Palin quits early, blames it on "A case of the Mondays".

[mongo]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/03/palin/index.html

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Gov. Sarah Palin announced Friday that she will step down as Alaska's chief executive by the end of the month. She will not seek election to a second gubernatorial term in 2010.
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin announces she's stepping down this month.http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/base_skins/baseplate/corner_wire_BL.gif


As the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, Palin had been considered one of the front-runners for the GOP nomination in 2012.
"People who know me know that besides faith and family, nothing's more important to me than our beloved Alaska," Palin said at an announcement from her home in Wasilla. "Serving her people is the greatest honor I could imagine."
Palin was elected governor in 2006. She was tapped as Arizona Sen. John McCain's vice presidential running mate last year.
Palin said she was transferring authority to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, who will be sworn in at the Governor's Picnic on July 26.
Palin added in a statement that she was "determined to take the right path for Alaska even though it is not the easiest path. ... Once I decided not to run for re-election, I also felt that to embrace the conventional lame duck status in this particular climate would just be another dose of politics as usual, something I campaigned against and will always oppose."
A Republican source close to her political team told CNN's John King that it was a "calculation" she made that "it was time to move on." The governor's "book deal and other issues" were "causing a lot of friction" in her home state, the source said, adding that he believes she is "mapping out a path to 2012."
Another source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Palin "thinks she has accomplished goals she has set forward. ... She sees what a positive influence she has had on people's lives from traveling the country in the last year."
Following Palin's announcement, the Democratic National Committee blasted what it called her "bizarre behavior."
"Either Sarah Palin is leaving the people of Alaska high and dry to pursue her long shot national political ambitions or she simply can't handle the job now that her popularity has dimmed and oil revenues are down," DNC spokesman Brad Woodhouse said.
"Either way, her decision to abandon her post and the people of Alaska who elected her continues a pattern of bizarre behavior that more than anything else may explain the decision she made today."
Republican strategist and CNN contributor Ed Rollins said, to a certain extent, Palin's announcement makes her look "terribly inept."
"I think everyone is shocked by this, and I think to a certain extent everyone is going to assume there's another story. You don't just quit with a year and a half to go. You certainly don't do this as a stepping stone to run for president. You finish the job that you're in, and obviously she's not doing that," he said.
"I think people are going to be very suspicious because of the timing. You don't quit on the Friday of a three-day holiday. If you are going to do this, you think it through, you give a good speech," Rollins said.
However, CNN Republican Strategist Mary Matalin said she thought the move was "really brilliant" on Palin's part, though she admitted she was surprised when she first heard the news.
"Her delivery was incredible, if you're a less charismatic person, you probably couldn't pull it off," Matalin said. "[Now] she will be freed up and liberated the way Mitt Romney is to raise money and get political chips by spending it and getting political capital. And she is still raising the kinds of crowds and money she always did."
Now, Matalin says, Palin must focus on "putting up with the conventional wisdom" that this was a bad move and travel the country to drum up support for a presidential run.
"She takes that target off her back with a good record to launch from," Matalin said.
When asked about whether it's possible Palin stepped down because of something negative we hadn't heard yet, Matalin referenced Palin's own words that investigators have dug through research in the ethics investigation.
"We presume if there was anything else we would know it by now," Matalin said.
In an interview last month with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, Palin said she was unsure about her re-election bid because she needed to focus on her state and her family.
"So, no decision yet on either 2010 or let alone 2012?" Blitzer asked.



"No decision that I'd want to announce today," Palin responded.



Palin catapulted on the national stage last August when McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, chose her as his running mate.

[BIG PIZZLE]

Weird.

[potaters]

I hope dat bitch runs in 2012. Shes fine azz hellz. Anythang is betta din dis clown we got now, yo.

[Satan]

Is it too early to cast my 2012 ballot for the ******?

[HAWK]

I don't see how quitting early can be spun into anything positive. She will always be labeled a quitter. Especially since she was only governor for 2 1/2 years.

[Mustard]

I guess that Letterman joke really upset her.

