Palin resigning as Alaska governor

[MomCat]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090703/...alin_resigning

This is a good sign she'll be running for office in 2012!

WASILLA, Alaska – Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said Friday she is resigning from office at the end of the month, raising speculation that she would focus on a run for the White House in the 2012 race.

The former Republican vice presidential candidate made the surprise announcement from her home in suburban Wasilla on Friday morning. She said she would step down July 26 but didn't announce her plans.

"Once I decided not to run for re-election, I also felt that to embrace the conventional Lame Duck status in this particular climate would just be another dose of politics as usual, something I campaigned against and will always oppose," Palin said in a statement released by her office.

"It is my duty to always protect our great state. With that in mind, my family and I determined that it is best to make a difference this summer, and I am willing to change things, so that this administration, with its positive agenda, its accomplishments, and its successful road to an incredible future, can continue without interruption and with great administrative and legislative success," she said.

Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell will be inaugurated at the governor's picnic in Fairbanks at the end of the month, Palin spokesman Dave Murrow said.

Palin was first elected in 2006 on a populist platform. But her popularity has waned as she waged in partisan politics following her return from the presidential campaign. Her term would have ended in 2010.

[MomCat]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090703/...litics_palin_8

By Yereth Rosen Yereth Rosen –

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) – Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, Republican John McCain's vice presidential running mate in 2008, said on Friday she will resign this month and will not run for re-election as governor.

Palin took no questions after a brief news conference in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, with Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell and much of her state cabinet at her side. She gave no indication of her future plans.

"I'm not seeking re-election" in 2010, Palin said, adding she would transfer authority to Parnell on July 26.

Palin, McCain's surprise pick in the 2008 presidential race, rallied the party's conservative base. There has been speculation she would seek the Republican Party's presidential nomination in 2012.

"We are not retreating, we are advancing in a different direction," Palin said. "We know we can effect positive change outside government at this moment in time."

Palin, 45, said her decision came after much "prayer and consideration." She did not want to waste time on "political blood sport" and cited public criticism of her actions and her family since the 2008 campaign.

"You are naive if you don't see a full-court press right now on the national level picking apart a good point guard," Palin said, using a basketball analogy.

Palin complained during the unsuccessful 2008 campaign about having her comments "filtered" by the mainstream media.

Palin was cleared in November of wrongdoing in an abuse-of-power investigation into the firing of the state's public safety commissioner.

Last month, Palin signed a book deal to tell her own story, for an undisclosed sum, with News Corp's HarperCollins.

"I look forward to helping others -- to fight for our state and our country, and campaign for those who believe in smaller government, free enterprise, strong national security, support for our troops, and energy independence," she said.

(Additional reporting by Michelle Nichols, Andrea Shalal-Esa, Chris Wilson, Writing by Doina Chiacu, editing by Jackie Frank)

[The Longhorn]

It doesn't make sense that she's preparing for a presidential run, by resigning her job in mid-term. If I'm right, it's going to push Jindal into the spotlight.

Very odd and bizzare. Three possibilities - all bad

1) She or family has a serious health issue that precludes her being governor.

2) A major scandal is about to break.

3) She wants to focus on 2012.

If #3 is the reason, then IMO she is an idiot. Her main chance is to gain executive experience and show something as governor. The term ended in 18 months anyway and that would leave her with plenty of time to run for 2012. In fact #3 is so stupid, I suspect it is #1 or #2. If she was doing it for #3 then why not say so. So far no comment. No comment is really not much of an acceptable answer when resigning very unexpectedly.

[janlyn]

I believe she did it for her family because they have been hurt by all the personal attacks against them. I don't have to list them because I think we can hardly go a week without seeing Sarah Palin and her family under some kind of public scrutiny and attack. So, perhaps Sarah is thinking that she and her children will no longer be fodder for left wing attacks and late night comedians, if she removes herself from public office, and thereby doing her best to protect the family she loves.

I also think she did it for Alaska because Alaska has had to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars every time an ethics charge has been brought against her. Even though she has always been cleared of charges, the money is gone. Wasted. The other thing is that she has had to spend more time answering the charges against her than working for the state she was elected to govern. The way I see it, she is now removing herself as a "distraction" from the state she loves.

