Friday, July 3, 2009

Palin Resigns

It is surreal. She's resigning.

I am watching Palin's speech. She is hanging on by the ragged edge. She's babbling, gasping, rambling, making no sense whatsoever. I've been watching Palin for ten months. She has never sounded more unhinged to me.

"The world apparently needs more Trigs." is among some of the more bizarre things she said.

Now we've switched from the basketball analogy to the football field. No hockey analogy yet.

Updates will follow.

I think the iceberg is about to hit.

**UPDATE**

Here's Sarah Palin's  official announcement from the governor's Web site, from which she also gleaned much of her speech. 

Here is the press release.

**UPDATE II**

Meg Stapleton weighs in and all I can say is, with friends like these does Sarah really needs enemies? This makes two rambling, bizarre explanations of Sarah's decision.


**UPDATE III**
The videos are now uploaded to YouTube





96 comments:

Susan said...

In her announcement, the Bi-Polar Princess said it best, that essentially, be prepared for additional back (bad) stories. Go away, Ice Princess, we don't want you.

midnightcajun said...

Shucks, I was just about to knuckle down to work and this hits! What in god's name is behind it? It can't be babygate--she'd never resign over that. I know there's speculation that she's doing this so she's free to run for president, but that makes no sense. She's going to run for president on the basis of being the mayor of a town of 7,000 and a half-baked governor for only two years? Something or someone is easing her out. I'm dying to know what's going on!

RNP in CA said...

probably an improper post, but: Holy shit!

SV: donyeti - Don the Yeti? Huh?

Stardove said...

What a shocker!

Anonymous said...

So the world "needs more Trigs?" Honestly, Sarah, just how many "special" babies do you plan to steal? Isn't one enough??

So she said this announcement was planned in advance, but she also claims Todd flew in last night from fishing grounds. You'd think if he knew about it in advance he'd have stuck around.

No, this rambling, erratic, gasping speech was something she had to do. Suddenly.....

My Verification Word: ingame

"endgame?"

You betcha.

Nancy Adele said...

This is absolutely amazing. Wonder what the impetus was. Guess we all just wait and see.

Unknown said...

Naturally, we now have a guessing game of what the big one is that caused her to resign.

This has to be larger than Troopergate. That didn't phase her.

I don't think it's an affair because those are almost acceptable these days in politics, especially as there's one ongoing in South Carolina.

She's an arrogant woman and thinks she's indestructible.

It's not the threat of the Johnston family. She's handling them quite well.

Something must have cut her to the bone. Something she thinks will go away if she quits.

If anyone can think of anything else, please add but I think there are only two things big enough to move her:

A) The IRS.

B) The truth about Trig.

trishSWFL said...

Just WOW!

Yes, I believe the Iceberg is about to hit, and it won't be pretty!

Have to give her credit though--at least now the MSM is covering something besides Michael Jackson!

Anonymous said...

Let's hope she finally gets the professional help she needs. After all, she still has children to take care of.

mlaiuppa said...

Is she schizophrenic and has progressed so far that it's just not controllable anymore? Is she so whacked out it can't be disguised?

I remember some of the language in the tweets was positively biblical. This right after the attacks over the desecration of the iconic photoshop of Eddie Burke Baby.

You know, Celtic Diva just raised the money and got a cashier's check for the full amount for the e-mails she requested under the freedom of information act. The timing is interesting. Could it be more than a coincedence?

mlaiuppa said...

oh. OH!

Here's a speculation from Rick Sanchez at CNN.

He thinks she's pregnant again.

To which I'm thinking. So? She was pregnant and gave birth while governor that last time (so she says) with Trig. In what way would that make her resign this time.

Oh, and BTW. They know what causes that now. And they have something for it. It's called....birth control.

Of course, the pregnancy hormones would certainly explain going off on Letterman, the biblical ranting outbursts over BabyBurke's photoshopping.

Could it be Schmidt and Scheunemann are going to say something?

MrsTarquinBiscuitbarrel said...

"I really don't want to disappoint anyone this with this announcement." Well, not disappointed, but still confused: What's going on here?? SP is making no... sense... at... all. "This decision has been in the works for awhile"--that whets my appetite even more!

Unknown said...

I just got a great gift for the Fourth of July:Palin on a stick. I believe you and your team should take a bow, Audrey. This one's for you! I know it. It may also be something even worse besides. The VF article was code for: we know what you did. Our long, national nightmare is over. (*fingers crossed*)

hrh said...

She SAYS she'll resign in a few weeks. Should we be holding our collective breath until then? I won't believe it until it actually happens. Talk about a loose cannon!

Is this yet another desperate improvisation in a long, loooong series of desperate improvisations to cover up a previous fabrication?

My money's on what a commenter at HuffPost just wrote:

"Mark my words. She is Blanket's mother. Who else would have named that child?"

wv: latedske

Leadfoot said...

