in his Senate district. Chambliss is running against Democrat Jim Martin, who could be the next Democrat to help determine if his party will score a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Palin’s offer to help Chambliss with his campaign comes on the heels of Democrat Mark Begich narrowly unseating Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest serving Republican in Congress. Stevens was convicted of seven felonies just before the election, leading some analysts to say the court decision cost the longtime senator his 40-year career. Begich’s win put the Democrats within two seats of obtaining a majority in the Senate. Palin became a national figure when Arizona Sen. John McCain chose her as his running mate Aug. 29, effectively solidifying the support of the Republican base. Her vice presidential candidacy met with praise and criticism and became one of the main focal points both sides of the electorate. Rallies across the country featuring Palin routinely drew massive crowds and often overshadowed the number of fans at McCain’s rallies. For Chambliss, having Palin’s star power on his side could be a boon. “I was thrilled when I got the call that Gov. Palin would be able to make the trip to Georgia,” Chambliss told The Associated Press. Martin has reportedly asked President-Elect Barack Obama to campaign with him, but hasn’t received an answer yet. Palin will stump with Chambliss at four rallies Dec. 1 in Augusta, Savannah, Perry and Atlanta. ------------------ Growing with Alaska's Mat-Su Valley since 1947." The Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman is a local Alaska newspaper published every Tuesday, Friday and Sunday by Wick Communications and is distributed to the Matanuska-Susitna Valley. Our address is 5751 E. Mayflower Ct., Wasilla AK 99654. Our main phone number is 907-352-2250.

Palin to hit campaign trail in Georgia for Senator Chambliss

25 November 2008

By By Dr. Steven Taylor

Palin to do Down to Georgia By Dr. Steven Taylor Via CNN: Palin to hit campaign trail in Georgia Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin will make multiple campaign appearances on behalf of Sen. Saxby Chambliss next week in Georgia, serving as the political closer for the GOP senator who is battling to win a second term. I find this interesting for two reasons. First, the move is further evidence of Palin’s likely long-term ambitions. Second, the move means that Chambliss thinks that Palin plays well with the GOP base in a red state like Georgia: Nick Ayers, executive director of the Republican Governors Association, said that it made sense for Palin to help Chambliss in the days leading into the run-off because he noted that GOP governors are “still very popular in the party.” “She is going to bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm to this run-off,” said Ayers, a close Palin confidante. “She is widely popular in Georgia, and I could not envision a stronger closer for Saxby in this election.” Certainly if Chambliss wins, the trip will be perceived as evidence that Palin is a serious actor within the GOP going forward, at least within GOP circles. --------------> Besure to visit our store which now has T-shirts for only $9.00 & other items that are to promote this website, very limited profit - we are serious & we want Mrs.Palin to run for office in 2012.

Did Sarah Palin get a gas pipeline for Alaska?

