Palin causes blood vessel to burst

There was a time when arriving at work with an eye the color of an overripe tomato would have been because I had a really good time the night before.

My very competent and nice eye doctor, Dr. Baxter, told me that a blood vessel burst in my left eye. It is something that can happen from a sudden increase in blood pressure, like what happens when you have a coughing fit.

It is no coincidence that my vessel popped within hours after the issue arrived in my mailbox.

The former Governor of Alaska, who quit two years into her first term wouldn't win her home state in a Presidential election. I'm not making that up, it's from Policy Polling and their survey showed that only one of the Republican candidates could take their home state, and that's Gary Johnson in New Mexico. Palin, who isn't even an official candidate, rates just slightly above Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann in the unpopular rankings. Both women have a favorability ranking of 33 percent. Yet a national magazine puts Palin on the cover. (I wasn't real happy about Newsweeks cover last week either, the one that showed a computer-aged Princess Diana walking along with Princess Kate. That was just sleazy.)

Putting Palin on the cover may be good for newsstand sales, but it plays havoc with my health.

Here's what frosts my pumpkin about the recent Sarah Palin cover. She is a private citizen, not a candidate for president. My profession, the "lamestream media," as she calls us, who provide fuel to whatever fire is in Sarah Palin's gut for fame and fortune are who should be held accountable for my bloody eye.

A co-worker and I have an informal wager going, because he insists Palin will run for President. I say no she won't. Why would she take the pay cut? She could win some primaries, where typically only the faithful bother to show up to vote. In 2008, during the Nebraska primary election on May 13, only 20 percent of registered voters went to the polls. And that's the Republicans. The next time you are at the local grocery store, take a minute to look at the first 10 people you see browsing in the potato chip aisle. Ask yourself if you would trust any two of them to decide who will be in charge of the country for four years, and see if you don't have an immediate impulse to build a bunker in your backyard or ask Canada if we can sleep on their couch. (Thank you, Stephen Colbert.)

I would be happy to loan you my copy of Newsweek, except that I used it under a bug bomb to prevent toxic drips landing on my carpet. I have to stay ahead of the ants.

I need to calm down here before I burst anything else. So I'm going to try and forget about Sarah Palin and politics and relax because it's my birthday.

By the time this appears in the newspaper, it will have come and gone, so let me thank all of you in advance for the lavish gifts and fuss you made. (Belated fussing will be tolerated.)

*Gov. Palin Facts

Governor Sarah Palin’s Accomplishments that garnished her a whopping 92% approval rating:

Energy Independence, Development, and Environmental Stewardship

*Governor Palin’s cornerstone accomplishment is AGIA (Alaska Gasline Inducement Act). During the Palin administration, TransCanada and Exxon formed an alliance to build a natural gas pipeline from Alaska to the Lower 48. Under Governor Palin’s governance, the project was expanded and revised from what previous governors had proposed with an open policy process for the Alaskan people. More progress was made on this effort than in the previous 30 years. This is the largest private sector infrastructure project in North American history and helps put us on the path to energy independence.

*Governor Palin’s administration opened up drilling for oil and natural gas at Pt. Thompson for the first time in decades.

*Governor Palin created the Alaska’s Petroleum Integrity Office to oversee all aspects of energy development and to make sure oilfield equipment was safe to operate and a Climate Change Subcabinet to comprehensively and honestly evaluate climate change.

Fiscal Conservatism

*Governor Palin reduced earmark requests for the state of Alaska by 80% during her administration, requesting only earmarks that would benefit the country as a whole.

* Governor Palin reduced spending in her budget for Fiscal Year 2010 by more than one billion dollars from the previous governor’s Fiscal Year 2007 budget, a 9.5% real reduction in spending. Her FY2010 budget was $10.57 billion compared to Governor Murkowski’s FY2007 budget of nearly $11.7 billion. At the same time, she fulfilled her campaign promise to forward fund education, allowing districts greater flexibility and predictability in their planning.

*Governor Palin opposed much of the “stimulus”, wanting only to accept 55% of the money allocated to Alaska, specifically only dollars dedicated to infrastructure [projects. Although the Alaskan legislature ultimately overturned her veto, she stood firm on her commitment to help Alaska to become more self-sufficient while not adding to not add to the skyrocketing national debt.

* Governor Palin invested $5 billion in state savings.

Walking the Walk on Fiscal Responsibility

*Governor Palin sold the private jet purchased by the previous governor. She state it was an unnecessary financial burden on the state and was unable to land on many of the state’s landing strips.

