Palin's Troopergate lies

Tomorrow, a report is expected to be issued, detailing exactly what Sarah Palin, and her administration (including First Dude Todd Palin) did and didn't do with regard to pressuring DPS head Walt Monegan to fire her ex-brother-in-law Michael Wooten, a state patrol trooper. Palin continues to maintain that nobody contacted Walt Monegan and told him to do anything. Not surprisingly, like many other statements made by Governor Palin, this is also a lie.

Ms. Palin has denied that anyone told Mr. Monegan to dismiss Mr. Wooten, or that the commissioner’s ouster had anything to do with the trooper. But an examination of the case, based on interviews with Mr. Monegan and several top aides, indicates that, to a far greater degree than was previously known, the governor, her husband and her administration pressed the commissioner and his staff to get Mr. Wooten off the force, though without directly ordering it.

In all, the commissioner and his aides were contacted about Mr. Wooten three dozen times over 19 months by the governor, her husband and seven administration officials, interviews and documents show.

“To all of us, it was a campaign to get rid of him as a trooper and, at the very least, to smear the guy and give him a desk job somewhere,” said Kim Peterson, Mr. Monegan’s special assistant, who like several other aides spoke publicly about the matter for the first time. [emphasis mine]

Further adding to Palin's woes, today the Alaska Supreme Court threw out an attempt by Republican legislators to shut down the Troopergate investigation, upholding a lower court ruling, meaning that investigator Steve Branchflower's report on the matter will be issued tomorrow. A full copy of the Court's order can be found here. An opinion is expected to follow, but has not yet been posted on the Court's website.