23 November 2008

By Kay Cashman

By Kay Cashman Author of “Sarah takes on Big Oil” Since Gov. Sarah Palin was selected as Sen. John McCain’s running mate for the 2008 U.S. presidential election, she has taken some major media hits from critics who say she had not gotten a gas pipeline for Alaska. I say she has come closer than any other governor to making a pipeline from Alaska’s North Slope to market a reality. In her first two years in office two major North Slope oil producers, BP and ConocoPhillips, decided to build their own gas pipeline without any upfront guarantee of fiscal concessions from the State of Alaska. TransCanada, a major North American pipeline company, was right behind them with $500 million in state matching funds that would either result in a completed pipeline or a valuable certificate of convenience and necessity from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that would belong to the state if TransCanada pulled out. In the summer of 2008, both potential pipeline owners started field work necessary for permitting and designing a line. Both the TransCanada Alaska project and the BP and ConocoPhillips’ project (Denali—The Alaska Gas Pipeline) will soon have hundreds of millions of dollars into them, making cancellation less likely, and merging more likely. During the 2007-08 winter exploration season Anadarko Petroleum and its partners put an estimated $75 million on the line to drill for natural gas in northern Alaska’s Brooks Range Foothills (also referred to as the North Slope Foothills). It was the first time exploration in northern Alaska had targeted gas, not oil. In this upcoming winter drilling season Anadarko plans to double, possibly triple, its exploration drilling for gas in northern Alaska. Confidence in Gov. Palin getting a gas line built was probably not the only reason Anadarko and its partners started drilling for gas, but it was a major contributing factor because her Alaska Gasline Inducement Act, or AGIA, gave explorers such as Anadarko fair access to a gas pipeline; something explorers and the Palin administration did not think they would get with a producer-owned line. (Alaska’s big three oil producers already have enough gas in their Prudhoe Bay oil field to fill a pipeline for a good 15 years.) Ultimately, the economic feasibility of a natural gas pipeline from Alaska’s North Slope will depend on natural gas prices. Because of the uncertainty of gas prices, North Slope producers will likely need fiscal incentives from the State of Alaska to be able to sell their top executives in Houston and London on participating in a gas line with TransCanada, or on building a line of their own. (The last time they built a big Alaska pipeline—the 800-mile trans-Alaska oil line from Prudhoe Bay to the Port of Valdez—the project was supposed to cost $900 million and ended up costing them closer to $8 billion.) But based on Gov. Palin’s performance to date, if the three big North Slope producers are involved in the ownership of a gas line those incentives will be acceptable to both industry and to the people of Alaska. So has Gov. Palin gotten a gas pipeline for Alaska? The majority of Alaskans and the companies drilling for gas would say she has come closer than any other governor. And unless the market for natural gas in the Lower 48 states disappears, odds are a natural gas pipeline from Alaska’s North Slope will be built. -------------------- ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Kay Cashman is the publisher and executive editor of Petroleum News, a weekly independent newspaper based in Anchorage, Alaska. She is also co-author of a book released by PNA Publishing on Oct. 17 called “Sarah takes on Big Oil,” the compelling story of Governor Sarah Palin’s battle with Alaska’s Big 3 oil producers. HIGH AND LOW RES. AUTHOR AND BOOK COVER PHOTOS AVAILABLE FOR USE AT: www.sarahtakesonbigoil.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Kill the officers"

22 November 2008

By Paul Streitz

When the British marched out of Boston toward Lexington and Concord, they marched in formation as had troops in Europe for generations. If they met the enemy the orders were given, "level, fire." The soldiers did not aim but merely leveled their rifles and fired at a distance of less than a hundred yards. But the Colonial Minutemen did not mass up and level their rifles. They had used their rifles to hunt. They aimed their rifles to hit the target. And their targets were the officers (the leaders) of the British troops. The left-wing journalists (MSNBC the most rabid of the cable channels) are recognizing what a threat Sarah Palin is and therefore, as with the British officers, they are targeting her. (Somehow they are not following Newt Gingrich.) It is amazing that they are sending a` crew to Alaska simply to follow Sarah around. The objective is obviously to discredit Gov. Palin, that is to jump on a mistake, have her awkwardly answer a question, or in this case, juxtapose Sarah talking to a journalist against a background of what actually happens in a slaughtering house, they kill birds to eat. Or as someone responded to me, I am telling you this, if I find out any of the turkey’s I have ever eaten --- if our grocery store has been buying dead turkeys to sell us at Thanksgiving there is going to be heck to pay!! Now to the simple-minded, (I am surrounded by such liberals at work), this incident is but further proof of Gov. Palin's incompetence, and much the subject of laughter, but the feeble minded are easily amused. To Gov. Sarah Palin supporters, "get used to it." Gov. Palin is more a threat to Obama and the Democrats than any other person on the planet, and the left-wing is going to do everything possible to take her down. Such trivial incidents are going to be made much of, because on the big issues, she is very much in tune with the American public. Leaders are not leaders because they have any specific set of characteristics. There is no paper test to take. Rather, leaders are leaders because they attract followers to listen to them, to understand them, to respect them and to support them. Sarah has that, that is why she is dangerous, and that is why left-wing crews are in Alaska to tape her every move. She is a threat to them and they know it. watch video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8DTSPzU0RI You betcha! Paul Streitz with www.2012draftsarahcommittee.com.

Governor Sarah Palin confirmed speaker for the Conservative Political Action Committee February 2009

November 6th 2008

By John McCaslin, Washington Times

SARAH IGNITION Plan on seeing Sarah Palin in Washington in early 2009 after all. The defeated Republican vice-presidential candidate, we're told, is a confirmed speaker for the Conservative Political Action Committee 2009 conference in February. "It's obvious that she is the Reagan heir apparent, and so it is fitting that she follow in his footsteps," Republican activist and "Team Sarah" member LaDonna Hale Curzon said Wednesday. "At CPAC 1975, one speech initiated the conservative comeback. That speech was by Ronald Reagan. I would like to see Governor Palin do the same at CPAC 2009."

