To say that the so called "non partisan investigation" is anything but a political hit job aimed at some type of October Surprise is disingenuous at best.
http://townhall.com/columnists/Aman...an_tampers_with_palin_subpoena_list?page=full
A Friday hearing revealed that an Obama partisan has manipulated an independent investigators subpoena list for a controversial inquiry against GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.
The investigation is intended to determine whether Palin abused her office by firing Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan. Palin says she fired him over budget issues. Her foes believe the firing was due to Monegans unwillingness to fire Palins former brother-in-law State Trooper Mike Wooten, a man who has admitted to tasering his stepson, illegally shooting a moose and has been accused of threatening his former father-in-law with violence and drinking in his police car.
Investigator Steven Branchflower admitted he had ceded control of his subpoena list to Sen. Hollis French (D.) during Alaskas Joint Judiciary Committee September 12 hearing that was scheduled to approve subpoena requests. [CLICK HERE FOR AUDIO.] French is a partisan who has endorsed Palins Democratic presidential ticket rival Barack Obama for president and is actively supporting his candidacy.
Lawmakers approved 13 of Branchflowers subpoena requests that day, which included one for Palins husband, Todd. Four other subpoenas were approved for aides Branchflower believes participated in a meeting called by Palins former chief of staff Mike Tibbles where Wootens firing was allegedly discussed.
Rep. David Guttenberg (D.) asked Branchflower why he was requesting subpoenas for only those people attending the meeting and not Tibbles himself.
Branchflower said he would have to defer that question to Mr. French.
I put the list together with, talking to Mr. French, Branchflower added.
Sen. Gene Therriault (R.) told Branchflower, I dont understand why you would have to defer that question to Sen. French. If its your list youre in complete control of the list, then why cant you answer the question?
Branchflower had no explanation. He only offered, Im not sure why his name was removed. My initial request was to have him on the list. At that point, French interjected. It appeared to me there wasnt the political will to subpoena Tibbles.
Somethings fishy here, Therriault replied. I mean either Mr. Branchflower conducts his investigation without direction, and now we know hes been directed on the date and changing what hes doing and how hes doing it because of the time pressure he is feeling.And now were hearing that people that hes trying to get information from, theres direction going on on that, too.
Indeed. Although the investigation is far from concluding, French has suggested it may culminate in an October surprise, perhaps even Palin's impeachment as Governor-- a game-changing outcome that would certainly increase the Democrats chances of winning the White House in November.
The final report, which French has already described as damaging, is set to be released on October 31, four days shy of the presidential election. Since the investigation began last August, there have been disputes over the timing over the reports release, as Therriault mentioned. Although theres been general agreement that Branchflower should conduct his investigation in a timely fashion, some Democratic politicos, like French, have been pushing for an October deadline.
French, who is project director of the inquiry against Palin, and investigator Branchflower are two of three main players in this investigation Republicans say have been tainted by partisan politics. The other is Democratic Sen. Kim Elton, chairman of Alaskas Legislatures Legislative Council thats overseeing the investigation. Both French and Elton are strong Obama backers.
Branchflower, who currently resides in South Carolina, was appointed by French to conduct the actual investigation. He worked with French several years ago when both were members of Alaskan law enforcement.
Palins lawyer Thomas Van Flein said the entire investigation is unlawful and unconstitutional. He recently wrote a terse letter to Branchflower, blasting the investigators seemingly biased conduct of the investigation in recent weeks.
Alaskan Republicans have asked Chairman Elton to replace French with someone less partisan, but Elton denied their request.
According to campaign finance data available on opensecrets.com Elton has donated at least $2,000 to Obamas campaign. Three other Democrats on the Eltons 14-member council are also supporting Obama for president, as identified on Obamas presidential website.
Further fueling the GOPs fire is the fact that former Commissioner Monegan and state trooper Wooten are surprisingly mild-mannered about this scandal thats blown into a national news story after Palins vice presidential appointment.
Monegan told the Anchorage Daily News on August 30 that he was never pressured to dismiss Palins former brother-in-law. For the record, he said, no one has ever said fire Wooten. Not the governor. Not Todd. Not any of the other staff.
Wooten, for his part, has reportedly turned down at least $30,000 from tabloids hungry for his side of the story. His union, however, the Public Safety Employees Association, filed a complaint with the Attorney Generals office, to find out if Wootens personnel file had ever been illegally disclosed.
The same week PSEA filed their complaint, CNN reported that Obama campaign officials had been contacting Wootens union, although Obama spokesmen have vehemently refuted CNNs report as well as one from the Wall Street Journals John Fund that said more than 30 lawyers, investigators and opposition researches had been deployed to Alaska to dig up dirt on Palin.
And this doesn't sound like stonewalling to me
http://hotair.com/archives/2008/09/...rgate-releases-memos-showing-insubordination/
Sarah Palin issued a response to the Troopergate investigation yesterday by releasing internal memoranda that show Walt Monegan got
fired for insubordination on budget matters and not because of his refusal to fire Palins former brother-in-law. Monegan went behind Palins back to attempt to revive a project Palin had vetoed, which stunned the Office of Management and Budget Director. On another occasion, Monegan held a press conference with Hollis French to dissent from Palins budget priorities the same Hollis French pushing the ethics complaint against Palin:
Walt Monegan lost his job as public safety director because he resisted Gov. Sarah Palins budget policies and showed outright insubordination, say papers the governors lawyer filed Monday with the state Personnel Board.
It was Palins strongest effort yet to snuff allegations she sacked Monegan because he refused to fire a state trooper involved in an ugly divorce with the governors sister.
Along with the papers filed Monday were a slew of e-mails from the governors office purporting to show Monegans rogue mentality as a member of Palins Cabinet.
In one message, the governors budget director, Karen Rehfeld, wrote that she was stunned and amazed that Monegan appeared to be working with a powerful state legislator, Anchorage Republican Rep. Kevin Meyer, to seek funding for a project Palin previously had vetoed.
According to the
papers filed by Palins legal team, that was not the only instance of insubordination from Monegan:
- 12/9/07: Monegan holds a press conference with Hollis French to push his own budget plan.
- 1/29/08: Palins staffers have to rework their procedures to keep Monegan from bypassing normal channels for budget requests.
- February 2008: Monegan publicly releases a letter he wrote to Palin supporting a project she vetoed.
- June 26, 2008: Monegan bypassed the governors office entirely and contacted Alaskas Congressional delegation to gain funding for a project.
From this presentation, it looks like Monegan had decided from the start to be a loose cannon in the Palin administration. The wonder of this isnt that he got fired its how he managed to hang onto his job as long as he did. The response calls Monegans trip to Washington the final straw, and its not difficult to see why. Monegan even admitted it in his valedictory e-mail to his colleagues, saying that he had waited too long outside her door for her to believe that I supported her. Nor did Monegan file an ethics complaint, as the law would have required him to do, if he felt his termination violated state ethics laws. (Palin filed the complaint herself to argue the case.)
As the filing states, Monegan served as a political appointee, at the pleasure of the Governor. Obviously, Monegan didnt act to support Palins budget initiatives, often acting in opposition to them. In anyones administration, that will result in dismissal. Monegan kicked himself out of the job through his own acts.
KennyD