[Vision2020] McCain Calls on Stevens to Step Down

[Art Deco]

Palin's take on Stevens:

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/10/27/palin-stevens-verdict-%E2%80%98shines-a-light-on-the-corrupting-influence-of-the-big-oil-service-company%E2%80%99/

Excerpt:

Palin: Stevens verdict 'shines a light on the corrupting influence of the big oil service company.'»
Hotline reports that Sarah Palin issued a statement about the guilty decision in the Ted Stevens corruption case:

  Thanks for your patience there. It's a sad day for Alaska, and a sad day for Senator Stevens and his family. The verdict shines a light though on the corrupting influence of the big oil service company up there in Alaska that was allowed to control too much of our state. And that control was part of the culture of corruption that I was elected to fight. And that fight must always move forward regardless of party affiliation or seniority or even past service. And as governor of the state of Alaska, I'll carefully monitor now the situation, and I'll take any appropriate action as needed. In the meantime, I do ask that the people of Alaska join me in respecting the workings of our judicial system, and I'm confident that Senator Stevens, from this point on, will do the right thing for the state of Alaska.

CNN reports, "Palin did not respond when asked if she will vote for Sen. Stevens and promptly boarded the campaign plane."

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Tom Hansen 
  To: vision2020 at moscow.com 
  Sent: Tuesday, October 28, 2008 8:39 AM
  Subject: [Vision2020] McCain Calls on Stevens to Step Down


  >From the Anchorage Daily News at:

  http://www.adn.com/news/politics/fbi/stevens/story/570062.html
   
  ----------------------------------------------------------------

  McCain calls on Stevens to step down


  By ERIKA BOLSTAD

  (10/28/08 07:28:06) 
  WASHINGTON -- Wasting no time in separating his presidential campaign from 
  what he described as the "corruption and insider dealing that has become 
  so pervasive in our nation's capital," Sen. John McCain called on fellow 
  Republican Sen. Ted Stevens to step down from the U.S. Senate.

  Stevens, 84, was convicted Monday by a jury in Washington, D.C., of 
  accepting thousands of dollars in freebies, including renovations that 
  doubled his home in size. Stevens has vowed to appeal the seven felony 
  convictions and press on with his own re-election campaign in the week 
  leading up to the Nov. 4 election. He is only the fifth sitting senator to 
  be convicted of such a serious crime in the history of the Senate.

  "It is clear that Senator Stevens has broken his trust with the people and 
  that he should now step down," McCain said in a written statement. "I hope 
  that my colleagues in the Senate will be spurred by these events to 
  redouble their efforts to end this kind of corruption once and for all."

  Unlike that of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, McCain's 
  statement offers no niceties about their shared time in the Senate and 
  expresses no sympathy for Stevens' family. Its intensity is somewhat 
  surprising given that McCain is a fellow Republican, but not unexpected 
  given the frosty relations the two men have long had. They have sparred 
  over opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, McCain's opposition 
  to earmarks and their differing positions on global warming.

  Reid, who personally recruited Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich to run against 
  Stevens, called the verdict "a personal tragedy for our colleague Ted 
  Stevens." He also urged Stevens to "respect the outcome of the judicial 
  process and the dignity of the United States Senate," but didn't suggest 
  he should step down. 

  McCain's call for Stevens' resignation also goes well beyond that of his 
  vice-presidential running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Hours after the 
  verdict, Palin released a statement calling Stevens' conviction "a sad 
  day" for Alaska, but she stopped short of demanding he step down.

  "The verdict shines a light on the corrupting influence of the big oil 
  service company that was allowed to control too much of our state," Palin 
  said. "That control was part of the culture of corruption I was elected to 
  fight. And that fight must always move forward regardless of party or 
  seniority or even past service."

  In her statement, Palin asks Alaskans to "join me in respecting the 
  workings of our judicial system. I'm confident Senator Stevens will do 
  what is right for the people of Alaska."

  She would not tell reporters whether she planned to vote for Stevens.

  But if Stevens were to resign from his seat or be expelled by his fellow 
  senators, Palin has a potential -- and complicated -- role in choosing a 
  replacement. No one in Alaska can say for sure how it would work because 
  Alaska's law on senatorial succession was changed twice in 2004 -- once by 
  the Legislature, and once by ballot initiative.

  Those laws were changed following then-Gov. Frank Murkowski's 2002 
  appointment of his daughter, Republican Lisa Murkowski, to his vacated 
  U.S. Senate seat.

  Both of the 2004 laws call for a special election within 60 to 90 days of 
  the vacancy. But they disagree on whether the governor appoints an interim 
  senator in the meantime. The Alaska Supreme Court would ultimately have to 
  decide which law the state follows. 

  ----------------------------------------------------------------

  Seeya round town, Moscow.

  Tom Hansen
  Moscow, Idaho
   
  "We're a town of about 23,000 with 10,000 college students. The college 
  students are not very active in local elections (thank goodness!)."

  - Dale Courtney (March 28, 2007)


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