Understanding Palin power

By Adam Graham

By By Adam Graham

By Adam Graham In a CBS Poll after the 1992 election, 12% of Republicans supported Dan Quayle for President. In 1996, no one clamored for Jack Kemp to run in 2000. After the 2000 campaign, Joe Lieberman's 2004 effort bombed worse than Howard the Duck. After 2004, John Edwards trailed badly to Hillary Clinton in the earliest Democratic Primary polls, and fell by the wayside leading up to the Obama-Clinton battle. History has not been kind to losing Vice-Presidential candidates. They are often cast aside as failed marketing gimmicks that didn't pan out. This is what makes a recent Rasmussen Reports poll remarkable. A national unknown two and a half months ago, Palin leads in a Republican Primary Trial heat by a 64-13% margin, and has a 91% favorable rating among Republicans, including a 65% very favorable rating. The numbers are astounding. Dole in 1996, Bush in 2000, and Giuliani in 2008 enjoyed numbers in the mid-40s, but I've never seen anyone poll more than 50%, let alone more than 60% in a pre-primary trial heat. These numbers often came before people actually knew who the candidates were. Palin's numbers come after a period in which we've learned nearly everything there is to know about her. Now, given the fickleness of public opinion, her support will certainly cool a little bit over the coming years, and she may not even run for President. But at this moment, she's the most popular Republican in America. Why? First, Sarah Palin is the embodiment of grassroots conservatism. She's a gun owner, a small businesswoman, a mother, and she's pro-life to the core. As governor, she's known for strictly adhering to the State's Constitution even if it's not to her political advantage. She's not a partisan in the sense of focusing on scoring political points on the other side, but let there be no doubt, she is a conservative. Second, though, has a lot to do with the people in power in the Republican Party. From 1994-2006, Republicans enjoyed amazing levels of power across the nation, yet how were conservatives? Many Republicans, once elected, became one of them (the Government) and forgot about us (the People.) Their focus begins to shift from doing the people's business to pleasing Teacher's Unions and big industries. The people were forgotten. Conservative principles were forgotten. Big government conservatism existed as means to politicians securing their power. I've often wished that somebody would get these self-seeking Republican politicians out of office. Yet, the efforts have often been met with heartbreak. In Montana, I twice supported Rob Natelson in the Republican Primary for Governor, only to see him lose in the primary both times. Last year, I voted for a conservative running against my pork barreling Congressman who won re-nomination with 80+% of the vote. Sarah Palin did it. A former small town Mayor took down the Governor of her state, who had also been a U.S. Senator for four terms. She went into office and reduced spending when the state was in surplus. She took the governor's luxury jet and placed it on Ebay. Sarah Palin not only represents a picture of conservatism, but she did what most conservatives have been dreaming of doing for more than a decade: Throw a bum out. The Palin juggernaut is ultimately a rebuke to today's political class. Grassroots conservatives are tired of them because they are greedy, self-serving, and only care about power. They have become government apparatchiks. They do have great experience, which they tout repeatedly. They're only problem is that it's all in selling themselves to the highest bidder. Their claims to conservative values are entirely self-serving alliances of convenience. Whether or not she runs for President in 2012, if the GOP wants victory, it'd better produce more political leaders like Sarah Palin. © Adam Graham http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/graham/081111

