Hot off the presses...Sarah Palin resigning as Governor of Alaska

[John Smith]

I'm not a big Palin fan, but Seward was a member of Lincoln's cabinet, had always been a big proponent of expansion, and negotiated the purchase. Did she say it was done while Lincoln was alive. As a holdover as Secretary of State, is it really a misstatement to say that he was a member of Lincoln's cabinet. Lincoln appointed him in that position, right?

 

I mean, find something worthwhile to call her out on instead of splitting hairs.

 

Of course, it's pretty sad that Sarah Palin's resignation is the topic of conversation with Obama bungling every foreign policy statement he makes (Honduras, Iran, Russia, etc.)

 

I fully well know that Seward was a member of Lincoln's cabinet, in fact he was one of the targets on assasination night but that in no way changes the fact that it was under the Johnson administration that the purchase of Alaska "Sewards folly" occurred. I would suggest listening to how Ms Palin phrases herself in her going away speach. She is either a) going for the cheap emotional tie to that old republican standby "lincoln" or purposely avoiding mentioning Johnson's name because she did not know him or was trying to avoid mentioning the name of a democrat. Her Speech and her delivery was what I was commenting on.

 

Sarah Palin just happens to be or had been one of the leading candidates for the 2012 elections till last week so everyhting she does in politics is a legitimate topic.

[bleedorange]

I fully well know that Seward was a member of Lincoln's cabinet, in fact he was one of the targets on assasination night but that in no way changes the fact that it was under the Johnson administration that the purchase of Alaska "Sewards folly" occurred. I would suggest listening to how Ms Palin phrases herself in her going away speach. She is either a) going for the cheap emotional tie to that old republican standby "lincoln" or purposely avoiding mentioning Johnson's name because she did not know him or was trying to avoid mentioning the name of a democrat. Her Speech and her delivery was what I was commenting on.

 

Sarah Palin just happens to be or had been one of the leading candidates for the 2012 elections till last week so everyhting she does in politics is a legitimate topic.

 

Whatever. Palin might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but, seriously, "did not know" Andrew Johnson? Give me a break. Of course, she was going for the Lincoln-tie. So what? She's the only politician to ever do that? I didn't see the speech, but, then again, I don't care.

 

And a leading candidate for 2012 according to whom? How can you even have a leading candidate 3 years out? I think it was fairly clear that a Palin nomination would have splintered the party even more than it already is. And I sincerely hope that the Republicans can come up with someone good to get rid of BHO.

[John Smith]

Whatever. Palin might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but, seriously, "did not know" Andrew Johnson? Give me a break. Of course, she was going for the Lincoln-tie. So what? She's the only politician to ever do that? I didn't see the speech, but, then again, I don't care.

 

And a leading candidate for 2012 according to whom? How can you even have a leading candidate 3 years out? I think it was fairly clear that a Palin nomination would have splintered the party even more than it already is. And I sincerely hope that the Republicans can come up with someone good to get rid of BHO.

 

Obviously you do care enough to try and make me look like a tool by ripping into my comments. I watched her pathetic speech and heard what I heard. But you care enough to call me out and tell me i'm wrong on something you did not see or hear.

 

According to polling it was her romeny and a third I can't remember maybe huckabee all around 20% each.

 

Edit: According to USA Today it is now 7 out of 10 republicans who want her while independents and democrats are staying away in droves.

[Good Old Neon]

If we could somehow manage to capture and harness all the, let’s face it, just plain dumb juice emitted by the electorate of this country, we’d pretty much have ourselves a perpetual source of renewable, lost cost (in monetary terms. The actual costs to a functioning democracy is really too costly to calculate)energy.

 

Palin is quite possibly the least qualified politician to ever grace the nations stage. I didn’t think it was possible, but the GOP went and found itself someone who actually makes Bush look stellar by comparison. And the absolute worst part, she has a better than average chance of getting herself elected, despite the fact that she is, without a doubt, mad as a fucking mudbug.

[Sir Stewart]

I'll go ahead and admit it - I just keep checking back with this thread because she's hot.

[Good Old Neon]

I'll go ahead and admit it - I just keep checking back with this thread because she's hot.