There may be a more pressing reason that she made her decision, I don't know. I was just taking a stab at the most obvious ones after hearing her speech.

What her future holds, God only knows, and I wish Sarah Palin and her family the best.

[CarlaL48]

The jury is still out here. I think we need to wait for the smoke to the clear the dust to settle before we can know anything about the Governor's future intent.

I, too, wish the Palin family only the best and will continue to pray for their protection.

Carla

[MomCat]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090705/...alin_resigning

By MARK THIESSEN, Associated Press Writer Mark Thiessen, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 52 mins ago

JUNEAU, Alaska – Outgoing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on Saturday laid the groundwork to take on a larger, national role after leaving state government, citing a "higher calling" with the aim of uniting the country along conservative lines.

A day after surprising even her closest friends by announcing she would step down as Alaska governor more than a year before her term was up, the controversial hockey mom was still keeping details of her future plans under wrap. But in a statement posted on Palin's Facebook account, she suggested that she had bigger plans and a national agenda she planned to push after she resigns at the end of the month.

"I am now looking ahead and how we can advance this country together with our values of less government intervention, greater energy independence, stronger national security, and much-needed fiscal restraint," she said.

Palin also cast herself as a victim and blasted the media, calling the response to her announcement "predictable" and out of touch.

"How sad that Washington and the media will never understand; it's about country," the statement said. "And though it's honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling and without finishing a term, of course we know by now, for some reason a different standard applies for the decisions I make."

Palin's personal spokeswoman, Meghan Stapleton, confirmed to The Associated Press that the Facebook posting was written by the governor.

The abruptness of her announcement and the mystery surrounding her plans has fed widespread speculation. But Palin attorney Thomas Van Flein on Saturday warned legal action may be taken against bloggers and publications that reprint what he calls fraudulent claims.

"To the extent several websites, most notably liberal Alaska blogger Shannyn Moore, are now claiming as 'fact' that Governor Palin resigned because she is 'under federal investigation' for embezzlement or other criminal wrongdoing, we will be exploring legal options this week to address such defamation," Van Flein said in a statement. "This is to provide notice to Ms. Moore, and those who re-publish the defamation, such as Huffington Post, MSNBC, the New York Times and The Washington Post, that the Palins will not allow them to propagate defamatory material without answering to this in a court of law."

Palin has kept a low profile since her abrupt announcement Friday at a hastily called news conference at her home in suburban Wasilla, outside Anchorage. All of her public communication since then has been on the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter, or through statements released by her office.

At the same time, Palin informed her spokesman David Murrow early Saturday that someone using the name "exgovsarahpalin" on Twitter was spreading a false rumor that there was to be a party at her suburban home in Wasilla, outside Anchorage. Palin was afraid her home would be mobbed, and security was dispatched, Murrow said.

With only a few weeks before she steps down on July 26, and Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell takes her place, the governor spent the Fourth of July weekend in the state capital, Juneau, but was only spotted briefly on the sidelines of the city's parade.

She had been invited to ride in a convertible, as she did last year, but never told organizers whether she would attend.

Juneau parade director Jean Sztuk said officials drew up banners in case Palin showed and was willing to take part.

As the last of the parade's clowns and marching bands headed past her, Sztuk gave up on Palin. "What governor wants to be at the end of the parade?" she asked.

Her low-profile and vague Internet messages left mounting questions about her plans for the future shrouded in mystery. Will she lay the groundwork for a 2012 presidential bid? Will she find a high-profile place in the private sector, maybe on the speech circuit? Will she drop out of the limelight and focus on her five children?

Her constituents, for one, wanted to know, especially in Juneau, where she has struggled to win over residents.

"I think she owes it to Alaskans to tell us why," said state Sen. Dennis Egan, D-Juneau, the son of Alaska's first governor, Bill Egan.

Egan, hosting a 50th anniversary statehood ceremony, said he was disappointed Palin decided not to finish out her term, which was scheduled to end in 2010.

"It's sad she abandoned us at this critical time," said Egan, who was appointed by Palin to an open seat on the last day of the legislative session in April, after a protracted battle with Senate Democrats.

Palin's departure can't come soon enough for Laurel Carlton, a waitress at the Capital Cafe in the Baranof Hotel, where the city's political movers and shakers meet every morning before walking a few blocks to the Capitol.

