Friday, September 19, 2008

Where Are Sarah Palin's Tax Returns?

Where Are Sarah Palin's Tax Returns?
Vice Presidential Candidate Has Yet to Share Her Filings
By JUSTIN ROOD and MARCUS BARAM- ABC News

As election day comes ever nearer, Democrats and open-government advocates are pressing for the GOP vice presidential candidate to release her tax filings, a campaign tradition that extends at least to the post-Watergate era.

Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin has to date declined to share her tax returns, becoming part of an ever-more-select historical group of candidates who waited until this late in a campaign year to release their filings.

Instead, Palin has to date declined to share the documents, becoming part of an ever-more-select historical group of candidates who waited until this late in a campaign year to release their tax filings.

Since 1976, every major-party presidential and vice-presidential candidate has provided that information to the public, according to an analysis by ABC News. Until Palin, only three hopefuls have held onto their tax returns this late:

In 1984, George H.W. Bush, then the Republican presidential candidate, held onto his tax returns until Oct. 3. Bush said he had set up "the biggest blind trust possible" to prevent conflicts of interest, and said he was concerned releasing information on the trust's holdings would violate its terms. He relented under pressure and after receiving assurances from government ethics experts.

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Where Are Sarah Palin's Tax Returns?

McCain Campaign Helps Todd Palin Refuse Subpeona

CNN:Todd Palin Refuses To Testify

Sarah Palin's Foreign Policy Credentials

The Bush/McCain/Palin contempt for subpoenas and the rule of law

The Bush/McCain/Palin contempt for subpoenas and the rule of law
Friday Sept. 19 - Salon.com

Bill O'Reilly, Wednesday night, calling for the arrest of Gawker's owners and managers:

The website knows the law, and says "you know -- I'm going to do it anyway. I dare you to come get me."

Associated Press today, on Todd Palin's refusal to comply with the Alaska State Senate's subpoena:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's husband has refused to testify in the investigation of his wife's alleged abuse of power, and key lawmakers said Thursday that uncooperative witnesses are effectively sidetracking the probe until after Election Day.

Todd Palin, who participates in state business in person or by e-mail, was among 13 people subpoenaed by the Alaska Legislature. Palin's lawyer sent a letter to the lead investigator saying Palin objected to the probe and would not appear to testify on Friday. . . .

Ignoring a legislative subpoena is punishable by a fine up to $500 and up to six months in jail under Alaska law. But courts are reluctant to intervene in legislative matters and the full Legislature must be in session to bring contempt charges, Wielechowski said. The Legislature is not scheduled to convene until January.

It is illegal in the State of Alaska to fail to comply with legislative subpoenas. But Todd Palin has announced he will do exactly that which the law prohibits for one simple reason -- because nothing can be done about it until after the election, and even then, it's unlikely much will be done to punish him for breaking the law. Sarah Palin has similarly ordered all of her aides to refuse to comply with these subpoenas even though doing so is illegal, because she, too, doubts there will be consequences for this illegal behavior. Or, as Bill O'Reilly put it in his righteous Rule of Law tirade: "I'm going to do it anyway. I dare you to come get me."

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The Bush/McCain/Palin contempt for subpoenas and the rule of law

The Aussie View of Sarah Palin

The Aussie View of Sarah Palin
To those who live Down Under, Palin is Middle America incarnate — for better and for worse.
September 19, 2008 by Arthur Chrenkoff

Native critics of Australia’s alleged foreign policy subservience to America, as well as of the prevalence and popularity of American popular culture, often refer to Australia in contempt and exasperation as the 51st state. That’s not quite accurate; should Australia join the United States (of Oceania? if you excuse the Orwellian undertone), she would add six new states to the Great Republic. Throw in Puerto Rico, and Obama would actually get his 57 states.

There’s no prospect of that (though I can’t speak for Puerto Rico). Australians are happy how and where they are, equal but separate: conflicted friends, allies and trading partners. I would hope that an average Australian knows more about America than an average Brit (though I can’t guarantee that he or she would necessarily better like what they know). Certainly a lot of Australians, particularly the globe-trotting Generation Xs and Ys, have “done” the East and West Coasts and had their pictures taken with the Statue of Liberty or the Hollywood sign in the background. However, many parts of the U.S. still remain off the beaten track and off the mental map for us here Down Under...

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The Aussie View of Sarah Palin

Australia: Palin's husband will not testify

Palin's husband will not testify
From correspondents in Anchorage
September 19, 2008
Article from: Agence France-Presse

THE husband of the US Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is refusing to comply with a subpoena issued in an abuse of power probe of his wife, the family's lawyer says.
Todd Palin, father of five children with John McCain's running mate, was among 13 people ordered to testify in the potentially explosive "Troopergate" investigation of his wife, who is the Alaska governor.

In a letter to independent investigator Stephen Branchflower, lawyer Thomas van Flein described the legislature's investigation into whether Palin improperly removed a commissioner for refusing to fire a state trooper who was her former brother-in-law as politically biased and lacking legal authority.

"We maintain our general objections that the legislative council investigation, besides being pursued for partisan purposes, is being conducted in violation of all accepted norms of due process," Mr van Flein wrote.

He also argued that the subpoena was "unduly burdensome" because of Todd Palin's travel schedule with his wife ahead of the election.

The probe is being overseen by the head of the Alaska state Senate judiciary committee, who is a Democrat.

But shortly after Governor Palin was tapped to join John McCain's ticket she called for a formal review of her actions by the Alaska Personnel Board, a panel which is under her authority...

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Palin's husband will not testify