Palin's abuse of power, well . . .

Okay, I'm not sure what to think about the legislative report out of Alaska concerning allegations that Sarah Palin abused her power to have an ex-brother-in-law fired from the Alaska State Trooper's force. I've posted a couple times about how most efforts to impugn Palin have actually been flattering to her. (here, here)

But I just was reading through the official post-investigation report, and a couple of things come to mind.

First, to be clear, I have to admit that this report is not good news for Palin. Yet, as I've said elsewhere, "reformers" inherently cross a lot of people in the act of "reforming," so allegations of sharp elbows etc. are likely to abound in the wake of said reformer.

That being said, the next thing I have to note is that Todd and Sarah Palin remind me of A LOT of persons I've encountered in the practice of law (as a prosecutor and in private practice) who are desperate for "justice" (as they perceive it), and I can't help but think how normal/reasonable the Palins' actions/reactions are under these circumstances. Take for instance this odd tidbit from the report (pp. 38-39).

Governor Palin and Todd Palin had repeatedly (over several years) communicated to Walt Monegan (Commissioner of the Dept. of Public Safety) and his predecessor, that they believed their ex-brother-in-law (Michael Wooten) had not only acted illegally, etc. but he was a poor representative of Alaska State Troopers. With that history in mind, nibble on this incident detailed in the report:

Shortly before the annual celebration of Police Memorial Day on May 15, 2008, Commissioner Monegan had dropped off a color photograph at Governor Palin's Anchorage office with a request that she sign and present it at the ceremony. The photograph was of an Alaska State Trooper who was dressed in a formal uniform, saluting. He was standing in front of the police memorial located in front of the crime lab at AST headquarters in Anchorage, partially obscured by a flagpole. The picture to be signed by the Governor was to be used as a poster to be displayed in various Trooper Detachments around the state.

Shortly after he returned to his office from dropping off the photograph, he received a call from Kris Perry, Governor Palin's Director of her Anchorage office who asked [according to Walt Monegan's testimony] "Why did you send a poster over here that has a picture of Mike Wooten on it?"[] Until that moment, Commissioner Monegan never realized it was indeed a photograph of Trooper Wooten. Governor Palin cancelled her appearance and sent Lieutenant Governor Parnell in her place.

I don't care who you are, that's funny.

Oh, and one other thing . . . I trust Libs will remember First Lady Hillary Clinton when tempted to deride the Palins in relation to Todd Palin's level of involvement in the Palin adminstration.