Palin Scandal Compendium

by: Chris Bowers

Mon Sep 01, 2008 at 19:26


I'm trying to track all of the negative stories that have come out on Sarah Palin in the last three days. It isn't easy, as new revelations pile on seemingly every hour. In the extended entry, I give such a compendium my best shot.
Chris Bowers :: Palin Scandal Compendium
My attempt at a Palin scandal compendium:

  1. Lack of experience hypocrisy. McCain spent the entire summer attacking Obama over his lack of experience, and then picked a far less experienced politician for his running mate. McCain's 2008 presidential campaign actually started before Palin took office.

  2. A reformer under investigation. Palin is being sold as a reformer, even though she is currently facing an ethics probe (from other Republicans), and recently hired a lawyer to help her with that investigation. She is probably guilty too, considering that she did the exact same thing when she was a mayor. However, it wasn't illegal when she fired people for political purposes as a mayor. While occupying the governor's mansion, I believe it is.

  3. Family values: Her 17-year old daughter is pregnant. Not only did Palin thus expose her daughter to endless humiliation in front of the entire world by accepting the slot, but it isn't even clear if Palin told the McCain campaign about the situation before she accepted the slot. Oh, and Palin opposes birth control, even for married couples.

  4. Extreme right-winger: Even though she is being sold to moderates, it turns out she is an extremely hard-core wingnut, supporting Pat Buchannan and a whole host of other disturbing things.

  5. Deep ties to Alaska pork: Palin claims she opposed "the bridge to nowhere," but she was actually in favor of it for a while. She also loves earmarks and Ted Stevens.

  6. Secessionist? Oh yeah, and she also might be a secessionist.

  7. Lack of prior relationship with McCain: As it turns out, she only met, and talked with, McCain once before being selected. No wonder Republican lawyers are still vetting her. This is some excellent preparation by the McCain campaign for McCain's first presidential decision.

Palin was obviously picked entirely for political reasons, not because McCain knew her or believed in her at all. Even then, the pick was an extremely poor one. With more hurricanes bearing down on the Gulf Coast, the whole thing smacks of Arabian Horse master Michael Brown and post-Katrina FEMA. Unqualified people are placed in major positions of responsibility just because they are hard right-winger. This is how Republicans govern, and a national reminder of that is really crushing McCain in the polls.

Keep in mind that the first couple days after being selected are usually the best media that VP picks receive. It will actually get worse for Palin from here on out.

Did I miss anything? If so, post it in the comments. I'd like a complete Palin compendium.  

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Palin Scandal Compendium | 57 comments
Being the head of the pro-Stevens 527 (0.00 / 0)
in 2005?

And do we know that 'Palin opposes birth control, even for married couples?' I've been Googling to find the original source, with no success.

I'd suggest (0.00 / 0)
snooping around for some anti-choice group's questionnaire that she probably filled out prior to her gubernatorial election. I would assume that's the source since I doubt the guy from Research 2000 (a republican, right?) would just make it up out of the blue.
[ Parent ]
OnTheIssues says (0.00 / 0)
that Palin is pro-contraception.
[ Parent ]
As does (0.00 / 0)
[ Parent ]
Interesting (0.00 / 0)
I wonder where the discrepancy comes from?

Is she in favor of "natural" contraception but not the pill or condoms? Considering her extreme views, I think that'd be a legitimate question to ask. I wouldn't leave anything to chance here and wouldn't be surprised if she said more than one thing to multiple groups considering her bridge to nowhere debacle.  

[ Parent ]
Well, I'd bet the source for both is (0.00 / 0)
the same article:

Palin said last month that no woman should have to choose between her career, education and her child. She is pro-contraception and said she's a member of a pro-woman but anti-abortion group called Feminists for Life.

August 2006. So July, 2006, is apparently when she said that ... whatever it was. I'll keep looking.

[ Parent ]
they say (0.00 / 0)
anything with the word "science" in its name is not; I think the same applies to "pro-woman."

[Apologies to the neuroscientists, they're the only exception I can think of.]

"Feminists for Life" may be one of the more mainstream groups, but my limited experience tells me that when the right-wing gets together to form a ladyfeminismism group they usually fill it with some pretty ridiculous people. Palin probably filled her CV with these groups, and I bet a little digging can pull up some crazy things. Think, like, Reverend-Wright-level things.

[ Parent ]
This could be added to highlight her foreign policy knowledge: (4.00 / 1)

It's almost like watching Stewart or Colbert. I can't believe they use that talking point.

