Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
From NBC's Mark Murray and Alex Beinstein
Below are some more passages from Todd Purdum's critical Vanity Fair piece on Sarah Palin:
Palin
is unlike any other national figure in modern American life—neither Anna Nicole Smith nor Margaret Chase Smith but a phenomenon all her own. The clouds of tabloid conflict and controversy that swirl around her and her extended clan—the surprise pregnancies, the two-bit blood feuds, the tawdry in-laws and common-law kin caught selling drugs or poaching game—give her family a singular status in the rogues’ gallery of political relatives. By comparison, Billy Carter, Donald Nixon, and Roger Clinton seem like avatars of circumspection. Palin’s life has sometimes played out like an unholy amalgam of Desperate Housewives and Northern Exposure...
The consensus is that Palin’s rollout, and even her first television interview, with ABC’s Charles Gibson, conducted after an awkward two-week press blackout to allow for intensive cramming at her home in Wasilla, went more or less fine, though it had its embarrassing moments (“You can’t blink,” Palin said, when Gibson asked if she’d hesitated to accept McCain’s offer) and was much parodied. At least one savvy politician—Barack Obama—believed Palin would never have time to get up to speed. He told his aides that it had taken him four months to learn how to be a national candidate, and added, “I don’t care how talented she is, this is really a leap.”...
None of McCain’s still-loyal soldiers will say negative things about Palin on the record. Even thinking such thoughts privately is painful for them, because there is ultimately no way to read McCain’s selection of Palin as reflecting anything other than an appalling egotism, heedlessness, and lack of judgment in a man whose courage, tenacity, and character they have extravagantly admired—and as reflecting, too, an unsettling willingness on their own part to aid and abet him. They all know that if their candidate—a 72-year-old cancer survivor—had won the presidency, the vice-presidency would be in the hands of a woman who lacked the knowledge, the preparation, the aptitude, and the temperament for the job.
From NBC's Mark Murray
On tonight's "Late Show with David Letterman," comedian David Letterman offers a full apology to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her family for the joke he told last week -- when he said that Yankees slugger had knocked up Palin's daughter.
"I told a bad joke. I told a joke that was beyond flawed, and my intent is completely meaningless compared to the perception," he says, according to a partial transcript of tonight's taped broadcast. "And since it was a joke I told, I feel that I need to do the right thing here and apologize for having told that joke."
Letterman continues, "So I would like to apologize, especially to the two daughters involved, Bristol and Willow, and also to the governor and her family and everybody else who was outraged by the joke. I'm sorry about it and I'll try to do better in the future. Thank you very much."
Below are Letterman's full remarks...
CONTINUED >>
From MSNBC's Norah O'Donnell
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her husband Todd have just put out scathing statements directed at comedian David Letterman.
In the late-night host's, "Top 10," he joked about Palin's visit to watch the Yankees and said Palin's daughter got "knocked up" by Alex Rodriguez.
Video: David Letterman takes a shot at the governor of Alaska, who got a chance to respond later in the week as a guest on John Ziegler's radio show. MSNBC's Contessa Brewer talks to Ziegler about the feud in a contentious interview.The governor's spokeswoman, Meg Stapleton, sent these two statements, the first from Todd: "Any 'jokes' about raping my 14-year-old are despicable. Alaskans know it and I believe the rest of the world knows it, too."
The next was from the governor: "Concerning Letterman's comments about my young daughter (and I doubt he'd ever dare make such comments about anyone else's daughter): 'Laughter incited by sexually-perverted comments made by a 62-year-old male celebrity aimed at a 14-year-old girl is not only disgusting, but it reminds us some Hollywood/NY entertainers have a long way to go in understanding what the rest of America understands -- that acceptance of inappropriate sexual comments about an underage girl, who could be anyone's daughter, contributes to the atrociously high rate of sexual exploitation of minors by older men who use and abuse others.'"
From NBC's Norah O'Donnell and Mark Murray
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is now back on again for tonight's big Republican fundraising dinner, according to Republican sources.
"Our understanding is she will be attending and will sit at Sen. Cornyn's table," National Republican Senatorial Committee communications director Brian Walsh told NBC News.
Another GOP source adds, "She's coming, not speaking… She will be recognized at the event."
Also to be in attendance at tonight's dinner, per a Republican source: GOP Virginia gubernatorial nominee Bob McDonnell.
“Sarah Palin’s on-again, off-again appearance at Monday night’s gala GOP fundraising dinner is off — again,” Politico’s Martin writes. “After being invited — for a second time — to speak to the annual joint fundraiser for the National Republican Congressional Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Palin was told abruptly Saturday night that she would not be allowed to address the thousands of Republicans there after all. The Alaska governor may now skip the dinner altogether, and her allies are miffed at what they see as a slight from the congressional wing of the Republican Party.”
Palin, the Yankee fan?
"Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, whose presidential aspirations collapsed in humiliating defeat in Florida last year, and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the failed GOP veep pick, enjoyed a game at Yankee Stadium on Sunday," the
New York Daily News says. "The GOP political duo and their spouses exchanged laughs, smiles and small talk as they watched the Yanks take on Tampa Bay. At one point, Giuliani snapped a photo of his wife, Judith, with Alaska's First Couple."
