Arkansas Blog

Also included in the story are the following excerpts:

"...permitted because her official "duty station" is Juneau..."

"...the first family could have claimed per diem expenses for each child taken on official business but had not done so."

"Palin rarely sought reimbursement for meals while staying in Anchorage or Wasilla, the reports show."

"Leighow said many of the hundreds of invitations Palin received included requests for her to bring her family."

"Leighow noted that under state policy, all of the governor's children were entitled to per diem expenses, even her infant son."

""The first family declined the per diem [for] the children," Leighow said. "The amount that they had declined was $4,461, as of Aug. 5.""

"Gov. Palin has spent far less on personal travel than her predecessor: $93,000 on airfare in 2007, compared with $463,000 in 2006 by Frank Murkowski."

So Max, she didn't break the law, filed her requests for reimbursement as required, complied with state policy, under-requested reimibursement in numerous instances, complied with requests from the citizens of Alaska in respect to public appearances, and dropped personal travel by a staggering $370,000. For this she is to be ridiculed?

ARK. BLOG: Yes. Not as bad as Murkowski? High praise. Taking per diem for the place she went home to at night.? It'd be like Beebe taking per diem for driving home to Searcy. As a former Alaska politician noted, it's been a rich subject of criticism for other Alaska politicians. Just because something is legal doesn't mean it's advisable or laudable. She's a petty grifter.

Good parallel: The infamous Marvin Parks, who took a roundabout route from his home so he could qualify for legislative per diem. Legal? Perhaps. Smelly? Definitely.

Not in Huckstyle at all.

She just took a few per diems, Huck even had the pizzas at our expense.

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Al--don't waste your time pointing out to Max the details that show that Palin did nothing wrong. They are, to quote one of his heroes, "an inconvenient truth." Check out the latest Newsweek article that shows that the charges that have been tossed around on this site--including the alleged book-banning incident--are nothing but lies and spin.

I go from anger that the Democratic Party allowed itself to once again nominate the one person who could manage to lose in this historic climate, to thinking maybe it's a good thing because if McCain wins and destroys even more of our nation's underpinnings, maybe we will finally hit bottom and learn something like the addict that finally realizes they have to change or die. Democrats HAVE to learn that certain types of candidates cannot win in the US at this time, REGARDLESS how much we as liberals may love their positions and policies. Maybe if the cynical McCain and his weird 'insult to women' side-kick actually steal this thing from us in a year when it should be impossible to even GIVE the election to a Republican, we will be smart enough in the future to nominate a candidate who can be a buffer between the Conservative movement and the lives of people who support conservatives despite their destruction on everyone.

I'm watching every appearance of Obama/Biden for signs of life, and I don't see it. I agree with Roger Cohen (for a change), who says this morning.......This much is certain: Obama could never do it. Not, anyway, the Obama who appeared Sunday on ABC's "This Week" with George Stephanopoulos. That Obama was cool, diffident, above it all -- unflustered, unflappable, unexcitable and downright unexciting. These "uns" ran on, a torrent of cool that frosted my flat-panel TV and had me wondering if, as a kid, Obama ever got a shot in the mouth on the playground, he'd glare at the bully -- and convene a meeting."

Obama's oratory is fantastic but we've heard it a few times now and his depending on the power of his personality (which is pretty flat actually) to carry him to victory seems stalled IMO. If he's a one-trick pony we just did it again, folks, and so far he seems lacking in tricks, ideas, or bold unselfish decisions.

I think Democrats should continue to check out Palin's history, but if they expect a big old scandal to drop in their lap to defeat McCain, they will only fritter away the time remaining. Two things, IMO, put Obama where he was going into the convention - he was never for the Iraq war which is hugely popular with many Americans, and Bush has been a horrible President. All of that has pretty much petered out as far as its usefulness to Obama. He really needs a fresh idea, a new energy, just some enthusiasm would help. McCain has managed to sort of distance himself from Bush, he chose a female running mate, and Iraq is not so much in the news.

