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Anne Kilkenny · On Palin

By Anne Kilkenny
> annekilkenny@hotmail.com
> August 31, 2008
>
>
> ABOUT SARAH PALIN
>
> I am a resident of Wasilla, Alaska. I have known Sarah since 1992. Everyone
> here knows Sarah, so it is nothing special to say we are on a first-name
> basis. Our children have attended the same schools. Her father was my
> child's favorite substitute teacher. I also am on a first name basis with
> her parents and mother-in-law. I attended more City Council meetings during
> her administration than about 99% of the residents of the city.
>
> She is enormously popular; in every way she's like the most popular girl in
> middle school. Even men who think she is a poor choice and won't vote for
> her can't quit smiling when talking about her because she is a "babe".
>
> It is astonishing and almost scary how well she can keep a secret. She kept
> her most recent pregnancy a secret from her children and parents for seven
> months.
>
> She is "pro-life". She recently gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby. There
> is no cover-up involved, here; Trig is her baby.
>
> She is energetic and hardworking. She regularly worked out at the gym.
>
> She is savvy. She doesn't take positions; she just "puts things out there"
> and if they prove to be popular, then she takes credit.
>
> Her husband works a union job on the North Slope for BP and is a champion
> snowmobile racer. Todd Palin's kind of job is highly sought-after because
> of the schedule and high pay. He arranges his work schedule so he can fish
> for salmon in Bristol Bay for a month or so in summer, but by no stretch of
> the imagination is fishing their major source of income. Nor has her
> life-style ever been anything like that of native Alaskans.
>
> Sarah and her whole family are avid hunters.
>
> She's smart.
>
> Her experience is as mayor of a city with a population of about 5,000 (at
> the time), and less than 2 years as governor of a state with about 670,000
> residents.
>
> During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running this
> small city was turned over to an administrator. She had been pushed to hire
> this administrator by party power-brokers after she had gotten herself into
> some trouble over precipitous firings which had given rise to a recall
> campaign.
>
> Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative". During her 6 years
> as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over 33%. During
> those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the City increased by
> 38%. This was during a period of low inflation (1996-2002). She reduced
> progressive property taxes and increased a regressive sales tax which taxed
> even food. The tax cuts that she promoted benefited large corporate
> property owners way more than they benefited residents.
>
> The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration
> weren't enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowed money
> was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it with
> indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage the voters
> to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said she supported?
> The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or a new library? No. $1m
> for a park. $15m-plus for construction of a multi-use sports complex which
> she rushed through to build on a piece of property that the City didn't
> even have clear title to, that was still in litigation 7 yrs later--to the
> delight of the lawyers involved! The sports complex itself is a nice
> addition to the community but a huge money pit, not the profit-generator
> she claimed it would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5m for road
> projects that could have been done in 5-7 yrs without any borrowing.
>
> While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her office redecorated
> more than once.
>
> These are small numbers, but Wasilla is a very small city.
>
> As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus in
> Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will make us
> energy independent and increase efficiency, as Governor she proposed
> distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state.
>
> In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she recommended
> that the state borrow/bond for road projects, even while she proposed
> distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today's surplus, borrow for
> needs.
>
> She's not very tolerant of divergent opinions or open to outside ideas or
> compromise. As Mayor, she fought ideas that weren't generated by her or her
> staff. Ideas weren't evaluated on their merits, but on the basis of who
> proposed them.
>
> While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected
> City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from the
> library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents rallied to the
> defense of the City Librarian and against Palin's attempt at out-and-out
> censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter.
> People who fought her attempt to oust the Librarian are on her enemies list
> to this day.
>
> Sarah complained about the "old boy's club" when she first ran for Mayor,
> so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of "old boys". Palin fired most of
> the experienced staff she inherited. At the City and as Governor she hired
> or elevated new, inexperienced, obscure people, creating a staff totally
> dependent on her for their jobs and eternally grateful and fiercely
> loyal--loyal to the point of abusing their power to further her personal
> agenda, as she has acknowledged happened in the case of pressuring the
> State's top cop (see below).
>
> As Mayor, Sarah fired Wasilla's Police Chief because he "intimidated" her,
> she told the press. As Governor, her recent firing of Alaska's top cop has
> the ring of familiarity about it. He served at her pleasure and she had
> every legal right to fire him, but it's pretty clear that an important
> factor in her decision to fire him was because he wouldn't fire her
> sister's ex-husband, a State Trooper. Under investigation for abuse of
> power, she has had to admit that more than 2 dozen contacts were made
> between her staff and family to the person that she later fired, pressuring
> him to fire her ex-brother-in-law. She tried to replace the man she fired
> with a man who she knew had been reprimanded for sexual harassment; when
> this caused a public furor, she withdrew her support.
>
> She has bitten the hand of every person who extended theirs to her in help.
> The City Council person who personally escorted her around town introducing
> her to voters when she first ran for Wasilla City Council became one of her
> first targets when she was later elected Mayor. She abruptly fired her
> loyal City Administrator; even people who didn't like the guy were stunned
> by this ruthlessness.
>
> Fear of retribution has kept all of these people from saying anything
> publicly about her.
>
> When then-Governor Murkowski was handing out political plums, Sarah got the