[BIG PIZZLE]

I don't see how quitting early can be spun into anything positive. She will always be labeled a quitter. Especially since she was only governor for 2 1/2 years.

But she used to be mayor of a city with 5000 people!!!

[Insomniac]

What the fuck is wrong with the Republican Party?

[Mustard]

If you can answer that question in under 1000 words, i hear you get a free pizza at Chuck E. Cheese's.

[BIG PIZZLE]

Sarah Palin.

[mongo]

would you like pepperoni or hawaiian?

[BIG PIZZLE]

She said that her staying governor would impede the progress of the state. Maybe they will finally learn that jesus didnt ride dinosaurs.

[Whiffleball]

http://i43.tinypic.com/xaqa81.jpg

[The Batman]

Good riddance. After reading that article in Vanity Fair about her, she shouldn't be governor much less president/vice president.

[freegood]

This is her fail resignation speech.

_OyjXE7OhSk


Does anyone still want to follow her?

[BIG PIZZLE]

Why would she imply that she's a lame duck governor? It's not really quitting but clearly her heart's not into it so it is a good decision for the state. She's either got some shit that's about to hit the fan or she's got her sights on something else. But she talks like a moron. Could you picture that in Berlin in front of thousands speaking for this country? In front of the United Nations? Or advising generals? Transition will be very smooth... lol, I guess they'll have to postpone the opening of the new gas station.

[Gary_Busey]

Every time I think of Palin, I think of that town hall meeting she had where she tried to sound like she knew shit about the technology behind oil refinement.

[Gary_Busey]

Found it! It's a classic.

hvUsdmqGYV8

[BIG PIZZLE]

Even if she's like a mindless figurehead, she isnt someone I would want to represent this country. But I cant vote so I guess it doesnt matter.

[Gary_Busey]

The whole "I'm from a rural area, we're real America, hooray Jesus" thing turned off so many voters.

[Stax]

Nothing would make me happier than Sarah Palin heading up the Republican ticket in 2012 (or even riding the VP spot again).

[BIG PIZZLE]

Found it! It's a classic.

hvUsdmqGYV8

She just said that they wouldnt be into export bans if the congress tried to do it because there is a great enough demand to support production. I would actually agree with her on that with regard to oil. But she she does sound like an idiot. She tends to ramble and stumble on her rambles. When she sticks to the script, she's pretty clean. It's either because "they" have told her to inject more folksyness or she's just naturally goofy that way. Because when she speaks and once she geits going, it's prety clean until she goes off into those anicdotes. When she gets into those, she loses the flow of her thoughts as she tries to get through them.

[Gary_Busey]

It's just the fact that she tries to sound like what she thinks an "expert" sounds like. I can decipher what she's saying, but her throwing that "molecule" line in there cracked me up.

[Morfin]

Watching that speech was painful. She said she loved her job, but then leaves it, to go in a "new direction" "on a different scale." She just rambled, spoke too quickly, and needed notes or a teleprompter.

There is no way that this person will ever be a contender for the nomination. She is Dan Quayle in a skirt.

[Gary_Busey]

Dan Quayle was a smart dude though.

[freegood]

Since we're bringing up clips, here's Jack Cafferty savaging Palin as pathetic.

L8__aXxXPVc

Mission accomplished, liberal media elite. Mission accomplished.

[Gary_Busey]

I love that one. The look of disgust on his face is priceless.

[Stax]

All I need to know about Sarah Palin is that she reads "all" the newspapers.

I don't think you can be asked a simpler question than "What newspapers did you read as governor" and she couldn't answer it without a prepped answer.

[Das Kahlua]

Could always be worse. You could have Joe Biden as VP.

[Gary_Busey]

Biden is infintely better than Palin.

[mongo]

Listening to Biden on opening day at Camden yards was lulzy.

[Gary_Busey]

Dare I say, Biden is more of an "everyday person" than Palin.

[Das Kahlua]

Biden is infintely better than Palin.

Right. That fucking moron Biden leaked the secret bunker that he would hide in in the event of a terrorist attack and they had to spend how many millions of dollars to build a new one; every time a microphone is in front of him, he puts his foot in his mouth like an idiot.