Actually she's got double foreign policy experience... (4.00 / 4)
because Alaska also borders Canada!

(although it's unclear if she's ever been to Canada)

[ Parent ]
Forget Canada (0.00 / 0)
How many states has she been to prior to being added to the ticket? I think that's a very relevant question to ask someone a heartbeat away from the Presidency. Economic concerns vary immensely region to region, never mind in the lower 48 vs. Alaska.

"I think the economic logic behind dumping a load of toxic waste in the lowest wage country is impeccable and we should face up to that."
-Lawrence Summers
[ Parent ]
Yeah, but Alaska is far closer to Russia than the continental 48 states - so does that make her (4.00 / 1)
less American, even a commie Ruskie? Does that mean she knows even less about the other 49 states than she does Russia?

The Middle East is literally on the other side of the world from Alaska, so she must not know much about the Middle East at all. Then again, if you ask McCain, maybe Alaska does share a border with Iranq  and Pakaganistan too, so that would qualify her - at least in his mind.



Help support "CRASHING THE STATES"--a Netroots Film!

[ Parent ]
According to McCain, it borders Pakistan too (0.00 / 0)
Sorry, couldn't resist. ;)

"We are are the change we have been waiting for" --Barack Obama reminding us we have to hold him accountable.
[ Parent ]
new (0.00 / 0)
Also her husband's DUI....
Fiscally Irresponsible (4.00 / 1)
Various sources have pegged her at leaving her small Alaska town with ~$20 million in debt after poor financial management and property development policies.

This would particularly be a useful wedge between the social conservative and fiscal conservative wings of the party.  

is this true? (0.00 / 0)
I actually heard that because she came to power during a massive influx of big-box stores, the town got a real-estate tax bonanza and did pretty well. But squandering surpluses is a pretty standard GOP skill.
[ Parent ]
Well... (0.00 / 0)
Well, she said the following in an interview with The New Yorker, which suggests she has no idea what the respective Republican and Democratic economic platforms are.  

"the Democrats also preach individual freedoms and individual rights, capitalism, free market, let-it-do-its-thing-best, let people keep as much of their money that they earn as possible."

That's more a mind-blowing gaffe than a scandal though.  

She also said this in a questionaire: (4.00 / 3)
     Q: Are you offended by the phrase "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance? Why or why not?  

   PALIN: Not on your life. If it was good enough for the founding fathers, its good enough for me and I'll fight in defense of our Pledge of Allegiance.

...

I'm sure she will be asked more questions as time goes on in the campaign, and we'll see if shes really as ignorant as the few one-off quotes like these suggest.    

[ Parent ]
Yeah that founding (0.00 / 0)
socialist father who wrote the pledge of allegiance in the late 19th century and those founding fathers in the United States Congress who added "under god" in the 1950s.

This is turning into Bush's Third Term ticket in more ways than I could have imagined.  

[ Parent ]
I think it will be like having Bush as both Prez and VP at the same time - without Cheney. (0.00 / 0)
So this will be pure idealogical incompetence without the Satan factor - that is they will do the same most evil things, but instead of knowing they are wrong and doing them anyway, they will believe they are right and are doing what is good.

Help support "CRASHING THE STATES"--a Netroots Film!
[ Parent ]
Link (0.00 / 0)
[ Parent ]
She was almost recalled (0.00 / 0)
Personal records (0.00 / 0)
Someone (or some group) should start pushing for Palin's medical records, tax returns, passport and history of travel.

When you pick a VP that is a newbie to statewide politics, let along national politics, I think it raises enough questions in people's minds that public opinion would go along with some loud demands for vetting.

When they say "no", which they will, it will only raise further questions and drive the media narrative.  

"Don't hate the media, become the media" -Jello Biafra

Extremeist views (0.00 / 0)
Someone also needs to find this woman on the record as opposing abortion in cases involving the life of the mother. And she should be pressed on creationism.

When the hell is she going on the talk shows?? Oh yeah, there is still some sort of Convention going on that nobody cares about.  

"Don't hate the media, become the media" -Jello Biafra

[ Parent ]
Wasilla Sport Complex (0.00 / 0)
Don't forget this one:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/...

"Don't hate the media, become the media" -Jello Biafra
still paying off the sports complex (0.00 / 0)
Wasilla jacked up its sales tax in the early 1990's and Palin "was concerned that revenue from a new sales tax would not be spent wisely" so she ran for mayor. Sports complex price tag was $15 million and Wasilla is still paying it off, the payments will go on to 2011 or 2012.