Sarah Palin helped the GOP ticket more than McCain

Sunday, November 16,

By By Jack Kelly, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The week before the election, the Obama campaign ran a television commercial attacking the Republican candidate for vice president. To my knowledge, this had never been done before. Within days of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's selection by John McCain to be his running mate, there was speculation in the news media that maternal neglect was the cause of baby Trig's Down Syndrome; that Trig was really daughter Bristol's baby; that Sarah was a fundamentalist who believes dinosaurs and humans coexisted; that she once belonged to a secessionist party; that as mayor of Wasilla, she tried to have popular books banned from the town library. None of this was true, but this was how the news media introduced Ms. Palin to people in the lower 48. No vice presidential candidate has ever been subjected to such a torrent of abuse. This was a woman with no family money and no famous name who took on a corrupt Republican governor and beat him, then swept to victory in the general election against a popular former Democratic governor. This was a reformer who in her first year as governor got through the legislature a bill her predecessors had sought unsuccessfully for 35 years -- to build a natural gas pipeline to the rest of the country -- as well as a landmark ethics reform bill. She was by far the most popular governor in America, with an approval rating in the low 80s. A star athlete and beauty contest winner who hunts moose and worked as a commercial fisherman, Sarah Palin has a remarkable personal and political story. But it's a story the news media largely ignored in favor of spreading malicious gossip. Given the constant portrayal of Ms. Palin as an ignorant hick, it's not surprising that only 38 percent of those who voted thought she was qualified to be president. The conventional wisdom among those who consider themselves her social superiors is that she was a drag on the ticket. "By picking Palin, McCain simultaneously eliminated his own best argument against Sen. Obama -- the limited experience of his opponent -- while compounding his own most negative image, that of someone who is erratic and out of control," said Julian Zelizer of Newsweek. This view is at variance with the facts. Of the 60 percent of voters who told exit pollsters Sarah Palin was an "important factor" in their decision, 56 percent voted for Mr. McCain. Those who said she was not an important factor voted for Barack Obama by a 64 percent to 33 percent margin. In a Rasmussen poll taken the day before the election, 71 percent of Republicans said Ms. Palin was the right choice for vice president, but only 65 percent said Mr. McCain was the right choice for president. Ms. Palin drew much larger crowds than Mr. McCain did when he campaigned alone, and much, much larger crowds than Democrat Joe Biden could attract. People left her rallies more pumped up than when they arrived. She gave a boffo performance in her acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention and she performed better in her debate with Mr. Biden than Mr. McCain did in his first two debates with Mr. Obama. Sarah Palin's appearance on "Saturday Night Live," where she had been lampooned mercilessly, brought that show its highest ratings in years. "Her politics aren't my politics," said SNL's executive producer, Lorne Michaels. "But you can see that she is a very powerful, very disciplined, incredibly gracious woman. This was her first time out and she's had a huge impact. People connect to her." Mr. McCain got 7 million votes fewer than George W. Bush did in 2004. If Sarah Palin hadn't been on the ticket, that deficit would have been much greater. Sarah Palin is a rare political talent. I think that's why liberals have tried so hard to define her negatively before Americans could get to know her. Whether she has a national political future depends on her own wishes and Barack Obama's performance. But if she should choose to run for president in 2012, she'll have my enthusiastic support. www.DraftPalinForPresident.Com

Palin is a light of hope

11-17-08

By Ruthie Kelly

A beacon is flickering. President-elect Barack Obama and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi have announced the first order of business for the Democratic-controlled White House and Congress is to fund health care for all children. On the surface it sounds OK, except both boast they are late-term abortion proponents, who want a seamless, socialist society. Not good. In two years, if the USA is still the USA and private freedom voting is allowed, that rhetoric can be nullified. There is a beacon of greatness flickering and that is Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK). The heightened awareness of special needs children that Gov. Palin has spearheaded is a gift of God. In time, Gov. Palin's greatness will be the USA's finest light and Alaska's untapped natural resources are multifaceted. It's a Christmas present to the world. Ruthie Kelly

Sarah Palin: Honestly Why Are Men Afraid?

11-17-08

By IReport

Contrary to what the polls say Sarah Palin isn't stupid, dumb or incompetent. After all she is governor of Alaska and was a former mayor. Many didn't see the real Palin during the campaign, due to party handlers shielding her and not allowing her to speak with her own voice. But make no mistake she is not a one hit wonder who galvanized the party and is now being blamed for its loss on Election Day two weeks ago. Had John McCain won the election, Palin would have been heralded as the next coming, but of course we know this didn't happen. So now we have all playing Monday morning quarterback and trashing Palin (typical female bashing by the media and men who only see men at the top). This begs the question: Why are men so afraid of women in power? Why do men turn up their noses, go below the belt with commentary when talking about women in politics or any leadership position where men will have to follow? Are men so afraid that a woman so close to power will render them useless? Could that much power being given to a woman challenge a man's manhood? History records women in power going back for centuries. Look at England, Russia, Egypt and Spain? Even in modern times there are women in power in Europe. Every advanced country and some underdeveloped countries either have or have had women at the helm. Is this exclusive only to the US, where men are seen in roles of power and accepted? When men are at the top look what happens: Iraq, Afghanistan, Wall Street the economy. One day there will be a female president. I wonder what this country will be like. How will that woman at the top govern?