Palin certainly isn't going to blow anyone away with her intellect, but she is no where near as retarded as Biden is.

[Claydon]

I am pretty confused by this, and makes my paranoid mind think that there is more to this story.

[Das Kahlua]

Maybe she has a lover in Argentina, too.

[Gary_Busey]

Right. That fucking moron Biden leaked the secret bunker that he would hide in in the event of a terrorist attack and they had to spend how many millions of dollars to build a new one; every time a microphone is in front of him, he puts his foot in his mouth like an idiot.

Palin certainly isn't going to blow anyone away with her intellect, but she is no where near as retarded as Biden is.
I seriously can't believe you'd make this comparison. Biden knows more about the VP office than Palin knows about everything. She's a fucking idiot.

[freegood]

speculation...

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-07-03/did-a-scandal-sink-the-uss-palin/?cid=hp:mainpromo2
The suddenness of Sarah Palin’s resignation raises questions about whether a coming scandal caused her to leave office. Max Blumenthal looks at one possibility.

Plus: Read more of The Daily Beast's coverage of Palin's resignation and the GOP implosion.

CNN and other major news outlets have reported that Sarah Palin has abruptly resigned as governor of Alaska. The suddenness of her announcement raises the question about whether Palin resigned to avert a major scandal. One logical place to start looking is the affair that has Alaska political circles buzzing: an alleged scandal centered around a building contractor, Spenard Building Supplies, with close ties to Palin and her husband, Todd.

Many political observers in Alaska are fixated on rumors that federal investigators have been seizing paperwork from SBS in recent months, searching for evidence that Palin and her husband Todd steered lucrative contracts to the well-connected company in exchange for gifts like the construction of their home on pristine Lake Lucille in 2002. The home was built just two months before Palin began campaigning for governor, a job which would have provided her enhanced power to grant building contracts in the wide-open state.

SBS has close ties to the Palins. The company has not only sponsored Todd Palin's snowmobile team, according to the Village Voice's Wayne Barrett, it hired Sarah Palin to do a statewide television commercial in 2004.

Though Todd Palin told Fox News he built his Lake Lucille home with the help of a few "buddies," according to Barrett’s report, public records revealed that SBS supplied the materials for the house. While serving as mayor of Wasilla, Sarah Palin blocked an initiative that would have required the public filing of building permits—thus momentarily preventing the revelation of such suspicious information.

Just months before Palin left city hall to campaign for governor, she awarded a contract to SBS to help build the $13 million Wasilla Sports Complex. The most expensive building project in Wasilla history, the complex cost the city an additional $1.3 million in legal fees and threw it into severe long-term debt. For SBS, however, the bloated and bungled project was a cash cow.

Prior to her sudden announcement, Palin gave every indication that she intended to complete her tenure as governor.

On July 1, Palin met with Alaska Senator Mark Begich to discuss funding for the missile-defense systems that would be stationed in Alaska. In May, Palin initiated a plan to circumvent the state legislature by introducing a ballot measure that would ban minors from receiving abortions without parental consent. She vowed to be the first to sign the measure event though it would not be certified until August 2010.

In a press conference today, Palin blamed the media for her demise. "You are naïve if you don't see a full-court press on the national level, picking apart a good point guard," she declared, using a basketball metaphor to refer to the flood of critical stories published about her.

On July 1, CBS reported that a story authored by me and journalist David Neiwert for Salon.com in October 2008 about Palin's ties to a secessionist political party caused her deep personal distress, and provoked a rancorous series of exchanges with her campaign manager, Steve Schmidt. Coupled with a withering profile of Palin published in the August 2009 issue of Vanity Fair, the new round of exposés may have been too much for Palin to stomach.

Palin may have resigned from politics altogether. According to NBC’s Andrea Mitchell, Palin "has told some of her biggest backers in the national Republican Party that they are free to choose other candidates for 2012." But those choices are dwindling at a surprisingly rapid pace.

[freegood]

I seriously can't believe you'd make this comparison. Biden knows more about the VP office than Palin knows about everything. She's a fucking idiot.

