Palin Legal Fund Challenged As Ethics Violation

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — An ethics complaint filed Monday against Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin claims the legal defense fund formed last week to challenge such claims is an ethics violation itself.

The complaint filed with the attorney general's office seeks an investigation by the state personnel board for violations of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act. The complainant, Kim Chatman of Eagle River, claims Palin is misusing the governor's office for personal gain by securing unwarranted benefits and receiving improper gifts.

The governor's office said Monday the new complaint and others filed against Palin or her staff show a disturbing trend in Alaska politics.

"It's obvious the intent with this unprecedented action against the governor is to see her administration paralyzed and for her to declare personal bankruptcy," Palin spokeswoman Sharon Leighow said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

The new complaint targets the Alaska Fund Trust, which Palin supporter and friend Kristan Cole established last week. Palin has said has said she's accumulated more than $500,000 in legal fees from defending herself against ethics complaints and in Troopergate, the Legislature's probe into the firing of Palin's former public safety commissioner.

Chatman's complaint cites as potential donors the 500,000 supporters signed up for Palin's Facebook account and various political organizations.

"Gov. Palin is perched to improperly receive an enormous amount of money for herself and her family and position a pool of pre-paid defense lawyers organized to deflect consequences of wrongdoings," the complaint says.

Chatman told The Associated Press in a phone interview that she voted for Palin as governor in 2006, but now sees her as unethical. Palin "is not holding up her end of the bargain," she said.

Chatman, 49, says she was never politically active until she started watching Palin more closely. Now, "she makes me pay attention," she said.

At least a dozen other ethics complaints have been filed against Palin, most since she returned from the vice presidential campaign last fall. Most complaints are confidential unless a public accusation is filed or the accused person agrees in writing to make it public.

In Troopergate, Palin originally cooperated with the Legislature's investigation before saying the investigation had become too partisan. She then filed an ethics grievance against herself with the Alaska Personnel Board.

The legislative probe found Palin had abused her office but the commissioner's firing was legal. The separate personnel board investigation found there was no probable cause to believe Palin or any other state official violated ethics laws.

Comments

[SharpDressedMan]

The consultant behind SarahPAC parted ways with Palin. The legal fund was setup separately to bail out the Palins from their botched up attempts to circumvent a serious ethics violation that grew and festered much earlier than last year's presidential campaign. The maximum donation to the bailout fund is $150 per donor. Fund collectors and managers must be paid for their work. About $600,000 to $700,000 in donations may be needed to net $500,000. It's not yet known if money collected from the legal bailout fund is taxable. Transparency isn't one of her strong points so she will comply with the minimum legal requirements.

The SarahPAC promotional statement clearly demonstrates Palin's interests lie in the national stage and not in her home state. Her key issues are more oil and gas, smaller government, lower taxes, more wars, no abortion, abolish teaching evolution in schools, and other issues favored by the religious extremists. But her gubernatorial record shows she is the biggest spender of any Alaskan governor, she raised taxes and enlarged the state government. The state legislators recently cut 1 billion off Palin's wish list.

With the motto "drill baby drill", she is determined to increase oil and gas production but at a cost to endangered species and environmentally protected areas. She opposes measures to make buildings in Alaska more energy efficient so oil companies can sell more oil and gas. It's unfortunate that she is willing to squander non-renewable energy for higher profits.

[betsylou]

In Her Own Words: Unethical, Hypocritical, Outrageous, Ridiculous ?

(From the SarahPAC website FAQS):
"Your support of SarahPac will make it possible for Gov. Palin to continue to be a strong voice for energy independence and reform. By supporting SarahPac, you will allow Gov. Palin to help find and create solutions for America's most pressing problems; priority number one is building a strong and prosperous economy that recognizes hard work, innovation and integrity by rewarding small businesses and hard working American families. SarahPac will support local and national candidates who share Gov. Palin's ideas and goals for our country.
Welcome to SarahPAC . . . Fund
Thank you for visiting us to learn more about Sarah. We all appreciate your interest and support.
At this time, we ask you to please hold your much appreciated donation and keep checking back here for the link to the Alaska Fund Trust, the official legal defense fund that will be announced shortly to help the family and state colleagues pay off legal debts incurred by politicall­y-motivate­d attacks."

Sooo, hold donations for "energy independence and reform, for a. . . properous ecomony that rewards small businesses and hard working American families. . . . and donate, instead, to the Alaska Fund Trust--or was that Sarah Fund Trust, Team Sarah Fund Trust, Sarah PAC Fund Trust or simply $arah, $arah, $arah !!! Transparancy in government has, at last, been achieved.

Oh, my apologies. Energy independence and the economy can wait. Let's get our priorities straight

[SharpDressedMan]

All ethics charges are submitted to the Alaska Attorney General's office for handling. The ethics violations don't cost the state any extra money because they are handled by state employees who are already on the payroll. Claiming the state is spending more money on ethics violations is a fallacious accusation contrived to raise sympathy for Palin and it's backfiring.

If anything, Alaskans are benefited by having more ethics violations filed. If this is what it takes to reveal the real Palin then so be it.

Palin is responsible for the $500,000 legal expenses for her use of private lawyers in the Troopergate case. State government lawyers were able to handle it but Palin chose to use a private law firm. A bipartisan vote found Palin guilty of ethics violations based on the Branchflower report. The McCain campaign interfered and had the Troopergate matter handled by the Personnel Board, a 3 member committee favorable to Palin. This Board cleared Palin of the ethics charge but Todd and Sarah Palin remain guilty in the eyes of many Alaskans.