GOP Governors Pull the Plug On Palin's Press Conference

11/13/2008

By By Jack Thompson

The Republican Governors Conference Press Guidelines promised that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin would “take approximately 20 minutes of questions” at today’s morning press conference. Instead, this press conference, attended by 150 local and national media and taped by 26 video cameras, disintegrated into a fiasco when Texas Governor Rick Perry shut it down after only five minutes and four questions. Eight other governors assembled on the stage, all men, seemed visibly uncomfortable with the “Palin at center stage” format. When Perry stepped in front of Palin at the podium to announce it was over just as it was getting started, Palin looked irritated, and the media shouted, “You’ve got to be kidding,” “This is ridiculous,” "Come on,” and “We were promised more questions.” Forty minutes later, at a larger gathering attended by most the seventeen governors at the Conference, Bill Kristol of The Weekly Standard may have given the reason why Palin was reined in: envy. Said Kristol, “This is not the Republican Governors Association. This is really the Republican Presidential Candidates Association.” Palin, after the truncated press conference, gave a prepared twenty-minute speech in a large hall to approximately 400 members of the RGA (who gave her a long standing ovation at the outset and close) and the media. Palin recounted what it was like to go through the campaign and what lay ahead for the GOP. Some quotes of note: -- She began by joking that she filled the last two months “with a few speeches, meeting important people who change the world, like Tina Fey, and opportunities to expand my wardrobe.” -- She thanked President Bush for having discharged, over the last eight years, his most important duty of office -- keeping us safe. This was met with long applause. -- “God is in control, and He decided it was not our time and not our moment.” -- “We wish President Obama well, but as the chief executives of the various states it will be our job to lead by example, to oppose any more unfunded federal mandates and the growth of the federal government. All Republican governors embrace the federalist principle that the government closest to the people is the most responsive and most responsible.” -- She took a swipe at what she called the addiction to “opium (Other People’s Money),” found in bail outs that reward bad corporate decisions. -- Finally, in the area of policy, she repeatedly noted that the Republican leadership in Washington had over the last decade betrayed the conservative principles and values of the Party, and that it is up to Republic governors, not to the failed GOP leadership in Washington, to lead the GOP back to power. To conclude her prepared comments, she got very personal in tone. She said that, during the campaign, her “real right hand man was my husband Todd, and, in the future, I am to rely upon him more and on others less." She received sustained applause when she remembered all the teenaged girls who came up to her and told her they were excited she had shown “[t]here is no glass ceiling on achievement” and “[o]ne day, a woman will be President.” Finally, Palin remembered all the special needs children and their parents who met her on the campaign trail with signs “We’re Here for Trig!” and “Trig in the White House.” She noted that on some cars in America bumper stickers say, “My kid is on the Honor Roll.” At her campaign stops, she saw signs held by extra chromosome Down Syndrome kids saying “We’re X-Tra Special,” and parents of those same kids held signs that read “My Kid’s Got More Chromosomes Than Your Kid!” After Palin’s comments, the roundtable -- including Kristol, General Tommy Franks, South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, and Indiana Congressman Mike Pence -- discussed what went wrong in this election cycle and what must be done. Sanford noted, “We must put this election, and the danger it poses, in a broad historical perspective. The ancient Greeks understood that democracy will lead to tyranny, as citizens out of greed vote themselves largesse from a country’s treasure.” Pawlenty, by contrast, rejected the “return to our conservative roots” theme of others at this conference and said,“GOP principles must be harmonized with outreach to the new demographics of America,” “the GOP is fifteen years behind in the use of technology and the Internet,” “the GOP needs more than a political comb-over,” and “voters don’t want our Party led by a crank.” Unsure of to whom Pawlenty was referring in that last comment, there were some gasps from the crowd. Congressman Pence took direct aim on the $700 billion bailout and any other future bail-outs, stating that Washington’s GOP leaders had walked away from the 1994 Contract with America: “We cannot tax and spend ourselves out of this mess. We must unleash our free market economy.” Pence, possibly not running for the Presidency, turned to Palin and called her “the best and most courageous candidate for the vice-presidency in my lifetime.” Bill Kristol noted things may turn the GOP’s way more quickly than the doomsayers think, citing the quick reversal of fortune for the GOP from 1976 to 1980 and from 1992 to 1994. “Such a turnabout can come again if Republican governors take advantage of the blessing, not the curse, that the national hegemony by the Washington GOP is over," said Kristol. “It is up to you to seize this opening and to show, in your states, that you are the party of bold ideas, the party of reform, and the party of action. Ronald Reagan was a successful Governor who reclaimed Washington for the GOP.” -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Mr. Thompson is a writer and former lawyer in Miami who was Janet Reno's Republican opponent in 1988 for State Attorney. He secured the first broadcast decency fines ever levied by the FCC (1989) and represented Oliver North at the 1992 Time Warner shareholders meeting, persuading TW to pull rapper Ice-T's "Cop Killer" from store shelves worldwide. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Palin blames Bush policies for GOP defeat

