Sarah Palin 2012 Opposed By Majority Of Alaskans

Sam Stein
stein@huffingtonpost.com | HuffPost Reporting

A majority of Alaskans would oppose Sarah Palin if she were to run for the presidency in 2012, according to some intriguing if not surprising poll numbers released on Tuesday.

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely voters in Alaska found 48 percent of respondents said they would not vote for their former governor in a 2012 presidential election. Just 41 percent said they would vote for Palin. Eleven percent said they were undecided.

Rasmussen posits that Alaskans generally are worried that a Palin presidential candidacy would be bad for the state's image -- pointing to 45 percent of respondents who said her candidacy would reflect negatively on the state. By and large, however, the numbers seem to be a reflection of the deep unease the state has with its once beloved governor, who has become a far more divisive and partisan figure since being tapped as John McCain's running mate. Fifty percent of Alaskans had an unfavorable view of Palin (including 37 percent who had a "Very Unfavorable" view).

On a separate front, public opinion does seem to be trending in the president's favor. A poll released by Public Policy Polling, found that, for the first time since October, a majority of Americans expressed approval with the job that Barack Obama is doing.

Fifty percent gave him good marks while 46 percent expressed disapproval. PPP suggests that the numbers may be due in part to the end of the heated health care debate (though the favorable/unfavorable numbers of the legislation passed by congress remain largely the same). Another factor, it seems like, has been generally good news on the labor front, with the economy adding 290,000 jobs in the month of April.

Discarded Palin contract sparks investigation

By ROBIN HINDERY
Associated Press Writer

A document fished out of a California state university trash bin last week has prompted a state investigation into the university's foundation arm and its refusal to disclose details related to Sarah Palin's upcoming speech at the school.

On Tuesday, California Attorney General Jerry Brown said his office would look into the finances of the California State University, Stanislaus Foundation, as well as allegations that the nonprofit organization violated public disclosure laws by keeping details of Palin's contract secret.

Palin is scheduled to speak at a June 25 gala hosted by the foundation to mark the university's 50th anniversary.

Brown's investigation was prompted, in part, by a group of CSU Stanislaus students who retrieved five pages of the contract from a campus trash bin last Friday after hearing administrators were engaged in shredding documents.

The contract detailed the former Alaska governor's requirements for her visit, including first-class flights from Anchorage to California - if she flies commercial. If not, "the private aircraft MUST BE a Lear 60 or larger ...," the contract specifies.

Palin also must be provided with a suite and two single rooms in a deluxe hotel near the campus in Turlock in the Central Valley. During her speech, her lectern must be stocked with two water bottles and bendable straws.

The document, dated March 16, does not include compensation details for Palin, who commands speaking fees as high as $100,000. Her appearance at the university gala is expected to draw a large crowd, with tickets selling for $500 each.

"This is not about Sarah Palin," Brown said in a prepared statement Tuesday. "The issues are public disclosure and financial accountability in organizations embedded in state-run universities."

The foundation has previously denied requests by The Associated Press and state Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, to disclose Palin's compensation package under the California Public Records Act.

Foundation board president Matt Swanson did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Brown's investigation. He previously told the AP that the contract's strict nondisclosure clause prevented him from sharing it, and that university foundations and other auxiliary organizations were not subject to the same public records requirements as the university itself.

Swanson has said Palin's fee and accommodations will be covered entirely by private donations, not state funds.

Jason Recher, a spokesman for Palin, did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

The students who found the contract document said they acted on a tip that documents were being shredded at the campus administration building on a day when staff members were supposed to be on furlough.

Alicia Lewis, 26, was one of the students who went to investigate. The building was locked and gated, but the students were able to retrieve piles of paperwork, including the contract document, from a nearby trash bin, Lewis said.

Russell Giambelluca, the university's vice president of business and finance, said Tuesday that no one at the university was advised to destroy specific foundation documents, and staff members routinely shred and dispose of paperwork that is no longer needed.

Regarding the excerpt of Palin's contract, he said: "I find it interesting that among shredded documents you find one that's completely intact related to the contract."

Lewis and another student, Ashli Briggs, traveled to Sacramento Tuesday to give Brown office material they said had been thrown out, including two boxes of documents and two trash bags filled with shredded files.

"This is our little Watergate in the state of California," Yee said Tuesday.

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/13/1874927/calif-students-find-palin-contract.html#ixzz0l6dDz5MY

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Sarah Palin Avoids Traditional Prep for 2012 Run

Posted by Brian Montopoli

Sarah Palin may be keeping in the public eye, but behind the scenes she isn't keeping up with her rivals when it comes to laying the groundwork for a potential 2012 presidential run: Palin has largely avoided recruiting the fundraisers that have traditionally been necessary for a serious run at the White House.

That isn't to say she hasn't stayed involved in politics: Palin last week stumped for her former running mate John McCain, and she has continued to weigh in on issues on her Facebook page. She has also unveiled a so-called "target list" of vulnerable Democrats her political action committee is looking to defeat in November and made regular appearances as a contributor on Fox News.