 

Is it the perpetually shifting accent or that her eyes are ever so slightly off plumb?

[Guest Jules]

I was picturing her naked under her fishing gear.

[Sir Stewart]

Is it the perpetually shifting accent or that her eyes are ever so slightly off plumb?

 

[Moss]

I'd hit it.

[jenbobblehead]

I'm pretty sure those running shoes are right out of the box.

[moxiebean]

7 out of 10 Republicans think she's getting ready to run on water.

[Good Old Neon]

I get the howling fantods just looking at her. Sure, I guess if we could somehow erase everything we know about her, she could be considered attractive. But there’s (at least) two kinds of fugly, just plain old, sorry about your luck, the victim of bad genes fugly, and then there’s the, attractive on a superficial level, but in every other way imaginable, just fucking horrific and irreparably scarred on the inside kind of fugly.

 

Shit, a man has to have some standards.

[mpolak21]

I get the howling fantods just looking at her. Sure, I guess if we could somehow erase everything we know about her, she could be considered attractive. But there’s (at least) two kinds of fugly, just plain old, sorry about your luck, the victim of bad genes fugly, and then there’s the, attractive on a superficial level, but in every other way imaginable, just fucking horrific and irreparably scarred on the inside kind of fugly.

 

Shit, a man has to have some standards.

 

What she stands for is absolutely terrifying to me, but I must admit she was the first vice-presidential candidate since Nelson Rockefeller to give me wood.

 

--Mike

[MattZ]

Shit, a man has to have some standards.

 

He does?

[Dude]

Palin in a Time interview, flip-flopping around like a dying fish on the deck of a boat:

 

Time Magazine: At one point during the campaign you said Hillary Clinton whines a little bit too much about being in the public eye. Do you now sort of sympathize with her?

 

Palin: What I said was, it doesn't do her or anybody else any good to whine about the criticism. And that's why I'm trying to make it clear that the criticism, I invite that. But freedom of speech and that invitation to constructively criticize a public servant is a lot different than the allowance to lie, to continually falsely accuse a public servant when they have proven over and over again that they have not done what the accuser is saying they did. It doesn't cost them a dime to continue to accuse. That's a whole different situation. But that's why when I talk about the political potshots that I take or my family takes, we can handle that. I can handle that. I expect it. But there has to be opportunity provided for truth to get out there, and truth isn't getting out there when the political game that's being played right now is going to continue, and it is. When you realize that it doesn't cost them a dime and it's a fun sport for some, you know it's going to continue. I love Alaska too much to put her through this in a lame-duck session.

 

Read the full interview here:

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1908983,00.html?imw=Y

[Guest Jules]

"There's nothing more important in the world than being a hot chick."

[Sir Stewart]

"There's nothing more important in the world than being a hot chick."

 

Cheers to that.

[Dude]

What's hilarious is, most of the ethics complaints and "politcal potshots" have happened because it is Palin who is a stranger to the truth, not the media.

[Guest Jules]

Is she though? Isn't she just dumb?

[Sir Stewart]

She's hot.

[Good Old Neon]

What's hilarious is, most of the ethics complaints and "politcal potshots" have happened because it is Palin who is a stranger to the truth, not the media.

 

Exactly - and Andrew Sullivan was kind enough to compile a list (the original article provides corroborating links for each lie).

 

Some readers have asked me to put all the various odd lies of Sarah Palin that the Dish has compiled in one helpful place. So that's what we've done. A couple of months ago, I asked an intern to re-fact-check all of them to make sure new details hadn't emerged that might debunk some. And I also asked to get any subsequent statements by Palin that acknowledged that she had erred in any of these statements that are easily rebuttable by facts in the public record and apologized and corrected. She has not. Since this was a vast project over the last ten months, it's possible there are some nuances or errors that need fixing. Please tell us if you find one and we'll acknowledge and fix. But it has been put through the ringer a few times.

 

After you have read these, ask yourself: what wouldn't Sarah Palin lie about if she felt she had to?