Oh happy day!!

Bloggers in Pajamas - 1
Sarah Palin - 0

And on a patriotic holiday no less. Best July 4 present EVER!!

Anonymous said...

No one would ever elect a quitter to anything. All the sympathy votes in the world won't save her now. She's cooked.

Stardove said...

http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=10641495

Sarah's resignation speech at URL.

Anonymous said...

OMG -- that video is so painful to watch...what in god's name is she talking about?

she seems hyped up, totally out of breath, and just rambling on and on about nothing.

i've never heard someone so incoherent... even for her this is pathetic.

my god, whatever the straw is that broke the camel's back, let it come out soon already!

Anonymous said...

Is it time to sing "ding dong the witch is dead?" I'd say "she's melting" with an evil snicker, but the logical side of me says not so fast, we've seen worse politicians rise from the ashes only to return to be re-elected.

Now maybe that she's not holding such political clout, someone will talk. Bring on the flying monkeys!

Cheryl said...

Is the iceberg about to hit or is she setting her sights on something bigger?

Anonymous said...

My word verification over at C4Pee
was "gamenz" - Patrick has taken a screenshot of it for me. You'll find it on his flickr page.

But let's not gloat over this news. It's timely and it's good and Audrey is correct, Palin's speech was gibberish and repetitive.I've also watched Palin a thousand times and I have never seen her as disordered as she was in that interview and that's saying something.

The rumor is that she is leaving politics completely according to an MSNBC reporter who heard it from close friends of Palin. I hope that this is true. Perhaps she's finally realised that her family is much more important than her ambition. Especially that little boy who depends on her for everything.

Truthseeker2 said...

Wow! I was curious about Levi being in NYC this past week to try to nail down a book deal. Wonder if this could have something to do with the timing of her resignation...? Woo-hoo!!!

MrsTarquinBiscuitbarrel said...

SP quoted her parents' fridge magnet!
And Dave Letterman? Still on the air.

2emptynest said...

Something's up. You don't risk political suicide by being branded as a quitter without good reason. Sarah's announcement is a preemptive defense - against what is anybody's guess.

pearlygirl said...

I've been out of almost every news/politcal/social loop including this one for the last 2 months because of moving for job relocation but WOW! I'm blown away. In our temp apt I don't have TV or Internet yet--so I might as well be on the dark side of the moon as far as getting news and information--even NPR radio is out since my little kids want to hear kid music in the car. I turned on the TV just as the announcement hit. (For the record, I even missed the Jackson announcement--I've been that out of touch)

Wow! I did feel like "ding dong the witch is dead. Her speech was so odd and off the cuff--the lack of real reporters/by-standers and the shaky camera footage including the unnecessary close up of Piper and the amateur breakaway of the tree shot added to the insanity of it all.

GO AUDREY AND TEAM!!!!!! (not meant to be a sports analogy.) You are true American Heroes.

I'll be sure to read the back posts to see what juicy stuff I missed.

B said...

Even if she's leaving politics, I still want to know the truth about TriG. Audrey, please don't quit.

Shelby said...

I think the best explanation I've heard was a blog comment I just read:

Some DA looked her dead in the eye and said, "Resign now and we won't prosecute."

Only thing that makes sense.

I just hope whatever it was doesn't get swept under the rug. Maybe the MSM will finally do their job now that she's got everyone's attention.

Something or someone forced Sarah Palin to quit her job.

Unknown said...

Well, I certainly hope this doesn't mean we will not receive answers to the ethics complaints and the email-gates, and the non-disclosure forms, etc.

I'll bet she turns up working for a private oil services company to get the pipeline project through and to get her share of the 500 million bucks she ''authorized'' to be spent.

trev said...

Look at the comments over in Immoral Minority. Some anon has posted that there is a sexual affair coming out. Is this the 'iceberg' everyone is talking about? Supposedly after the Sanford affair, the Palin affair would be too much for the GOP so she is removing herself.

Anonymous said...

Bloggers win the battle but not the war - for now.

We still need to get the world to know that Sarah Palin is a fraud who did not give birth to Trig.

She must not be allowed to profit from all the lies and fraud she has perpetuated. Todd can support her just fine as a "fish picker", snowmachine racer or whatever.

There is no proper justice done until The Truth is set free.

Anonymous said...

She was totally manic and shaky. I really think everything indicates that this was a very hasty decision. I think something had to push her to take this action.

Anonymous said...

The MSM is gobsmacked. Suddenly they wish they'd covered Palin the way they should have.

Two great comments on the immoral minority that I had to share.

One person wrote, that what if Palin were a "friend" of Sanford's. Haha!

But this one has more the ring of truth, and does indeed, imo, sound like it's from someone who knows. If so, Palin still wins something. You decide.