14 years of debt that hit the city's loan ceiling and sucked up funding for a new library, that shows Palin's first priorities.

http://www.adn.com/matsu/story...

[ Parent ]
AIP Membership (4.00 / 3)
ABC confirms that Palin was a member of the Alaskan Independence Party as recently as 1996, when she switched to the Republican Party before running for mayor. This means she served in the City Council representing the AIP.

The stance that Alaska should pursue great autonomy than other US states has been a part of the AIP platform since the 1970's, and was indeed party of the platform when Palin joined (not sure when she joined, may be as recently as 1994, giving her a short tenure in the Party).

http://blogs.abcnews.com/polit...
Via DailyKos

"Don't hate the media, become the media" -Jello Biafra

ABC reported that???? (4.00 / 1)

 Wow. Maybe there IS pressure within the Republican Party to cut their losses and dump her.

 But I still seriously doubt they'd dare to piss off their fundamentalist base.

  Something's gotta give, though. This is sucking all the air out of their convention.  

"We judge ourselves by our ideals; others by their actions. It is a great convenience." -- Howard Zinn

[ Parent ]
and (0.00 / 0)
cnn has kyra phillips now in alaska investigating all this palin crap.  of course, all she had to do was read the blogs, but i guess it looks good on tv (the mountains behind her were gorgeous, plus it was great to see anderson cooper at night talking to kyra in the daytime, cuz it's so light in alaska for so long this time of year.  i was in anchorage once around this time of year and it didn't get dark until 10 pm.  way strange).
[ Parent ]
off-topic to Chris (0.00 / 0)
Did "Searching for John McCain" get those articles in the top 30 searches for his name by Labor Day? Or did Google thwart your search-engine-optimization efforts?

Join the Iowa progressive community at Bleeding Heartland.
Contraception Confusion (0.00 / 0)
I'm seeing conflicting things on her and birth control.

This Time.com bit has her "for" contraception.  

Given her positions on sex-ed and abortion, it seems likely she is opposed to it, but I would like to see the quote from her, indicating this.

Her religion (0.00 / 0)
May I suggest that people investigate her religious affiliations.   She is a member of the Assembly of God church/denomination.   They are extremist who believe in speaking in tongues and other bizarre beliefs and practices.   They also have a history of racism.  

Normally, I think religion should have no bearing on politics.   However, in this case, it seems clear that her extreme religious beliefs have influenced her positions on numerous issues.    

I hate to say it... (4.00 / 1)
But between the links to the AIP, her religious affiliation, giving her son a "norse" name, and being a "reformed" Buchannanite, I've been wondering if she has ties to the extreme right - the sort of ties which make George Allen's seem minor in comparison.      

I'm not alleging, but each of these bits of evidence increases the statistical possibility.  I really hope nothing quite that bad is lurking in her closet though.  

[ Parent ]
Given all that has emerged (0.00 / 0)
with just a couple of days of citizen vetters using the Google, I wouldn't be at all surprised that there's more and worse.

No society that feeds its children on tales of successful violence can expect them not to believe that violence in the end is rewarded. -Margaret Mead
[ Parent ]
Regarding "bridge to nowhere" (4.00 / 2)
Chris--

As for the bridge to nowhere, I would add to this narrative that her saying that she was in a position to reject it ("thanks, but no thanks") is another lie.

The earmark was killed in November 2005.

She was not elected governor until November 2006.

She is lying about both her position and her experience--in her first speech to the nation.

Somerby's take: http://www.dailyhowler.com/dh0...  

Addendums to 2 & 3. (0.00 / 0)
(2) My diary "Beyond Troopergate: McCain/Palin Judgment & Ethics Problems--Hush Money? Witness Tampering?" contains additional stories beyhond the basic Troopergate and its attemted coverup.

(3) There was a diary at DKos yesterday--now deleted--that referenced an Alaskan blog discussing Palin's alleged promise while running for governor that her husband would care for her children, and claiming that this did not last very long, and Palin ended up farming her kids out to the care of several different families.

There's nothing wrong her conduct, necessarily, but there are questions about her integrity.  I don't have time to look into this now, but since this diary is up, I thought it was worth noting for others to be aware of.  

"Senate passes expanded GI bill despite Bush, McCain opposition"

Barely 3 days old (4.00 / 1)
and this story already has enough potential and actual scandals to fill a year's worth of National Enquirers. Even if most of them don't pan out or turn out to have been overblown or misunderstood, the sheer number of them might be enough to make McCain regret that he ever got to know this poster child for modern conservatism so "well".

