Did Sarah Palin really abuse her power as governor in Alaska?”
For the reasons explained in section IV of this report, I find that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act. Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) provides The legislature reaffirms that each public officer holds office as a public trust, and any effort to benefit a personal or financial interest through official action is a violation of that trust. Finding Number Two I find that, although Walt Monegan’s refusal to fire Trooper Michael Wooten was not the sole reason he was fired by Governor Sarah Palin, it was likely a contributing factor to his termination as Commissioner of Public Safety. In spite of that, Governor Palin’s firing of Commissioner Monegan was a proper and lawful exercise of her constitutional and statutory authority to hire and fire executive branch department heads. Finding Number Three Harbor Adjustment Service of Anchorage, and its owner Ms. Murleen Wilkes, handled Trooper Michael Wooten’s worker
An Alaska ethics report has concluded that John McCain’s running mate, Sarah Palin, abused her power as governor when firing a state official, a development that could hinder the Republicans as the race for the White House narrows. In the closely watched case, the Alaska governor was accused of pressuring the official to fire her former brother-in-law and then firing the official when he refused. Palin maintains the firing was over a budget dispute. The 300-page report by the chief investigator to a bipartisan Alaska legislative panel that looked into the matter was likely to be fodder for Democratic attacks, especially in light of the fact that Palin has painted herself as a political maverick who will help McCain clean up Washington. The report is almost certain to be a distraction for the McCain-Palin ticket as it tries to catch up with Democrat Barack Obama in the polls at a time when the floundering US economy is becoming ever more important with voters. The inquiry looked into Pa