Maverick

/Biden loses

[Das Kahlua]

I seriously can't believe you'd make this comparison. Biden knows more about the VP office than Palin knows about everything. She's a fucking idiot.

The VP job requirements are basically to remain alive and not embarrass the President. He's batting .500, I'm not impressed. It seems like every press conference Gibbs has, he has to clarify what Biden 'really meant' when he last said something stupid.

Palin doesn't particularly impress me, either, but she gets roasted over the coals for everything wrong she does, real or imagined. Biden, living in Obama's shadow, has gotten a free pass for most of his nonsense.

Now, for the most part, I couldn't really care less what Biden says or does, as long as times are good the VP position is generally a joke position. The sad thing is, every hardcore right winger I've met or heard has said that, while they don't like Obama, they pray for his health because having Biden as President would be a disaster. Kind of sad when political rivals who hate Obama would rather him as President than Biden.

[Gary_Busey]

The VP job requirements are basically to remain alive and not embarrass the President. He's batting .500, I'm not impressed. It seems like every press conference Gibbs has, he has to clarify what Biden 'really meant' when he last said something stupid.

Palin doesn't particularly impress me, either, but she gets roasted over the coals for everything wrong she does, real or imagined. Biden, living in Obama's shadow, has gotten a free pass for most of his nonsense.

Now, for the most part, I couldn't really care less what Biden says or does, as long as times are good the VP position is generally a joke position. The sad thing is, every hardcore right winger I've met or heard has said that, while they don't like Obama, they pray for his health because having Biden as President would be a disaster.
I would take Biden as president over Palin as president. He knows, and has more experience, than Palin. I seriously don't see how you could prefer her over Biden, other than party allegiance.

[Claydon]

The VP job requirements are basically to remain alive and not embarrass the President. He's batting .500, I'm not impressed. It seems like every press conference Gibbs has, he has to clarify what Biden 'really meant' when he last said something stupid.

Palin doesn't particularly impress me, either, but she gets roasted over the coals for everything wrong she does, real or imagined. Biden, living in Obama's shadow, has gotten a free pass for most of his nonsense.

Now, for the most part, I couldn't really care less what Biden says or does, as long as times are good the VP position is generally a joke position. The sad thing is, every hardcore right winger I've met or heard has said that, while they don't like Obama, they pray for his health because having Biden as President would be a disaster. Kind of sad when political rivals who hate Obama would rather him as President than Biden.

This is true, and who would take the 2nd slot.... Speaker Pelosi.


mother of god!

[Das Kahlua]

I would take Biden as president over Palin as president. He knows, and has more experience, than Palin. I seriously don't see how you could prefer her over Biden, other than party allegiance.

Biden is a career politician. He has never had a real job, he ran for and was elected to county council the year after graduating from law school, then he moved on to the Senate where he remained until he became VP. What 'experience' does he have, exactly? Sure, he knows how to pack a bill full of pork amendments, but that's part of the problem that's gotten us to where we currently are. He's never had to run a company on a budget, or really be held accountable for anything, he's been playing the Washington political game since 1972, the exact thing that Obama campaigned against.

So, now he's all of a sudden qualified to be President?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden

[Gary_Busey]

Biden is a career politician. He has never had a real job, he ran for and was elected to county council the year after graduating from law school, then he moved on to the Senate where he remained until he became VP. What 'experience' does he have, exactly? Sure, he knows how to pack a bill full of pork amendments, but that's part of the problem that's gotten us to where we currently are. He's never had to run a company on a budget, or really be held accountable for anything, he's been playing the Washington political game since 1972, the exact thing that Obama campaigned against.

So, now he's all of a sudden qualified to be President?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden
All of which you mentioned makes him much more qualified than Palin.

[Das Kahlua]

All of which you mentioned makes him much more qualified than Palin.

Depends on what they're running for. Perhaps Biden is qualified to be one of 100 people voting on a particular issue, but he has had zero experience as an executive on any level. Despite what anyone might think about her job performance, Palin has.