Breaking! Sarah Palin gives birth to full-grown Caribou with the head of Richard Simmons!

I know, I'm terrible.

The liberal soul shall be made fat. He who waters shall be watered also himself. (Proverbs 11:25)

[ Parent ]
Palin: Vet included FBI background check? (0.00 / 0)
Washington Post reports that according to McCain's campaign manager Rick Davis, vetting materials on Palin included an FBI background check.

The FBI works for the McCain campaign? Is this legal? An abuse of power? Seriously, how does the FBI get involved with campaign research?

Health care reform = Employer payroll savings = More hiring and more jobs!

Another lie (0.00 / 0)
Per Ambinder, FBI denies involvement in vetting by presidential campaigns. Link
[ Parent ]
Public Safety Commissioner Monegan's replacement got a payoff (0.00 / 0)
Monegan's replacement, Kopp, had a previous conviction for sexual harassment.  He was let go left after 10 days with a $10,000 severance payment.  Monegan got no severance payment.

Airheads like Mitchell are still confusing Wooten and Monegan.  I am convinced Monegan will bring her down, he has the goods on her or he would keep his mouth shut.

I think she's going to be gone by end of tomorrow.

1972 (4.00 / 1)
Thomas Eagleton anyone??  That would be the Election 9 weeks out.  Game, set match.  So McCain can't do it.  But maybe he'll have to.  This is going to get interesting.  Republicans are such assholes.
I guess Re-Create '68 (4.00 / 1)
Was off by a little bit?
[ Parent ]
I agree (0.00 / 0)
She is such a bad pick for VP that McCain may need to replace her on the ticket.  With the distraction of the hurricanes, and the fact that she has not yet been formally nominated at the convention, makes this the best time for her to step off gracefully.  I am sure there are serious discussions within the McCain campaign to get rid of her.  If she survives the week, I think McCain is stuck with her.  

This reminds me of the media narrative about replacing Quayle before the 1992 election.  I remember some commentators being surprised that Bush decided to keep him in the ballot.  


[ Parent ]
Family Values: add the story about her recklessness with her son Trig's (4.00 / 2)
birth, this is only one version of what I have seen stated by doctors and nurses on the internet:
"Joy Says:
September 2nd, 2008 at 8:14 am
If Sarah Palin's water broke and she stood up and gave a 30 min. speech, got on a plane that stopped in Seattle on her way to Alaska, then drove past 2 hospitals in Anchorage that had facilities for special needs infants (she knew she was having a DS baby), then she is dumb as a rock. I am a nurse with 40 yrs. experience and 5 kids myself. An athletic mother and a runner like Palin would spit that baby out. Furthermore, ask anyone who has ever been pregnant, your contractions can go from 30 min apart to 5 min apart very quickly.  When the amniotic sac breaks, the umbilical cord is engorged with blood and apt to hang down into the birth canal. With each contraction, the baby is deprived of oxygen and I have seen several newborns who suffered severe brain damage when this happened and/or died.."

This was her FIFTH child, so she cannot claim ignorance, she knowingly endangered her child, some family value, that.

She named her son (0.00 / 0)
Trig Paxson Van Palin.  Thats kinda funny.
[ Parent ]
We have a winner! (4.00 / 4)
   The sexiest scandal about Palin is the one without sex: she's a secessionist!  This scandal opens up the doors to so many new character attacks on the Republican ticket it's hard to know where to begin.  
 Every time a Republican operative brings up Ayers, flag pins, and John "American P.O.W. Patriot from America" McCain, this scandal should be brought up.  Whenever a Republican operative talks about John McCain's judgment, one should talk about McCain's carelessness in choosing a secessionist for V.P.  This scandal just encapsulates the fraudulence of the McCain campaign in a form ANYONE can understand.  People know what secession is.  

John McCain lets lobbyists shape his economic policy
yeah (4.00 / 2)
I personally think this is a biggie, much more than anything involving sex.  
[ Parent ]
<ahref=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/31/palin-laughs-as-opponent_n_122776.htmlhttp>Palin laughed as her opponent was called "bitch," "cancer," and mocked for her weight.</a> (4.00 / 1)
Link

Saxby Chambliss, worse than disgraceful; he's reprehensible.  
Polar Bears (0.00 / 0)
She wants them taken off the threatened species list because protecting their habitat interferes with potential drilling for oil.

No, really!

"We are are the change we have been waiting for" --Barack Obama reminding us we have to hold him accountable.