 

Palin lied when she said the dismissal of her public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, had nothing to do with his refusal to fire state trooper Mike Wooten; in fact, the Branchflower Report concluded that she repeatedly abused her power when dealing with both men.

 

Palin lied when she repeatedly claimed to have said, "Thanks, but no thanks" to the Bridge to Nowhere; in fact, she openly campaigned for the federal project when running for governor.

 

Palin lied when she denied that Wasilla's police chief and librarian had been fired; in fact, both were given letters of termination the previous day.

 

Palin lied when she wrote in the NYT that a comprehensive review by Alaska wildlife officials showed that polar bears were not endangered; in fact, email correspondence between those scientists showed the opposite.

 

Palin lied when she claimed in her convention speech that an oil gas pipeline "began" under her guidance; in fact, the pipeline was years from breaking ground, if at all.

 

Palin lied when she told Charlie Gibson that she does not pass judgment on gay people; in fact, she opposes all rights between gay spouses and belongs to a church that promotes conversion therapy.

 

Palin lied when she denied having said that humans do not contribute to climate change; in fact, she had previously proclaimed that human activity was not to blame.

 

Palin lied when she claimed that Alaska produces 20 percent of the country's domestic energy supply; in fact, the actual figures, based on any interpretation of her words, are much, much lower.

 

Palin lied when she told voters she improvised her convention speech when her teleprompter stopped working properly; in fact, all reports showed that the machine had functioned perfectly and that her speech had closely followed the script.

 

Palin lied when she recalled asking her daughters to vote on whether she should accept the VP offer; in fact, her story contradicts details given by her husband, the McCain campaign, and even Palin herself. (She later added another version.)

 

Palin lied when she claimed to have taken a voluntary pay cut as mayor; in fact, as councilmember she had voted against a raise for the mayor, but subsequent raises had taken effect by the time she was mayor.

 

Palin lied when she insisted that Wooten's divorce proceedings had caused his confidential records to become public; in fact, court officials confirmed they released no such records.

 

Palin lied when she suggested to Katie Couric that she was involved in trade missions with Russia; in fact, she has never even met with Russian officials.

 

Palin lied when she told Shimon Peres that the only flag in her office was the Israeli flag; in fact, she has several flags.

 

Palin lied when she claimed to have tried to divest government funds from Sudan; in fact, her administration openly opposed a bill that would have done just that.

 

Palin lied when she repeatedly claimed that troop levels in Iraq were back to pre-surge levels; in fact, even she acknowledged her "misstatements," though she refused to retract or apologize.

 

Palin lied when she insisted that the Branchflower Report "showed there was no unlawful or unethical activity on my part"; in fact, that report prominently stated, "Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act."

 

Palin lied when she claimed to have voiced concerns over Wooten fearing he would harm her family; in fact, she actually decreased her security detail during that period.

 

Palin lied when asked about the $150,000 worth of clothes provided by the RNC; in fact, solid reporting contradicted several parts of her statement.

 

Palin lied when she suggested that she had offered the media proof of her pregnancy with Trig to "correct the record"; in fact, no reports of her medical records were ever published; and the letter from her doctor testifying to her good health only emerged hours before polling ended on election day, even though there was nothing in it that couldn't have been released two months earlier.

 

Palin lied when she said that "reported" allegations of her banning Harry Potter as mayor was easily refutable because it had not even been written yet; in fact, the first book in that series was published in 1998 - two years into her first term - and such rumors were never reported by the media, only circulated as emails.

 

Palin lied when she denied having participated in a clothes audit with campaign laywers; in fact, the Washington Times later confirmed those details.

 

Palin lied when asked about Couric's question regarding her reading habits; in fact, Couric's words were not, "What do you read up there in Alaska?" or anything close to condescension.

 

Palin lied when she mischaracterized the "$1200 check" given to Alaskans as the permanent fund dividend check; in fact, that fund had yielded $2,069 per person, and she claimed otherwise to obscure the fact that Alaskans also received a $1200 rebate check from a windfall profits tax on oil companies - a tax widely criticized by Republicans.

 

Palin lied when she claimed to be unaware of a turkey being slaughtered behind her during a filmed interview; in fact, the cameraman said she had picked the spot herself, while the slaughter was underway.

