Palin's troubles continue

One of the things about Pit Bulls is that they are occasionally so vicious that they have to be put away or put to sleep.

No one's suggesting that Palin should be put to sleep, but sending her away, maybe to another country that she and her friends at the Alaska Independence Party might appreciate more than the United States, is not all that bad an idea.

Meanwhile, her troubles in our snowy northern state continue.

The Anchorage Daily News reported yesterday that "The state Personnel Board investigation of Gov. Sarah Palin's firing of Walt Monegan has broadened to include other ethics complaints against the governor and examination of actions by other state employees..."

One of the complaints against Palin derives from Andree McLeod, a Republican activist, who claims that "state hiring practices were circumvented for a Palin supporter. ... The other, by the Public Safety Employees Association, alleges that trooper Mike Wooten's personnel file was illegally breached by state officials."

The PSEA plans to carry that a bit further by amending its complaint to also include charges of "harassment" of trooper Wooten by the Palin administration.


The state Personnel Board, comprised of three members appointed by the governor, hired Tim Petumenos as independent counsel who will serve as investigator. Normally, these charges would be investigated by the state's attorney general, but, in this case that would involve a conflict of interest.

Unfortunately, as the ADN points out, the state has a very convoluted system for investigating ethics complaints so there is no way to determine how long this investigation will take or if it will be made public when it is concluded.

One thing we know for sure, though. Even if Palin is accused of ethics violations, she will claim to be exonerated. It's also possible that the McCain camp will issue its own report in a day or two pronouncing her not guilty.