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Palin “abused” gubernatorial power in dismissal of Safety Commissioner

October 10, 2008 |

Gov. Sarah Palin

The verdict is in: Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin “abused her power as Alaska’s Governor” when she tried to get her former brother-in-law, an Alaskan state trooper, fired. This ethics issue and the investigation it spurred has dogged Palin throughout her vice-presidential bid.

Palin allegedly dismissed Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan fired after he refused to fire trooper Mike Wooten, Palin’s former brother-in-law. Wooten had gone through a bitter divorce battle with Palin’s sister.

The news flashed across international television and the internet this evening after a bipartisan Legislative Council, which had authorized the investigation of Palin’s actions in this case, adopted the 263-page public report with no dissenting votes following a lengthy executive session today. An additional 1,000 pages of this report remain confidential.

The report clearly states that “Gov. Palin knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda”  and that Monegan’s refusal to fire Wooten was “likely a contributing factor” in Monegan’s dismissal. As governor, Palin had the authority to fire Monegan.

The report, however, states that Palin’s attempt to get Wooten fired “violated state ethics laws” that prohibit public officials from using their authority to pursue a personal agenda.