"Here's the deal. I'm the anon who posted recently about the various media evidence of Sarah's "dalliances" - in her early pageant contestant/seeking a journalism job days as well as video evidence of her affair while married to Todd. This was always in the hands of BOTH parties and I couldn't figure out why it was being kept quiet.

The whispers I'm getting as someone who knows people MUCH more connected to the inner circle of decision makers surrounding everything the Repubnicans do (and no, I'm not fond of them after the stuff I've seen) - is that after the Sanford scandal the Repubs are cutting their losses. They worry that the media/sex stuff will come out soon on Sarah if they don't take her off the playing field for a while, and because she's such an evangelical/right wing heroine, again it's going to make them look VERY bad. (Family values party is already taking a major beating.)

Karl Rove has been schooling Sarah quietly all along. Hence teaching her hate speech, how to always attack the other guy, etc. etc. instead of what sane politicians do which is to work for unity, functionality, etc. All the divisiveness that Karl is famous for.

Problem is, Sarah isn't a very good pupil. She's too rogue, too nuts to be useful in the political arena anymore. And with various media icebergs about to potentially hit, (she's been blackmailed about this stuff for a while I'm told, hence the extreme weight loss, etc.) they need her to pull the old "I'm resigning to spend more time with my family" speech (code: I'm resigning before a new scandal destroys my career.)

She's been promised that if she's a good girl all that bad media info will magically "go away" (deals being quietly made in the background to make it disappear.) And she will get about two years of schooling and then be allowed to be a talking head at one of the right wing news organizations, possibly radio, possibly TV if she comes along really well and can get over her word salad problem. And she'll make a helluva lot more money that way, anyway, plus she can rant about the family values stuff she's so fond of since apparently her "people" are going to be directly responsible for the next coming of Jesus, etc. It's very useful to have someone like her work as a paid propogandist. She was never really cut out for political office but will reinvent herself as a media talking head and also make up to $25,000 a speech on the speaker's circuit. That's what they'll have her do first - lots of small speaking engagements out of the major cities to get her training, gradually working up to the big venues if she can handle it.

Right now her handlers aren't sure if she's up for any of it, but they are making promises to her that if she goes along with their agenda she will resurface and resurrect herself within two years as an important "voice" for that segment of the party that loves the conservative hristian, right wing, point of view.

The interesting thing is this - the Democrats have full knowledge of the media material that is so damaging on her. They've been holding onto it for a year or so. I've never been sure why they never leaked it. So will they wait until she establishes herself as a conservative Faux family values talking head, give her a year or so, and THEN leak the stuff? Or are the Repugs going to be able to make a deal and get them ot back off? I'm not sure what their strategy is but my intel says that at this point they are not going forward with leaking the material - unfortunately!"

Moggy said...

Maybe she's pregnant again.

Unknown said...

I'm guessing another Palin daughter is pregnant.

wayofpeace said...

from SHANYN MOORE on MSNBC:

criminal investigation / scandal coming!

she says nothing else would have made her quit.

her speech was the beginning of damage control!

another show is going to drop...

Sister Wolf said...

breathtaking!

Anonymous said...

So Shannyn Moore was just on MSNBC and she said that she'd never seen Palin look so nervous, and she's been covering her for years. She thinks something is coming down the pike, and mentioned to the host that there are rumors afoot in Alaska of a pending criminal investigation. She also said a lot of things have been glossed over for Sarah in the media. As an example she mentioned "her daughter's pregnancy."

Good on you, Shannyn!

mlewis said...

I think that this is a big break for Audrey and PD. Before, it would have been disrespectful for the MSM to weigh in on Trig's birth story while Sarah was in office. But, just wait a couple of weeks! Everyone will be looking for a good reason why Sarah made the announcement today.

No, we didn't hear a good reason today, and it is still a matter of speculation. Coming role on Fox TV, big bucks book tour? She surely cooked her chances to run for president, but she really couldn't have run for president without giving any interviews. We can guess at icebergs, investigations, family problems, Levi is going to write a book, someone could be having another baby, someone could have been diagnosed with something serious-- although that would be an acceptable reason to put family first.

This is the time to thanks you, Audrey, for bringing so many of us together, from different parts of the country and the world. We were unified in a common interest in solving a good mystery story, and yet individual enough in our different opinions. And, you provided the format to share ideas and develop evidence. In fact, whether we like it or not, we owe it all to our unlikely heroine, Sarah Palin, without whom this blog wouldn't have been possible. (This is the time to award the bouquet of long stemmed red roses! Drum Roll Please! Applause! And, Thanks Again!)

wayofpeace said...

on MSNBC ... ANDREA MITCHEL has been told by insiders that SP will quit politics.

NakedTruth said...

I noticed that Bristol was not at the press conference. Looks like one of the 'look-a-like' cousins was filling in for her. I also did not see Trig. Not sure if he was there.

Could it be possible that Bristol and Levi is back together and they want to claim Trig for their own now?

