John Paulus » Sarah Palin

FBI arrest two for harassing Sarah Palin, family

John Paulus — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 21:46:51 +0000

A father and son were arrested by the FBI in Allentown this morning on charges of making harassing phone calls to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s family, lawyers and the lawyers’ employees.

Craig Christy and his son Shawn, of McAdoo, Schuylkill County, were arrested without incident just after 11 a.m., according to an FBI statement.

Both men were to have initial appearances in federal magistrate court in Allentown later this afternoon.

It was unclear whether Palin herself received any calls from the Christys.

The announcement said indictments for the Christys were returned by a federal grand jury in Alaska on Wednesday.

The indictment alleges that between Aug. 1 and 9 of this year both men repeatedly placed phone calls with an intent to harass.

Palin, the 2008 Republican vice-presidential nominee, her father, and her friend, Kristan Cole, requested restraining orders against Shawn Christy last year, saying he threatened them, sent a receipt for a gun purchase, and said he was buying a one-way ticket to Alaska.

Temporary restraining orders were issued against the Christys in April.

Shawn Christy has said a few dozen e-mails he sent to Palin’s office were “stupid pranks” to get attention. His life is difficult because he suffers from complications from Lyme disease, he said.

He also acknowledged sending threatening messages in 2009 to President Obama and to Republican Sen. John McCain, who chose Palin as his running mate in the 2008 presidential race.

Courtesy: Philly.com

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Sarah Palin Documentary, The Undefeated, to open in more theaters

John Paulus — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 15:13:40 +0000

The complete details aren’t yet out yet, but Politico reports that “The Undefeated,” the recently-released documentary about former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, will be hitting theaters in more cities soon. According to ARC Entertainment, the film’s distributor, the wider release is scheduled to occur later this month.

While various critics had an unfavorable view of the film, audiences in some target markets responded positively. According to the distributor, in Phoenix, Atlanta, Denver and Indianapolis the film needed to be moved to a larger screen so that crowds could be accommodated. Critics, though have questioned whether or not “The Undefeated” was a flop — or a success.

For example, CNN’s Richard Corliss isn’t a fan:

The movie may tempt even the most ardent conservatives to emulate their idol’s tenure as governor and walk out halfway through.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Todd McCarthy agrees:

“A partisan piece stitched together using positive sound bites about Sarah Palin that will get media attention simply for its subject, though it isn’t a must-see film by any means.”

While reviewers will have their opinions, the real question is: Has the film been successful, financially speaking?

As Politico notes, most documentaries are only released in New York or Los Angeles and in specialized art theaters. “The Undefeated” takes a more non-traditional path, as it has been released on screens in AMC Theaters (a well-known national change). Phil Contrino, editor of Boxoffice.com says, “In the most basic sense, anytime a documentary is selling out screens in a movie theater, it’s already successful.”

Certainly, Contrino’s point is a valid one. So, what about the finances? According to Politico:

The film opened in 10 mid-sized cities Friday and grossed about $70,000 for the weekend for a per-screen average of about $5,000, the distributor reported. Based on average U.S. ticket prices, that works out to a very rough estimate of less than 9,000 people paying to see “The Undefeated” in its first weekend.

Politico does draw a distinction between the Palin film and other documentaries like it:

More on point might be a new documentary about the hip-hop act A Tribe Called Quest, which averaged $6,500 per screen in 22 locations, or the new documentary by Errol Morris, “Tabloid,” which opened in 14 locations and averaged $7,200 per screen.

Another conservative documentary, Ben Stein’s “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed,” opened in 2008 at more than 1,000 locations and grossed $2.9 million, a per-screen average of $2,800.

“The Undefeated,” while it has so far not grossed as much as the aforementioned films, was rushed to theaters and, according to ARC CEO Trevor Drinkwater, the film was mainly promoted over social media. Substantial monies weren’t poured into traditional marketing. In a news release, he says:

“We expect word-of-mouth to keep ticket sales strong and we will definitely expand the film to a wider national audience. With merely three weeks of preparation and a virtually non-existent traditional advertising spend, the film did exceptionally well.”

The Hollywood Reporter sheds some light on some of the impending expansion plans:

This Friday, the film will open in additional AMC Theatres in Tucson, Ariz., West Palm Beach, Fla., Milwaukee, Wis., Charlotte, N.C., and Ontario, Calif. The film will also expand into additional theaters in Atlanta and Phoenix while continuing to play in Dallas and Houston, Denver, Orlando, Fla., and Orange, Calif.

The film will likely reach additional cities and localities in which audiences lean more conservative (after all, doesn’t this make sense?). You never know — the film may just find its way to your town.

Courtesy: The Blaze

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Sarah Palin’s, The Undefeated, grosses $65k-$75k in opening weekend

John Paulus — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 02:06:49 +0000

Sarah Palin documentary “The Undefeated” got off to a soft start in a lightly promoted 10-theater box-office debut this weekend, grossing somewhere between $65,000-$75,000, according to estimates confirmed by distributor ARC Entertainment.

Still, ARC Entertainment isn’t admitting defeat, declaring the film’s limited opening “strong” while pointing to several sold-out performances.

“We are extremely pleased with the audience reaction, which has been over-the-top enthusiastic and very passionate, including standing ovations at most screenings,” said ARC CEO Trevor Drinkwater. “We expect word-of-mouth to keep ticket sales strong and we will definitely expand the film to a wider national audience. With merely three weeks of preparation and a virtually non-existent traditional advertising spend, the film did exceptionally well.”

Written and directed by conservative filmmaker Stephen Bannon, and featuring commentary from the right-wing elite, the film details Palin’s rise from simple hockey mom to defeated vice presidential candidate and mid-term gubernatorial dropout. The narrative tells the story in the happy way the “mainstream media” purportedly refuses to.

“The demographic is clearly the Heartland,” Drinkwater told TheWrap, referring to a list of opening locations that includes Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Denver, Phoenix, Orlando, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Oklahoma City and Orange, California.

Courtesy: Reuters

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Sarah Palin’s ‘The Undefeated’ opens in select theaters today

John Paulus — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 15:29:55 +0000

“The Undefeated,” a flattering documentary about Sarah Palin’s rise in American politics, opened in a handful of U.S. movie theaters Friday, drawing die-hard fans of the Tea Party favorite from far away.

Distributors put the film in just 10 AMC theaters nationwide, mostly in reliably conservative markets like Dallas, Texas and Orange County in southern California.

But if it does well this weekend, it will expand to new and not-so-conservative markets.

A successful roll-out would be a welcome vehicle to whip up enthusiasm for the former Alaska governor as she prepares to tell Americans in the next few months if she will seek the Republican nomination for the 2012 presidential race.

Fundraising tallies for Palin suggest she needs the help. Her primary fundraising committee brought in a paltry $1.6 million in the first half of 2011, a fraction of the $18.25 million Republican front-runner Mitt Romney’s presidential committee collected in the second quarter alone.

“Run, Sarah, run!” shouted Californian Sherman Roodzant, 64, as the final credits rolled on the 1:10 p.m. showing in a half-filled theater in Orange. Roodzant drove 150 miles to see it and said it was worth every mile.

“It was awesome,” Roodzant said. “It showed her life story and showed what a great American she is and what a great potential leader she is. It made me feel stronger toward her.”

That kind of fervor is exactly what distributors are banking on. They saw it at the premiere last month in a small town in conservative-leaning Iowa.

“I couldn’t believe the crowd reaction” in Iowa, said Trevor Drinkwater, CEO of ARC Entertainment, which is handling the film’s distribution. “It is a biased crowd, but still.”

‘GIVES HER GRAVITAS’

Documentaries, however, are notoriously difficult to market and there is particularly stiff competition this weekend.

The final “Harry Potter” installment is opening in a staggering 4,375 U.S. and Canadian theaters and should break box office records.

Filmmaker Stephen Bannon based the documentary on Palin’s memoir “Going Rogue” and uses her readings from that book to narrate a good part of the film. It takes moviegoers from her political infancy as mayor of the Alaskan town of Wasilla to her governorship in Alaska, where she took on Big Oil.

