Free Republic

Excepting her bang-up performance at the Gridiron Dinner this month, Sarah Palin has an infamously fraught relationship with the media. On the one hand, frenzied coverage of her memoir ginned up sales. On the other hand, non-stop scrutiny of her clothing choices allegedly ruined a family vacation. There are costs to being constantly in the spotlight. Now she's taken some measures to control the message. Three Alaska bloggers who crossed Palin while she was governor have found themselves banned from attending her book signings. Jesse Gryphen, Dennis Zaki, and Shannyn Moore--plus an unknown fourth--are blacklisted at Palin events. Gryphen tells...

A year ago someone set fire to Wasilla Bible Church. Today, that person is still out there. The Wasilla Police Department is leading the ongoing investigation, but none of the leads they've chased so far have ended up panning out. "The investigation is still open, and we're still asking the public to contact us if anybody has heard anything," Deputy Chief Greg Wood said. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the state fire marshal's office both assisted in the initial investigation, and the state crime laboratory collected evidence at the scene. An ATF press release issued...

Dwarfing the numbers that traditionally show up for the governor's annual picnic in Wasilla, Alaska, more than a thousand people turned out Friday for Gov. Sarah Palin's last such event that she will host as governor in her hometown. Some in the crowd came from as far away from Wasilla as Louisiana and Texas. Adrienne Ross, media director, New York State organizer and an executive board member of the 2012 Draft Sarah Committee was there, and she posted an after action report with lots of photos on her blog Motivation Truth here. Alaskan Tammy Swofford was also there, and she...

WASILLA, Alaska (AP) -- More than a thousand people showed up for Gov. Sarah Palin's annual picnic held in her hometown of Wasilla. Palin, who is resigning and leaves office on Sunday, used the occasion Friday to sign autographs and hand out hot dogs. The governor - dressed casually in blue jeans and a sweat shirt - was mobbed by well-wishers who offered up babies, books, calendars, skateboards and even their hands for autographs.

Vanity Fair's Todd Purdum joined Chuck Todd, filling in for Chris Matthews on Hardball, to discuss his recent article on Sarah Palin.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 4, 2009 On July 3rd, 2009, Governor Sarah Palin announced her intent to resign her gubernatorial duties and transfer the powers of Governor to Lt. Governor Sean Parnell. Almost immediately afterwards, several unscrupulous people have asserted false and defamatory allegations that the “real” reasons for Governor Palin’s resignation stem from an alleged criminal investigation pertaining to the construction of the Wasilla Sports Complex. This canard was first floated by Democrat operatives in September 2008 during the national campaign and followed up by sympathetic Democratic writers.1. It was easily rebutted then as one of many fabrications about...

The latest issue of Vanity Fair isn't even on newsstands yet and it's already making headlines for a not-so-politely titled article, "It Came from Wasilla," about Gov. Sarah Palin. William Kristol at the Weekly Standard is calling it a "hit piece," taking writer Todd Purdum to task for his "dubious claims." A blogger at the Atlantic writes that the article "paints a gruesome picture" of the governor. Politico's Jonathan Martin mulls the "political fallout from the very tough piece."

On the night of December 12, 2008, the Wasilla Bible Church was set ablaze by arsonists. At the time, several women and children were inside working on a craft project. They were alerted to the fire when the alarm began sounding, by that time, the front of the church was engulfed in flames. Firefighters began arriving shortly after 9:40 p.m. It took crews from several local communities until 5 a.m. to fully extinguish the blaze. The fire caused close to $1 million in damages. It did not take long for investigators to determine that the fire was an act of...

Navy veteran and Alaska citizen Mark Bowers (follow Mark on Twitter) received a pleasant surprise after he donated to the Alaska Fund Trust to preserve the integrity of the Governor's Office of the State of Alaska. His donation helps to cover the legal expenses of defending against the frivolous complaints filed against Governor Sarah Palin. She surprised him with a personally written thank you note from the governor herself. See photo here.