Something BIG made Sarah resign. She did not do this on her own. You betcha!

The naked truth is always chasing a well-dressed lie.

Anonymous said...

Matt Lewis with the conservative TownHall.com just cited her NOT TELLING ANYONE SHE WAS PREGNANT as among the "erratic" behaviors that -upon looking back - should have been given more notice by conservatives.

I'm wondering now, with her crippled and bleeding from her own mouth, if the story won't break from within the own party.

I know some of them must know..

Duncan said...

Sounds like good ol' blackmail to me. "Just resign and it will go away."

Catherine said...

My guess is that she has far better opportunities to make some big money if she were not governor. Running for VP has made her so high profile that there are many national and international opportunities, far bigger than what she had as the governor of Alaska. However, with the public spotlight on her and being an elected official, she cannot grab a lot of these things since she is under tight scrutiny for this. By resigning she can strike while the skillet is hot, she is hot and make a killing financially.

Funny, an acquaintance of ours, a Wall St exec said not long ago, that the smartest thing she could do is to quit and make a load of money for a lot less work and hassle.

Anonymous said...

Morgan - I just heard that guy too on w/ David Shuster talking about the weirdness of not telling anyone she was preggers being overlooked by the GOP powers that be - unbelievable!

B said...

TriG was there. As Palin walks to the podium, Piper is holding him (while wearing flipflops, not high heels) and swinging him around as Todd moves as if to take TriG from her. I believe we hear TriG making baby noises while Palin speaks, as well. I hope so; that would mean TriG isn't drugged.

mlaiuppa said...

The Stapled Tongue has responded, using some of Palin's talking points.

Do you think she doesn't know she'll be unemployed soon?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/03/palin-resigns-meghan-stap_n_225574.html

And you can find AKM at the old mudflats wordpress blog.

http://mudflats.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/palin-resigns/

Anonymous said...

Bree, that's awesome! i was hoping mention of the pregnancy wasn't just a fluke.

To Catherine. So nice to see you. I'm still waiting of those pictures of you. I'm sure you probably tried to send them and they just got lost or something. My email is thetokenhippie@gmail.com

Remember, I need the shot of little old you with your pregnancy camouflaged in your well-tailored clothes *and* a picture of your pregnant belly. Since, ya know, anyone can *say* they were Palin..I mean, pregnant.

And I hope you're wrong about Sarah baling on her state halfway through her term because the promise of Big Money looms. She said right there in the press conference that she gave her reasons. And as a Christian she wouldn't lie to her supporters....would she?

*grin*

More Cowbell said...

"By resigning she can strike while the skillet is hot, she is hot and make a killing financially."

We're not talking about a kid quitting a paper route, here. If this is indeed her rationale, then anything she ever said about being of "service" to her constituents is a load of hogwash. And she's breaking the promise she made to the people who elected her. She'd be showing herself to be even more self-centered and unreliable than she already appeared to be.

I hope that people who might have been keeping quiet about things they know (like Housegate) will feel free to speak up now that Sarah's running away.

Leadfoot said...

Who wants to bet that the whole Palin clan picks up and leaves Alaska?

After all the B.S. about a fish picker has to be born there, "nobody loves Alaska as much as I do," blah blah blah.

Just more lies. She'll be living in L.A. or D.C. within a few months.

ProChoiceGrandma said...

Happy 3rd of July everyone! And congratulations especially to all Alaskans! This is truly a happy day!

A HUGE thank you to Audrey especially, and to the entire PD team for all their time and talents, as well as all the great people here on PD who have contributed in analyzing all of the data gathered and contributing with their input, discussion and theories.

But it can’t stop here. I do not want Palin to be able to sweep babygate under the rug. People still need to know what kind of cock-eyed idiot would FAKE a pregnancy and continue to bald-face lie about it. She had plenty of opportunities, before and even after the election, to come forward and admit that it was an emotional but stupid idea and that Trig is in fact her first grandson. The point being that this person was placed in a position where she could have been a heartbeat away from the Presidency of the United States of America! If she would go to such bizarre extremes just to hide the embarrassment of her daughter’s pregnancy, it makes me shudder to think what extreme measures she would take for anything she would deem embarrassing in a national office. THAT is the significance of babygate!

trev said...

Uh oh, check out BradBlog;

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=7280

A federal investigation has been in the works about her house;

concerning an embezzlement scandal related to the building of Palin's house and the Wasilla Sports Complex built during her tenure as Mayor. Both structures, it is said, feature the "same windows, same wood, same products." Federal investigators have been looking into this for some time, and indictments could be imminent, according to the Alaska sources.

This must be the iceberg, she resigned before she would be forced to resign. Wow!

Her family didn't even know about the resignation until they were standing with her by the lake" when she made her announcement.

What? she said she polled her children, but they didn't even know?
Wow this gets better and better!

ProChoiceGrandma said...