Then one day, Palin gets a call from Republican presidential candidate John McCain asking her to be his running mate in 2008.

The film takes aim at the wave of criticism Palin faced once the “outsider” arrived on the national political stage. To illustrate the attacks, Bannon shows a pride of lions feasting on a zebra.

Toward the end of the film, which features Palin making speeches to the emerging Tea Party movement, the audience in Orange began to clap.

Business owner Robert Benson drove 90 minutes to see what he called “a terrific film” that “gives her some gravitas.”

“I didn’t realize how accomplished she was as governor of Alaska,” said Benson, who said he would like to see Palin run for the presidency.

But Benson acknowledged it was “bizarre” to see a film like this in a commercial movie theater.

“I am amazed it is in 10 theaters,” said Benson. “I am amazed that AMC did it. I think, to their credit, it is probably going to work out well for them.”

Gay Meador, 62, said she was “shocked and ashamed” that the Orange AMC theater was the only place where “The Undefeated” was showing in her area, let alone California.

She will recommend it to friends, and not only ones who are Palin supporters.

“There is a midnight showing. … You can sneak out in the middle of the night so the neighbors don’t know where you went,” said Meador.

Courtesy Thomson/Reuters

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861 days and $787 billion in, Obama pleads for more time on jobs

John Paulus — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 02:50:52 +0000

Because who doesn’t want to take his 747 to Iowa at this time of year?

President Obama popped up in Iowa today.

And you’ll never guess what he did.

He pleaded for yet more time to create new jobs and keep his.

Eight hundred and sixty-one days after popping up in Denver, of all places, to sign the Democratic Congress’ $787-billion stimulus bill that was going to work almost immediately and absolutely keep unemployment below 8%, Obama offered another jobs speech today (full text below) with unemployment at 9.1%.

He admitted that things are not good for millions of Americans and said it was going to take even more time to do what his vice president promised would be happening 14 months ago.

How could the awful economic hole from you-know-who keep getting deeper 889 days after the guy fled back to Texas?

Obama stated:

For a lot of Americans, those numbers don’t matter much if they’re still out of work, or if they have a job that doesn’t pay enough to make the mortgage or pay the bills. So we’ve got more work to do. And that work is going to take some time. The problems that we developed didn’t happen overnight. We’re not going to solve them overnight either. But we will solve them.

Perhaps the plea for more time has something to do with the 497 (and dwindling) days left before Americans pass their final judgment on the Obama-Biden administration’s stewardship of everything, including the new war in Libya.

Will it be Democrat Jimmy Carter redux? Or will it be the first time in nearly two centuries that Americans reelect three presidents in a row?

Usually when political opponents visit somewhere, the opposing party’s state….

…chair does a telephone conference call with media to get some free retorts out there. But so many Republicans are wandering the rows of corn in Iowa these days that the president came himself this time. Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum and Tim Pawlenty, who observed, “Speeches like the one President Obama gave today will not create a single job.”

Now, he wants to talk about jobs. That’s the subject polls showed Americans wanted him to do something about way back on Day One, back when his approval was 69%, not the low to mid-forties of now. But back then, after stimulus Obama wanted to talk healthcare. And then financial reforms. So, he did for months and dozens of town halls. And he got both bills. And then, as one result, lots of Democrats got unelected from Congress last fall.

A little-noticed deadline comes Thursday night. That’s the end of the first fundraising quarter Obama and others will be reporting to the Federal Election Commission. Obama’s got his wife out doing a trio of fundraisers this week. And he’s certainly been diligent at it, even hitting up those Wall Street bankers he used to call fat cats for a Manhattan soiree last week that cost $35,800 per plate.

For this season, no hanging chad allowed. Dollars are pre-election votes. If an incumbent president hasn’t racked up a few hundred million of them since he announced in the early hours of April, people will have more numbers to talk about than his weakening poll stats.

Courtesy LA Times

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Michele Bachmann announces; she’s in

John Paulus — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 16:33:35 +0000

Forget political pedigree, executive experience or ties to deep-pocketed donors.

No Republican presidential candidate is better positioned to capitalize on the recent tide of conservative anger toward President Barack Obama than Michele Bachmann.

Her charisma and crossover appeal to both social and fiscal conservatives have the three-term Minnesota congresswoman rising in the polls and primed to make a serious impact on the GOP nomination fight.

Bachmann, unlike several of her rivals making appeals to the Tea Party movement, has the resources and fundraising potential to steer her campaign beyond the crucial early states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Though firmly on the insurgent side of the Republican field, she is also taking steps to position herself as a credible alternative to the crop of establishment-friendly White House contenders with deep pockets and long political resumes.

She has hired Sarah Palin’s debate coach. She nabbed Haley Barbour’s pollster.

And Bachmann’s campaign organization will be based not in Minnesota, but in Washington, where the coming battle on Capitol Hill over raising the debt ceiling will place her squarely in the middle of the national political debate this summer.

Most her rivals, now out of office, will be watching from the sidelines.

The question of whether Bachmann can ride these advantages all the way to the Republican nomination will begin to be answered on Monday in Iowa, where she formally launches her presidential bid in Waterloo.

That Bachmann was born in Waterloo and lived there until age 12 is fortuitous. Iowa, political observers say, is now key to Bachmann’s chances of becoming president.

“The bad news for Bachmann is that she has to win Iowa,” said Republican strategist Curt Anderson, who is not aligned with any 2012 campaign. “Without it her campaign is over. The good news for Bachmann is that she can win Iowa.”

That much is true. A Des Moines Register poll released over the weekend confirmed what many Iowa Republicans have been proclaiming for months: That barring a late entry into the race by a high-profile conservative like Palin or Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Bachmann might be the Iowa frontrunner.

Bachmann captured the support of 22% of likely caucus-goers in the survey, putting her just one percentage point behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the GOP frontrunner who does not plan to compete as seriously in Iowa as he did during the 2008 race.

No other candidate came close to that level of support, including Texas Rep. Ron Paul, former Sen. Rick Santorum, businessman Herman Cain or former House Speaker Newt Gingrich — all candidates who, like Bachmann, are angling for support among Tea Party activists and social conservatives.

Strikingly, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who has campaigned in Iowa for more than a year but has struggled to gain traction, took just 6%.

With her showing in the Register poll and an eye-opening performance in the New Hampshire Republican presidential debate earlier this month, the expectations for Bachmann in Iowa are climbing.

With little more than seven months until the caucuses, her staff must work to keep them in check.

“The expectations are rising for her,” said Ed Brookover, one of Bachmann’s closest advisers. “She has to meet or beat expectations, whatever those are next February.”

While Bachmann’s team smartly refuses to call Iowa a “must-win,” they acknowledge that a strong showing in the caucuses is crucial for her campaign.

“The primary process is sort of like the NCAA tournament,” Brookover said. “You have to survive and advance. That’s what you have to do in these early states in order to do well. That’s a long way of saying Iowa is pretty important for her.”

Bachmann has yet to do the kind of face-to-face campaigning that Iowans demand, though that will quickly change as the campaign gets underway.

Meanwhile, her staff has been busy laying the groundwork for a competitive race.

Her congressional chief of staff, Andy Parrish, re-located to Des Moines in early June. Iowa state Sen. Kent Sorenson, a popular figure among Iowa Tea Party activists, will chair her campaign.

Wes Enos, the political director behind Mike Huckabee’s surprising second place finish in the 2007 Ames Straw Poll, is taking on a similar role for Bachmann ahead of this year’s poll, scheduled for August 13.

Out of the view of the media, there is also behind-the-scenes work underway to win over the kind of hard-to-reach grassroots activists who often play an outsized role in the caucuses.

Bachmann, for instance, has lined up the backing of influential home-school activist Barb Heki, a board member of the Network of Iowa Christian Home Educators who assisted Huckabee’s winning caucus effort in 2008 and helped the conservative effort to oust three judges from the Iowa Supreme Court last year.

In private meetings in recent months, Bachmann has won over influential faith leaders across the state, including Brad Cranston, the pastor of Heritage Baptist Church in Burlington.

Cranston runs a group called “Iowa Baptists for Biblical Values,” a loose network of pastors from around the state.