* To cut costs that would be incurred by continuing to use a personal driver like previous governors, the governor drove herself from Wasilla to her office in Anchorage. She also dismissed the governor’s personal chef stationed in Juneau, Alaska’s capital.

* Governor Palin accepted less state per diem for herself and her family than her predecessors even though she had a larger family.

10th Amendment Advocacy/Promotion of State Constitution

*Showing that she is a strong supporter of the 10th amendment, Governor Palin advocated for the sovereignty of the state of Alaska.

*Governor Palin’s administration sued the federal government for placing the polar bear on the endangered species list, as this restriction affected energy development which would increase energy costs.

*A Constitutionalist, Governor Palin signed Alaska’s Clear and Equitable Share (ACES) bill into law. The Alaska constitution states that the Alaskan people own the oil and other resources. This law ensures that the “owners”, the people of Alaska, receive a clear and equitable share of oil profits.

National Defense/Veterans

*Governor Palin supported ground-based missile defense Ft Greely and other Alaskan Bases around to protect America from America’s enemies. She criticized the Obama administration for cuts that they made to this national defense system.

*Governor Palin, with Senators Murkowski and Begich, fought for retirement benefits from the federal government that were due to the Alaska Territorial Guard members who fought during World War II. These benefits were eventually rewarded to these veterans by the federal government.

* Governor Palin visited Alaskan soldiers in Kosovo and Kuwait.

Transparency/Anti-Corruption

*Governor Palin signed bipartisan ethics reform legislation into law that helped to hold both the legislative and executive branches accountable.

*Governor Palin put the state checkbook online, allowing all constituents to see how state money was being spent.

Health Care

*Governor Palin introduced health care transparency legislation which aimed at putting information in the hands of consumers about cost and quality of health care as a way to make health care consumer driven and accessible.

Sanctity and Dignity of All Life

* Governor Palin strongly supported both parental consent and parental notification legislation.

*Governor Palin increased educational funding for special needs’ children.

*Governor Palin implemented the Senior Benefits Program to support low income seniors.

Positions Held while Governor

* Chairman of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission.

*Vice Chair of the National Governors Association Natural Resource Committee.

* She served as chair of the Alaska Conservation Commission, which regulates Alaska’s most valuable non-renewable resources: oil and gas. She was elected by her peers to serve as president of the Alaska Conference of Mayors. In this role, she worked with local, state and federal officials to promote solutions to the needs of Alaska’s communities.

She exposed legal violations and conflicts of interest of Alaska Republican leaders, including the former state Attorney General and the State GOP Chairman (who was also an Oil & Gas Commissioner), who was doing work for the party on public time and supplying a lobbyist with a sensitive e-mail. Several went to jail.

Governor Palin signed several pieces of legislation and resolutions during July 2009. They were:

•SB-125: Encourage aerospace development in AK
•SB-177: Extend sunset for sport fishing guides and address harvest data collection
•Pro-energy development and missile defense resolutions

HJR-27: Alaska a Sovereign State
HJR-25: Hydro-Electric a Renewable Resource
HJR-28: Oppose Federal Restriction on Oil and Gas Development
HJR-12: Support Missile Defense System
•SB-88: Power cost equalization
•Defending Second Amendment rights.

SB-201: Extends Concealed Carry Permit Expiration to 5 Years from Birthday
HJR-17: Urges Congress not to pass HR-45.The federal legislation would put burdensome licensing and registration controls on individual gun owners.
SJR-10: Urges Congress to pass S-371. The legislation was to ensure that citizens of each state who are licensed or authorized by their home state to carry a concealed weapon, could do so in another state as long as they comply with the laws of that state.
SJR-3: The resolution expresses support to Congress for repealing the ban on carrying a firearm on National Park Service lands.
•SB-3 Requiring information sharing between two agencies.
•HRJ-19 Supports requirement of escort for loaded tankers traversing Prince William Sound.
•The Governor appointed 29 people to boards, commissions and councils and made three judicial appointments between July 6, 2009 and July 26, 2009.

Governor Palin’s total appointments for 2009 was123, including 116 to boards, commissions and councils, five judicial appointments, one legislative and one attorney general. Governor Palin averaged one appointment every 1.67 days during 2009.
•The Governor vetoed $28.6 million in stimulus money that would have involved federal interference with the state of Alaska.
Governor Palin signed bills removing experience caps on teacher’s salaries and extending boat safety programs.

Governor Palin signed legislation that gave struggling charter schools a one-year grace period to increase enrollments or integrate with other charter schools. She also signed legislation that authorizes Alaska “to enroll in the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children.”