> best, Chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: one of the
> few jobs not in Juneau and one of the best paid. She had no background in
> oil & gas issues. Within months of scoring this great job which paid
> $122,400/yr, she was complaining in the press about the high salary. I was
> told that she hated that job: the commute, the structured hours, the work.
> Sarah became aware that a member of this Commission (who was also the State
> Chair of the Republican Party) engaged in unethical behavior on the job. In
> a gutsy move which some undoubtedly cautioned her could be political
> suicide, Sarah solved all her problems in one fell swoop: got out of the
> job she hated and garnered gobs of media attention as the patron saint of
> ethics and as a gutsy fighter against the "old boys' club" when she
> dramatically quit, exposing this man's ethics violations (for which he was
> fined).
>
> As Mayor, she had her hand stuck out as far as anyone for pork from Senator
> Ted Stevens. Lately, she has castigated his pork-barrel politics and
> publicly humiliated him. She only opposed the "bridge to nowhere" after it
> became clear that it would be unwise not to.
>
> As Governor, she gave the Legislature no direction and budget guidelines,
> then made a big grandstand display of line-item vetoing projects, calling
> them pork. Public outcry and further legislative action restored most of
> these projects -- which had been vetoed simply because she was not aware of
> their importance -- but with the unobservant she had gained a reputation as
> "anti-pork".
>
> She is solidly Republican: no political maverick. The State party leaders
> hate her because she has bit them in the back and humiliated them. Other
> members of the party object to her self-description as a fiscal
> conservative.
>
> Around Wasilla there are people who went to high school with Sarah. They
> call her "Sarah Barracuda" because of her unbridled ambition and predatory
> ruthlessness. Before she became so powerful, very ugly stories circulated
> around town about shenanigans she pulled to be made point guard on the high
> school basketball team. When Sarah's mother-in-law, a highly respected
> member of the community and experienced manager, ran for Mayor, Sarah
> refused to endorse her.
>
> As Governor, she stepped outside of the box and put together of package of
> legislation known as "AGIA" that forced the oil companies to march to the
> beat of her drum.
>
> Like most Alaskans, she favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife
> Refuge. She has questioned if the loss of sea ice is linked to global
> warming. She campaigned "as a private citizen" against a state initiative
> that would have either a) protected salmon streams from pollution from
> mines, or b) tied up in the courts all mining in the state (depending on
> who you listen to). She has pushed the State's lawsuit against the Dept. of
> the Interior's decision to list polar bears as threatened species.
>
> McCain is the oldest person to ever run for President; Sarah will be a
> heartbeat away from being President.
>
> There has to be literally millions of Americans who are more knowledgeable
> and experienced than she.
>
> However, there are a lot of people who have underestimated her and are
> regretting it.
>
> CLAIM vs. FACT:
> Hockey mom: True for a few years.
> PTA mom: True years ago when her first-born was in elementary
> school, not since.
> NRA supporter: Absolutely true.
> Social conservative: Mixed. Opposes gay marriage, BUT vetoed a bill
> that would have denied benefits to employees in same-sex
> relationships (said she did this because it was unconstitutional).
> Pro-creationism: Mixed. Supports it, BUT did nothing as Governor to
> promote it.
> Pro-life: Mixed. Knowingly gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby BUT
> declined to call a special legislative session on some pro-life
> legislation.
> Experienced: Some high schools have more students than Wasilla has
> residents. Many cities have more residents than the state of Alaska.
> No legislative experience other than City Council. Little hands-on
> supervisory or managerial experience; needed help of a city
> administrator to run town of about 5,000
> Political maverick: Not at all.
> Gutsy: Absolutely!
> Open & transparent: ??? Good at keeping secrets. Not good at
> explaining actions.
> Has a developed philosophy of public policy: No.
> A "Greenie": No. Turned Wasilla into a wasteland of big box stores
> and disconnected parking lots. Is pro-drilling off-shore and in ANWR.
> Fiscal conservative: Not by my definition!
> Pro-infrastructure: No. Promoted a sports complex and park in a city
> without a sewage treatment plant or storm drainage system. Built
> streets to early 20th century standards.
> Pro-tax relief: Lowered taxes for businesses, increased tax burden
> on residents.
> Pro-small government: No. Oversaw greatest expansion of city
> government in Wasilla's history.
> Pro-labor/pro-union: No. Just because her husband works union
> doesn't make her pro-labor. I have seen nothing to support any claim
> that she is pro-labor/pro-union.
>
>
>
> WHY AM I WRITING THIS?
>
> First, I have long believed in the importance of being an informed voter. I
> am a voter registrar For 10 years I put on student voting programs in the
> schools. If you google my name (Anne Kilkenny + Alaska), you will find
> references to my participation in local government, education, and
> PTA/parent organizations.
>
> Secondly, I've always operated in the belief that "Bad things happen when
> good people stay silent". Few people know as much as I do because few have
> gone to as many City Council meetings.
>
> Third, I am just a housewife. I don't have a job she can bump me out of. I
> don't belong to any organization that she can hurt. But, I am no fool; she
> is immensely popular here, and it is likely that this will cost me somehow
> in the future: that's life.
>
> Fourth, she has hated me since back in 1996, when I was one of the 100 or
> so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's attempt
> at censorship.
>
> Fifth, I looked around and realized that everybody else was afraid to say
> anything because they were somehow vulnerable.
>
> CAVEATS:
>
> I am not a statistician. I developed the numbers for the increase in
> spending & taxation 2 years ago (when Palin was running for Governor) from
> information supplied to me by the Finance Director of the City of Wasilla,
> and I can't recall exactly what I adjusted for: did I adjust for inflation?
> for population increases? Right now, it is impossible for a private person
> to get any info out of City Hall--they are swamped. So I can't verify my
> numbers.
>
> You may have noticed that there are various numbers circulating for the
> population of Wasilla, ranging from my "about 5,000", up to 9,000. The day
> Palin's selection was announced a city official told me that the current
> population is about 7,000. The official 2000 census count was 5,460. I have
> used about 5,000 because Palin was Mayor from 1996 to 2002, and the city
> was growing rapidly in the mid-90's.
>
> Anne Kilkenny
> annekilkenny@hotmail.com
> August 31, 2008
>