He recalled meeting with Santorum, Paul and Pawlenty early in the presidential process, but said that Bachmann was the only Republican who spoke convincingly about “the moral issues” that faith-minded voters in Iowa hold dear.

“Michele is what she claims to be,” said Cranston, who manages an e-mail database of politically active churchgoers. “She will bring the conservative and Christian perspectives back to where they need to be. She will find a lot of support among religious conservatives in the state as things move forward. I think she has it already.”

The challenge for Bachmann’s staff if they hope to win more than just Iowa is to broaden her appeal beyond just the conservative activists who seem to have gravitated to her early.

Bachmann must defend a thin record during three terms in the Washington, where she is known more for her frequent cable news appearances than for any significant legislative achievement aside from creating the House Tea Party Caucus.

And, as aides to her Republican rivals like to point out, her tendency toward gaffes and conspiratorial claims about the president would be problematic, if not fatal, in a general election.

Bachmann seems to be aware of this fact, which is why she has assembled a team of veteran political operatives to manage her campaign.

She hired Ed Rollins, who directed Ronald Reagan’s landslide re-election bid in 1984 and managed Huckabee’s 2008 effort, to run her operation.

Along with loyal advisers like Brookover and fundraising consultant Guy Short, Bachmann has brought on top flight Republican talent like pollster Ed Goeas, who was working with Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour before he declined to seek the nomination, and former George W. Bush and McCain message maven Brett O’Donnell, who coached Palin before her high-stakes vice presidential debate in 2008.

Also aiding Bachmann: veteran consultant Bob Heckman, who has deep ties to the conservative movement, former McCain campaign web guru Becki Donatelli, and Tom McGill, a fundraiser for President George W. Bush’s 2004 campaign and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s 2008 bid.

When asked “Why Michele Bachmann?,” a common theme emerges in discussions with her advisers, some of whom might have been comfortable working for a more traditional candidate like Pawlenty or Romney.

Their argument, as simple as it sounds, is that Bachmann is the only candidate in the field who truly understands the issues and impulses of the Republican voter at a very unconventional moment in American politics.

“After the first debate performance it was obvious that people responded to her in such an overwhelming way,” said Rex Elsass, her Ohio-based media consultant. “There was a sense that finally someone was speaking to the heart and the core of the party.”

Courtesy CNN

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Democrat Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, “We own the economy”

John Paulus — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 03:01:45 +0000

Democrats are ready to take responsibility for the state of the economy and they deserve credit for putting it on the right track, the party’s chairwoman, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, said on Wednesday.

“We own the economy. We own the beginning of the turnaround and we want to make sure that we continue that pace of recovery, not go back to the policies of the past under the Bush administration that put us in the ditch in the first place,” Wasserman Schultz told Mike Allen at POLITICO’s ‘Playbook Breakfast.’

The economy, she said, “has turned around” since President Obama took office, with steady job growth evident even if the pace leaves something to be desired.

Republicans have ridiculed Democrats’ claims of economic success in the wake of disappointing jobs numbers and an uptick in the unemployment rate.

Wasserman Schultz said Democrats aren’t in need of a new story to tell about the economy because they’ve put the right policies in place. “I don’t think it’s about what we say, it’s about what we do.”

She said Democrats’ actions demonstrate their commitment to the middle class while Republicans’ do not. Though she commended several individual Republicans by name — including her home state colleague, Rep. Daniel Webster — Wasserman Schultz said the party’s leadership in the house is beholden to an extreme faction.

“Unfortunately, the Republican leadership in the House right now seems to have been strangled by the tea party,” she said. “The tail seems to be wagging the dog right now.”

Republicans, she said, know better but lack courage. “They know how to do it the right way, they know how to compromise, they just can’t seem to break their fear of what the ramifications would be from the tea party right-wing fringe if they listened to what their inner self tells them to do.”

As the 2012 presidential race intensifies, Wasserman Schultz took shots at the Republican field, calling it a “collection of deeply flawed candidates.”

She singled out former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, whose economic plan she criticized; former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, who she said will have to explain his past support for an individual health-care mandate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, whom she described as inconsistent.

“Mitt Romney’s problem is that Mitt Romney has to have a debate with himself about who he is,” she said.

But Wasserman Schultz came to the defense of two potential GOP rivals, Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, saying it is unfair for the media to portray them as pitted against each other simply because they are both women.

“Even though I don’t agree with either Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann on virtually anything,” she said, to laughter from the audience, “I do think the unique scrutiny … because of their gender” and “highlighting the potential conflict between them” is a product of the media’s desire for juicy storylines. “I think it’s inappropriate.”

Arguing strongly for increasing representation of women in elected office, she said that while progress has been made, “The good ol’ boys’ system is alive and well.”

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Liberals disappointed- no bombshells in Palin emails

John Paulus — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 13:22:53 +0000

There are no bombshells, no “gotcha” moments.

The emails of Sarah Palin — more than 24,000 pages of them released Friday by the state of Alaska from her first two years as governor — paint a picture of an image-conscious, driven leader, closely involved with the day-to-day duties of running the state and riding herd on the signature issues of her administration.

She angled for the vice presidential nomination months before John McCain picked her — and hinted at presidential aspirations.

The messages give a behind-the-scenes look at a politician who burst onto the national stage after serving as Wasilla mayor and less than two years as Alaska governor. They show a woman striving to balance work and home, fiercely protective of her family and highly sensitive to media coverage. She expressed a sometimes mothering side with aides but also was quick to demand answers or accountability.

They seem to depict a more moderate Palin who worked to find a state response to global warming — she has since dismissed studies supporting climate change — and gave props to then-Sen. Barack Obama for his support of a natural gas pipeline in Alaska.

The records, comprising more than 13,400 emails, shed new light on Palin’s rise from little-known governor to national political sensation. The emails end in September 2008, shortly after her selection to be McCain’s running mate. It was then that citizens and news organizations first requested the records.

Three years later, Palin is a best-selling author, reality TV star, sought-after speaker and kingmaker, successfully supporting dozens of candidates in last year’s elections.

Her recent bus tour of the Northeast as well as an authorized documentary about her time as governor, have fueled speculation that Palin will run for president, but the Republican says she hasn’t yet decided.

In Anchorage, people watched the release of the emails with interest, some blaming the media for paying too much attention to the out-dated records.

“I personally think they’re afraid of her,” said Richard Giese, who sold flowers at the Anchorage Farmer’s Market on Saturday. “They’re digging up a lot of stuff, some of it true. I won’t deny that. But I think they are afraid of her for the election.”

Gail Sieberts, who was shopping at the market, called it a distraction.

“We’re glad she’s not here anymore,” she said. “Our state is running better and we don’t need all the drama.”

While much of the country was taken by surprise when Palin became the Republican vice presidential candidate, her emails suggest she was angling for the slot for months, and that she may have been courted even earlier.

Palin’s scheduler sent her a note June 21, 2007, saying Gov. Mitt Romney — who was running for president — wanted to schedule a call to “catch up on things.” The aide said Mike Tibbles, her former chief of staff, said she probably wouldn’t be interested, and wondered how she should proceed.

“What is his number? Since it may be partisan, I should do this without state assistance. Thanks!” Palin replied.

On Jan. 30, former Arkansas Mike Huckabee called, and Palin seemed to be leaning toward endorsing him in the Republican primary.

“He called. Very cool. Unless McCain calls, Huck’s a good pick for me, just fyi.”

In the ensuing months, though, as McCain had all but sewn up his party’s nomination, Palin turned her attention to him.

In June, Palin and her staff talked about plans to repeal Alaska’s fuel tax. Ivy Frye, an aide and friend, said she would send details to McCain staffers when they became available. “They’re going to love it!” she wrote. Spokeswoman Meghan Stapleton sent Palin a draft of an op-ed piece carrying the governor’s name that would be pitched to national publications “beginning with the New York Times.” Palin responded the following day, writing: “Pls print.”

Despite all the effort, Palin seemed genuinely surprised when she got the nod: “Can you believe it!” she wrote to a staff member.

As the national attention intensified, Palin seemed frustrated and overwhelmed by the constant media spotlight. After the nomination and before, she became most angry when the attention was on her family.