Looking like a lot of her classmates — giddy and irreverent, wearing a silly necklace of Blow-Pop lollipops strung together with curly gift ribbon — Bristol Palin stepped toward the stage in Wasilla Sports Complex Thursday night to receive her high school diploma, more a worried mom than a jubilant teen. "Where's my baby?" Bristol mouthed, searching the two front rows where her family sat until she finally spotted son Tripp near the backstage door, where Bristol's Aunt Heather was feeding the infant a bottle. With a wave to the little one she alternately calls "Handsome" and "My Guy," Bristol...

Anchorage fitness instructor Amy Brun doesn't want to see any more trillion-dollar federal bailouts. She doesn't want to pay higher taxes, and she doesn't want what she does pay to bankroll some corporate CEO's bonus. "For the first time in my life, I want to know what they're going to do with my money -- because there's a lot of it going out and not a lot of it coming in," Brun said. So on Wednesday, the 45-year-old went to her first-ever protest as part of a national Tax Day Tea Party in downtown Anchorage. More than 1,200 other tax...

Palin’s Sister-in-Law’s, Hairdresser’s, Grocer Had Friend With Pet that Peed on Obama 4 Prez Sign And now an important word from the Associated Press: by Warner Todd Huston Saturday, April 4th ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Police say that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s sister-in-law’s, hairdresser’s, grocer had a friend with a pet schnauzer that urinated on an Obama for president sign during the late campaign. Deputy Wasilla Police Chief Greg Wood said that the complaint was… OK. Well, my story isn’t exactly the same as the AP story I link above, but it IS just as relevant. Mine’s more interesting, too.

A half sister of Gov. Sarah Palin's husband is accused of breaking into the same home two times with the intention of stealing money. Diana Palin is charged with two counts of felony burglary and misdemeanor counts of criminal trespass and theft in connection with the break-ins this week at a home in Wasilla, the governor's hometown. Diana Palin was scheduled to make her first appearance in court Friday following her arrest the previous night. Deputy Wasilla Police Chief Greg Wood says the 35-year-old woman was confronted by the homeowner, who hid in the home to see if he could...

Sarah Palin’s church reopens after building damaged by arsonAP Published: February 4, 2009 WASILLA, Alaska (AP) - Hundreds of worshippers flocked to the reopening of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s home church, which was badly damaged in an arson fire in December. “We have been blessed by people’s response to us, far beyond anything we deserved,“ Pastor Larry Kroon told worshippers at Wasilla Bible Church. “God’s grace is the one true renewing resource and it will never run out.“ Palin, the former Republican vice presidential hopeful, was in Washington, D.C., over the weekend and did not attend either of the two...

Arsonist intended murder at Palin's church? Report: Alarm, phone wires cut, fire set at entrance © 2009 WorldNetDaily A leader at Wasilla Bible Church in Alaska suspects the arsonist who started fires that left $1 million in damages intended murder and possibly targeted the church because of the attendance of Gov. Sarah Palin, whose Christian faith became an issue during her 2008 campaign with Sen. John McCain. "Clearly this was an attack caused by Governor Palin's connection to this little Christian church," writes blogger Kevin Collins in his Collins Report. Collins said a church elder, Tom Ryan, confirmed the case...

An exclusive interview with a church Elder has provided The Collins Report with sobering new facts about the arson fire at Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s home church, the Wasilla Bible Church (WBC). WBC Elder Tom Ryan revealed never before reported facts about this vicious crime. FACT: The crime was a six count attempted Murder 1, not a simple arson of a coincidently occupied building. There were 5 adult women and a 17 year old girl in the church during the arson. The old media never reported this crime as attempted murders. Instead they have smothered the truth of this story....

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Wasilla Bible Church has not had an easy year. The vice presidential nomination of Gov. Sarah Palin, who is a fellow church member, put the church's beliefs under national scrutiny. And just as things started to settle down, a fire last month sparked more headlines. But with one visit to the church, one can learn that from all the bad, comes some good. Wasilla Bible Church is moving forward and is counting its blessings. Fire damage is still visible, especially in the back corner, where Pastor Larry Kroon remembers watching the destruction of the blaze from outside....