Guest

Anne must be one of the good old boy advocates, in Alaska. Common we all know about small town gossip, you didn't think Palin got where she is without ticking someone off.
Time wrote an article on Palin. I believe that Time has a bit more credibility than an Anne Kilkenny that no one has ever heard of before. Here is the Time article:
John McCain needs to persuade swing voters that he's willing to take on the Republican establishment. He needs to persuade conservatives that he isn't squishy about social issues. And he needs to close the gender gap. When you think about it, the real surprise about Sarah Palin's selection as his running mate is that it's such a surprise.

Palin may be an obscure 44-year-old first-term governor and mother of five from tiny Wasilla, Alaska, but in many ways she reinforces John McCain's narrative of a maverick conservative crusader. She's risen to power by battling corruption in her own state's Republican establishment, exposing misconduct by the state GOP chairman and challenging the incumbent GOP governor. She's a committed Christian who's pro-life in practice as well as in theory; she recently gave birth to a son that she knew would have Down Syndrome.

But Palin can help McCain through biography as well as resume. She'll be the first woman on a Republican ticket, which the campaign is surely hoping will appeal to Hillary Clinton voters and help reduce Barack Obama's advantage among women. She's a fresh face to counteract Obama's message of change, and she's about as far outside the Beltway as you can get. A child of the middle class with a friendly face and big hair, she is so affable that she once won Miss Congeniality in a beauty pageant. Her son is about to deploy to Iraq. She's an ice fisherman, a moose hunter, a small business owner and a lifetime NRA member. And she shelved her state's pork-laden Bridge to Nowhere that McCain has ridiculed on the trail.

One more point in her favor: In the topsy-turvy election of 2008, the Last Frontier is actually a battleground state — and Palin is Alaska's most popular politician.

There are certainly risks to the choice. Palin's presence will make it awkward for McCain to harp on Obama's inexperience, much less play that attack-dog role herself. She's only served as governor one month longer than Obama's been running for president, and she's argued that her youth helped her clean out corruption in Juneau, echoing an Obama talking point. "The age issue, I think, was more significant in my career than the gender issue; your resume isn't as fat as your opponent's, that kind of thing," Palin told TIME last month. "I don't have 30 years of political experience under my belt but that's a good thing. I've never been part of a good-ol'-boys club."

A journalism major from the University of Idaho, Palin started her political career in 1992 as a Wasilla city councilor. She was elected to the first of her two terms as mayor in 1996, and earned a reputation as "Sarah Barracuda" -- also her nickname as a feisty point guard on her high school basketball team -- for taking on entrenched bureaucrats. After running a strong race for lieutenant governor as an unknown in 2002, she made her mark on Alaska politics as a commissioner of a state oil and gas commission, when she tried to expose GOP officials with improper ties to the industry, and eventually resigned in 2004 after her complaints were ignored.

