Since Palin has run as a “reformer”, any hint of improperly allocating funds to benefit herself at the taxpayers’ expense really puts a dent in her credibility.
And the AP has apparently discovered some weird shifting around of funds to cover her kid’s travel expenses.
Here’s more…
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Gov. Sarah Palin charged the state for [...]

The second TrooperGate investigation gets under way soon.
Today is not a good day to be a Palin…
The Alaska Personnel Board is conducting the investigation, led by an independent counsel.
It will be the first deposition of the Alaska governor, but the second inquiry into the matter. The first investigation by the Alaska state legislature found that [...]

Her “hometown” paper fires back in one of the more strongly worded editorials I’ve seen this campaign season.
Again, I don’t know how she thought she was going to get away with it, but the press is now hammering her for trying to spin her way out of these ethics findings, thus ensuring that the story [...]

TODAY has the story…

They won’t let her spin her way out of this.
My guess is that this is the final nail in the McCain/Palin coffin. If people didn’t trust her before, now they have a real reason not to support her.

The Branchflower report and the McCain camp’s clearly dishonest spin was bad enough, but it looks like the McCain campaign opened up Palin to even more scrutiny when they didn’t even need to.
From Newsweek:
Some weeks ago, the McCain team devised a plan to have Palin file an ethics complaint against herself with the State [...]

Again, I don’t why she thought she was going to get away with this, but maybe she’s not used to reporters asking more follow up questions.
From Jake Tapper…
One can make the argument, as Palin and her allies have tried to do, that this investigation — launched by a bipartisan Republican-controlled legislative body — was somehow [...]

First, the McCain camp and Palin herself are saying that the investigation found no laws were broken or nothing unethical was done.
On the first count they’re right. No laws were broken. But do you know why she didn’t break any laws? Because the employment law states she A) could either fire him for any reason [...]

Not only are they wrong…they’re REALLY wrong.
First, here’s McCain’s response to the report…
Today’s report shows that the Governor acted within her proper and lawful authority in the reassignment of Walt Monegan. The report also illustrates what we’ve known all along: this was a partisan led inquiry run by Obama supporters and the Palins were completely [...]

MSNBC has the report…

No doubt that the Obama campaign will jump all over this. But will this come up in the next debate? Or will Obama continue to ignore Palin and simply focus on McCain?
Seems like Biden might come out and start hammering here on this.
So then, what will be the fallout here?

Looks like there was enough “there” there for a 12 person legislative committee to unanimously decide to release this report and find her guilty of ethics abuse.
From NY Times:
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A legislative committee investigating Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has found she unlawfully abused her authority in firing the state’s public safety commissioner.
The investigative [...]

Somebody should tell her it doesn’t work this way…
From the AP:
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – On the eve of a report on a legislative panel’s abuse-of-power investigation into Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, campaign officials released their own report clearing her of any wrongdoing.
Palin, running mate to Republican presidential nominee John McCain, is the subject of two [...]

In fact, it was unanimous…
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (CNN) – An investigation into Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s firing of her public safety commissioner can proceed, Alaska’s Supreme Court ruled Thursday, clearing the way for a Friday report to the state Legislature on the issue.
The justices rejected an effort to halt the probe by the Republican vice presidential [...]

Well how about that? First Todd Palin agrees to testify and now her team jumps on board.
In any event, while I think the delay was a strategic move, I’m happy Palin and her staff are finally cooperating.
From CNN:
The seven, including Palin’s chief of staff, had tried to fight subpoenas issued by the state Senate Judiciary [...]

Well, this is surprising…
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Gov. Sarah Palin’s husband is planning to speak to an investigator looking into abuse-of-power allegations against the governor, Todd Palin’s lawyer said Saturday. He previously refused to testify under subpoena in a separate probe.
Attorney Thomas Van Flein said he asked the investigator, Anchorage attorney Timothy Petumenos, to reserve [...]

Jeezus, they’re really trying to kill this thing…
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Six Alaska lawmakers filed an emergency appeal Friday asking the state’s Supreme Court to halt an investigation into abuse-of-power allegations against Gov. Sarah Palin before the findings are released next week.
The independent investigator conducting the probe plans to turn over his conclusions by next [...]

Findings will be released next week, as scheduled…
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – An investigator hired by Alaskan lawmakers to probe abuse-of-power allegations against Gov. Sarah Palin was free to finish his work by a deadline set for a week from Friday after a state judge dismissed a lawsuit seeking to block the probe.
The investigation is looking into [...]

Yes, they went there.

But hey, you can’t say we didn’t warn Palin. I railed against that idiotic “Russia/Alaska” assertion from day one, but the McCain camp continued to push it. And so they have to deal with copious amounts of ridicule and scorn. Not just because the point itself was dumb, but also because Palin [...]

When the State Senate President of your own party is taking steps to make sure the TrooperGate investigation goes forward, you know this is no partisan witch hunt.
Lyda Green talks to the Mojo Blog:
Calling herself a “raging Republican,” Green says, she is “absolutely disgusted, embarrassed, and ashamed” by the McCain-Palin campaign’s intervention in the [...]

Todd Palin and a few of his wife’s staffers failed to appear recently, even though they were subpoenaed. Still, the prosecutor Stephen Branchflower says the investigation will be finished soon.
But will it be of any value if nobody involved testifies?
More from MSNBC:
Todd Palin’s attorney sent French a letter Thursday listing Palin’s objections to the Legislature’s [...]

As I said from the beginning of this nonsense.
Ed Morrissey covers the story:
“Sarah Palin issued a response to the Troopergate investigation yesterday by releasing internal memoranda that show Walt Monegan got fired for insubordination on budget matters and not because of his refusal to fire Palin’s former brother-in-law. Monegan went behind Palin’s back [...]