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<DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman">Look, we all know neither animal party's
candidates are reformers.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman">Pointing at one while another you agree with
does the same is nothing more than the pot calling the kettle
black.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman">The problem with people in power, whether
business or politics, is that they never appoint/hire people who disagree with
them. Instead, they surround themselves with ego-groomers.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt Tahoma">
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV style="BACKGROUND: #f5f5f5">
<DIV style="font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A
title="mailto:sunilramalingam@hotmail.com CTRL + Click to follow link"
href="mailto:sunilramalingam@hotmail.com">Sunil Ramalingam</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Friday, October 24, 2008 11:51 AM</DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=vision2020@moscow.com
href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Vision2020] Palin Appointed Friends and Donors to
KeyPosts inAlaska</DIV></DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Kai,<BR><BR>I think the difference is that she and McCain
proclaim her as a reformer who won't do business as
usual.<BR><BR>Sunil<BR><BR>> From: <A
href="mailto:editor@lataheagle.com">editor@lataheagle.com</A><BR>> To: <A
href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</A>; <A
href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com">thansen@moscow.com</A><BR>> Date: Fri, 24
Oct 2008 10:03:52 -0700<BR>> Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Palin Appointed
Friends and Donors to Key Posts inAlaska<BR>> <BR>> Don't all politicians
appoint friends, family and donors? For some reason I <BR>> highly doubt that
it is endemic to one party or person....<BR>> <BR>>
--------------------------------------------------<BR>> From: "Tom Hansen"
<thansen@moscow.com><BR>> Sent: Friday, October 24, 2008 9:25
AM<BR>> To: <vision2020@moscow.com><BR>> Subject: [Vision2020] Palin
Appointed Friends and Donors to Key Posts <BR>> inAlaska<BR>> <BR>>
>>From the Los Angeles Times at:<BR>> ><BR>> >
http://tinyurl.com/5ns4e3<BR>> ><BR>> >
--------------------------------------------------<BR>> ><BR>> >
Palin appointed friends and donors to key posts in Alaska, records show<BR>>
> 100-plus jobs went to campaign donors or their relatives, sometimes<BR>>
> without apparent regard to qualifications. Several donors got
state-<BR>> > subsidized loans for business ventures of dubious public
value.<BR>> > By Charles Piller<BR>> ><BR>> > October 24,
2008<BR>> ><BR>> > Reporting from Anchorage - Alaska Gov. Sarah
Palin, plucked from relative<BR>> > obscurity in part for her reform
credentials, has been eager to tout them<BR>> > in her vice presidential
campaign.<BR>> ><BR>> > "I took on the old politics as usual in
Juneau when I stood up to the<BR>> > special interests and the lobbyists
and the big oil companies and the good<BR>> > old boys," Palin told the
Republican National Convention in her acceptance<BR>> > speech. She said
that as a new governor she "shook things up, and in short<BR>> > order we
put the government of our state back on the side of the people."<BR>>
><BR>> > By midway through her first term, she had signed an ethics
reform bill,<BR>> > increased oil profit taxes and tweaked Big Oil again
by awarding a gas<BR>> > pipeline contract to a Canadian company.<BR>>
><BR>> > In some other respects, a Los Angeles Times examination of
state records<BR>> > shows, her approach to government was business as
usual. Take, for<BR>> > example, the tradition of patronage. Some of
Palin's most controversial<BR>> > appointments involved donors, records
show.<BR>> ><BR>> > Among The Times' findings:<BR>> ><BR>>
> * More than 100 appointments to state posts -- nearly 1 in 4 -- went
to<BR>> > campaign contributors or their relatives, sometimes without
apparent<BR>> > regard to qualifications.<BR>> ><BR>> > *
Palin filled 16 state offices with appointees from families that donated<BR>>
> $2,000 to $5,600 and were among her top political patrons.<BR>>
><BR>> > * Several of Palin's leading campaign donors received
state-subsidized<BR>> > industrial development loans of up to $3.6 million
for business ventures<BR>> > of questionable public value.<BR>>
><BR>> > * Palin picked a donor to replace the public safety
commissioner she<BR>> > fired. But the new top cop had to resign days