Palin, meanwhile, “drew a crowd of 20,000, who watched her lead a parade through downtown Auburn and sign a proclamation honoring Seward," The Hill writes. But not all of them were fans. They were just there for the spectacle, the
AP says. "Local resident Chris Stone, with his wife and three children, said he didn't care for Palin's politics but didn't want to miss the chance to see her in person. 'You can see by the turnout, she's become a personality and a historical figure,' said Stone, who voted for Obama. 'I know all these people aren't Republicans. This is a chance to see someone who has had a big impact on history.'"
From NBC's Mark Murray
Yet another seemingly bizarre
Sarah Palin story.
Politico's Martin reports that John Coale -- a wealthy Clinton donor, one-time Palin adviser, and husband to FOX's Greta Van Susteren -- urged Palin to use her PAC to help retire
Hillary Clinton's campaign debt.
Coale's "broader aim, say Palin camp insiders, was to help Palin develop a relationship with the former first family that he thought could bolster the polarizing governor’s standing with Democrats and independents."
But Palin's folks decided against it. "Palin was amenable to getting acquainted with the Clintons but was skeptical of using her PAC to help the former first lady. She expressed concern to aides about Coale’s request that weekend and a few days later directed Meg Stapleton, an Alaska-based campaign aide, to tell Coale that she would not help retire Clinton’s debt."
"Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin went on the attack Saturday, after Levi Johnston, the baby daddy of her first grandchild, revealed all sorts of family secrets on an episode of 'The Tyra Banks Show' to be aired Monday," the
New York Daily News writes. Some of the statements: From a Palin family rep: "It is unfortunate that Levi finds it more appealing to exploit his previous relationship with Bristol than to contribute to the well-being of the child... We're disappointed that Levi and his family, in a quest for fame, attention and fortune, are engaging in flat-out lies, gross exaggeration and even distortion of their relationship."
Video: Levi Johnson's appearance on the talk show may pose political hurdles for Palin.
On the show Levi says he's "pretty sure" Sarah Palin "probably knew" he and Bristol were intimate. He goes into detail complaining about Bristol, calling her "short" and not wanting him around. Levi's sister says they were snubbed the day the baby was born, not being allowed into the hospital, though the Palins' extended family was there. And his sister also said he was forced to go to the Republican National Convention, and that he wanted to go hunting. "It's time that we get our story out there," he said.
From MSNBC's Norah O'Donnell
Sarah Palin's dinner date with Republicans in Washington may be off, but she's still planning a political trip in two weeks to Indiana to attend a Right to Life fundraiser.
Her political travel is likely to raise new questions. Her spokeswoman said she would not commit to a Senate-House GOP dinner in June because she was focused on Alaska state business -- not politics.
On April 16, Palin will be attending the Vanderburgh County Right to Life dinner in Evansville, IN, as well as a breakfast the next day for S.M.I.L.E., a nonprofit organization for people with family members who have Down syndrome. Palin's spokeswoman, Meg Stapleton, said Palin will be taking a "36-hour vacation" to attend the events in Indiana. Palin's political action committee will pay for the travel.
Palin was replaced as the keynote speaker at the Republican dinner in Washington by Newt Gingrich. The event's organizers grew tired of waiting for her to commit to the party's big spring fundraising gala.
Stapleton said Palin would not agree to political events until after April 20, when the Alaska legislative session ends. "She is focused on Alaska," Stapleton said today.
And while Palin's camp claimed no hard feelings about being replaced by Gingrich, Stapleton said, "She probably would have said yes if they could have waited."
Stapleton could not explain why Palin would say yes to a political event in Indiana and not attend a political event in Washington. However, she did note that Palin wanted to honor her son Trigg, who has Down syndrome, at the S.M.I.L.E. event in Indiana.
It's possible there could be a huge increase in political travel by Palin after the legislative session in Alaska ends. "There are thousands of requests" for appearances across the country, Stapleton said.
From NBC's Mark Murray
In an Anchorage Daily News op-ed this weekend, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin outlines her criticisms of the Obama stimulus -- and why she's raising objections to some of the funds. (Hat tip: Ben Smith.)
Under federal law, I must certify that every stimulus dollar will create new jobs and stimulate the economy. I take that charge seriously. Accordingly, I've requested $514.4 million for capital projects that legitimately create new private sector jobs. Shovel-ready projects are certifiable because they put people to work and grow Alaska's private-sector economy.
Unfortunately, a disproportionate percentage of the federal package available to Alaska would increase government operations. It's a stretch to certify that more spending on more bureaucracy actually grows an economy.
When stimulus money runs out in two years, who will pay for the expanded government programs, when Alaska currently has a budget shortfall of over a billion dollars? My administration will not willingly and knowingly dig a hole for Alaskans to fill under this enormous, debt-ridden, Washington spending plan. That's why public discussion on budget increases must happen through open, transparent legislative hearings so everyone is aware of the cost.
From NBC's Mark Murray and Chuck Todd
If there was any doubt whom the Republican Party sees as its biggest fundraiser in the post-Bush era, this news should probably end it.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee and National Republican Congressional Committee today announced that Alaska Gov.
Sarah Palin will keynote their dinner in DC on June 8, which is the biggest fundraising event the GOP will be holding in 2009.
