Sarah Palin ethics complaint/lawsuit thread

[Vonne]

it's worth mentioning that the legal defense fund wouldn't have been necessary in the first place if she wasn't having to defend herself against wearing the wrong parka.

Agreed.

Albeit, her failure to foresee such minor conflicts, while knowing and choosing to have the spotlight placed upon her.  Could imply to some, an inability to handle more complicated issues and situations.

I wish Palin and her family all the best in the future.

[JohnBrowdie]

Agreed.

Albeit, her failure to foresee such minor conflicts, while knowing and choosing to have the spotlight placed upon her.  Could imply to some, an inability to handle more complicated issues and situations.

I wish Palin and her family all the best in the future.

that line of reasoning has a certain self-ratifying circularity to it;  "she made a mistake, so she is likely to make mistakes".  and misstepping upon the notoriously tricky ground of a legal defense fund is one of those things that you utterly rely upon others for.

we'll see how this one breaks, but it's just a much, much bigger deal than all of those "citizen's-arrest-do-it-yourself ethics complaints" that we have been arguing about for a couple of weeks.

[JohnBrowdie]

interesting.  someone is waaaaaaaaay over the line on this one.  if it's truly a violation of law that this reports was leaked, and leaked prematurely, then alaska had better get it's collective snit together;  PDS has driven too many people over the edge.  this thing is just out of control.

Sarah Palin fights back against ethics charge

Alaska GOP Gov. Sarah Palin is aggressively pushing back against reports that claim an independent investigator has found evidence she may have violated Alaska's ethics laws.

The Associated Press reported Tuesday afternoon that an independent investigator for the state Personnel Board found that there may be evidence suggesting that a trust fund created to pay Palin’s legal expenses is in violation of state ethics law.

Palin immediately called the AP report an “inaccurate story” on her Twitter feed and released a statement later calling any allegation that the defense fund accepted any inappropriate donations "misguided and factually in error."

"I am informed that this fund was created by experienced attorneys in D.C. and was modeled after other similar funds established for senators and others. The fund itself was not created by me nor is it controlled by me. Neither I nor my lawyer has received a penny from this fund, and I am informed the Trustee was withholding any action or payment pending final resolution with the Personnel Board. This is the hallmark of legal compliance and prudent conduct," Palin said.

"In short, I have not 'acted' relative to the defense fund, and it is misleading to say I have," she added. "I have no doubt that the Trust will welcome guidance by the Board, as do we all, but it is my understanding that this matter was not resolved and the complainant's violation of law has served to mislead the public and prejudice a fair review of this matter."

Several of the governor’s top confidants also sharply criticized the report, pointing out that under Alaska law, the contents of the document should have remained confidential, because the matter is still under review.

“The investigator is still confidentially reviewing this matter,” Palin spokeswoman and top adviser Meg Stapleton said in a statement. “It appears suspect that in the final days of the governor's term, someone would again violate the law and announce a supposed conclusion before it is reached.”

The governor’s personal attorney, Thomas Van Flein, quickly followed Stapleton with a statement pointing out that he has “been working with the investigator regarding supplemental information. The matter is still pending. Whatever you have seen was released in violation of law.”

More

[JohnBrowdie]

the Sarah Saga continues.  her accuser probably isn't the impartial professional investigator that I initially thought he was . . .

Fund trustee says Palin not involved with fund

WASILLA, Alaska — The trustee for the legal defense fund set up to help Gov. Sarah Palin lashed out at the news media and the Eagle River resident who filed an ethics complaint against the governor.

Trustee Kristan Cole of Wasilla says the Alaska Fund Trust was created and vetted by a team of lawyers from around the country who are experts in state and federal law.

Cole says the only lawyer who ever questioned the fund's legality is Thomas Daniel, the investigator hired by the state personnel board.

Cole also says Palin, a personal friend, has never been involved with the trust. She says the governor has never accepted any money from the fund.

Cole says legal action is being considered against the person who leaked the investigator's confidential report to The Associated Press.

Link

[JohnBrowdie]

and after reading the actual "complaint", this is being ridiculously overblown.  I thought there was more to this until I actually read it.  you can read the report here.  just read the conclusion before you call for the executioner.

[JohnBrowdie]

another frivolous lawsuit or ethics complaint from the self-appointed moralizer for the state of alaska, Andree McLeod, bites the dust.

Judge rules in Palin e-mail case

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A judge has ruled that the Alaska governor's office can use private e-mail accounts to conduct state business, as former Gov. Sarah Palin sometimes did.

Superior Court Judge Jack W. Smith said in his ruling Wednesday that there is no provision in Alaska state law that prohibits the use of private e-mail accounts when conducting state business.

The case stemmed from a lawsuit filed by Anchorage resident Andree McLeod.