This has been a massive board game of Clue, with 50,000 clues, 49,000 of which were scrubbed or modified by Palin and her friends like ADN and the McCain campaign machine. Col. Mustard in the Conservatory with the Candlestick explains WHO, WHAT and WHERE. But we also had to analyze WHEN. That was a difficult stumbling block for a long time as we struggled through the smokescreen of the 4-18-08 “birth”. With the input of many people about the medical issues presented with Downs Syndrome, preemie babies, and court continuances, I feel we finally saw through the smokescreen and Trig was born much earlier than 4-18-08.
WHY is something we may never be able to prove, but I have a very strong opinion as to why Palin desperately thought it was so very important that no one ever know that her 16 yr old daughter got pregnant. I am voting for Miss Bristol, in Fairbanks in January 2008. And Levi is the father of TriPP, but not TriG.

Unknown said...

Anyone read this?
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=7280

Unknown said...

embezzlement

Leadfoot said...

Awesome post from Daily Kos:
__

Palin secedes from office. Also.
by David Waldman
Fri Jul 03, 2009 at 06:20:21 PM PDT

So Sarah Palin has resigned. From four colleges. From her job with the Oil & Gas Commission. And now finally, from her job as governor.

Highly unusual for someone once so determined to climb the political ladder that she stayed on in Texas to deliver a speech to the Republican Governors' Association, even as she went into labor with her fifth child. But, hey, that's Sarah. Also.

Now, my first thought was that she merely meant that she was tired and wanted to recline, but alas, she left little doubt about her actual intentions with her extended, often rambling speech, during which the local waterfowl laughed repeatedly.

Palin's first draft, by the way, reportedly began: "When in the course of human... stuff... (also)."

It's truly been an amazing few weeks for the America, as we found out that GOP governors celebrate Father's Day with adultery, and July 4th by resigning from office.

This is a pretty amazing abdication of responsibility, I must say. I think back to John McCain's flaky "suspension" of his campaign over the financial crisis, and when you put it side by side with Palin's freak-out, I'm really astonished that they were ever considered a legitimate presidential ticket. How she ever made it all the way through field dressing a moose without getting bored and quitting, I'll never understand.

But then again, this was someone who probably winked because she couldn't commit to finishing a blink.

I'm appreciative, at least, that she went out in a blaze of glory, with one last incoherent blast of public word spray. I think I'm seeing starbur... ah, screw it. I don't feel like finishing that sentence.

Best of luck to you in whatever you do next, Sarah. Rumor has it that you quit for an offer of $50 an hour to go pick lettuce in Yuma for the whole season. But I think you can't do it, my friend.

Race tracker wiki: AK-GOV

sg said...

Shelby said:

I think the best explanation I've heard was a blog comment I just read:

Some DA looked her dead in the eye and said, "Resign now and we won't prosecute."

Only thing that makes sense.

============

When I first heard SP was stepping down soon, my first thought too was an impending indictment (like what's been rumored). But I can't imagine a prosecutor letting a sitting governor off by merely letting that person quietly resign. Prosecutors' careers are made by putting prominent politicians in jail (q.v., Patrick Fitzgerald).

Plus, a quit-or-I-prosecute deal could smell of political heavy-handedness or abuse of prosecutorial discretion.

Better to have an up front indictment and a jury trial.

Bottom line: if there's an impending indictment, especially a federal one, SP problems have only just begun.

Leadfoot said...

Hahaha.... one other thing I just read on Daily Kos. A poster said:

"I am still trying to figure out how she got Trig's opinion when she polled her kids."

Good point! She did specifically say she asked all 5!

Unknown said...

I don't know if this is good for anything, but Alaska property records.

AnnieOnn said...

Yes, Trig's vote was the "Hell, yes!", I'm sure.

Anonymous said...

An interesting post-script tidbit from Gryphen over at Immoral Minority on his latest post:

Gryphen writes: "(By the way just to add a little gossip to this post I have a source who claims to know that Sarah and Bristol had a HUGE fight a few days ago over Bristol NOT wanting to go on any more publicity junkets. I have absolutely no idea if this has anything to do with anything, but it is yet another interesting tidbit.)"

Hmmmm...

(My word verification is "matings."

B said...

That's right: Sarah asked TriG if he'd like to see her continue working for change but not from the Governor's office, and he said either, "Yes" (four kids' answer) or "Hell, yes" (other kid's answer). Pretty advanced for a kid barely a year old.

BTW, I'd say she gained back the lost weight. She looked healthy.

Bretta said...

Schizophrenia isn't progressive - either you have it or you don't; it can be exacerbated by your current circumstances though.

I'm sure she is in the middle of a meltdown due to the IRS findings and the Celtic Diva demands are just icing on the cake... even if it looks like Celtic Diva's stuff came first.

Just my humble opinion... I know nothing.

Bretta said...

