FReepers find latest AP smear job smells like a rat

Texas for Sarah Palin ^ | Tuesday, July 21, 2009 | Josh Painter

[Josh Painter]

Associated Press writer Rachel D'Oro, who has a history of writing negative pieces on Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, is out with another of her trademark smear jobs. The article is going out from the AP to thousands of news outlets around the world. Let's take a look:

The report obtained by The Associated Press says Palin is securing unwarranted benefits and receiving improper gifts through the Alaska Fund Trust, set up by supporters.

How did AP obtain the report? The copy of the report linked to (PDF) by the Anchorage Daily News has this warning stamped on it in big, bold, letters:

CONFIDENTIAL report regarding Ethics Complaint pursuant to Alaska Statute 39.52.340

and:

Notice of this decision will be communicated to the governor and to Ms. Chatman. However, this decision is confidential pursuant to AS 39.52.340, unless confidentiality is waived by the governor.

Note that "this decision" is the decision of the "independent" investigator, not the final decision of the personnel board, as Gov. Palin tweeted:

"Re inaccurate story floating re:ethics violation/Legal Defense Fund;matter is still pending;new info was just requested even;no final report"

Palin Spokesperson Meghan Stapleton posted on Facebook to reiterate that the report the AP smear job is built upon is not the final report of the personnel board:

"I cannot verify the validity of this claim. There is no final report. The Investigator is still confidentially reviewing this matter. It appears suspect that in the final days of the Governor's term, someone would again violate the law and announce a supposed conclusion before it is reached."

Note also that outside of the personnel board and the attorney hired to investigate (more on him later), only Gov. Palin and Kim Chatman, who filed the complaint, received copies of the report. It's a safe bet that Gov. Palin didn't leak her copy of the report to the AP, so that leaves only Chatman as the likely violator of the report's confidentiality. This is the pattern followed by the maggots who have been filing these bogus complaints against the governor. They know their complaints have no substance and will likely be dismissed or ruled against. The important thing is to publicize them using the liberal media.

Continuing with the hit piece:

An investigator for the state Personnel Board says in his July 14 report that there is probable cause to believe Palin used or attempted to use her official position for personal gain because she authorized the creation of the trust as the "official" legal defense fund.

The fund was created along the lines of other legal expense funds set up by prominent political figures including Sen. John Kerry, former Alaskan Sen. Ted Stevens and former first lady and current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Moreover, AFT was set up to be in strict compliance with 39.52.130:

Alaska Statute ("AS") 39.52.130 Improper Gifts provides as follows, "(a) a public official may not solicit, accept, or receive, directly or indirectly, a gift, whether in the form of money, service, loan, travel, entertainment, hospitality, employment, promise, or in any other form, that is a benefit to the officer’s personal or financial interests, under circumstances in which it could reasonably be inferred that the gift is intended to influence the performance of official duties, actions or judgment."

The Trust has a specific provision to address this law and states: "The Trust shall not accept any donation that is given, offered, or promised in any way or for any purpose that, in the sole and absolute discretion of the Trustee, would be a violation of any federal, state, or local law" and "The Trust shall not accept any donation that is made upon a condition that it be paid or applied other than for the purpose of the Trust."

More from the hit piece:

"In his report, attorney Thomas Daniel..."

So who is Thomas Daniel, and how "independent" an investigator is he?

Daniel is a lawyer employed by the firm of Perkins Coie, LLP. He contributed $1,000 to Democrat John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign. Daniel has also donated to  Alaska's Democrat U.S. Senator Mark Begich.

Perkins Coie, as it turns out, just happens to have Barack Obama as a client. More on Perkins Coie here:

Perkins Coie often partners up with the ACLU and groups like MALDEF on such issues as immigration. Much of the political heavy lifting is done by former Kerry/Edwards 2004 General Counsel Mark Elias and Firmwide Chair, Political Law Practice Robert (Bob) Bauer. Both gentleman’s resumes read more like that of DNC staffers than of lawyers at a firm with the motto "Legal Counsel to Great Companies."

And speaking of the leftist ACLU, guess which attorney is a member? That's right. Thomas Daniel.

Some more on Perkins Coie:

Perkins Coie clients have included many Democrats in Congress, as well as the Democratic National Committee and the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama and John Kerry.

The Seattle-based firm also represented Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire in her protracted 2004 recount battle with Republican Dino Rossi, a legal smackdown that many political analysts compare to the Minnesota Senate race.

The firm is also noted for its representation of Salim Hamdan, whose case as the alleged driver and bodyguard of Osama bin Laden led the U.S. Supreme Court to declare the Bush administration’s military commissions unconstitutional.

Back to the AP hack job:

In his report, attorney Thomas Daniel said his interpretation of the ethics act is consistent with common sense.

An ordinary citizen facing legal charges is not likely to be able to generate donations to a legal defense fund, he wrote. "In contrast, Governor Palin is able to generate donations because of the fact that she is a public official and a public figure. Were it not for the fact that she is governor and a national political figure, it is unlikely that many citizens would donate money to her legal defense fund."

No, what "is consistent with common sense" is that an ordinary citizen is not likely to face an ethics complaint, since the law applies only to public officials such as Gov. Palin. Therefore, an ordinary citizen is unlikely to need a legal defense fund.