Nov 10, 11:00 PM (ET

By By GENE JOHNSON, Associated Press Writer

WASILLA, Alaska – Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, amid speculation she'll run for president in four years, blamed Bush administration policies for the defeat last week of the GOP ticket and prayed she wouldn't miss "an open door" for her next political opportunity. "I'm like, OK, God, if there is an open door for me somewhere, this is what I always pray, I'm like, don't let me miss the open door," Palin said in an interview with Fox News on Monday. "And if there is an open door in '12 or four years later, and if it is something that is going to be good for my family, for my state, for my nation, an opportunity for me, then I'll plow through that door." In a wide-ranging interview with Fox's Greta Van Susteren, Palin says she neither wanted nor asked for the $150,000-plus wardrobe the Republican Party bankrolled, and thought the issue was an odd one at the end of the campaign, considering "what is going on in the world today." "I did not order the clothes. Did not ask for the clothes," Palin said. "I would have been happy to have worn my own clothes from Day One. But that is kind of an odd issue, an odd campaign issue as things were wrapping up there as to who ordered what and who demanded what." "It's amazing that we did as well as we did," Palin, who was Sen. John McCain's running mate, said of the election in a separate interview with the Anchorage Daily News. "I think the Republican ticket represented too much of the status quo, too much of what had gone on in these last eight years, that Americans were kind of shaking their heads like going, wait a minute, how did we run up a $10 trillion debt in a Republican administration? How have there been blunders with war strategy under a Republican administration? If we're talking change, we want to get far away from what it was that the present administration represented and that is to a great degree what the Republican Party at the time had been representing," Palin said in a story published Sunday. Palin has scheduled a series of national interviews this week with Fox, NBC's "Today" show and CNN. She also plans to attend the Republican Governors Association conference in Florida this week. Palin has been mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in 2012. She also could seek re-election in 2010 or challenge Sen. Lisa Murkowski. Still uncertain is the fate of Sen. Ted Stevens, who is leading in his bid for another term but could be ousted by the Senate for his conviction on seven felony counts of failing to report more than $250,000 in gifts, mostly renovations on his home. If Stevens loses his seat, Palin could run for it in a special election. Palin and McCain's campaign faced a storm of criticism over the tens of thousands of dollars spent at such high-end stores as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus to dress the nominee. Republican National Committee lawyers are still trying to determine exactly what clothing was bought for Palin, what was returned and what has become of the rest. Her father, Chuck Heath, said Palin spent part of the weekend going through her clothing to determine what belongs to the Republican Party. "She was just frantically ... trying to sort stuff out," Heath said. "That's the problem, you know, the kids lose underwear, and everything has to be accounted for. Nothing goes right back to normal," Palin's father said his daughter told him the only clothing or accessories she personally had purchased in the past four months was a pair of shoes. RNC lawyers have been discussing with Palin whether what's left of the clothing and accessories purchased for her on the campaign trail will go to charity, back to stores or be paid for by Palin, a McCain-Palin campaign official said Friday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the campaign hadn't authorized comment. The McCain-Palin campaign said about a third of the clothing was returned immediately because it was the wrong size, or for other reasons. However, other purchases apparently were made after that, the campaign official said. In Wasilla, her hometown backers welcomed her, putting aside their disappointment over her unsuccessful bid. Jessica Steele can't wait to see what Sarah Palin does next — not with her political career, but with her hair. "That's something I want to talk to her about: What's our vision for her hair?" says Steele, proprietor of the Beehive Beauty Shop and keeper of the governor's up-do since 2002. "I can't wait to see her and say, 'OK, I've got you alone for three hours. Just relax, and how are you, really?'" While Palin remains popular, the reality of defeat is evident. Bags of fan mail, as many as 400 letters a day, partially fill a room at her parent's house. But parents no longer meet Secret Service agents when they pick up their children at Cottonwood Creek Elementary, where Palin's youngest daughter, Piper, is a student. The reporters and camera crews are gone from the Palin home on Lake Lucille, once patrolled by Coast Guard boats. Now a thick sheet of ice covers the lake. Four state troopers still guard the governor 24 hours a day, Heath said — something Palin never had before. And in a bit of familiarity, Heath said he brought a pot of moose chili to Palin's house this past weekend. ___ Associated Press writer Sharon Theimer in Washington contributed to this report.