I think Audry and Team deserve a lot of Kudos for saving my State from further desecration by Sarah Palin.

Whatever your contribution was.

I love you forever and I am forever grateful and forever in your debt. Not that any of that is word salad, I promise you.

If you have any responsibility for her resignation, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I cannot describe how happy I am right now.

wv: dramat
self-explanatory

DISPLACED said...

I think the Palin child who said "Hell yeah!" was Bristol, I'm sure she's had more than enough of her life being led under a microscope.

I think it's possible Sarah is pregnant because if she is and she had to go through the entire pregnancy in the national spotlight it would be glaringly apparent that she wasn't really pregnant last time, in comparison. This way she can conduct her pregnancy without constant scrutiny and comparison, month by month, to her last un-pregnant pregnancy with Trig.

onething said...

Something no one seems to have noticed is that Sarah makes several references near the beginning of her speech to needing to quit so that the team can win. That means she's bad for her team.
So there's some kind of pressure there. But she never explains at all how she could be bad for the team.

mlewis said...

@anneon: Trig's vote is Hell Yes, then the 5 votes are the kids' votes. Doesn't Todd get a vote, too?

onething said...

So maybe the reason no one spilled the beans in Wasilla is that they were blackmailing her and being paid off instead.

Punkinbugg said...

A few questions pop into my mind:

Now that she's gone,

1) will the 2008 photos from the official state website be miraculously "un-scrubbed"?

2) will the tongues of Alaska loosen with each sip of (insert favorite brew) this weekend, now that the gossipers have no fear of LOSING their JOBS?

3) will a certain DOCTOR finally be asked to make a statement?

Tune in tomorrow...

For another episode of...

As the Stomach Turns

(Homage to Carol Burnett there)

and p.s. Those teenage girls at the news conference belonged to the NEW governor and his wife, not Sarah.

Oh dear.

Another crop of teenage girls.

denise said...

Listening to her speech is quite stressful to me - she's so nervous and fast, her energy so scattered.

Her breath is so high and her chest, and her cadence is incredibly unnatural. She's not connecting with the audience there, or watching the video.

When I read the text I thought she would pull it off, but she really screwed up the opportunity to give a speech that would pump up her supporters but even they might be feeling a bit confused by this shambolic performance.

Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vOX3PBL1EE&feature=player_embedded

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D79aR97qsnU&feature=player_embedded

Unknown said...

Audrey - Yours was the first blog I landed on back in Sept. and you helped me to keep my sanity in those weeks leading up to the election. Thank you and the PD crew who kept a steady course towards the truth. My hat's off to all of you.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO ALL !

BuffaloGal

jeanie said...

I have to echo (well, expand on) V's sentiment, Audrey.

Last fall was a nerve-racking time for democrats, and any thinking person, really. During the craziness of the election - the horrid interviews, the hateful speeches, Joe the Plumber - your blog was my happy place. It was full of intelligent, articulate participants all working towards a common goal. II found it quite reassuring to hear so many people agree with me, though I'm not sure any two people on here agree about every detail of the whole Trig's birth story. And googling around for and posting various 'clues' really gave me a sense of control when I was worried about the outcome of the election. After the election was over, I continued to follow for the reason that Audrey maintained the site and the blog: There is a real story here - regardless of the exact details of the birth and even the birth mother - things just didn't happen the way SP claimed.

With SP out of office, I expect that the truth - or at least part of it - will come out. Thank you Audrey and Morgan, for providing such a great venue for people around the world! I don't know about Levi, but I hope you get your book deal someday! There could be a great screenplay in here somewhere, too! The movie about Bush was called "W". I recommend calling the movie about Bristol and Sarah "B.S."

Anonymous said...

Hahahahaha

OK, you guys will love this. So Parnell was just interviewed on MSNBC and the anchor was asking him why Sarah didn't just stay on and complete the fabulous agenda she bragged about during her Swan Song presser. The anchor noted that she'd also spent much of this first term absent from office while running for VP.

His response: It didn't matter. "Sarah Palin," he said, "had done more in 2-1/2 years than most governors have done in one year."

He quickly corrected himself to say he mean one TERM. But it was too late. I was already on the floor laughing.

Finally, an honest politician. ;-)

Anonymous said...

Jonah Goldberg is a columnist with conservative National Review Online. He's well-respected within conservative circles. Here's the advice he offered to Sarah. You guys will love this:

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZGE1OTE3OTFhMmZkOWE5MDQ5MmZhZTFjMzE2MjcxNTM=

This is even better, though. Here's his follow up where he was attacked by rabid Sarah fans who just prove his point, which is that catering to her fan base is what has helped doom her.

http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=MjdlZDRkNGUxOGY2NTA2NzQ0MGU1YzlmNzBhMmY0ZDU=

wayofpeace said...

SP goes out telling lies:

Fairbanks newspaper calculated the taxpayer cost of ALL the ethics complaints against Palin and her administration - and the total was well under 300,000.