The fact is, the last President, before Obama, to become President without being Governor first was George H. W. Bush, and before him it was Richard Nixon, and both of them were VPs before they became President. The public tends to place a certain degree more weight on being governor than being a Senator or Congressman/woman when it comes to qualifications for the Presidency.

[Gary_Busey]

Depends on what they're running for. Perhaps Biden is qualified to be one of 100 people voting on a particular issue, but he has had zero experience as an executive on any level. Despite what anyone might think about her job performance, Palin has.

The fact is, the last President, before Obama, to become President without being Governor first was George H. W. Bush, and before him it was Richard Nixon, and both of them were VPs before they became President. The public tends to place a certain degree more weight on being governor than being a Senator or Congressman/woman when it comes to qualifications for the Presidency.
Really? Many would say Palin was the major reason why the Republicans didn't win the election.

[tockit]

Nothing would make me happier than Sarah Palin heading up the Republican ticket in 2012 (or even riding the VP spot again).
I have a feeling that after Obama and his tax-dodging cronies have finished out their first term in office, this country will be so screwed up and so badly in debt that the Republican party will win by a landslide, no matter who runs.

[Das Kahlua]

Really? Many would say Palin was the major reason why the Republicans didn't win the election.

I would be amongst the group that would say that those people don't know what they're talking about.

Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans are ever going to win anything without the support of their base, they're the ones who campaign, who organize voters and who donate their time and money to get their candidate elected. John McCain was alienating those people big time, and many of them only came out to vote because of Sarah Palin, they weren't alienated by her. The people who claim that they were turned off by Palin's politics weren't going to vote Republican regardless of who the candidate was, especially with someone like Obama on the other ticket.

The Republicans lost for a lot of reasons, partially as back lash for the meltdown of Bush's Presidency, partially because they were completely divided and couldn't decide what direction the party should be headed, and partially because the media's golden boy, Obama, practically had a coronation instead of an election.

Palin was the Republican's hail mary, an attempt to court enough of the female vote away from the Democrats to steal a victory; luckily for them they lost, because if McCain had actually won, then they really would have been in trouble.

I guess I defend her because I don't like the media's double standard, but also because I simply feel bad for her; she was duped into thinking that she would either become VP or at least be a media darling if she lost, and she ended up hated by people who knew nothing about her other than that she had an 'R' next to her name. I don't want the woman having access to nuclear launch codes, but I don't think she's deserved being attacked the way she has been, either.

[Gary_Busey]

I guess I defend her because I don't like the media's double standard, but also because I simply feel bad for her; she was duped into thinking that she would either become VP or at least be a media darling if she lost, and she ended up hated by people who knew nothing about her other than that she had an 'R' next to her name. I don't want the woman having access to nuclear launch codes, but I don't think she's deserved being attacked the way she has been, either.
This is exactly what I was trying to get you to say. Don't take politics so personal.

[Das Kahlua]

This is exactly what I was trying to get you to say. Don't take politics so personal.

I look at it this way, none of these people involved even know I exist, or probably care one way or the other if I do or not. That being said, they are elected officials who, at least in theory, work for the people, especially since we're the ones paying their salaries.

In my mind, at least, it's not a question of it being personal, I try to have a good time with all of this, and really no matter what we say or do on here won't change things one way or the other.

(Translation: nothing good going on in the pr0n section tonight)

[Gary_Busey]

I look at it this way, none of these people involved even know I exist, or probably care one way or the other if I do or not. That being said, they are elected officials who, at least in theory, work for the people, especially since we're the ones paying their salaries.

In my mind, at least, it's not a question of it being personal, I try to have a good time with all of this, and really no matter what we say or do on here won't change things one way or the other.

(Translation: nothing good going on in the pr0n section tonight)
You can say what you want, but there's no reason to believe what you posted.

[Das Kahlua]

You can say what you want, but there's no reason to believe what you posted.

Not thinking that Biden or Obama is a good choice doesn't mean I automatically think that Palin is. I don't like the lot of them to run the country, plain and simple.