A religion columnist and journalism professor says the mainstream media's coverage of the fire that gutted Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's home church has been thin, but it's hard to say exactly why it's been underplayed. Investigators say the fire that destroyed Wasilla Bible Church in Alaska on December 12 was likely the work of an arsonist, but the mainstream news media, with the exception of The Associated Press, has largely ignored the story. Terry Mattingly is the editor of the website GetReligion.org, a Scripps Howard columnist, and director of the Washington Journalism Center. He says because the fire occurred in...

<p>Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter, Bristol, has been arrested on drug charges, authorities said on Friday. Sherry Johnston, 42, was taken into custody at her ...</p>

Levi Johnston's Mother Arrested On Drug Charges (Wasilla, AK) -- The mother of Levi Johnston, who gained fame as the boyfriend of Bristol Palin, was arrested in Wasilla, Alaska Thursday on six felony drug charges. The "Anchorage Daily News" reports that Sherry Johnston was arrested at her home and charged with manufacturing or delivering drugs, as well as possession. Johnston is the mother of 18-year-old Levi Johnston, who became the focus of media attention when Governor Sarah Palin announced her teenage daughter was pregnant and he was the father. Levi Johnston sat with the Palin family at the Republican National...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – An accelerant was poured around the exterior of Gov. Sarah Palin's church before fire heavily damaged the building, federal investigators said Monday. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said the accelerant was poured at several locations around the church, including entrances.

Just saw on Greta's show--a clip of Letterman getting big laughs out of Sarah Palin's church being torched by "Joe the Arsonist". I'm posting this in chat, I have already searched youtube for it and nothing yet, have also visited Gretawire.com and not seen it posted. If anyone sees it, please ping.

Sarah Palin’s church was badly damaged by a fire the authorities are treating as an act of arson. The fire, which comes after a heated presidential campaign where Mrs. Palin’s church was ridiculed by major media outlets, has some Christian activists contending secular intolerance and bigotry directed toward Christians remains a serious problem in America. “It’s a scare tactic,” proclaimed Bishop Janice Hollis, pastor of Progressive Believers Ministry. “It is a ploy to make Christians more docile and timid, less likely to fight for their rights.” While it is unclear whether or not the fire at Mrs. Palin’s church was...

Hear the silence? An arsonist tried to burn down Wasilla Bible Church, the congregation of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin late Friday evening. But not a word of concern – much less of outrage - has appeared thus far on the editorial pages of The New York Times, The Washington Post, or The Los Angeles Times concerning a despicable act, regardless of the motives of its perpetrator. All that is known at this point is that Alaska authorities view the fire as an act of arson, and that church officials decline to say if they have received any recent threats. Now...

The congregants from the Wasilla Bible Church were not looking to cast stones in the wake of the fire that nearly destroyed Gov. Palin’s house of worship. With an investigation in progress, the authorities will not comment or theorize. Given the criticism of the church by the forces of political correctness and the historical background of the election, is it possible that this arson is the work of the Anti-Prop 8 Mafia?

Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at $1 million, authorities said Saturday. No one was injured in the fire, which was set Friday night while a handful of people, including two children, were inside, according to Central Mat-Su Fire Chief James Steele.

Federal investigators say an accelerant was poured around the exterior of Gov. Sarah Palin's home church before it was heavily damaged by a fire.

Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are aiding the investigation of a fire that caused a reported $1 million in damages at the Alaska governor's church. . Federal officials say an accelerant was poured around the exterior of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's church, including by entrances at the 2 1/2-year-old building, which was partly gutted by a costly fire Friday night. Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) joined an arson investigation at the Wasilla Bible Church Monday, where church officials say a fire caused $1 million in damage. The blaze was...