Anonymous said...

I don't know what's stranger, Palin's speech, or men in the msm struggling to make sense of it.

Nothing she does "makes sense" unless you're interested in human nature, because she's not the average politician. She never could have gotten where she is in another state, imo, because the outsider, renegade AK people are who elected her.

Her decision makes perfect sense to us, here, on PD, because we've followed the madness and chaos for over a year. I venture that us women (and moms) have a pretty good idea of Palin's sense of out-of-control right now.

I woke up this morning with an image of Bristol in my mind (odd.) It was of her seeing those photoshopped Trig's and just losing it. (I've survived my daughter's teen years, and I can testify there is no FURY like one's daughter.Forget the North Korea.) Imagine if you gave up your son, trusted your mom to do what's right, and that's what it's all come down to. Your son, made a public mockery all over the world. I'm not sure I, or any other loving parent, could stand that-- not from PRIDE but from love.

I believe (or maybe want to believe) that the true straw was Bristol having had enough. You can spin anything: an affair, an indictment. But your daughter's fury is absolute.

just a thought.

And a thought that doesn't make the political writer's handbook.

Anonymous said...

One more thing: the men are analyzing the maneuver. the women hear the emotion in her voice and the anger in her garbled language.

Anyone who thinks this could possibly be a savvy(albeit quirky) political move isn't paying attention to behavioral cues.

(forgive my gross generalization re: men/women to make my point.)

Unknown said...

Whatever it was that prompted this, obviously time was of the essence. My money is on another pregnant daughter. Maybe there was some sibling jealousy over all the goodies that Bristol got from her teen pregnancy?

Nana said...

As much as I have hoped for an end to SP, I was very disturbed watching her breakdown. She was totally unhinged. I feel for her children.

midnightcajun said...

I actually don't think we're seeing a nervous Sarah here. I think we're seeing a very angry Sarah.

Think about it: this is a woman so clueless about her own incompetence that her self-confidence is like a force shield. Her capacity for self-deception is boundless. She thinks she can lie her way out of anything. I've been trying to figure out what could be so huge as to break through that, and i realized the answer is, NOTHING.

So why is she resigning? It's a strategic move. Something is coming at her, something she's convinced she can handle but that she thinks she needs to be out of office to handle it best. Hence the not retreating but going around the roadblock analogies.

If she'd been announcing she was running for president, the way the P-Nuts think, she'd have been all perky and she'd have picked a time when she was sure to get maximum press, rather than trying to bury the story before a holiday. And yet, she made all those vague statements that could be interpreted that way.

So I think she's trying to disguise what she's doing, and leave the door open to a run for president when she lies her way out of the indictment or dodges Levi's iceberg or whatever. The P-Nuts won't see her as a quitter--they'll blame the bloggers and the mean ole media and point (as they're already doing!) to the fact that Obama resigned his office, willfully refusing to see that there is a significant difference here.

Celebrate, yes. But this lady is not out. I'm not sure she's even out. She's just putting on a disguise and crawling into another ring. She's still dangerous. She needs to be behind bars.

wayofpeace said...

ALEX, you're right.

it was my wife whose first comment as we were watching her speech was: that woman is ANGRY! i focused on her INCOHERENCE!

also, i'd like to point out that this decision was NOT the result of a single issue: it was the result of an AVALANCHE of issues that was years-in-the-making.

it comes a time when even a black belt NARCISSIST like SP cannot continue to resist reality.

allison said...

i agree with alex, maribeth, and almost nana. she was very emotional, tongue twisted, etc. it HAS TO BE that bristol wants her child back. i bet after having tripp and being a parent for the second time, she is confident and comfortable with being a mom. she can now afford a nanny to help her. palin's book deal will bring in millions.

and when the truth about palin's fake pregnancy comes out, she's finished. many are bringing the pregnancy up on blogs and news sites and comments sections.

by blaming the media and ethics complaints, etc., she is laying the ground work for trying to explain WHY she did it. she will cry cry cry and discuss the stress of her life, pressure, etc. and some people will buy it and feel sorry for her and even forgive her.

let's be real, what healthy, financially sound woman, no matter the age, would let her mother raise her baby? and in the same town/area she lives? bristol just can't give him up and wants him back. and thankfully, there's no lie palin can make up to explain that one, is there?

mel said...

My suspicion and hope--though I have no basis for them--is that CBJ is coming forward. And she told Sarah in no uncertain terms. Yeah, as some folks here have said, SP wouldn't resign over babygate. But I think she would if CBJ made a public statement.

sandra said...

We've been focused on the truth about Trig, so we tend to see the family dynamics on him as the major culprit. I don't think that is the primary problem.

The basis may be more related to finances. This doesn't seem reasonable that she would give up her job and Todd would come home in the middle of the fish harvest if there were financial problems. But there is probably something much bigger than ordinary household management.