On Sunday, April 6, 2008, Palin’s father passed along reports that rumors swirling of daughter Bristol’s pregnancy were coming from the office of Palin critic and fellow Wasilla Republican Sen. Lyda Green. Palin asked aides to find out whether a newspaper reporter and television reporter had heard the rumor from the Green staffer or former Palin aide.

Palin called the circulating rumors “flippin’ unbelievable.”

“Bristol does want it squashed — we just don’t know how to do so without making it a bigger issue,” Palin wrote of her eldest daughter.

Palin already had denied speculation that Bristol was the mother of Palin’s fifth child, Trig, who was born with Down Syndrome.

“Even at Trig’s doc apt this morning his doc said that’s out there (hopefully NOT in their medical community-world, but it’s out there),” Palin wrote on April 22. “Bristol called again this afternoon asking if there’s anything we can do to stop this, as she received two girlfriend-type calls today asking if it were true.”

The delay in releasing Palin’s emails, which had been requested by media organizations and citizens, has been attributed largely to the sheer volume. The emails were sent and received by Palin’s personal and state email accounts, and the ones being released were deemed state business-related. Palin and top aides were known to communicate using private email accounts. The documents revealed at least three different private accounts for Palin.

The state withheld 2,275 pages for reasons including attorney-client, work product or executive privilege; an additional 140 pages were deemed to be “non-records,” or unrelated to state business.

Her supporters encouraged everyone to read the messages. “The emails detail a Governor hard at work,” said Tim Crawford, the treasurer of her political action committee, Sarah PAC, in a prepared statement.

Courtesy of AP

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Sarah Palin emails released, no word on Obama emails from Illinois State Senate

John Paulus — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 23:08:01 +0000

More than 24,000 pages, the dispatch comes in response to requests from media organizations, as well as individuals, under the state public records law during the 2008 presidential election. No word on when media organizations will request the emails of President Obama when he was an Illinois State Senator.

The emails were exchanged from when Palin first took office in December of 2006 through September of 2008. Emails sent by the former governor in the subsequent ten months through her resignation are expected to be disclosed at a later date.

During an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” last weekend, Palin said that she’s not concerned that the emails being released could produce any damaging revelations.

“I think every rock in the Palin household that could ever be kicked over and uncovered anything, it’s already been kicked over,” she explained. “I don’t think there’s anything private in our family now. A lot of those emails obviously weren’t meant for public consumption. They are between staff members. They’re probably between family members.”

The former governor added, “They’ll never truly know what the context of each one of the emails was, or each one of the issues were that I was working on that day, or in that time period.”

The AP reported prior to the release of the documents:

It’s not clear yet whether the 24,199 pages being released will contain any major revelations, but they will provide a fresh look at the inner-workings of her office from the time she took office in December 2006 to her ascension to vice presidential nominee in September 2008. Requests have been made for emails from her final 10 months in office. The state hasn’t begun the process of reviewing those yet. Palin resigned partway through her term, in July 2009.Prior records requests have shed light on the Palin administration’s efforts to advance a natural gas pipeline project and the role played by Palin’s husband in state business.

Today 1:12 PM Here’s What You Need To Know Before Reading The Emails

HuffPost’s Dean Praetorius has a primer.

Today 1:14 PM Hard At Work

The Washington Post‘s Chris Cillizza tweets:

“The emails detail a Governor hard at work. Everyone should read them.” — Sarah PAC treasurer Tim Crawford.

Today 1:39 PM They’re Live

The first batch of emails is live — look through them here.

Today 2:09 PM A Strained Relationship Revealed

Looks like Palin had a testy relationship with Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska).

On Sept. 16, 2008, Palin’s chief of staff Mike Nizich wrote to Palin that Young wanted to “have a word with you” but wouldn’t specify the issue. Palin replied to Nizich, “Pls find out what it’s about. I don’t want to get chewed out by him yet again. I’m not up for that.”

– Jen Bendery

Today 2:19 PM Legislature Expressed Frustration With Palin

On Aug. 2, 2008, Palin staffer Tara Jollie reported back to her boss that the Alaska state legislature wasn’t happy with her work — or rather, her lack of work.

After meeting with a state representative’s staffer, Jolie wrote Governor Palin: “In a nutshell, I learned that: There is a frustration with the governor’s office because they expect more legislation (or ideas) from the Governor because she is our elected leader.”

– Jason Cherkis

Today 2:26 PM No Matter Too Trivial For Media Pushback

Palin was apparently prone to some fairly robust pushback on criticism that appeared in the local media, and no item was too small to react to. Take the following letter to the editor, from July 26, 2008, from Judy Spry:

Where was Miss Alaska story?I am surprised and disappointed that I have not seen any coverage in the news (print or television) on Miss Alaska! The pageant was on Saturday, July 19, and I still haven’t heard seen any coverage of the winners.

From what I understand, Gov. Sarah Palin, a former Miss Alaska herself, was holding an event during the day downtown and she didn’t even take the time to stop by and show her support.

It makes me sad. Alaska is a proud state. I think that some interest and respect should be shown to Miss Alaska, Stephany Jeffers, who will be representing our great state in the Miss America Pageant on Jan. 24 in Las Vegas.

– Judi Spry

This letter ran at a time when Palin’s camp was busy dealing with Chuck Kopp’s sudden resignation from his post as Public Safety Commissioner. (Kopp was given the job after Walt Monegan was dismissed by Palin.) But Palin still had time to coordinate a response: “I’m looking for someone to correct the letter writer’s goofy comments, but don’t want the letter to the ADN in response to come from me.”

Palin’s enforcer, Ivy Frye, recommended: “Kristian Cole would be perfect as she knows the pageant world,” adding, “I’ll touch base w her today, and Frank to make sure we’re sending variations and not duplicates of this letter.”

Palin responded: “Phil had one [yesterday] about kopp so won’t run more from him I presume.”

Palin had a legitimate reason to miss the pageant. She had a prior commitment to attend the “statewide Governor’s Annual COmmunity Picnics” in Fairbanks, and greet “seven US Congressmen who were touring ANWR.” She sent along a video to support the pageant participants, and Todd “spent two days judging the event.” So, Spry was out of line, but it’s hard to say why this demanded any further attention beyond a call to an editor to set things right.

– Jason Linkins

Today 2:28 PM Face-Time Requests

In early August 2008, Steve Branchflower, a retired prosecutor, was appointed as special counsel to the state legislature to investigate Gov. Palin’s firing of Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan. Branchflower emailed Palin on Aug. 3 to ask for a little non-case-related face time:

Since we’ve never met, I would like to come by your office for a couple of minutes to say hi. What I have in mind is just a quick meet and greet, not a big deal, and not to talk about the case either. I just want to introduce myself and meet some of your staff. By then I should have my office location details and contact info ready for you. I appreciate your willingness to cooperate with me, and this informal meeting can serve as a good ice breaker for both of us.

On Aug. 5, Palin wrote Sean Parnell, who would succeed her as governor of Alaska, about Branchflower’s request. She thought it was “sort of bizarre.”

– Jason Cherkis

Today 2:29 PM Todd Palin Hit Up RGA For Mavs Tix

The Palins were lambasted during the 2008 campaign for spending big Republican Party money on clothes and other items for their family. But the family was tapping into the party long before she was asked to be on the ticket. On April 15, 2008, Todd Palin emailed an official at the Republican Governors Association, with a request:

Christi, any chance we can hook up with Dallas Mavericks’ bball tickets for their game here tomorrow night? Just checking… Thanks! Todd Palin, Alaska

The Mavericks, according to their 2008 schedule, were playing the New Orleans Hornets that night.

– Ryan Grim

Today 2:30 PM Dinosaurs Even?!

On Sept. 15, 2008, Palin communications director Bill McAllister sent the governor a list of queries he’d been fielding from reporters covering the campaign. Though the top priority was Palin’s use of personal emails for public business, one of the questions he’d received apparently dealt with Palin’s beliefs regarding evolution and creationism: “Is it your belief that dinosaurs and humans co-existed at one time?”