McLeod contended such use of private e-mails denies citizens the right to inspect public records.

State lawyers argued that McLeod misinterpreted current state law. And if the practice is to be changed, lawyers said it was up to Alaska lawmakers do it.

Link

[JohnBrowdie]

the poor misled individual that keeps forcing these lost causes to a formal, public conclusion probably needs to shy away from media requests for a response after the proceeding is over.  this episode's laugher quote:

"I'm stunned," she said after Smith's decision. "I'm stunned that something as simple as no private e-mails should be used for state business has become such a complicated issue."

Link

uh, who made it a "complicated issue" in the first place?

McLeod is quite a story unto herself.  it turns out that this whole revolting public temper tantrum is rooted in a private feud over a job.

Not surprisingly, Alaskans have mixed feelings about McLeod’s efforts. Palin supporters condemn her harshly, saying she is waging a personal vendetta after being denied a job in Palin’s administration. (McLeod confirms that she did apply for a job in the administration but says the matter is irrelevant.)

Link

I wonder what mcleod thought of palin's ethics before she applied for a job in her administration?

[Miss Mia]

the poor misled individual that keeps forcing these lost causes to a formal, public conclusion probably needs to shy away from media requests for a response after the proceeding is over.  this episode's laugher quote:

uh, who made it a "complicated issue" in the first place?

McLeod is quite a story unto herself.  it turns out that this whole revolting public temper tantrum is rooted in a private feud over a job.

I wonder what mcleod thought of palin's ethics before she applied for a job in her administration?

McLeod was known to hold public officials to ethical standards.  Palin knew this about McLeod, and Palin ran as the ethical candidate and though I don't remember the exact quote told McLeod along the lines of "I expect you to hold me accountable as well."


BTW, I do find it a travesty that any governmental official could conduct ANY state business on a private email account.  I hope that the Alaska legislature quickly remedies this problem. 

[JohnBrowdie]

McLeod was known to hold public officials to ethical standards.  Palin knew this about McLeod, and Palin ran as the ethical candidate and though I don't remember the exact quote told McLeod along the lines of "I expect you to hold me accountable as well."


BTW, I do find it a travesty that any governmental official could conduct ANY state business on a private email account.  I hope that the Alaska legislature quickly remedies this problem. 

she ran as a corruption buster, which isn't quite the same thing, but the distinction probably isn't relevant.

the legislature will get around to fixing the personal email oversight sometime after they reform the ethics laws so that a single (or very small number, at least) individual can't drag the entire state government through every conceivable legal obstacle course just because they are having a bad hair day.  I think that the general condition of alaskan ethics would probably not suffer appreciably if the subject of governmental corruption and graft were left up to the professional state and federal prosecutors that are legally empowered to enforce the laws of the state and the nation.  I honestly don't think that the sacred mantle of alaskan honor hangs on this one ridiculous person.

I think william jefferson and his $90K of freezer money is a travesty.   I think oil for food was a travesty.  I think a nuclear north korea is a travesty.  I think having both personal and professional email accounts is common, and I think that once you have that situation, some overlap between the two is inevitable.  blame the CIO of the state of alaska.  there are ways of making it impossible (or at least very, very difficult) to see personal email on any private network.  (and I think this had a lot to do with her blackberry, which is another conversation entirely.  and its possible to get there without an actual intent to avoid public disclosure requirements, but that intent is usually assumed by those suffering from PDS.  innocent until proven guilty, anyone?)

I think quite a few things are a travesty.  Sarah Palin and her email account just aren't one of them.  and you have to assume that an almost impossible number of fairly unlikely things have occurred before you should be ready to hang your hat on these ridiculous ethics complaints by a few private citizens.  honestly.  the whole scenario just isn't realistic.

 
**edited for grammar**

[Miss Mia]

I think there are plenty of things wrong with government that raise to the level of travesty. 

Regardless of political affiliation, no governmental business should be done on private email networks.  It reeks of hiding things from the public's right to know and information requests. 

And yes, I do know that there are ways to make sure that on the private network that private emails cannot be utilized, I cannot access any private emails while I'm at work. 

BTW, the leaked deal a few weeks ago laid out changes that should be made to the ethic's act. 

[JohnBrowdie]

ADMIN NOTE:

I think I probably blundered when I decided to merge all of the threads about the palin ethics investigations into a single thread.  I was harshly cynical about the ethics complaints, but I also tossed the thread about the professional investigation of her PAC into this same catch-all thread, and even I concede that the formal investigation into the PAC/personal use issue is a very serious matter.  I even said so when I posted the thread.

but the posts in merged threads arrange themselves in chronological order, and so the thread doesn't read right unless you realize that it's a hybrid. and it's unlikely that guests (the three or four that we have in a week  )  realize that.

live and learn, I guess. :-\