FRIDAY NIGHT BLAZE: As many as 40 volunteer firefighters helped out; single service scheduled today. WASILLA - A Friday night fire at Gov. Sarah Palin's church caused an estimated $1 million in damage, and investigators say it could be the work of an arsonist. Firefighters were called to Wasilla Bible Church about 9:40 p.m. and found flames and smoke coming out windows at the back of the three-story structure, said James Steele, chief of the Central Mat-Su Fire Department. Five women, and possibly a couple of children, were inside the church working on crafts, but everyone got out safely after...

CNN) -- A "suspicious" fire devastated the church attended by Alaska Gov. and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin on Friday night in her hometown of Wasilla, the church's minister said.

Wasilla Bible Church 1651 W. Nicola Avenue Wasilla, Alaska 99654 907-376-2176 church@wasillabible.org The Wasilla Bible Church will meet at Wasilla Middle School, 650 E Bogard Road, at 11:15 am only on Sunday, December 14th. It is likely there will be limited or no child care or programs this Sunday. Our building was damaged by a fire Friday evening, and will need repairs before we can resume worship there again. Praise God that no one in the building was injured, and pray for us as we rebuild. We will likely meet at the Middle School for a while until the building...

The September 2, 2008 edition of the Huffington Post features an article titled "Palin's Church May Have Shaped Controversial Worldview". In it, Palin's political views are attributed to the beliefs she developed while attending the Wasilla Assembly of God since her childhood. The article (FR will not allow it to be linked) includes an "UPDATE" that when accessed describes the church fire.

WASILLA - An overnight fire at Gov. Sarah Palin's church caused an estimated $1 million in damage, and investigators say it could be the work of an arsonist.Firefighters were called to Wasilla Bible Church about 9:40 p.m. Friday and found flames and smoke coming out windows at the back of the three-story structure, said James Steele, chief of the Central Mat-Su Fire Department.

ANCHORAGE, Dec. 13 -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's home church was badly damaged by arson, leading the governor to apologize Saturday if the fire was connected to "undeserved negative attention" from her campaign as the Republican vice presidential nominee. Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at $1 million, authorities said. No one was injured in the fire, which was set Friday night while a handful of people, including two children, were inside, according to James Steele, the Central Mat-Su fire chief.

Just breaking on CNN.

<p>Gov. Sarah Palin's home church was badly damaged by arson, leading the governor to apologize if the fire was connected to "undeserved negative attention" from her failed campaign as the Republican vice presidential nominee.</p> <p>Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at $1 million, authorities said Saturday. No one was injured in the fire, which was set Friday night while a handful of people, including two children, were inside, according to Central Mat-Su Fire Chief James Steele.</p>

Gov. Sarah Palin's home church has been badly damaged in a suspicious fire. Larry Kroon, pastor of the Wasilla Bible Church, estimates damages at more than $1 million to the church. Kroon declined to say if the blaze was politically based or directed at Palin, the failed Republican vice presidential candidate. Kroon says the fire broke out Friday night while a small group of women were working on crafts. They were alerted to the blaze by a fire alarm. Kroon says he was called and by the time he got to the church, smoke was pouring out of the building....

For the first time, the world is now hearing from the man seen in the background of Governor Sarah Palin's visit to an Alaskan turkey farm. Brian Tomes says he was just doing his job and "things happen." Tomes was going about his gruesome task of slaughtering turkeys as Palin gave a TV interview, talking about her Thanksgiving plans. The farmhand told INSIDE EDITION he didn't realize he could be seen as Palin was speaking. "I thought they had panned in on her face…I did try and block the process," he says. The video has become a YouTube sensation with...

We just returned from Gov. Sarah Palin's home in Wasilla, where we shared a wide-ranging, 30-minute interview with KTUU.

ANCHORAGE — Gov. Sarah Palin has returned to Alaska fully recast and amplified. Adored by many national conservatives, Ms. Palin is a prospect for a presidential run in 2012, supporters say. Caricatured by opponents, she is a candidate for political oblivion, say others. Regardless, Ms. Palin told reporters the day after Election Day, “This has been all positive for me.” *** Oil prices, which provide the bulk of state revenue, were well over $100 a barrel in late August when Ms. Palin left to campaign with Senator John McCain. Now they are slumming south of $60 a barrel, below the...