McAllister told the governor, “I said I have never spoken to you about this,” but then he added, parenthetically, “There is an interesting reference to ‘Behemoth’ in the Old Testament.”

In response, Palin wrote, “Arghhhh! I am so sorry that the office is swamped like this! Dinosaurs even?!”

– Dave Jamieson

Today 2:33 PM The Sketch That Could Have Been

On Sept. 16, 2008, Revenue Commissioner Patrick Galvin suggested to Palin that she “offer to go on SNL and play Tina Fey, and you interview her as she plays you.”

Palin appeared on “Saturday Night Live” a month later but didn’t interview Fey. Instead, she stood alongside Lorne Michaels and Alec Baldwin as Fey — playing Palin — held a mock press conference. Later, she danced while Amy Poehler rapped about Alaska on “Weekend Update.”

– Michael Calderone

Today 2:34 PM Background Checks?

So much for that staff vetting. Palin staffer Tara Jollie, in an Aug. 10, 2008 email, had to break the news to her boss that she may have a criminal working for her:

I heard in a public forum last week that D. (Department of Labor) solicited bribes as an elected official. This public statement was made by Julie Kitka. D. is still working for you. I have no personal feeling about this person at all. This is for your information…

– Jason Cherkis

Today 2:39 PM We Didn’t Eat The Moose Meat

Apropos of nothing, here’s the email cache’s first mention of moose. In a July 27, 2008 email, Palin wrote:

Would u fire off a short swet email or call to Medred explaining the moose complaint was brought forward once we knew about – we didn’t know when it happened! And no, we didn’t participate in eating the moose meat. We knew about it when Mike bragged to others about it and others complained about it us.

– Jason Linkins

Today 2:40 PM Palin: Climate Change a ‘Top Issue’

On Sept. 15, 2008, Palin reached out to the heads of the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Department of Fish and Game (DFG) to prep for questions she expected during the campaign. “I anticipate folks will be inquiring about our polar bear issue,” Palin wrote. She added, “Climate change is a top issue of course. Just a head’s up.”

In response, DEC chief Hartig wrote, “We are prepared to respond to questions from the media on the work your administration is doing relating to Climate Change.”

– Dave Jamieson

Today 2:48 PM Some Guy Named Barack Obama

On Feb. 19, 2007, deputy legislative director Chris Clark recommended to Palin that she meet Pete Rouse, “who’s now chief of staff for some guy named Barack Obama,” when she was in Washington, D.C. on an upcoming trip.

Palin’s reply: “I’m game to meet him.”

It’s worth noting that Obama announced he was running for president on Feb. 10 — so this email was either incredibly close-minded, or sarcastic.

– Marcus Baram

Today 2:56 PM Palin Flags A Seatbelt Rumor

On July 15, 2008, Palin sent an email complaining about a blog item at the ADN, asking Frank Bailey to “flag a lie.”

Can someone flag the lie in the blog “sexy highway talk among governors” that claims Trig was in the fender bender with me — and he wasn’t in a car seat on my commute. Sheeesh.I WISH ADN would follow up on that one (as the blogger asks ADN to do) so that I can put that rumor to rest…Rumor is Walt reported me so I fired him. What an idiot blog entry, very easy to counter with the truth when half a dozen APD cops responded and witnessed no Trig in vehicle.

References to Troopergate aside, it would appear that Palin’s complaint about this Trig-was-incorrectly-buckled-up rumor was a legitimate one, especially if she could lay hands on a half-dozen witnesses.

Here is the blog item she refers to. If it made an entry out of this “fender bender,” it doesn’t anymore. There are commenters discussing it, suggesting that it may have been redacted after the fact. Bailey promised to “get some flags on it.” Seems to have done the trick.

– Jason Linkins

Today 2:58 PM Palin Aide: “VP Buzz” Is “Pretty Cool”

Months before Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) picked her as his running mate, then-Governor Sarah Palin was expressing some interest (at least privately) in the post.

In an email sent on June 4, 2008, her aide Ivy Frye noted that McCain was being pushed to choose Palin for the VP slot.

“The second and third articles I’ve seen on vp buzz just today,” wrote Frye. “Pretty cool.”

Before that, Frye sent an email to other aides, as well as Palin’s husband, Todd Palin, titled “VP Madness in ADN [Anchorage Daily News].” Enclosed was a write up of another article suggesting that Palin had advanced to round two in the VP sweepstakes.

Even earlier than that, in February 2008, another top aide, Frank Bailey, circulated a San Francisco Chronicle piece that referred to Palin as “Alaska’s young, hot, Vogue-posing, female Republican governor” who “could become the popular favorite to be Sen. John McCain’s running mate.”

“Wow!” Bailey wrote. “The First Dude’s mentioned too!”

The February coverage coincided with a trip the Palins took to Washington, D.C. to meet McCain. Frye wrote to Todd Palin on Feb. 21: “I hope you guys have a fun and productive time in DC. I especially hope you guys get some time to relax. Tell McCain I say hi, and my best to all the first ladies,” Frye wrote Todd Palin.

“I’m packing my dress now,” the First Dude wrote back.

“Ha! I hope it’s long enough to cover your bruises,” Frye replied.

It’s a reminder of just how obscure and unknown these individuals were before they took over the nation’s political attention.

– Sam Stein and Ryan Grim

Today 3:01 PM This Means W.A.R.

Wayne Anthony Ross, a far-right wing Alaska lawyer who Palin nominated for Alaska Attorney General in 2009 — and whose nomination was rejected by the state legislature — is perhaps best summed up by his initials, which he sports on his vanity plates. Among his more bellicose statements was his description of gay Alaskans as “degenerates.”

Apparently, he disapproved of Palin’s handling of criticism of her role in the Troopergate scandal. From his August 21, 2008 email to the governor: “I think you’re being too nice.”

Signed WAR, of course.

– Saki Knafo

Today 3:05 PM Communication Breakdown

On Aug. 20, 2008, less than 10 days before McCain picked Palin to be his running mate, Palin staffer Tara Jollie sent her an email about the bad office vibe:

I am bothered by what I perceive as an unnecessary paranoid reaction by some people on staff to the recent attacks on you.First of all, if one is accused of communicating inappropriately and therefore changes their behavior, they are saying to the accuser ‘you are right. I was wrong. I will change how I communicate.’ Abandoning email practice for example. This is a whole new world that election folks and legal folks haven’t even begun to analyze. It will change our world. In fact, I believe the effects of email were apparent in your campaign….

We need to stand tall, shoulders back, look critics dead in the eye, and say ‘I haven’t done a thing I need to apologize for.’

– Jason Cherkis

Today 3:08 PM A Call From Cheney

On the same day that she was chosen to be Sen. John McCain’s running mate, then-Gov. Sarah Palin received a call from Vice President Dick Cheney.

“Governor – Congratulations to you and your family!,” wrote Janice Mason, the governor’s scheduler, on August 29, 2008. “We love you.”

“I just received a call from VP Dick Cheney. He called directly from his home and asked that you give him a call. Here is his direct number.”

The number is redacted, sadly.

– Sam Stein

Today 3:20 PM From The Editor’s Desk

On Aug. 30, 2008, the day after Sen. McCain picked then-Gov. Palin to be his running mate, Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol congratulated Palin’s communications director Bill McAllister in an email and included a glowing piece he wrote for the following week’s issue that had just been published online.

You must have had an interesting couple of days…Congratulations, and pls pass on to the Governor, if you would…She might be interested in my editorial in the new TWS, just up online..Would love to talk if you have a second, c: 202-XXX-XXXX

Bill K

Kristol, who had met with Palin the previous year when the Weekly Standard went on a cruise to Alaska, was one of the only political pundits mentioning her as a potential vice presidential pick in the months before she got the nomination.

– Michael Calderone

Today 3:23 PM Travel And Ethics: “There Seems To Be Confusion”

More than a year before the Washington Post publicly revealed that Gov. Palin had billed state-funded per diems for 312 nights spent at home, the governor’s scheduler sent an email about “confusion” surrounding “travel and ethics for the Governor and First Gentleman.”

