Alaskan court advances Palin probe

October 3, 7:05 PMPolitical Issues ExaminerJudah Freed

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Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin
(Souce: Kenny Holston, WikimediaCommons)

Moments before Alaska Governor Sarah Palin walked onto the stage at Washington University in St. Louis for the 90-,minutes live broadcast of the VP debate with Democrat Joe Biden,  Alaskan judge Peter Michalski dismissed the lawsuit filed by five Republican state legislators to block a state investigation into Gov. Palin's alleged abuse of power in the "Troopergate" scandal.

Palin fired Alaska Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan this summer allegedly because  he refused pressure from Palin and her aides to terminate the employment of a state trooper locked in a  divorce battle with Palin's sister. Palin claims she fired Monegan because of a budget dispute.

As a result of this ruling, according to Democratic state Senator Hollis French, the probe manager, independent investigator Steven Branchflower is cleared to report his probe findings by Oct. 10.

If the investigation report shows that Palin abused her authority as governor for a personal vendetta, beyond causing legal and political problems for the governor in Alaska, such findings may further reduce her support among Republicans, some of whom already have called for Palin to step off the ticket.

A negative report also could increase doubts about John McCain's judgment among millions of undecided independent voters. Experts across the political spectrum have criticized McCain for selecting nationally inexperienced Palin as his running mate.

McCain also has been criticized for selecting a running mate who was being investigated for abuse of power, perhaps leading to her impeachment as the governor of Alaska, a fact which surely must have surfaced during even basic vetting of Palin's background. Is this another example of McCain's poor judgement?

Judge Michalski simultaneously dismissed a lawsuit filed by Palin aides seeking to quash subpoenas compelling their testimony in the investigation. Palin's husband, Todd, previously defied his subpoena to testify, prompting criticism of Palin as a supporter of "law and Order" only when it suits her.

Despite the ruling, the Branchflower report likely will not include any testimony from the governor's top aides and Palin's husband. This could change, however, if testimony is obtained early next week.

The so-called "Troopergate" probe was authorized by the Alaska Legislative Council backed by 10 Republicans and four Democrats. After initially promising to cooperate with the investigation, Palin reversed her position after she was named as John McCain's running mate on August 29.

Palin and her staff have since said the stale legislature should not be conducting the politically charged investigation, insisting that the probe instead should be directed by the Alaska State Personnel Board. Probe backers rejected that idea because Palin is an elected official, not a regular state employee, and because Gov. Palin can fire any member of the Personnel Board who displeases her.

Reports by the Washington Post, New York Times, and others have confirmed that top GOP advisors have sought ways to stonewall or completely halt the investigation into Palin's alleged misconduct.

A lengthy report in the New York Times offered extensive evidence that Palin has a long history of vindictiveness against local and state political rivals.

Saturday Morning Note: The same group of Alaskan Republicans who filed the lawsuit to stop the Palin probe late yesterday filed an appeal of Michalski's ruling that let's the probe go forward. The Alaskan Supreme Court will hear the appeal this coming week. If the probe opponents lose there, they will apeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The GOP's intent is to prevent the release of the report before the election, by any means necessary, and they may succeed in the tactic. If the appeals do delay release of the report, will some lowly person within the office of the independent investigator leak the draft report to the press? I advocate all due respect for the law, and I also know that America has a right to know the truth.

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