 

Palin lied when she denied having rejected federal stimulus money; in fact, she continued to accept and reject the funds several times.

 

Palin lied when she claimed that legislative leaders had canceled a meeting with her to hold their own press conference; in fact, they only canceled it after being told she would not participate, and the purpose of the press conference was very different from the meeting's.

 

Palin lied when she announced on the news that she never holds closed-door meetings; in fact, she had just attended a closed-door meeting with the legislature earlier that day.

 

Palin lied when she said that former aide John Bitney's "amicable" departure was for "personal" reasons; in fact, Bitney said he was fired because of his relationship with the wife of Palin's friend, plus a Palin spokesperson later claimed "poor job performance" for his firing - without elaborating.

 

Palin lied when she said she kept her running injury a secret on the campaign trail; in fact, her bandaged hand was clearly visible in photographs and the story was widely talked about.

 

Palin lied when she claimed that Alaska has spent "millions of dollars" on litigation related to her ethics complaints; in fact, that figure is much, much lower, and she had initiated the most expensive inquiry.

 

Palin lied when she denied that the Alaska Independence Party supports secession and denied that her husband had been a member; in fact, even the McCain campaign noted that the party's very existence is based on secession and that Todd was a member for seven years.

 

Source - http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/07/the-odd-lies-of-sarah-palin-a-roundup.html

[Dude]

Once you get past her stupidity and hotness, you'll find that she lies an awful lot.

[Good Old Neon]

The lie regarding Todd's involvement with the secessionist movement is particularly tasty:

 

Andrew Sullivan:

 

You know I said a lot of tough things about Steve Schmidt in the rough and tumble of the campaign, but the more we find out about what actually went on, the more you realize he was actually one of the few sane people with real clout in the McCain implosion. And CBS News has some new evidence of a classic Palin lie - deployed against the McCain campaign. She tried to argue that it was false that her husband had been a member of the Alaska Independence Party and false that the Alaska Independence Party actually supports secession. Here's the email she fired off to Schmidt when the press exposed her husband's extremist politics:

 

"That's not part of their platform and he was only a 'member' bc independent alaskans too often check that 'Alaska Independent' box on voter registrations thinking it just means non partisan. He caught his error when changing our address and checked the right box. I still want it fixed."

 

This is a classic Palin lie - because it has a high school quality to it and is provably untrue in the public record. CBS points out:

 

The box that Alaskans have the option of checking when registering to vote states the full name of the party, "Alaskan Independence Party," not "Alaska Independent," which would make an error by uncommitted voters more plausible.

 

To his eternal credit, Schmidt fired back:

 

"Secession. It is their entire reason for existence. A cursory examination of the website shows that the party exists for the purpose of seceding from the union. That is the stated goal on the front page of the web site. Our records indicate that todd was a member for seven years. If this is incorrect then we need to understand the discrepancy. The statement you are suggesting be released would be innaccurate. The innaccuracy would bring greater media attention to this matter and be a distraction. According to your staff there have been no media inquiries into this and you received no questions about it during your interviews. If you are asked about it you should smile and say many alaskans who love their country join the party because it speeks to a tradition of political independence. Todd loves his country

 

We will not put out a statement and inflame this and create a situation where john has to address this."

 

These are the words of a sane professional grappling with someone who can only be called a pathological whack-job, unable to accept criticism and responding to it with pathetic untruths and diva-flame-outs and personal vendettas. This person could have been a heartbeat away from being president of the United States in a moment of economic crisis and national security peril. Her selection remains the most surreal moment in modern American political history. That she is a serious candidate to be the GOP nominee in 2012 is a sign of something very, very seriously wrong with the contemporary American right.

 

link - http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/07/the-odd-lies-of-sarah-palin-xxxi-todd-and-the-aip.html

[Winston Legthigh]

Is she though? Isn't she just dumb?

Dumb like a fox.

I'd quit being Governor of Alaska too if it meant $millions in speech fees, book deals, and my own TV show...

[Guest Jules]

She doesn't really know she's lying though. Plus, she's kind of hot in a stupid Alaskan kind of way.