Kari Spencer’s March 7, 2007 email was sent to Sarah and Todd, along with Alaska Attorney General Tavis Colberg, who was asked to give the family a refresher course on what they could and could not do:

There seems to be confusion on the answers to questions about First Gentleman and children’s travel and per diem, using the King Air, TA’s, per diem, and so forth. The idea is to do things right from the get-go so we don’t have any questions about how we should have done it later.

In July 2008, before McCain chose Palin as his running mate, critics in Alaska raised concerns about the governor’s travels with her daughter Piper to Barrow, Alaska. The family’s use of a King Air propeller plane owned by the state Department of Public Safety also received press scrutiny.

– Matt Sledge

Today 3:36 PM Palin Aide Concerned Over Rising Unemployment In 2008

Palin aide Ivy Frye asked Alaska’s Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Clark Bishop what could be done about rising unemployment in May of 2008. In her email to Bishop, Frye pasted a story about the rate popping up to 6.7 percent. (It currently stands at 7.3 percent, below the national average of 9.1 percent.)

I read that Alaska’s unemployment rate rose slightly this year, and that the national average is up also. What do you think is attributing to this trend? What is the state (DOL) doing to lower our rate? How do we get back near the 4,200 added jobs in 2006?

Frye copied Todd Palin on the email, saying “he’s focused on building our workforce like you are.”

Bishop responded, in part:

In my opinion, capital construction dollars are a very important piece of the economic picture in Alaska. With the downturn in FHWA and other federal funding, it’s imperative that we as a state keep our capital dollars whole; it’s new money that creates jobs and, typically, new construction dollars reverberate through the economy 6-7 times. It also keeps our Alaskan contractors busy and gives us a place to put more entry level apprentices to work on projects now. We will need these people in future gasline construction as well as to fill impending skills gaps in the construction, oil and gas, and mining industries.

– Arthur Delaney

Today 3:37 PM Palin on VP Run: God’s Will Must Be Done!

On August 29, 2008, the day Palin delivered her speech accepting the VP nomination, her director of communications Rosanne Hughes gushed about how proud Palin’s staff was of her and vowed to bring God on board with her candidacy:

“I’m asking all my prayer partners to intercede for you,” Hughes wrote. Palin replied, “YES! Thank you- please pray for wisdom and favor and for HIS will only to be done. Thank you!!!”

– Jen Bendery

Today 3:40 PM Big Oil Wanted To Meet

A little more than two weeks after McCain picked her as his running mate, Palin got a request to meet with Rex Tillerson, CEO of ExxonMobil. On Sept. 17, 2008, Tillerson’s reps emailed:

Rex Tillerson CEO of Exxon Mobile would like a meeting with you and would like to see if there is an opportunity for you two to meet while you are in Dallas on Oct. 3? If you have an opportunity to call during your busy day I would like to get Joe Balash on the phone to discuss and fill in the blanks for you.

– Jason Cherkis

Today 3:46 PM Troopergate Pressure?

A 2008 report found that Palin had “abused her power as Governor,” partly because she forced out Walt Monegan, Alaska’s Public Safety Commissioner, after he supposedly resisted pressure from her family to fire the state trooper Mike Wooten, Palin’s ex-brother-in-law.

At the time, Palin insisted to the press that she’d never “pressured” Monegan to fire Wooten. But what did she say in her private emails?

At least one is bound to disappoint detractors. “I don’t believe there were ANY Monegan-pressured calls,” she wrote to staff members and political allies on August 15, 2008.

– Saki Knafo

Today 4:10 PM Gingrich Sought Palin’s Advice

While Palin was still in office, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich sought her advice about pushing offshore drilling legislation at the state level.

In an email sent on July 22, 2008, Gingrich wrote to Palin:

Someone recomended to me that we study the alaskan model of revenue distribution back to the citizens and get bills introduced in the state legislature in california florida and elsewhere that if they do go to offshore drilling they should split the revenue stream with a specified amount (maybe half) going to the citizens as a direct benefit.

Gingrich then asked Palin for more details on about the division of revenue between the state government and citizens, saying he wanted an expert to explain “all this to me.” Gingrich was instrumental in turning offshore drilling into a campaign issue during the ’08 election.

The Anchorage Daily News‘ Sean Cockerham notes that prior to the presidential campaign, communications director Roseanne Hughes encouraged other aides to use Gingrich’s own words to defend the governor. In an email from April 24, 2008, Hughes told staffers to get grassroots supporters “out there FLOODING that Anchorage Daily News Alaska politics blog. I mean FLOODING.”

One of the ideas circulated as strategy was “Quoting Newt Gingrich that Governor Palin is one of the most aggressive reformers in the country.”

For more on the Palin-Gingrich relationship, read this report from the Los Angeles Times.

–Tyler Kingkade

Today 4:17 PM Beef, Tequila And Condoms

By early September, Palin had already hit the campaign trail as Sen. McCain’s V.P. pick. That did not stop a band’s publicist from inviting her to a party to help celebrate its popularity on MySpace.

Alexis Rivera of Echo Park Records wrote Palin on Sept. 11, 2008:

BBQ at my mansion manana from 6-10PM to celebrate Preston surpassing 10,000 friends on MySpace. The Strange Boys…are playing (at 7:30 sharp!), so tip the kids, and bring beef, tequila, and condoms.

Palin did not RSVP — but she did forward the invite on to her scheduler five days later.

– Jason Cherkis

Today 4:20 PM Palin’s Pop Quiz

Palin’s Pop Quiz: What’s the biggest private employer in Alaska?

“Safe to say [t]hat fisheries are our largest private-sector employer in the state? (Tourism is second?)” Palin queried staffers and her husband in January 2008.

“I’m sure it’s correct but want verification,” she added in a later email. Staffer Frank Bailey suggested that it might be construction. “Considering the caneries I believe it’s fish,” Palin replied.

According to the Alaska Department of Labor, fewer than 10,000 people were in “seafood processing” in April 2011, while nearly twice as many worked in construction. (That figure presumably doesn’t include the fishermen and women themselves, or cable staffers who ride along.) Meanwhile, 30,400 worked in “leisure and hospitality.” That’s more than twice as many as oil and gas.

– Ryan Grim

Today 4:21 PM Palin Team Expects Better From Local TV News

On Aug. 19, 2008, Palin spokesman Bill McAllister sent a furious email to Steve McDonald, news director at Anchorage NBC affiliate KTUU-TV. McAllister was miffed to see that a story on “phantom budget cuts” happened to follow a rape/murder spot.

“Tonight’s story at 5 was horrifying,” McAllister wrote. “To bring up a sensational murder and rape, to throw in Monegan, and then to talk about phantom budget cuts with no attribution was simply appalling to the governor.”

– Dave Jamieson

Today 4:28 PM Reporter As Cheerleader

At least one person is bound to be embarrassed by this massive Palin email dump — local Alaskan reporter Tom Miller. There’s a fine line between sucking up to a source and drinking the Kool-Aid. In a Sept. 3, 2008 email sent to Palin and one of her staffers, Miller guzzles the Kool-Aid.

Miller forwards along a missive he wrote to other journalists concerning allegedly inaccurate reporting on the Bridge to Nowhere. But he destroys his credibility by adding this note:

I thought you might like to see this e-mail I sent off to the media big shots this morning. I would send it to her and to the Republican establishment, but have no idea how to do that or how long before anyone might see it.Good luck in the new job.

Go Palin!

– Jason Cherkis

Today 4:32 PM Palin Praises Obama Energy Policy Speech

Michael Shear at The New York Times points to positive remarks Palin made in August of 2008 on a speech then-presidential candidate Barack Obama delivered on the issue of energy policy.

“He gave a great speech this morn in Michigan — mentioned Alaska,” she wrote in an email to aides. “Stole our Energy Rebate $1000 check idea, stole our TC-Alaska gasoline talking points, etc.”

Palin, who had not yet been tapped to run as John McCain’s running mate, suggested an aide craft a statement on “good points” made by Obama in his remarks.

Earlier this year, in a sign that times have changed, Palin said of Obama during an appearance on Fox Business, “His naive and destructive and terrifying anti-oil agenda is going to bring our nation to our knees and his agenda must be stopped.”