We've had several clues. We heard last week about the need to increase the SarahPAC coffers by June 30. We also heard about the request to donate to AFT in the name of children because of the cap on individual contributions. This indicates that these funds weren't going to be adequate.

Additionally we keep hearing about all the expenses from the legal bills running in the millions when there is no way to explain such a high amount.

There are other rumors that the FBI and IRS have been auditing the Spenard Building Supplies and that SP recently visited with Malek and someone in Texas.

All these rumors. Now she has just announced that she will be speaking in Southern California in August and that she will be having another presser this morning.

There is too much other stuff to have this related to a fight with Bristol and a book deal with Levi.

We should not stop with the family stuff and the DECEPTION, but the situation is very complex or perhaps just money, money, money.

Anonymous said...

Sandra,
Where did you hear about her having another presser today? I've not seen anything about that.

sandra said...

I read about the 11am presser on C4P. Perhaps someone was reporting on some old posting for yesterday. I'll see if I can find the link.

sandra said...

I just followed the posting on C4P about the press conference. The poster didn't indicate that it was yesterday's announcement. Sorry about the error. Lesson here--follow the sources.

Unknown said...

The housegate rumor is really kicking in this afternoon. Google: palin and spenard and you get a good number of results - a lot more than earlier.

I figure there are tons of folks riding the Palin wave right now so that might have something to do with it but there's certainly a vibe going on.

BuffaloGal

Anonymous said...

BuffaloGal,

This is really interesting. After googling Palin and Spenard, I came across this excellent Mudflats post:

http://mudflats.wordpress.com/2008/10/11/house-gate/

It's a good account of Housegate, but what's really interesting is what's at the end, a FOX clip of Greta Lazy-eye Van Sustren is interviewing Todd. AKMuckraker says that he mentions the house at two minutes in.

The video has been pulled.

Unknown said...

Morgan - I remember reading and viewing the Mudflats piece forever ago. Am on my way to revisit.

And, another good revisiting is over at Palingates. Her housegate coverage has some points that I had forgotten. With so many gates, it's tough to keep track! (ha. palin pun)

http://palingates.blogspot.com/search/label/housegate

BuffaloGal

sandra said...

Morgan: It's very interesting that that video has been pulled. If it's the one I remember, Todd was boasting about how he and "some buddies" built the house on weekends. Greta really had him going in that and revealed that he was a pilot, also.

Truthseeker2 said...

Responding to the idea that Sean Parnell would be able to pardon Sarah, from what I understand the charges would be federal, not state. I'm pretty sure the governor would not be able to issue a pardon of a federal crime.

Ariane said...

Watching that I thought this is something being forced on her in some way and she is REALLY, REALLY MAD - seemed like she was on the verge of tears of rage.
I wonder if she had been told that if she would resign, something huge that is looming could be covered up. That is about the only way I could imagine her quitting.

Unknown said...

forgive me if someone's already pointed this out... but i find this picture very odd...

why would bristol have a double stroller if Tripp is her only child.. or SP with Trig for that matter? i don't think this proves anything. but does this stick out to anyone else as a little odd?

Burgh said...

*** Catherine said...
My guess is that she has far better opportunities to make some big money if she were not governor. Running for VP has made her so high profile that there are many national and international opportunities, far bigger than what she had as the governor of Alaska. However, with the public spotlight on her and being an elected official, she cannot grab a lot of these things since she is under tight scrutiny for this. By resigning she can strike while the skillet is hot, she is hot and make a killing financially.

Funny, an acquaintance of ours, a Wall St exec said not long ago, that the smartest thing she could do is to quit and make a load of money for a lot less work and hassle.***

But no one goes into public service for the money. She's there for the fame and adoration. Quitting midway through a term cuts way into her earnings potential. She's never completed one thing in her life; she quits everything midway, making her story much less interesting. There's no goal achieved here; a person with political aspirations doesn't just want to get into the office.

jwoolman said...

How could she get 5 yesses from her kids? One is a baby, isn't the oldest off in Iraq? Did she actually call him about it? Or is he back home now? I also suspect Bristol's response would have been "Who cares?", but that's another matter...

And why didn't Todd get a vote? It sounds as though it was news to him, since when he called his dad to represent him, he didn't say anything about the reason. His dad later said so (he couldn't make it, either).

jwoolman said...

When SP claimed some people were "mocking Trig" in her announcement, I was especially baffled. Couldn't remember anybody making fun of the little guy. Why would they? He's a cute little baby.

So was she referring to that photoshopped picture of her holding some guy (looked like Letterman to me, but maybe it was someone else) like a baby (must have started with a picture of her holding Trig)? Sarah - they weren't mocking Trig. They were mocking you! My goodness.

Could she really be that clueless? Or am I missing something? Don't tell me that BrĂ¼no dragged poor Trig into something..... :)