Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin may have to explain statements in two emails sent, including at least one business-related from her personal Yahoo! email account, that are now part of an Alaska state ethics investigation, the Washington Post reported in its Thursday edition.
In July, a state oversight committee approved $100,000 for an investigation into whether Palin fired public safety commissioner Walt Monegan because he would not dismiss Trooper Mike Wooten, who went through a messy divorce with her sister before Palin ran for governor.Monegan kept copies of the Palin emails to support his contention that he was dismissed for failing to fire the trooper and showed copies of the emails to the Post.
"The first e-mail came on Feb. 7, 2007, after the governor's husband, Todd, met with Monegan to press the case for disciplinary action against Wooten. Palin's family had accused the trooper of shooting a cow moose without a permit, Tasering his stepson, and drinking while driving a trooper vehicle."...
"This trooper is still out on the street, in fact he's been promoted," said a Feb. 7, 2007, email sent from Palin's personal Yahoo account and written to give Monegan permission to speak on a violent-crime bill before the state legislature.
"It was a joke, the whole year long 'investigation' of him," the e-mail said. "This is the same trooper who's out there today telling people the new administration is going to destroy the trooper organization, and that he'd 'never work for that b****', Palin'.)"
...
"He's still bragging about it (killing of the cow moose) in my hometown and after another cop confessed to witnessing the kill, the trooper was 'investigated' for over a year and merely given a slap on the wrist," the email said. "Though he's out there arresting people today for the same crime!"
"He threatened to kill his estranged wife's parent, refused to be transferred to rural Alaska and continued to disparage Natives in words and tone, he continues to harass and intimidate his ex. -- even after being slapped with a restraining order that was lifted when his supervisors intervened," the e-mail said. "He threatens to always be able to come out on top because he's 'got the badge', etc. etc. etc.)"
Palin wrote that the Wooten matter had contributed to "the erosion of faith Alaskans should have in their law enforcement officials." She concluded by saying the e-mail was "just my opinion." (Washington Post)
A second email, reportedly sent from Palin's personal email account on July 17, 2007, was related to a legislative proposal that would keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill.
Her first thought about the bill, the e-mail said, "went to my ex-brother-in-law, the trooper, who threatened to kill my dad yet was not even reprimanded by his bosses and still to this day carries a gun, of course.""We can't have double standards. Remember when the death threat was reported, and follow-on threats from Mike that he was going to 'bring Sarah and her family down' -- instead of any reprimand WE were told by trooper union personnel that we'd be sued if we talked about those threats. Amazing. . . .
"So consistency is needed here," the e-mail said. "No one's above the law. If the law needs to be changed to not allow access to guns for people threatening to kill someone, it must apply to everyone."
Palin denies any wrong doing, the Post reports.
"To allege that I, or any member of my family . . . directed disciplinary action be taken against any employee of the Department of Public Safety, is, quite simply, outrageous," Palin said in a statement in mid-July after Monegan's dismissal.In August, Palin acknowledged that "pressure could have been perceived to exist, although I have only now become aware of it."
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