– Elyse Siegel

Today 4:33 PM Keeping It PG

Even when they were stressed and angry, the folks in Palinland found ways to keep their language chaste. For example, when TransCanada President Hal Kvisle, speaking about the ongoing negotiations to build the natural-gas pipeline said, “Nothing goes ahead until Exxon is happy with it,” Joe Balash — who was Palin’s special assistant on the state’s energy developments — let Palin know, and termed Kvisle’s remarks to be poorly thought out and badly timed. Palin replied, “Unflippingbelievable.”

Balash kept his invective Disney-friendly as well. When KTUU reporter Mike Ross called up looking for a quote on the matter, he referred to him as “numero uno jerko.”

Not exactly Rahm Emanuel-esque.

– Jason Linkins

Today 4:42 PM Palin: Hey Exxon, Quit Being Such “Stinkers To Us” In The Press

On March 12, 2007, then-Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell emailed Palin that he heard Exxon was being “nasty in the press lately toward us” because they thought Palin cut a deal with MidAmerican, a major Midwest energy company, to build a natural gas pipeline tapping Alaska reserves.

“Amazing and ill-informed,” Parnell wrote to Palin, but something that is “lurking in the background.”

Palin replied that Exxon’s impression was “totally off base” and urged Parnell to remind Alaska’s congressional delegation in an upcoming meeting why a gasline is key to Alaska’s economy. “Hopefully they’ll know that Exxon does not have to be such stinkers to us in the press – that Exxon has a duty to develop, etc.,” she wrote.

– Jen Bendery

Today 4:50 PM A Call For Openness With The Press

Long before Palin went behind her social media bunker and started pursuing a media strategy of only speaking to friendly allies, she encouraged her administration to be fully open with the press, because “Alaskans deserve better than the tried and failed efforts of past administrations’ withholding information and expressed opinions by decisions makers.”

In a Jan. 28, 2007 email, she wrote:

There was a quip in this moming’s ADN re: a “ban” from me on anyone voicing their opinions on matters before us. The ‘Ear wrote of my supposed instruction to not allow cabinet members/staff to take positions on some issues.Since this is totally false, and leaves me at a loss as to how a reporter would have ever received word of something that is the opposite of what l’ve expressed to all of you, I’ll clarify again what has already been expressed by me as my desire to see you all have the freedom to communicate with the public and press in any and all manner you deem appropriate. The goal is for the public to be able to trust that our administration is transparent and trustworthy, so you all personally communicating views and opinions is very important and would NEVER be banned.

I have NEVER banned any of our team members from voicing opinions on anything. In fact, I’ve stated that the more information and communication efforts put forth on behalf of your departments and divisions, the better. I’ve asked that you all share your opinions, speak freely to press, public, legislators, one another, etc. (In other words, don’t do what past administrations have done. I have faith that we’re on the right path going a new direction here with freedom in information sharing. Alaskans deserve better than the tried and failed efforts of past administrations’ withholding information and expressed opinions by decisions makers.)

– Jason Linkins

Today 4:55 PM Palin’s Stance On Renewables

If the topic turned to energy, Palin’s attentions were understandably drawn to oil and gas, given Alaska’s spoils in both — particularly in the North Slope. On clean energy sources like solar and wind power, critics regard her record as being rather thin, though she paid renewables regular lip service (alongside a broad conventional energy platform) after being named McCain’s vice presidential pick.

On Aug. 6, 2008, less than a month before she was tapped, Palin sent an email that displays what might be interpreted as a somewhat less enthusiastic disposition toward the topic:

5pm speech on renewable energy – pls put as tentative on the sched and have someone draft the speech.Thanks.

– Tom Zeller

Today 4:57 PM Mob Deep

On Sept. 6, 2008, Palin’s newly appointed chief-of-staff Michael Nizich emailed his boss this message: “You are an amazing lady.”

Palin responded with a mash note of her own:

You are an amazing, grounded, true man of character who just happens to be working in govt. America needs more people just like you in service! Keep hunting, keep being a true Alaskan…keep calling it as you see it – we love the mobster in ya.

– Jason Cherkis

Today 4:59 PM Remembering The Little Things

Since Palin was clearly busy, she often relied on her staff to help her remember to pay attention to all those details and things she might forget. Like her mother, as noted in the July 28, 2008, email to two assistants:

Don’t let me forget to pick up my mom tomorrow after milk run flt comes into Juneau 3:00-ish I think.

– Mike McAuliff

Today 5:01 PM Panicked Email Over An Apparent Computer Search

On Aug. 19, 2008, in the midst of Troopergate, Palin sent a distressed email to staffers, apparently under the belief that her computer at the governor’s mansion had been searched by authorities, writing: “who, when, etc conducted this search of my bedroom’s computer and the other house computer? And what were the reasons given and responses given to whomever must have officially entered the residence on whatever day it was that this occurred?” Palin’s scheduler, Janice Mason, checked into the search and discovered that the governor’s office itself had copied all staff computer hard drives at the request of the state Department of Law.The news didn’t please the governor. “it’s not comforting at all knowing this took place with no one present…. Who are ‘they’? Who went to the bedroom, where else did they go?”

– Dave Jamieson

Today 5:10 PM Not So Teleprompter-Averse

March 19, 2007

Palin’s hostility toward the use of teleprompters didn’t fit within her world back in 2007. When Calgary’s “Energy TV” called up looking to interview Palin, Palin communications aide Meg Stapleton wrote to staff:

Energy TV would like an interview with the Governor and I thought this Wednesday might work – the questions are below . What we need to do is simply book the Governor’s time, provide the answers to the questions below, use the prompter and have her look to the side and answer the questions for use by the TV station. I just need help on the answers . It needs to be very conversationally written . Needs to be on 3:30pm Governor’s feed Wednesday – could record according to Governor ‘s schedule on Wednesday morning and would need answers by tomorrow. Possible?

Palin recalled that she had a “long cabinet meeting” scheduled for the same time they had allotted to shoot her side of the interview. Stapleton replied:

We’re working around that. Joe Balash is crafting the answers right now , Sharon will ask the questions, we will have the answers in a teleprompter, and then send those answers over the satellite tomorrow afternoon . It shouldn’t take long , once we have the answers. Expect them tonight.

Palin replied:

You’re awesome.You’re all awesome.

Whataday…

Teleprompters! Seriously, they are just a useful tool that politicians should use. Much preferable to the palm of one’s hand.

– Jason Linkins

Today 5:14 PM Unflippinbelievable!

Palin got quite a lot of congratulatory mail after her veep nomination and convention speech. On Aug. 30, 2008, Palin wrote to one associate: “Can you flippinbelieveit?!”

– Jason Cherkis

Today 5:25 PM Hacked — By Todd

Sarah Palin had more than one episode of panic over an electronic security breach. At 6:31 am on the morning of March 3, 2007, Gov. Palin sent this desperate missive to Chief-of-Staff Mike Tibbles and aide Frank Bailey:

Mike or Frank – does anyone know how anyone could send an annonymous [sic] email from my old personal account (spalin@mtaonline.net) that I don’t even use anymore… I did NOT send this email.

She was referring to an email forward containing a list of talking points attempting to scuttle a position for biologist Ken Taylor, who became the Palin administration’s point man on polar bears, in the Fish and Game Department.

Twelve minutes later, Palin realized she had made a mistake:

never mind about the “anonymous” email sender… Todd forwarded this from the home computer in Wasilla… this message was composed by Steve Florey in Anchorage, evidently, and passed around.

Of course, one of Palin’s several private email accounts was actually hacked more than a year later, in September 2008.

– Matt Sledge

Today 5:27 PM Brutal Quotes

In July 2008, as the Troopergate scandal was unfolding, a Republican member of the Alaskan legislature asked Palin’s office for information about Walt Monegan, the public official who Palin had recently fired.

Palin’s staff turned Hawker away. Not the best move, apparently. In an email to her staff, Palin demanded an explanation: “Who talked to Hawker and told him that we would not answer his questions about walt? His quotes on the news were brutal.”