Palin and motherhood (0.00 / 0)
When eight months pregnant Palin went to a conference in Texas, which my Ob/Gyn would have forbidden.  Her water broke.  She then flew back to Alaska so her child, clearly with potential for a compromised birth given her age and the fact that the child had Down Syndrome.   She wanted the baby to be born in Alaska.  Every  mother I know would want the most safe delivery possible for any child. Regardless of all her previous choices, a birth in Texas was mandated for the well-being of the child.  

Palin then went back to work PDQ, obviously leaving the child to the care of someone else.   Does she even have a nanny?   Is her daughter, Brigit,  taking care of the baby as well as bearing another?   How much child care is relegated to the two teenage daughters?  Several weeks ago I heard a video of Palin saying how much this baby contributed to their family.

These may be her family values and her idea of motherhood, but it surely isn't mine.  Looking at those girls as their mother was introduced was not my idea of blissful teenage girls.  

If you run on family values, a healthier picture is mandated.    

Nothing to add, except (4.00 / 1)
that I'm getting weary of coming across comments here and elsewhere claiming that her personal life and beliefs are 100% off-limits. Because they're not, if they reflect upon her judgement, character and mindset as it pertains to public office. Being a right-wing fundie is absolutely relevant to someone's qualification to be VP, from a progressive perspective--which is what this blog represents. Being in favor of abstinence-only is absolutely relevant. Accepting the VP slot when you've got all these personal issues is absolutely relevant. Denying evolution, global warming and modern science is is absolutely relevant.

I'm hoping that people who say that they're not relevant are just naive followers of High Broderism, and not RW plants. Because they're obviously here.

We're not attacking Palin or her family. We're attacking her qualification to be VP. Anyone who can't tell the difference is just wasting everyone's time by posting here.

The liberal soul shall be made fat. He who waters shall be watered also himself. (Proverbs 11:25)

Yeah (0.00 / 0)
And after all they support FISA because they feel it is ok to spy on our families.

The liberal wiki
Send an email to terra@liberalwiki.com
[ Parent ]
It's not ok to spy on our families? (0.00 / 0)
Damn, I knew I shouldn't have let that nice man from the phone company install a funny-looking "Counter-Terrorist Security Device" in my PC!

The liberal soul shall be made fat. He who waters shall be watered also himself. (Proverbs 11:25)
[ Parent ]
With so many issues to chose from (0.00 / 0)
my simple suggestion is to show some compassion for Bristol Palin by not focussing too much on her pregancy. I mean, hasn't that 17-year old had enough?  She didn't chose the life in the public spot-light, and yes, that points to poor decision making on her mother's part, but given the wealth of negative issues with regard to Sarah Palin as VP, I don't think its necessary to splash mud all over Bristol.

Hope I'm not wasting your time.


"It sounds wrong...
     ...but its right."

[ Parent ]
And who's focusing on her pregnancy, or her? (0.00 / 0)
It's all about Palin's judgement in agreeing to be McCain's VP given all the stuff in her life and background that she should have known was going to come out, and McCain's judgement in picking her if her knew about all this stuff, or if he failed to find out about it. It's all of a piece, of which this pregnancy is obviously of much lesser importance, but it's still out there. When the other side stops fixating on whether Michelle Obama once said "Whitey" and Obama's a secret Muslim, is when I start treating them with respect.

It's sucks that a 17 year old who was given some awful advice by her mom has to suffer for this, but her mom could have avoided all this by "Just Saying No" (to McCain). Heh. And I've never once referred to her daughter explicitely. It's the media that's doing that. Again, this is all about Palin and McCain's judgement--or severe lack thereof.

We're trying to win this. The gloves are off this time. The stakes are too high. Anything that's fair game is fair game. This is fair game. The daughter and her baby will be fine in the end, I'm sure--with her mother and father back in Alaska for the next 4 years.

The liberal soul shall be made fat. He who waters shall be watered also himself. (Proverbs 11:25)

[ Parent ]
sank the clean water initiative (0.00 / 0)
NYT reported

This month, Ms. Palin issued a last-minute statement of opposition to a ballot measure that would have provided added protections for salmon from potential contamination from mining, an action seen as crucial to its defeat.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08...

dKos 100 issues of Palin (0.00 / 0)
dKos diary list of 100 problems facing Palin

http://www.dailykos.com/storyo...

Seccession Debunked (0.00 / 0)
I agree completely with your assessment but it looks like the New York Times got some bad info regarding #6.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09...

I'm sure there'll be plenty more to add on to the list though, since her "vetting" only really began last Friday.

Palin Scandal Compendium | 57 comments
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