Posted on 11/17/2010 1:06:43 PM PST by Retired Intelligence Officer
Governor Sarah Palin’s Record That Gave Her A 90% 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 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.
Murkowski Budget 2007: http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/08_OMB/budget/Enacted/FY2008_ConfComm_Less_Vetoes_Fiscal_Summary.pdf
Palin Budget 2010: http://www.gov.state.ak.us/omb/10_omb/budget/bills/Budget_Press_Release_5-21-09.pdf
Total reduction in spending between 2007 and 2010: A whopping 9.5% or $1,127,400,000
A general rule of thumb for both liberal and conservative administrations is to claim that they may reasonably increase spending every year at a rate of 2% to 3% because of inflation and that should not count against them as increased spending. Even if we use the low end of inflation at 2%, Governor Palin's budget could have been (without calling it a spending increase): $12,413,374,459.20
Of course, the budget was not $12.4 billion; it was actually $10.57 billion. In other words, she cut spending.
* When Governor Palin set out to cut Alaska's dependence on government funds, she was serious!
Check out these numbers:
FFY07- Murkowski's federal requests total: 63 projects @ $349,497,000 http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/10_omb/budget/10%20PDFs/FFY07_Approp_Requests.pdf
FFY10- Governor Palin's federal requests total: 8 projects @ $69,100,000 http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/10_omb/budget/10%20PDFs/FFY10_Approp_Requests.pdf
That was a gigantic 80% drop in federal requests by the Alaska governor's office.
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.
See what I mean about leading by example? Not only has Governor Palin dropped the federal requests for money by 80%, she had also been slowly chipping away at these numbers since the beginning of her administration.
FFY2007- Gov. Murkowski 63 projects at $349,497,000 http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/10_omb/budget/10%20PDFs/FFY07_Approp_Requests.pdf
FFY08- Gov. Palin 52 projects at $256,037,000 http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/10_omb/budget/10%20PDFs/FFY08_Approp_Requests.pdf
FFY09- Gov. Palin 31 projects at $195,094,900 http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/10_omb/budget/10%20PDFs/FFY09_Approp_Requests.pdf
FFY10- Gov. Palin: 8 projects @ $69,100,000 http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/10_omb/budget/10%20PDFs/FFY10_Approp_Requests.pdf
As you can clearly see, there was a noticeable drop in federal requests year after year during Governor Palin's administration.
*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.
Then the story about the dems dropping lawsuit after lawsuit on her and the state of Alaska was made up by her?
“This is someone who quit her job half way through her first term as Governor because the national spotlight was more alluring.”
Can we call it recycling when garbage gets reused?
It’s well-known WHY Palin resigned, and the spotlight wasn’t it.
hey.. could YOU have afforded a half-million (and climbing) of legal bills on what she was getting paid?
It was a sub-cabinet that had no regulatory powers.
How’s that ass-kicking JimRob gave you going? ROFL
>This is someone who quit her job half way through her first term as Governor because the national spotlight was more alluring.<
Completely false.
She quite because she was being hounded with frivolous law suits by the DCCC and their cronies that she was compelled to defend. her defense was costing her more than she made as Governor. She also sited the reason that the time she was spending in court due to all the cares (which NONE ever was she found to be guilty of) was taking too much time from her job of Governing the State.
face it, the democrats and liberals hated her, they did all they could to get her to play ball and when she wouldn’t they went on a rampage tying her up in court and bleeding her dry.
And?
BTTT!
Thanks Retired Intelligence Officer.
You know something I wish these PDS types would uh:
Go play in traffic.
Or this one
They should be seen and not heard.
GMTA = I just posted a very small graphic. A little late, I know, but I didn’t see this thread until I was pinged to it.
I’d would rather elect someone willing to relinquish power over a title-clinging politician (i.e. Blagovich, Sanford, Chavez) who refuses to surrender power under any circumstances short of being indicted or ousted in a military coup.
“Quitting” isn’t inherently bad, if done for the right reasons. In fact, let’s look at her history. Did you know Palin “quit” another six figure job, her oil & gas ethics commissioner job before she became governor? She resigned to protest corruption when the sitting Republican governor wouldn’t investigate the state party chair for sharing confidential state documents with an oil lobbyist. She quit because by law as a commissioner she couldn’t go public with her concerns because of confidentiality rules. So she quit to be able to blow the whistle on collusion knowing it would probably kill any chance she had to succeed in state politics as a Republican. And you know what happened to that state party chair? He was later given the largest ethics fine in Alaska history, largely because Palin had the courage to put pressure on the governor’s office and the Republican party. And what happened to Palin? She became Governor of Alaska.
Now let’s look at her situation as governor.
Palin was paid roughly 337,500 in 32 months as governor. After 19 bogus ethics charges against her, she owed around 500,000 in legal fees to her attorney. The current laws of Alaska required that every single filed ethics complaint to be investigated no matter how ridiculous (being photographed with a fish, wearing a jacket with a logo, receiving “cookie” bribes) and all at the personal cost of the defendant. Had she stayed in office another 16 months, she likely would have been forced into bankruptcy because Alaska law does not automatically cover the legal defense of its governors nor was the Attorney General of the state or someone else designated by the state to defend her like all other states. If you were working in a job that was costing you almost twice as much to go into work everyday than you were making would you stay there?
Even her set up of a legal defense fund like other politicians have was deemed unethical (It was arguably the strictest legal defense fund in history with all the restrictions it had for those who could donate) wherein a politically motivated investigator suggested Palin should just let Alaska taxpayers pay for her legal defense. They wanted Alaskans to take the bullet for the political malice of Palin’s enemies.. In less than a year, she racked up half-a-million (to put this in perspective, her salary as Governor was only 125,000 a year and she had even declined a 25,000 raise by the legislature) in legal charges with much more to come.
One can argue that she should have just fought her enemies instead of letting them win.
If you decide to continue fighting your enemies at the expense of the people you serve is that even ethical? If your presence in office is causing heavy collateral damage to your state, is it smart and ethical to remain in office no matter the cost? Has any politician at the state level attracted the volume of attacks directed at Palin? Is it normal for a governor to go personally bankrupt defending themselves against bogus ethics complaints? Palin incurred almost twice as much legal debt as the salary she drew as governor. Every day she spent in office she was one day closer to personal bankruptcy.
These frivolous lawsuits effectively paralyzed her administration by wasting time and money doing research for countless Freedom of Information Act requests and addressing the ethics charges. The estimated cost of wasted time for the State of Alaska was 2 million and rising. By resigning she effectively took the circus out of Alaska.
HA HA! Wankers for Mitt!! LOL! www.wankersformitt.com
Thanks for the list and the ping. Bookmarked.
You, however, do know shit from shinola. You have proven that many times here!
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