Palin denounces anonymous critics as 'cowardly'

Nov 8, 7:07 AM (ET)

By By DAN JOLING

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Gov. Sarah Palin denounced anonymous criticisms leveled at her by former John McCain aides as lies, including allegations that Republican lawyers were traveling to Alaska to reclaim her high-priced wardrobe and that she didn't know Africa was a continent. "Those accounts are not true," the former Republican vice presidential candidate said in her first public comments on the matter since the election Tuesday. Palin returned Friday to her Anchorage governor's office and said she had no immediate plans to build on her newfound national name-recognition and popularity with the Republican base for a possible 2012 presidential run. Instead, Palin said, she wanted only to get back to the governor's desk to advance a proposed pipeline tapping Alaska's vast North Slope natural gas reserves and to prepare Alaska's proposed 2010 budget. As for the vice presidential campaign, Palin denounced criticism from unidentified McCain campaign aides as "cowardly." She said she found it frustrating trying to respond to false allegations when she didn't know who was making them. "It's ridiculous," she told reporters. "You guys report based on anonymous sources, so it's hard to have a defense." One report said she and her family went on a shopping spree, spending more than the $150,000 in clothing that the Republican National Committee had earlier reported. "The RNC purchased clothes," Palin said. "Those are the RNC's clothes. They're not my clothes. I never forced anybody to buy anything. I never asked for anything more than maybe a Diet Dr Pepper once in a while." The RNC will inventory clothing it purchased for her to account for dollars spent, she said. She scoffed at reports that the RNC was sending lawyers to take back clothes from her home. "It's not happening. Nobody's told me that they're coming to my house to look through closets, to look through anything. The belly of the plane that had clothes in it, and those clothes being packed up and sent back by staffers, perhaps that's what they're talking about, but these aren't attorneys." She said she wasn't angry at the continued coverage of her clothing, but mostly disappointed. "This is Barack Obama's time right now, and this is an historic moment in our nation and this can be a shining moment for America and our history, and look what we're talking about. Again, we're talking about my shoes and belts and skirts. It's ridiculous." She also denied a report that she didn't know Africa was a continent, not a country, and that she didn't know the members of the North American Free Trade Agreement - the United States, Canada and Mexico. She remembered discussing both Africa and Obama's stance on NAFTA with people preparing her for her debate, she said. Anything reported as a gaffe was taken out of context, she said. "That's cruel. It's mean-spirited. It's immature. It's unprofessional and those guys are jerks if they came away with it, taking things out of context, and then tried to spread something on national news. It's not fair and it's not right." Asked if she felt muzzled by her limited time with reporters during the campaign, Palin said the media is a cornerstone of democracy and an important part of the checks and balances on government. "Heaven forbid that a candidate or an elected official shy way from speaking to the media," she said. "So it was a little bit of a frustration that I didn't get to call more of those shots, and I guess that was sort of the 'rogue' criticism was, 'She wants to talk to more of the media' than perhaps some in the campaign wanted me to." Palin backed off from calling for the resignation of fellow Alaskan Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in Senate history. Stevens leads Democrat Mark Begich by about 3,500 votes with more than 50,000 to be counted. A Washington jury convicted Stevens on Oct. 27 of seven felony counts of failing to report more than $250,000 in gifts, mostly renovations on his home. Stevens is appealing the verdict. "The Alaska voters have spoken and me not being a dictator won't be telling anyone what to do," she said. Fellow senators have indicated they could boot Stevens. "That's their baby," Palin said. "They'll have to figure out what to do there." Palin said she was not interested in running for the job if it comes open. "Not planning on that. Nope," she said.