State Trooper Wooten wasn't a threat to the Palins. It was the other way around and the judge in the divorce case of Sarah Palin's sister told the Palins to leave Wooten alone. If Sarah was smart she would have listened to the judge and moved on. Instead Todd and Sarah went on a hillbilly warpath. Now they want their supporters to bail them out of the $500,000 legal debt.

[CJWebber]

Exactly. And it must be remembered that Sarah filed the Troopergate Ethics Violation AGAINST HERSELF. She is now wanting others to fund the defense of this ethics violation. And, amazingly, there are people helping her out.

[SharpDressedMan]

P. T. Barnum had a good explanation about such helpers. Something about a sucker being born every minute. All the supporters in those freaky Sarah something sites fall for it hook line and sinker. Their reaction would be amusing if only they were harmless but they promote her with such fierce militancy and zealousy that ultimately they compromise and defeat her image. It will take another one or two elections before Sarah Palin is put in her rightful place as a hopelessly losing candidate in national politics. She has a multi-million dollar book deal on the table and more money to be made at FoxNews. Accepting those are more true to her nature.

[IhaveaDREAMwhitegirl]

There ya go again, Sarah...

[ericmiami]

Those teamsarah commentators are a hoot, aren't they?

[QuietLightTraveler]

Palin is finished. The ladies are after her. And once that starts, there will be no end to it. I wouldn't want to be her for all the tea bags in China ! LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

[MadamDeal]

The Arctic Cat is back. (These are the snow machine people who furnished Todd with entry fees, snowmachines, etc. Worth anywhere from $30,000 to $60,000.)

The pending ethics complaint concerns the Governor, in her official capacity, wearing Arctic Cat gear at the Iron Dog race. Such dress was characterized by one legislator as "a walking billboard" for Arctic Cat.

Well, she just did it again. At the 2009 Slush Cup festival at the Alyeska Ski Resort. Yep, wore the jacket advertising Arctic Cat knowing she already has one ethics complaint about looking like a walking billboard.

She is astonishingly stupid and has no judgment. Maybe she just sees it as free clothes again.

[pumpkin]

I believe it's called "hubris" and Sarah is just full of it.

[DCinFrance]

I agree with your assessment. What else would cause her to give the finger to anyone with a shred of ethics?

[MadamDeal]

What slays me about the defense fund is that it covers the FIRST FAMILY. Who would have a defense fund for their children? What has Piper done that is illegal or unethical?

I know quite a few people who would gladly donate a kidney to Ms. Chapman who filed this complaint.
I agree with her. The idea of a governor using her position to raise personal use money is outrageous. To include using the donations for her children is beyond absurd.

Sarah still has not realized her intellectual limitations.

[AKmom47]

Sarah Palin does not hold no truck with no sexism. Objectifying and judging a woman by her looks is as odious to her as accepting pork or race baiting.

Here is the proof:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSdFIDygFwM

[SharpDressedMan]

This qualifies as one of the all time Palin classic moments.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nokTjEdaUGg&NR=1

[DeGier]

All you have to ask yourself is would you feel comfortable letting your 8th grader spend the night at the Palin's house?

With all d rug dealing, school dropouts, unwanted pregnancy, drunken disgruntled brother in laws associated with this family, my answer would be a categorical NO.

[AKmom47]

Sarah Palin was found guilty of ethics violations by a bi-partisan commission.

She got caught trying to dodge paying taxes on per diem she was collecting for staying in her own house.

The RNC had to send a legal representative to Wasilla collect in person the designer clothes and jewelry Sarah "forgot" to return.

The leaders of her OWN party in her OWN state have called her untrustworthy and untruthful. Last month a national GOP spokesperson called her a "liar" and a "disaster.­"

And yet Sarah claims she is a reformer. Remember when she mentioned it to Hannity like a thousand times?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RuwIf4Rblc

[jimbeaux1961]

Governor Palin's Press Secretary, responding to the charges, choked on the word "ethics" like a husky on a pork chop bone, and was pronouced dead at the scene.

[CJWebber]

lol

[AKmom47]

ROTFL

[desertdweller]

Is it just my imagination, or does Palin appear to be making little progress in her effort to be taken seriously?

[OutWest08]

Ohhh, you are so right... I call it back paddling..­. up?

[AKmom47]

Anchorage has a better chance of getting an NFL team.

[jimbeaux1961]

Hey, since Sarah's watching Russia for us, doesn't that make this a "National Security" issue? And doesn't that mean we can waterboard her to get these critical answers? After all, she says it's not torture.

[AKmom47]

Sarah Palin has no ethics. While mayor of Wasilla she hired Steven Silver to lobby for $15 million to build a train line from Wasilla to Girdwood.

Besides lobbying for Casino Jack Abarmoff's firm Greenberg Taurig, Silver was also Ted Stevens' chief of staff.

Girdwood is the home of Ted Stevens.

Jack Abramoff is currently serving a loooong prison sentence.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/01/AR2008090103148.html

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/09/palins_lobbyist_has_abramoff_t.php

Sarah Palin said she was a reformer who was going to shake things up when in truth she is just Ted Stevens with lipstick. Actually she is less popular now than Ted. Polls say that she would lose to him if he ran for governor. That is rough.