Palin challenged Governor Frank Murkowski in the Republican primary, and crushed the incumbent on a platform of change and reform. She then defeated the formidable former governor Tony Knowles in the general. But it's a long leap from Juneau to the White House. It's not clear what Palin thinks about foreign policy or many other national issues, though she has criticized the lack of a long-term plan for Iraq. And the top consideration for any candidate for the number-two job is readiness for the number-one job, an issue that may weigh more on voters' minds when the potential number one has just turned 72 years old.

Meanwhile, Palin's strong support for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will contrast with McCain's muted opposition; she's said she expects McCain to change his mind on the issue, which will create an awkward dynamic no matter what he does. She also surprised Alaska's conservatives by vetoing a bill that would have denied state benefits to same-sex couples (though that might help her appeal to less socially conservative independents). Her profile as a good government crusader may not be such an easy sell, either. She was endorsed in an ad by Senator Ted Stevens, who is now under indictment in a Republican corruption scandal. And she's already embroiled in a mini-scandal that's under investigation by the state senate; Palin's former public safety director has claimed he was fired because he refused to fire a state trooper who was involved in a custody dispute with her sister.

Still, Palin boasts an 80% approval rating. She lived the first three months of her life in Idaho, but Alaskans clearly see this self-described "hockey mom" as one of them, a former Miss Wasilla who worked as a TV sports announcer and helping to run a commercial fishing business before entering politics. Her husband, Todd Palin, is part native Eskimo who works in the oil fields in addition to his fishing business, and is also a champion snowmobiler known in Alaska as the First Dude. In a state where Big Oil is king, Palin has been a staunch drilling supporter while maintaining her independence from the industry. And she impressed a lot of conservative Christians when she carried her son Trig to term despite his genetic tests indicating Down Syndrome. "I'm looking at him right now, and I see perfection," she said after returning to work.

Politically, in a year where the Republican brand is so tarnished, Palin will help McCain make the case that he's a different kind of Republican. It might be his best shot to be America's First Dude.

Walmart Woman

A comedy show as a source of political decision making? Come on, that's like getting your political insight from the MTV Video Awards show.
Palin rules the media roost right now, Obama is scrambling to recover. How the Obama campaign handles Palin will speak volumes to his ability to be the leader of the United States of America. The far left wing nut media and blogophobiacs aren't helping him with their overboard freak show. If Palin fails it will be by her own sword at the debates and valid media interviews. Some how I don't think that is going to happen.

Guest

The comedy show was showing clips of people saying one thing one time and a totally different thing another time.
I think the real Palin will come out in the debates. She may be sharp, but she is not presidential material - which is what we have to look at if we elect McCain. This is the woman who will be the PResident of the United States if McCain dies. How absurd is that? Although, I would prefer her over Bush, and I'm sure most would, it still doesn't mean she is ready to lead our country. Let's be real. Her mayoral time was spent in a town the size of Edgewater with a budget twice the size and a shitload of earmarks coming in. How hard can that be? AND she had an experienced city administrator to run the show.
Her view of the environment and animal protection is disgusting. How can she be so pro-life and make sport of shooting defenseless animals from a plane?
McCain isn't the brightest crayon in the box, but he was smart to listen to the advisors regarding Palin. I just wonder how long its going to take him to realize that the voters aren't voting for him, they are voting for Palin.

Guest

I just wonder how long its going to take him to realize that the voters aren't voting for him, they are voting for Palin.
Hopefully about November 6th

Thinking

Corrupt to slick Chicago politician or war hero? Another good old boy or a woman hellcat, just a heart beat away? I don't know, you tell me.

think for a change

I am worried that the same idiots who elected Bush, not just for one term but for two terms-- EIGHT YEARS-- will succumb to the rah rah tactics that are reminiscent of a Miss American Pageant. I can't help but think an advertisng agency picked Palin-- not anyone who gives a hoot about the country. Its all show, show, show. Don't let the Republicans control our economy for another day! Open your ears, your eyes, use your inner common sense. Big business does not want a Democrat to step in and stop their profiteering. They will do anything to keep that from happening, even parading a "cutie" who speaks well, can stomp her foot and act tough and give a good speech. Men and women who will not see where our country has been led and will continue to be led if the republicans stay in office, have their heads in the sand. McCain looks like a fool riding on her velvet train. Don't give credit where credit isn't due. She is not who she seems.

Do I trust my future to Obama and Biden? You bet I do. They speak clearly, honestly and with true regard for all.

Walmart Woman

As long as those back room deals remain secret, it's the way things are done back East in towns like Chicago, New York and Washington DC.
Palin is the first grassroots candidate for the White House since Harry Truman.

Guest · We have more than two options

Vote Ron Paul!

Forget about the name calling Dems and the ‘cutie’ Repubs. Vote for a REAL change. A change backed by the Constitution of the United States of America.

Vote Ron Paul!

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