10/10/08: Palin found Guilty of Abuse of Power

UPDATE: Article in TIME: What the Troopergate Report Really Says
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin abused her power in pushing for the firing of a state trooper once married to her sister and by allowing her husband to use the governor's office in a crusade against the officer, a legislative investigation found.

Specifically, it states Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.110 (a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.

UPDATE: Sarah Palin claimed today she did not break the law.
Dear Palin: The Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act IS Alaska Law. You DID break the law.

Of course, she doesn’t read newspapers, what are the chances she’s actually read the law? Heck, I’d be willing to bet she hasn’t even read the report.

Palin also claims that she and her family “feared” Trooper Wooten.
Branchflower, however, wrote that he doesn't believe the Palins were truly afraid of Wooten. She reduced her personal security detail, and she told Trooper Wheeler, who was part of her security detail, that she had no security concerns.

Doesn’t much sound like “fear” to me. Besides, she has been trying to get Wooten fired for years - these “transgressions” occurred long ago. Branchflower says it best: “I conclude that such claims of fear were not bona fide and were offered to provide cover for the Palins' real motivation: to get Trooper Wooten fired for personal family related reasons.”

Finally, she’s claiming that this was politically motivated by “Obama supporters”.
Hello? This abuse of power probe was initiated by the Alaska Legislative Council in July, BEFORE Obama or the rest of us in the lower 48+ Hawaii had even heard of Sarah Palin. The Legislative Council consists of 10 Republicans and 4 Democrats! Branchflower’s report was released Friday by a 12-0 vote of the Legislative Council, with EIGHT Republicans and FOUR Democrats voting; one Republican, Sen. John Cowdery, did not vote because – wait for it – he’s indicted for bribery and conspiracy!

So Palin, we know you’re not too smart (see earlier post for her grades), but surely you can do this math – this investigation was initiated and concluded by a majority of REPUBLICANS!

Besides the abuse of power finding, Branchflower made three other findings in his investigation of the so-called Troopergate matter:

• Palin's firing of her public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, in July was a lawful exercise of her powers but Monegan's refusal to fire Wooten played a role in his firing.

• A Wooten workers' compensation claim was properly handled by an Anchorage firm, Harbor Adjustment Service, working under contract to the state.

• The state attorney general's office "failed to substantially comply" with Branchflower's Aug. 6 request to Palin for e-mails about the case.

Here’s an international take on this report, from the BBC: Palin abused power, probe finds

The report said a family grudge was a likely factor in the dismissal

The running mate of US Republican presidential candidate John McCain has been found guilty of an abuse of power, according to a state legislature probe.

Alaska's Governor Sarah Palin was accused of sacking a senior state official over a family feud.

The report could have an impact on Republican hopes of winning next month's US presidential election.

"I find that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.110 (a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act," investigator Steve Branchflower concluded in the panel's 263-page report.
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Excerpts from the Branchflower report:

Governor Palin knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda, to wit: to get Trooper Michael Wooten fired. She had the authority and power to require Mr. Palin to cease contacting subordinates, but she failed to act.

Such impermissible and repeated contacts create conflicts of interests for subordinate employees who must choose to either please a superior or run the risk of facing that superior's displeasure and the possible consequences of such displeasure. This was one of the very reasons the Ethics Act was promulgated by the Legislature.

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Governor Palin has stated publicly that she and her family feared Trooper Wooten.
Branchflower, however, wrote that he doesn't believe the Palins were truly afraid of Wooten.

Yet the evidence presented has been inconsistent with such claims of fear. The testimony from Trooper Wheeler, who was part of her security detail from the start, was that shortly after elected to office, she ordered a substantial reduction in manpower in her personal protection detail ... an act that is inconsistent with a desire to avoid harm from Trooper Wooten or others.

...It is noteworthy that in almost every contact with the subordinate employees, Mr. Palin's comments were couched in terms of his desire to see Trooper Wooten fired for reasons that had nothing to do with fear. His comments were always couched in terms that he was a bad Trooper, that he was not a good recruiting image for the AST, that his discipline amounted to nothing more than a slap on the wrist, that nothing had happened to him following the administrative investigation, and so forth...

I conclude that such claims of fear were not bona fide and were offered to provide cover for the Palins' real motivation: to get Trooper Wooten fired for personal family related reasons.