Meanwhile, Gov. Palin's attorney has gotten wind of the rat and just posted this on Facebook:

"All options are open in terms of legal remedies. It is a clear violation of Alaska law that Mr. Daniel explicitly reviewed with Ms. Chatman prior to her illegal actions. We will be contacting the appropriate authorities for review and action."

And again:

"The resolution of the Trust Fund is not final. I have been working with the investigator regarding supplemental information. The matter is still pending. Whatever you have seen was released in violation of law. There has been no Board finding of an ethics violation and there is a detailed legal process to follow before there is a final resolution."

Just one question for Kim Chatman: "Are your ready for a rumble?" It looks like you've got yourself one.

h/t: FReepers on the case.

- JP

[Josh Painter]

[EagleUSA]

I guess this is what justifies a paycheck at one of the fine MSM institutions. Hitler had Goebbels. Not much has changed.

[ExTexasRedhead]

Give them a dose of the same back on them using their tactics. Start with Zero and work your way through his group of ghouls and then move on to Congress, e.g., Pelosi, Murtha, Boxer, Feinstein, Kerry, et al.

[libh8er]

The Left is obsessed with Palin. They just won't let her go. It goes beyond politics, they want to personally, financially, emotionally destroy this woman. And most of her enemies, left or right, are women.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

There was a time when the AP was the gold standard of reporting. I give it another 2-3 years and it will be defunct because its members won't be able to afford it.

[WashingtonSource]

I agree. Where is our George Soros, funding dirt-digging expedetions and endless phony charges? Indeed, we wouldn’t need to resort to phony charges, given the degradation and corruption around most Dems. We just need to unearth it.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Democrats:

- Unsealed Bush's 1976 DUI arrest days before election
- Unsealed Jack Ryan's divorce records

[2ndDivisionVet]

Doesn’t this remind you of all the maneuvers that Vice President Al Gore went through in 2000, trying to find favorable venues for a recount, sympathetic judges to rule on decisions, and all that? The Democratic Party is home of most of the nation’s crooked lawyers, so this shouldn’t surprise anyone, I suppose.

[Sarah Barracuda]

I posted this on another thread but thought I’d post it here

Check this out everyone. This is VERY interesting indeed, someone posted this on C4P so I can’t take the credit for this:

I looked up the AP writer, Rachel Cordova D’Oro, on facebook and found she has Linda Kellen Biegel aka Celtic Diva on her friends list!!

I took a quick screen shot. Unbelievable!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v614/TangledThorns/RachelDoro.jpg

Also, on Eddie Burke’s radio show today, someone called in and said that she was at Sarah’s resignation speech, that so-called journalist was there too, and she spotted a woman wearing a Pro-Sarah shirt, she was caught apparently on video going to that woman saying “How can you support the Governor” yeah, no bias there.

[timestax]

So when is Pelosi going to pay all her Federal Income Taxes? eh

[MadMax, the Grinning Reaper]

AP is still calling the constitutional ouster of Honduras communist politician/president Zelaya, a “coup”, not a legal act of their congress.

AP is very anti-Israel, has had a lot of leftist and jihadist infiltration in Iraq, and isn’t doing a good job on Afghanistan.

AP - All Propaganda newservice.

[taxtruth]

Yep,AP and Reuters are in the bed with governments all over the world as propaganda machines.Don’t even listen to their BS anymore.

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

Damn straight, Josh!

[Political Junkie Too]

That reminds me that last week (or maybe the week before), I saw David Boies on Hannity joking with his panel guest that "he probably thinks that Bush v. Gore was a 7-2 decision."

-PJ

[NTHockey]

>>Democrats:
- Unsealed Bush’s 1976 DUI arrest days before election
- Unsealed Jack Ryan’s divorce records<<

And publishing Steele’s confidential data, dug out of a dumpster.

One day soon, we will realize that this is a war to the death. Either we win or we will be slaves. There is only one rule in war - Win or Die.

[PowerPro]

Interesting.

http://www.therightsideoflife.com/?p=5762

Perkins Coie has been paid over a MILLION DOLLARS to defend “President Obama in lawsuits challenging his eligibility to be president”?

//

According to Federal Election Commission records, Obama For America paid $688,316.42 to international law firm Perkins Coie between January and March 2009.

The campaign also compensated Perkins Coie for legal services between Oct. 16, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2008 – to the tune of $378,375.52.

//

This is the same Perkins Coie connected with the newest Palin smear?

Something stinks here.

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

This is the same Perkins Coie connected with the newest Palin smear?

Yes it is!

[Josh Painter]

Great find, Sarah Barracuda!

- JP

[Sarah Barracuda]

Also, I don’t know if this was posted but here ya go

Interesting.

http://www.therightsideoflife.com/?p=5762

Perkins Coie has been paid over a MILLION DOLLARS to defend “President Obama in lawsuits challenging his eligibility to be president”?

//

According to Federal Election Commission records, Obama For America paid $688,316.42 to international law firm Perkins Coie between January and March 2009.

The campaign also compensated Perkins Coie for legal services between Oct. 16, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2008 – to the tune of $378,375.52.

//

This is the same Perkins Coie connected with the newest Palin smear?

Something stinks here.

So this is the guy defending Obama against the Birth Certificate issue, and he is also the one smearing Sarah Palin, ya know the saying, follow the yellow brick road, but in this case, follow the Obama road, and you will find all of the answers

[Ciexyz]

You got it.