Video here. The hope of America is 44, Alaskan, and beautiful.

WASILLA, Alaska – The town of Wasilla, which bristled under the glare of intense media scrutiny in the weeks after John McCain tapped Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, seems to be buzzing in anticipation of Election Day. The National Rifle Association is holding a results watching party here in Palin’s hometown and the front page of the local paper, the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, on Sunday featured a five-column package on Palin resulting from its splurging to send a reporter on the campaign trail with her last week. The reporter, who scored a coveted seat on the Straight...

Two months ago, John McCain pulled Alaska Governor Sarah Palin from relative political obscurity and placed her into the world spotlight. Now, less then one week before the presidential election, Palin reflects on one of the biggest moments of her youth; winning her high school basketball state championship. Outside the Lines' Sal Paolantonio discusses the biggest game of her life with Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin. 3:27 runtime

Video here. Who agrees that she looks very very good in it? Perhaps they should call it a smoking jacket, because she looks smoking hot in it!

WASILLA, Alaska - Long before John McCain made Gov. Sarah Palin his running mate and before her views on global warming became a campaign issue, Palin's environmental priorities were crystallized in a city where she was mayor and where development has long trumped conservation. ............. more at site.

WASILLA — Wasilla Public Library has decided not to shelve two children’s books dealing with homosexuality donated by a gay activist in California. Michael Petrelis, a 49-year-old from San Francisco, donated the books in September after learning of Gov. Sarah Palin’s question about banning certain books when she was Wasilla’s mayor. In 1996 Palin asked Wasilla’s librarian how she would feel about banning certain books at the library. While no books were banned, Palin’s question started a brief controversy over censorship at the library. Palin reportedly took issue with the book “Pastor, I Am Gay,” by local author and now-retired...

Sarah Palin may be the heroine of the religious right, but Rev. Gene Straatmeyer vividly recalls a public run-in he once had with the now Republican vice presidential candidate over clergy support for a crackdown on bars. It was August 1996, just weeks before Palin's election as mayor of tiny Wasilla, Alaska. And Straatmeyer, a local Presbyterian minister and head of two church coalitions, testified at a City Council hearing for a measure to shorten the traditional 5 a.m. last call by a few hours.

Valley residents gathered in several locations to watch Gov. Palin and Sen. Biden square off in the first, and only, vice presidential debate. A group of Palin supporters gathered at the home of Brad and Kristan Cole tonight, along with CNN, Fox News, Entertainment Tonight, Associated Press and a television crew from France; solid proof the national spotlight is still squarely on Sarah Palin and Wasilla. With recent national media sound bites casting Palin in a less than favorable light, nervous chatter abounded around the Valley in the days leading up to tonight’s debate. If anyone in the Cole home...

Americans disdain snobbery in all its forms except the most popular one: reverse snobbery. Joe Biden would never get up in front of a crowd and suggest that the citizens of Manhattan are morally superior to the residents of Possum Gulch, Ark. But Sarah Palin was happy to tell the Republican National Convention that the very best people come from the country. "We grow good people in our small towns, with honesty, sincerity and dignity," she declared, quoting the late journalist Westbrook Pegler. "They are the ones who do some of the hardest work in America, who grow our food,...

The headline on the Boston Globe-Democrat’s editorial page, “Wasilla Made Rape Victims Pay,” says it all. All wrong. The Globe-Democrat yesterday asserted as fact that “during her tenure as mayor of Wasilla, the town started charging rape victims or their insurers for rape kits.” But the truth is that there is no record of a rape victim ever being charged for a rape kit by Wasilla; there’s no evidence Mayor Palin knew about the policy or took any action on it either way; and no record of a victim’s insurance company being charged by the town. How does an alleged...