I keep thinking how Bush plodded along with the same old strategy in Iraq while his administration tanked. I just hope Obama remembers that and doesn't try to ride yesterday's news into the WH because that's already dead.......

Oh no.....the Pistol Packing Palin mystique has gotten to Al Fornaut! Don't look at her Al.....turn your head and just listen to her flat Fargo voice and you'll be better by the end of the week.

Look....I think the real story about Huck not getting the VP spot is that to meet him is to not love him. How many people want to be stuck with a yuck yuck Bible beating hick for the next 4 years? Hucks like fresh cream, he gets old in a big hurry. The only people who can put up with Huck are the Fox News crowd....he's found his home, leave him be.

And now is an excellent time to let the Huckabee family slide under the sands of time. No one ever talks about former Arkansas Governor Bass Little, who took office one day and was wrapped up in a straight jacket by the end of the month. So as we steam away from the bad ole 90s...we bid a fond adieu to Mike Huckabee and turn our attention to important things that might bite us on the head. Bub bye Huck...bub bye.....

I guess Max should have posted the entire article, EVERY WORD, instead of a link to the entire article...but what fun would that be for critics. Bitch bitch bitch...Max must have an incredible sense of humor.

Sometimes (and according to most of the usual right wing posts on this blog) I think that all right wing Republicans do is bitch about EVERYTHING the 'other' side does/or fails to do. The same ol' complaints about Max being a liberal...shock...and nary a complaint about a previously unheard of person being selected to run for the vice presidency and being selected to avoid the same MSM that every other VP/Presidential candidate has had to face.

I guess the bitterness is to be expected from a Party with Monkeyboy as its chosen leader.

I'm not sure if I agree (or disagree) with all of Palin's expenses or with a state paying for such things; but I absolutely agree with the media reporting EVERY aspect of her political life. We have 7-8 weeks to learn everything we can about a newcomer who may be an OLD heart beat away from the presidency...and it wouldn't matter if she was a Republican or from Jupiter.

(Lordy...can't even imagine Huck with a LEGAL expense account like Alaska's...)

I've heard more than one female talking head say the most hate-filled mail they get is from people claiming to be Christians, Republican Christians. So much hate that it's startling. And these are the same so-called Christians who say the Iraq War is God's War. Satan...be gone.

Maybe Kamiya can explain the appeal of Palin to conservative men (I refuse to believe many women will support this modern day "Daisy Mae) so something has to explain why a big haired, domineering, smash-talking woman with 5 kids at home who spends her time bossing others around while her teen gets pregnant would appeal to Bible-loving men whose wives dutifully submit.

He wrote today in Salon...For the die-hard Republicans who lusted over Palin at the convention, her whip-wielding persona was a turn-on. You could practically feel the crowd getting a collective woody as Palin bent Obama and the Democrats over, shoved a leather gag in their mouths and flogged them as un-American wimps, appeasers and losers. "Drill, baby, drill!" the chant ecstatically repeated by the GOP faithful during Rudy Giuliani's speech, acquired a distinctly Freudian subtext after Palin spoke. The more Palin drilled the Democrats, the more hotly the base yearned to drill her. (We will leave it to shrinks to determine whether the GOP hardcore has the hots for Palin because she's reaming the Democrats, or because authority-worshippers tend to have secret fantasies of being reamed themselves.)

He thinks it will wear thin and eventually turn off more people than it attracks, and I agree - but maybe not in time to stop them winning. The electorate finally saw through GWB, but it took about 6 yrs, so I don't think we can assume this silly farce of the demented old McCain drooling over his woman he can now hug with impunity everytime he has an itch.

Does Alaska not have a "Gov mansion" for Palin and her brood to live in?

and just because it is legal to charge the taxpayers of Alaska for living in your own home it does not make it right.

What is this obsession that the ARKBLOG has for huckabee. Good grief. He is long gone and really was never in the running. What are you going to do if he visits another planet and he isn't available to kick around anymore. He was never seriously considered by conservatives.

He was never seriously considered by conservatives. <<

Then McBush was not serious when Huck appeared on his short-list for V-Ps.