Palin has at least run her little Alaskan lemonade stand well, the same thing certainly can't be said for the mess that Obama left in the Illinois State Senate, or the mess that he and Biden left in the US Senate, or the mess that the two of them have made in 6 short months in power.

I'm going to pull a Monty Brewster and vote 'None of the Above.'

[Whiffleball]

Could Palin be planning to launch a third party?

On Facebook:

http://i28.tinypic.com/34hdq95.png

On Sarah PAC:

http://i28.tinypic.com/2cdzckg.png

http://www.sarahpac.com/news/news51.aspx

Palin Hints At Independent Conservative Movement
by Tammy on July 11, 2009 · 13 comments

SarahIn an interview with the Washington Times, Palin makes her most direct comments yet about Conservativism versus the Republican Party. In my humble opinion, it’s clear the GOP, unfortunately, is lost beyond the point of return. When you’re one year out of key campaigns to take back Congress in 2010 and Meghan McCain is The Oracle of the party, you know it’s over. If Tina Brown thought Ms. McCain’s willingness to be a Useful Idiot for liberals would undermine the conservative movement (and consequently Sarah Palin), she should take a serious and long look at what their attacks on Palin provoked: a stronger, more independent, more determined conservative leader and base.

Enter now Sarah Palin with very encouraging comments that lead one to believe that she is indeed planning to do what she must: build an independent conservative movement and take this nation back from the liberals which now control both parties.Thanks liberals, for provoking Sarah into the national scene while vetting that family at the same time.

One thing I will say, the Washington Times with their headline for this exclusive interview reveal an anti-Palin stance. She is, don’t doubt, a threat to every existing political status quo. I hope the Washington Times and their editors realize, sooner than later, that the Palin movement is unstoppable and their credibility would be saved simply by reporting the news instead of becoming a GOP version of the NYT.

EXCLUSIVE: Palin to stump for conservative Democrats

The former Republican vice-presidential nominee and heroine to much of the GOP’s base said in an interview she views the electorate as embattled and fatigued by nonstop partisanship, and she is eager to campaign for Republicans, independents and even Democrats who share her values on limited government, strong defense and “energy independence.”

“I will go around the country on behalf of candidates who believe in the right things, regardless of their party label or affiliation,” …

“People are so tired of the partisan stuff — even my own son is not a Republican,” said Mrs. Palin, who stunned the political world earlier this month with her decision to step down as governor July 26 with 18 months left in her term.

Both her son, Track, 20, an enlisted soldier serving in Iraq, and her husband, Todd, are registered as “nonpartisan” in Alaska…

While the analysts and fellow politicians continue to debate the wisdom of her resignation decision, Mrs. Palin said she is eager to fight for her conservative beliefs when she leaves office.

The governor, 45, said she shared former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s view that Republicans, now trailing Democrats and independents in registration in many states, should back moderate-to-conservative Democrats in congressional districts and states where Republicans stand almost no chance of winning.

The object would be to build a majority coalition that reflects what polls suggest is the current center-right tilt of the U.S. electorate as a whole.

Of course the reaction from the conservatives has been as breathless and fanatical as you can imagine.

http://i25.tinypic.com/be8ok4.png

[Okie Medicvet]

An "independent" conservative party? Just another gussied up version of the GOP, and the day that wannabe book burning bitch becomes the leader of our nation is the day I leave the fucking country, and I can't think of too many other people that I would do that for.

[satandole666]

Let's hope she starts a cult to kill all of the bible thumping retards in this country.

[Pfunky]

Let's hope she starts a cult to kill all of the bible thumping retards in this country.

But she herself is a bible thumping idiot.

Starting a 3rd party is ballsy. It could split the Republicans up, making sure the Democrats will "divide and conquer". For a 3rd party to have a chance, it has to be firmly in the middle, speaking to moderates who are ready to jump out of their party and independents.

[satandole666]

But she herself is a bible thumping idiot.

I'm willing to make that sacrifice.

[Ninja Pope]

I think the strangest thing about her resignation speech was her frantic tone and mannerisms. She seemed scared and hurried.

[Whiffleball]

http://j.photos.cx/3697317827_53ddb1cbe3-48e.jpg