– Saki Knafo

Today 5:29 PM Palin Meets BP’s Tony Hayward

“This is your first interaction with the CEO of BP, Tony Hayward,” writes Galvin Patrick, Palin’s revenue commissioner, in an email message dated September 8, 2008. Patrick was getting Palin ready for a phone call the following day.

“Mr. Hayward took over for Lord John Brown in May 2007,” Patrick continues. “He is a Brit with a PhD in geology who came up through the ranks at BP. He’s 51 years old; married with two kids; like triathlons and soccer.”

A year and a half later, of course, Mr. Hayward would also preside over the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that would ultimately lead to his unceremonious departure from BP.

At the time of his phone call with Palin, BP was in the midst of sorting out a civil claim that the state had filed against the company for nasty oil spill at Prudhoe Bay in 2006.

In the email, Patrick begins to explain the nature of the claim — “for lost revenue due to their negligent maintenance” — before a sizable portion of the message is redacted as “privileged or personal material.”

“That’s it,” the email concludes. “Marty will participate in the call. Tom and I will be listening in. Good luck. — Pat.”

– Tom Zeller

Today 5:55 PM I’m Not After Your Senate Seat, Ted Stevens

On March 12, 2007, Palin denied rumors that she was planning a run against Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and that she was actively recruiting people to replace Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) — two suggestions floated by a former top aide to Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), a longtime nemesis of Palin’s.

Then-Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell e-mailed Palin about a run-in he had with Murkowski’s former chief of staff, Justin Steifel, who said both Stevens and Young were “concerned” that Palin was trying to thwart them.

“Holy moly… those are all outlandish rumors,” Palin wrote back. “I think Justin likes to stir it up, as information is power for the guys on the hill. His information happens to be all wrong tho.”

She called it “crazy talk” that she was recruiting anyone to take on Young. “Totally not true.”

As for Stevens, Palin said she had personally met with him and his chief of staff, George Lowe, weeks earlier to reassure them that she wasn’t after his Senate seat.

“I had a good conversation with Ted S. and George Lowe when I was in DC and told them I support Ted (I also talked to Catherine Stevens on my visit), so Justin is a few weeks off there. Ted was appreciative that I could reassure him that my plate was full as Governor and I was not planning a Senate run.”

– Jen Bendery

Today 5:58 PM Snubbed?

Just two weeks before being tapped for the number two slot on the Republican ticket, Palin was claiming that her invite to the annual GOP picnic must have been, er, lost in the mail?

“I read that the annual picnic was this evening, and it was noted that I wasn’t there,” Palin wrote on the evening of August 11, 2008. “If anyone asks, I was not there bc I did not know about it, never saw any invitation — as far as I know I was not invited. Janice may have seen something come through invitations, she may verify, but I didn’t receive anything on this.”

– Tom Zeller

Today 6:00 PM Palin Wants To FOIA Emails

Some apparent misinformation had been floating around concerning Alaska’s Department of Public Safety. On Aug. 19, 2008, Palin brainstormed a counterattack via email:

“Very, very concerning the ‘untruths’ coming from them. I am dumbfounded at this, as I have never worked in an organization where these unethical practices seem to go ignored and unanswered. The lack of accountability is appalling in all of this. It is so concerning, the damage that is being done and the public trust that is eroding, that we need to gather as much information as possible, including FOIA-ing emails, tapes, communications in all forms, regarding the untruthful information being spread to the public.”

Today 6:11 PM Early Tensions Between Palin and McCain Staffs

It’s no secret that tension increased between the Palin and McCain camps over the course of the campaign. Surprising, though, is how quickly such discord developed.

In an email forwarded to then-Governor Palin by her communications director William McAllister, a man, identified only as “Phil,” refers to the “McCain hacks” who helped write a speech Palin gave. The email, dated Sept. 3, 2008, was sent before the end of the Republican National Convention and a mere five days after the announcement of Palin’s selection as GOP running mate.

Unfortunately, neither a full name nor email address is given for “Phil,” and the extent of his involvement in the campaign is unclear. Yet the fact that Sarah Palin’s “gatekeeper” forwarded the email on to her suggests that there was some agreement at the highest level of the campaign about the sentiments he expressed.

– Samuel Haass

Today 6:30 PM Palin Privately Soured On ‘Bridge To Nowhere’

HuffPost’s Elise Foley reports:

Sarah Palin appeared to sour on the so-called “Bridge to Nowhere” in 2007, writing in private emails to her staff that she might support returning funds for the bridge to the federal government for other infrastructure projects.As the bridge, planned to connect the 50-resident Gravina Island with another island, began to draw fire from critics who called it pork-barrel spending, Palin appears to have had something of a change of heart on the issue, according to a trove of emails from her time as Alaska governor released on Friday.

Palin officially abandoned the plan for the bridge in Sept. 2007, a move touted during her campaign as John McCain’s running mate the following year. Palin was widely criticized for claiming to have killed the “Bridge to Nowhere” because funds to the project had already gone dry.

But although she had previously supported the bridge, private emails reveal that she did not simply end the project to score a political win.

Sarah Palin film, ‘The Undefeated’ going nationwide

John Paulus — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 02:36:08 +0000

Politico Reports:

After debuts in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina later this month, the pro-Sarah Palin film “The Undefeated” is headed for nationwide release.

But first it will need to be scaled back: the current version contains so much profanity — mostly from comedians and pundits cursing about Palin – as well as violent file footage of war used to portray the attacks against Palin as particularly savage, that it does not yet have a rating. At a press screening in Washington on Thursday, director Steve Bannon said he’ll aim for a PG-13 final cut, though he hopes to release the film as it currently stands via pay-per-view and video to give Palin diehards fans the original.

Bannon doesn’t skirt the fact that he’s one of those diehard fans himself — a Palin admirer who wants her to run for president and made his movie to help the cause.

“This film comes from a strong point of view, like Michael Moore,” he said. “I think this primary needs a full representation from the tea party,” said the self-identified “conservative populist.”

Bannon says his goal was not to create a definitive or unbiased account of the governor’s shortened term. His film is about providing a “balance” to the negative narratives that swirl around Palin and her potential presidential candidacy. “I made it for a media that I think on the whole can be fair and very even-handed when presented with a certain set of facts,” he said.

Bannon has only briefly met Palin — her voice is heard throughout the film, but he got it by purchasing the audio rights to her book “Going Rogue.” And after being pitched the idea of filming Palin for a series of YouTube videos by her advisors, SarahPAC has backed away from the production of the movie. Palin’s aides did, however, put the director in touch with former Palin staffer Meg Stapleton – who Bannon says provided him and introduction into Palin’s circle of friends and supporters who are rarely willing to sit for interviews.

In addition to Stapleton, Bannon spoke with longtime Palin friend Kristan Cole and Thomas Van Flein, Palin’s former attorney who now works for Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.). Sympathetic media personalities Mark Levin, Tammy Bruce and Andrew Breitbart also boast of Palin’s abilities in the film, along with tea party activists Jamie Radtke – now running for Senate in Virginia – and Sonnie Johnson.

Bannon and his public relations firm plan to release full details on the movie’s roll out late Thursday, but said they may push back their announcement so it is not lost in coverage of the Anthony Weiner scandal.

The film highlights parts of Palin’s resume that made her a compelling choice for John McCain’s presidential campaign. The movie’s theme is her improbable rise from Wasilla mom to governor of the state – and the out of nowhere nature is what has always made Palin such an intriguing political figure. And though Bannon acknowledged that Palin in fact had a several losses on her political career, he said the film’s title reflects that “the values are what is undefeated.”

Though the context is sometimes lacking, Bannon’s portrait is accurate, with glowing comments attached.

“Like a marine, she runs toward danger,” the friendly conservative radio host Tammy Bruce says of Palin. Breitbart meanwhile portrays men in the Republican establishment as “eunuchs” for failing to defend Palin from criticism.

In addition to the theatrical release, Bannon is also hoping to take “The Undefeated” to retail – he’s eying Wal-Mart as a major distributor. “If you look at the Wal-Mart customer, she’s relatable,” Bannon said.

Palin does not stand to make any money from the film, but Bannon believe it will prove profitable for his investors. Asked if he intended to make a profit with the film, Bannon responded: “Absolutely, we’re capitalists.”

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