04/23/2009 9:45 am
POV
Ethics Complaint Filed Against Sarah Palin for PAC Work
© AP
Sarah Palin’s legal woes will only grow today after Alaska mother Sondra Tompkins officially files an ethics complaint against the Republican governor.
Tompkins, an advocate for children with disabilities and mother of a special-needs child, insists that Palin’s work with her PAC, SarahPAC, counts as a conflict of interest because the lawmaker is pursuing personal politics, rather than focusing on her cash-strapped state. The precipitating event, says Tompkins, came last week, when Palin traveled to Indiana to talk with pro-life activists. Alaska lawmakers were, at the time, wrapping up their legislative session.
The Mudflats provides some details of the complaint:
The complaint alleges:
a) Governor Palin has entered into a contract outside of her official duties with the donors, employees, partners and any or all other participants involved in SarahPAC.
b) The recent partisan trip to Indiana by the Governor was purely to benefit personal interests, had no benefit for the State of Alaska and was in direct conflict with her official duties.
c) The Governor left the State to participate in these events during the most critical end-of-session Legislative activities, at a time where the legislators themselves are not permitted to leave.
By accepting donations through SarahPac and pursuing personal politics, says the complaint, Gov. Palin entered a contract and, therefore, broke the law. This is, for the record, the twelfth ethics complaint filed against the lawmaker.
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This is ridiculous! Is she suppose to be chained to her chair in Alaska 24/7.
This is just ANNOTHER FRIVILOUS attempt to smear Palin…and disgusting that the accuser uses her association with children with disabilities to add fuels to her fire. Like that has anything to do with the accusation other than appearance that those groups are not her supporters. She does not represent that group or speak for anyone but her hateful self.
The organization was developed from a previous complaint about her possibly using state money to attend political functions to eliminate any conflict of interest and to help her pay legal costs racking up over these stupid complaints.
She is allowed to have personal interests ! Her being out of town for 72 hours did not change anything…other than give her haters just one more thing to B___ about!
This is character assination from a bunch of mental midgets!
How many other Govenors have been under this kind of scrutiny? Do you all follow the minute by minute comings and goings of your own Governor????
These people need to spend some time following the real crooks around—like where is over 300 billion that Bush left in the bail-out fund. where did it go? Nobody knows!! Actually Bush left 450 billion for the new president to use—but no accounting on 300 missing? Who got that money? Is it being used as pay back and legal fees? I can think of over 500 in Washington that need to be followed around daily! Who went to Switzerland while using a papal visit as a cover?
Great blast, SJ Morgan!
Another pay-to-play action. Where did all the bail-out money go that Bush left? over 300 billion just "disappeared"? this is just an on-going campaign, a waste of time and energy and money, and disgusting considering the really serious events going on, like job loss- people out of homes- Just a big load of immature, childish, hateful and disgusting attempts to destroy a decent person.
So the convicted and fined criminal $oro$—does he have a blackberry?
Palin’s response..
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 09-95
Latest Ethics Complaint Deemed Outrageous
April 22, 2009, Juneau, Alaska – The Office of the Governor today expressed outrage
that yet another baseless ethics complaint has been filed as part of an alarming new development in Alaska politics.
“In the past several months, we have seen an orchestrated effort by the governor’s opponents to make differences of opinion and ideology almost criminal,” said Mike Nizich, the governor’s chief of staff. “Governor Palin has spent a considerable amount of time and money fighting ethics complaints – and no charge has been substantiated. I hope that the publicity-seekers will face a backlash from Alaskans who have a sense of fair play and proportion. I served six previous governors, and I’ve never seen anything like the attacks against Governor Palin.”The latest ethics complaint against the governor alleges that she entered into a “contract” outside of her official duties in regard to a political action committee and that her recent trip to Indiana also conflicted with those duties.
“These allegations are categorically false and ridiculous, and are an abuse of the Executive Ethics Act,” Nizich said.
“We are blessed to live in a democracy in which everyone has the right to free speech, to petition their lawmakers, to vote, to run for office and, yes, to allege misconduct by public officials,” said Bill McAllister, the governor’s communications director. “But obviously the purpose of this complaint and the previous ones is to distract the administration and the public, and to paralyze the Department of Law and the executive branch.
“There’s a core hypocrisy in nearly all of the ethics complaints brought against the governor, including this one. The ethics act clearly states that complaints, when filed, are to be confidential. Ms. Tompkins publicized her filing on several blogs, breaking the letter and the spirit of the law. While there are no penalties in the statute for this illegal behavior, Alaskans of all political persuasions should be appalled that the people who are alleging unethical behavior by the governor are repeatedly doing so unethically.”
The relevant section of the ethics act follows:
“Sec. 39.52.340. Confidentiality.
(a) Except as provided in AS 39.52.335, before the initiation of formal
proceedings under AS 39.52.350, the complaint and all other documents and
information regarding an investigation conducted under this chapter or obtained by the attorney general during the investigation are confidential and not subject to inspection by the public. In the case of a complaint concerning the governor, lieutenant governor, or attorney general, all meetings of the personnel board concerning the complaint and investigation before the determination of probable cause are closed to the public. … The attorney general and all persons contacted during the course of an investigation shall maintain confidentiality regarding the existence of the investigation.”
Under the Legislative Ethics Act, publicizing an ethics complaint against a lawmaker would result in the automatic dismissal of that complaint. The Executive Ethics Act does not contain that provision.
While the latest complaint concerns 36 hours that the governor spent out of state this month, her opponents have spent months filing ethics complaints and records requests in a volume that constitutes a pattern of harassment and that has negatively impacted the Department of Law, McAllister said.
He noted that the governor left Alaska only twice during the recently completed legislative session — for a total of just four days, including travel time — and that during both trips she conducted state government business.
“Governor Palin hasn’t done anything that any other governor in the nation hasn’t done,” McAllister said. “I hope Alaskans can see through this stunt.”
http://media.adn.com/smedia/2009/04/22/22/Microsoft_Word_-_Palin_response_to_Tompkins.source.prod_affiliate.7.pdf
Thanks, Walter. You are a man of few words, but good ones, nonetheless.
Your comment reminded me of my Pop, who had a wall of hate mail in his law office. When I asked him why he would keep all that hate in his office, he said, "Well, if I’m doing my job (he was a lawyer), then I’m pissing off at least 50% of the people I work with. If I"m making friends, then I’m not doing my job for my client, then am I?"
Remind us all of that, if we forget. and thanks for a great post.
read the stupid complaint..pretty much says she as the Governor and Paid 24/7 must stay in the State and not entitled to personal trips???
And that in essence she is working another job while speaking for her PAC!!!!
"Therefore, the Governor is not entitled to receive personal leave, is officially representative of the
State of Alaska at all times and is subject to the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act 24-7
Why did they not have an issue when she was on the campaign??? Only now????
http://media.adn.com/smedia/2009/04/22/22/Microsoft_Word_-_Ethics_complaint_by_Tompkins.source.prod_affiliate.7.pdf
"Therefore, the Governor is not entitled to receive personal leave, is officially representative of theState of Alaska at all times and is subject to the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act 24-7"
TIME sent a reporter to that sports facility during the campaign. He found it empty except for two teens fooling around on the ice. The price tag was so high because Palin decided to build on it despite Wasilla not having clear title to the land. The City Council brought that to Mayor Palin’s attention, but she said it didn’t matter… she could get the title later. DUH! Clearly she could not and concrete was already being poured.