"I think she has a game plan that's not Alaska, and hasn't been for awhile," Carlton said.

She noted Palin has a book deal, and seems headed for the national stage.

"If you're really not going to stay and do your job every day, you should leave anyway, and so the sooner the better so somebody can step in and actually do the job," Carlton said.

And as far as Carlton is concerned, Palin doesn't need to explain why she's leaving.

"We don't care. We just want her gone," she said.

Palin, whose popularity in Alaska has waned amid ongoing ethics investigations, gave many reasons for stepping down: She didn't want to be a lame-duck governor; she was tired of the tasteless jokes aimed at her five children, including her son Trig, who has Down syndrome; she felt she could do more in another, still-to-be-defined role.

Sen. John McCain didn't rule out a return to politics for his former running mate, saying Saturday he believes "she will continue to play an important leadership role in the Republican Party and our nation." He gave no other details.

Even Parnell, who plans to run for re-election after finishing out Palin's term, said he was shocked at first when he learned of his boss' decision.

"But then as she began to articulate her reasons, I began to understand better," he said. "And nobody — unless they've been in her position and understood what she has gone through and dealt with and who she is as a person — really understands."

___

Associated Press Writer Rachel D'Oro in Anchorage contributed to this report.

[MomCat]

http://www.sarahpac.com/news/news48.aspx



Sarah Palin not under FBI investigation, agency spokesman says
The former GOP vice presidential candidate's surprise resignation as Alaska governor had set off speculation, including rumors of a pending federal corruption probe or charges.

By Josh Meyer
The Los Angeles Times
July 5, 2009

Reporting from Washington -- A day after Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin resigned, a federal official in her home state dismissed one potential explanation for her sudden and unexpected resignation: a rumored FBI investigation into the former Wasilla mayor on public corruption charges.

Despite rumors of a looming controversy after the Republican governor's surprise announcement Friday that she would leave office this month, some of them published in the blogosphere, the FBI's Alaska spokesman said the bureau had no investigation into Palin for her activities as governor, as mayor or in any other capacity.

"There is absolutely no truth to those rumors that we're investigating her or getting ready to indict her," Special Agent Eric Gonzalez said in a phone interview Saturday. "It's just not true." He added that there was "no wiggle room" in his comments for any kind of inquiry.

The FBI has been active in mounting corruption investigations in Alaska, some to see whether local, state and federal lawmakers illegally received favors, money or free construction work from businesses or people seeking favors.

The most high-profile case was against former Republican Sen. Ted Stevens, whose conviction last year on charges of lying on Senate ethics forms stemmed from charges that a politically connected developer had done work on his house illegally.

The Obama administration Justice Department threw out the charges in April, saying prosecutors had failed to turn over potentially helpful information to Stevens' defense team. Some bloggers have speculated that such an FBI investigation was underway on Palin, who still had 18 months left in her term.

Also Saturday, the former GOP vice presidential nominee posted a statement on her Facebook page, not offering specifics but indicating that she had broad goals after she leaves the governor's office.

She did not say whether she planned to run for president in 2012, but criticized media coverage of her announcement:

"How sad that Washington and the media will never understand; it's about country. And though it's honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling and without finishing a term, of course we know by now, for some reason a different standard applies for the decisions I make."


http://www.sarahpac.com/news/

[Ringtail]

I agree with Longhorn. If she is going to run for 2012 why not finish Government term?

[Ringtail]

Originally Posted by GABBYtheDOG

Very odd and bizzare. Three possibilities - all bad

1) She or family has a serious health issue that precludes her being governor.

2) A major scandal is about to break.

3) She wants to focus on 2012.

If #3 is the reason, then IMO she is an idiot. Her main chance is to gain executive experience and show something as governor. The term ended in 18 months anyway and that would leave her with plenty of time to run for 2012. In fact #3 is so stupid, I suspect it is #1 or #2. If she was doing it for #3 then why not say so. So far no comment. No comment is really not much of an acceptable answer when resigning very unexpectedly.

Or perhaps the reasons are what she says they are. That is: all these ethic charges are costing Alaskan taxpayers and her family is being dragged through the mud. How many state governor or politician's children been attacked like the Palin kids?