Governor Palin signed legislation granting birth certificates for stillborn babies

Governor Palin signed legislation authorizing the state to fund retirement benefits for Alaska Territorial Guard veterans. The federal government ceased funding benefits on April 1, 2009

Governor Palin signed legislation safeguarding student loans

Sarah Palin was Commander of the Alaska National Guard. Alaska is the first line of defense in our missile interceptor defense system. The 49th Missile Defense Battalion of the Alaska National Guard is the first line of defense unit that protects the entire nation from ballistic missile attacks. It’s on permanent active duty, unlike other Guard units in the United States. As governor of Alaska, Palin was briefed on highly classified military issues, homeland security, and counterterrorism daily.

Governor Palin was the commander in chief of the Alaska State Defense Force (ASDF), a federally recognized militia incorporated into Homeland Security’s counterterrorism plans. —From FReeper Fiddlstix

The reason Sarah quit the governorship was twofold. By FReeper OneVike–

First and foremost, Sarah had done everything she said she would do when she ran for office. For what was left, her successor could be just as effective. Second, the left started filling frivolous lawsuits against her, and unlike the other 48 governors, the Attorney General of Alaska does not routinely represent the governor when accusations and complaints are filed against the office holder under the operative ethics statutes. (This means that the governor has to personally pay for her or his own legal defense personally.) Basically she was sued out of office.

It is quite interesting the way her detractors forget how she was the darling of the Democrats before the national media knew who she was. What they conveniently forgot was the way Palin took the Governor’s office away from a fellow Republican and tough SOB, named Frank Murkowski. Yes, the father of Lisa (It’s my seat, mine, mine, mine) Murkowski. Back then the media and the left loved her because she tore into the corrupt good old boy’s, “Country Club” Republicans, and sent them packing. Many of them are now residing in State housing and wearing orange jump suits. Back then the Democrats reacted by skipping around the yard, throwing confetti and singing, “la la la la” (well, you know how they are). Name another governor in this country that has ever done anything similar to taking on their own party.

Now with the corrupt good old boys death grip on the state broken, there were fewer Alaskan politicians to protect the huge, giant oil companies. So Sarah constructed and enacted a new system of splitting the oil profits called “ACES” (Alaska’s Clear and Equitable Share). Exxon, the biggest corporation in the world, protested and Sarah told them, “don’t let the door hit you in the derriere on your way out.” They stayed, and Alaska residents went from being merely wealthy to being filthy rich. Of course, the other huge international oil companies meekly fell in line. Again, give me the name of any other governor in the country that has done anything similar.

Another thing the Grizzly did when she walked into the governor’s office was she got the list of State requests for federal funding for pork-barrel projects. She went through the list, took 85% of them and placed them in the “when-hell-freezes-over” stack. She let locals know that if we need something built, we’ll pay for it ourselves. Maybe she figured she could use the money she got from selling the previous governor’s jet because it was extravagant. She even suggested that the money saved from the “Bridge to Nowhere” be given to Minnesota to help pay for the I-35 bridge that collapsed. Minnesota to help pay for the I-35 bridge that collapsed. Then there was the money she saved the tax payers by dismissing the governor’s cook, giving back the State vehicle issued to her, and dismissing her State provided security force. After all she was packing heat, but no one knew at the time, so I doubt that any attack on her would have been successful. Could someone please give me a list of governors who have offered money allocated for their state to another?

Now, even with her much-ridiculed “gosh and golly” mannerism, she also managed to put together a totally new approach to getting a natural gas pipeline built which will be the biggest private construction project in the history of North America. No one else could do it although they tried. If that doesn’t impress you, then you’re trying too hard to be unimpressed while watching her do things like this while baking up a batch of brownies with her other hand.

For 30 years, Exxon held a lease to do exploratory drilling at a place called Point Thompson. They made excuses the entire time why they couldn’t start drilling. In truth they were holding it like an investment. No governor for 30 years could make them get started. Then, she told them she was revoking their lease and kicking them out. They protested and threatened court action. She shrugged and reminded them that she knew the way to the court house. Alaska won again.

We have all heard how Obama wants the nation to be on 25% renewable resources for electricity by 2025. However, when was the last time you heard from the MSM that Sarah Palin went to the Alaskan legislature and submitted a plan for Alaska to be at 50% renewable energy by 2025. As of today, Alaska is already at 25%. I’m still waiting to hear from those who support the mainstream politicians on both sides of the aisle, about the list of names they have of other governors who can match what Sarah accomplished in just two and a half years as governor of Alaska.

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