But while potential GOP primary rivals Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty work behind the scenes to garner institutional support from within the Republican Party, Palin has opted to focus largely on other affairs, including her planned television show, "Sarah Palin's Alaska."(She is also hosting a Fox News special Thursday night called "Real American Stories."

Romney is currently on what amounts to a sort of warm-up presidential run, selling his new book at appearances around the country. The latest stop: Iowa, traditionally the first state on the primary and caucus calendar, where he hosted a fundraiser for the state Republican Party and met with the state GOP chairman.

Pawlenty, the governor of Minnesota, has been on the road more than one of every three days during the state's latest legislative session, according to Minnesota Public Radio. Most of the trips have been for political purposes, including fundraising and speeches criticizing the Obama administration.

Palin, by contrast, has largely opted to give paid speeches and has sought the mantle of the Tea Party movement, with which the GOP continues to have an uneasy relationship. She made news Tuesday when a group demanded to know how much she was being paid for a planned speech at California State University.

Palin's inner circle remains small and notably devoid of representatives of establishment Washington Republicanism, with the exception of Fred Malek, who was the finance chairman of John McCain's 2008 campaign. Her apparent new press contact, Doug McMarlin, is a partner at a consulting firm based in Ohio who is not as plugged into the Washington media scene as the communications directors for Romney and Pawlenty.

This isn't to say the Palin isn't planning a run -- or even, in an unconventional way, positioning herself for one, potentially on the backs of the Tea Party protesters who have been the most energized segment of the American electorate for the past year.

But at this point she has very little institutional support among Republicans, and that may not bode well for a run at the White House. In 2000, John McCain ran for the White House as a GOP outsider and was ultimately defeated by the establishment candidate, George W. Bush. When he decided to run in 2008, McCain determined that he could not win without winning over the establishment -- and he promptly set out to do so.

As the race for the Republican 2012 presidential nomination heats up, keep an eye on Palin to see whether she makes the same calculation.

Palin Crossed Border For Canadian Health Care

Sam Stein – Mon Mar 8, 12:26 pm ET

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin -- who has gone to great lengths to hype the supposed dangers of a big government takeover of American health care -- admitted over the weekend that she used to get her treatment in Canada's single-payer system.

"We used to hustle over the border for health care we received in Canada," Palin said in her first Canadian appearance since stepping down as governor of Alaska. "And I think now, isn't that ironic?"

The irony, one guesses, is that Palin now views Canada's health care system as revolting: with its government-run administration and 'death-panel'-like rationing. Clearly, however, she and her family once found it more alluring than, at the very least, the coverage available in rural Alaska. Up to the age of six, Palin lived in a remote town near the closest Canadian city, Whitehorse.

Officials at several hospitals in that area declined to give out information on patient visits.

Colbert: "Sarah Palin Is A F--king Retard" (VIDEO)

Using Sarah Palin's defense of Rush Limbaugh against her, last night Stephen Colbert proudly pronounced that "Sarah Palin is a f--king retard."

After mocking Palin's speech at the Tea Party Convention (taking the obligatory jabs at the notes on her hand) Colbert moved on to Palin's reaction to Rahm Emanuel's use of the word "retard." Palin not only called for his Emanuel's firing, but also defended Rush Limbaugh's use of the word, deeming it acceptable because it was satire.

After playing the clip of Limbaugh's "subtle" satire, Colbert jumped on the opportunity that his own satirical show presented. An opportunity to call Palin a "f--king retard." Colbert added that her reasoning also explained the note on her other hand: "Retard = sometimes funny."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/09/colbert-sarah-palin-is-a_n_454744.html

Sarah Palin Hand Notes Earn Criticism

By Meena Kar
Nashville, Feb 9, (THAINDIAN NEWS)

The former governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin, who was the candidate for vice-presidential race has come under the limelight, after making a speech during the National Tea Party Convention, on Saturday. As per the reports, the veteran Republican, who had mocked President Barack Obama for his dependence on teleprompter scripted the main points of her Tea Party speech on hand. It has been reported that Sarah Palin, who presented a brilliant speech to motivate people referred to her hand notes so that she does not forget the main issues that she needs to highlight on the occasion.

Reports indicate that people who had gathered to listen Sarah Palin’s speech had not noticed that she had jotted down some notes on her hand. It has been reported that some media representatives noticed this brilliant act of the politician and snapped photographs. When they zoomed the images, they had found some words like, “Lift Americans Spirits”, “Tax”, “Budget Cuts” and “Energy” were written on her palm. The news that Sarah Palin had scripted the major highlights of her speech on hand, once again indicated her as an ‘unorganized’ politician, who is not sure of what she needs to say, when she addresses her countrymen in a meeting.

Sarah Palin is one of the most prominent Republican politicians of the country and it is quite surprising that she used notes while addressing people in a meeting. Though the reports that Sarah Palin referred to hand notes in the Tea Party Convention speech has gained huge attention, no one has yet made any comment on this issue. Sarah Palin also has not responded to this news.