10 Oct 08 Palin Abused Power

Sarah Palin and her husband Todd abused the authority of the Alaska Governor’s office by attempting to have an Alaska State Trooper fired for personal reasons. This was the primary finding of the Alaska Legislative Council, a group which consists of 10 Republicans and 4 Democrats. Any suggestion that this report was the result of a partisan political process or politically motivated is a ridiculous assertion. I’ll say it again: 10 Republicans and 4 Democrats are on the committee that reported today that Sarah Palin mis-used the power of the Alaska Governor’s office.

Anchorage Daily News link:
http://www.adn.com/palin/story/552393.html

A legislative investigation has concluded that Gov. Sarah Palin abused her power in pushing for the firing of an Alaska state trooper who was once married to her sister.

The report by investigator Steve Branchflower was made public late this afternoon by a 12-0 vote of the Legislative Council, which authorized the investigation.

Branchflower Report Findings link:
http://community.adn.com/adn/node/132565

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.

Read the full Branchflower Report (pdf)
http://media.adn.com/smedia/2008/10/10/16/Branchflowerreport.source.prod_affiliate.7.pdf

Tags: ethics, Palin, Troopergate