later under an ethics cloud.<BR>> > And Palin drew a formal ethics
complaint still pending against her and<BR>> > several aides for allegedly
helping another donor and fundraiser land a<BR>> > state job.<BR>>
><BR>> > Most new governors install friends and supporters in state
jobs. But<BR>> > Alaska historians say some of Palin's appointees were
less qualified than<BR>> > those of her Republican and Democratic
predecessors.<BR>> ><BR>> > University of Alaska historian Steve
Haycox said Palin has been a<BR>> > reformer. But he said she has a
penchant for placing supporters, many of<BR>> > them ill-prepared, in high
posts. He called it "cronyism" far beyond what<BR>> > previous governors
have done and a contradiction of her high-minded<BR>> >
philosophy.<BR>> ><BR>> > Terrence Cole, an Alaska political
historian, said Palin had in some cases<BR>> > shown "a disrespect for
experience."<BR>> ><BR>> > Administration officials disputed such
criticism. They said campaign<BR>> > contributions were not a factor in
state appointments. Frank Bailey, the<BR>> > state's directorof boards and
commissions, in speaking for Palin, who was<BR>> > not available to answer
inquiries from The Times, said, "We are always<BR>> > seeking the
best-qualified folks."<BR>> ><BR>> > In a little-noted sequel to
Palin's controversial dismissal of her public<BR>> > safety commissioner,
the governor replaced Walt Monegan with former small-<BR>> > town Police
Chief Charles Kopp of Kenai. The appointment unraveled almost<BR>> >
immediately in what Cole called a vetting catastrophe.<BR>> ><BR>> >
A previous sexual harassment complaint came to light and Kopp had to<BR>>
> resign two weeks after taking over. Alaska paid him $10,000 in
severance.<BR>> ><BR>> > After another of Palin's campaign donors
and fundraisers landed a civil<BR>> > service job with the state
department of transportation, GOP activist<BR>> > Andree McLeod filed an
ethics complaint against the governor and several<BR>> > aides, alleging
that improper pressure was used to help Tom Lamal.<BR>> ><BR>> >
Lamal, a public school teacher in Fairbanks until he retired in 2006,
was<BR>> > hired as a right-of-way agent despite reports of internal
conflicts over<BR>> > whether he was qualified under state law.<BR>>
><BR>> > E-mail messages between Palin aides, obtained by McLeod under
the state<BR>> > public records act, indicate that the hiring was pushed
"through the<BR>> > roadblocks" by a deputy to one of Palin's appointees.
And Palin aide<BR>> > Bailey sent Lamal a congratulatory note saying, in
part, "Well now your<BR>> > foot's back in the door and maybe we can tap
you for other things."<BR>> ><BR>> > Lamal declined to be
interviewed for this article.<BR>> ><BR>> > Palin spokesman William
McAllister declined to comment because of an<BR>> > ongoing state
personnel board inquiry.<BR>> ><BR>> > Palin told the Anchorage
Daily News in August that her office merely<BR>> > worked to fix a
"glitch" that prevented Lamal's hiring because of outdated<BR>> > job
requirements, and that no favors were given.<BR>> ><BR>> > In other
state appointments, records show that all five Palin selections<BR>> > for
the powerful Natural Gas Development Authority, which oversees a<BR>> >
proposed gas pipeline project, were donors. They included Kathryn Lamal,<BR>>
> wife of Tom Lamal.<BR>> ><BR>> > She appointed Kristan Cole, a
school friend and a campaign donor, to the<BR>> > Board of Agriculture and
Conservation, a farm regulatory position that by<BR>> > state law must go
to people with strong business experience. Cole is a<BR>> > real estate
agent.<BR>> ><BR>> > All three appointees to the Board of Public
Accountancy, which oversees<BR>> > the accounting industry, gave to her
campaign for governor, as did all<BR>> > three appointees to the Local
Boundary Commission, which regulates<BR>> > contentious land annexations
by local governments.<BR>> ><BR>> > Palin reappointed donor Steve
Frank to the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp.,<BR>> > which manages Alaska's
$29-billion oil revenue nest egg. Frank, a former<BR>> > Republican
legislator, is married to another leading donor, Linda<BR>> > Anderson, a
lobbyist for power and tourism companies, among others.<BR>> ><BR>>
> The Permanent Fund position earns a $400-a-day honorarium. Most
other<BR>> > board and commission appointees receive per diem and travel
expenses.<BR>> > Regardless of compensation, experts said, such
appointments are coveted<BR>> > for their power and prestige, or as a
political stepping stone.<BR>> ><BR>> > Palin spokesman McAllister
said that most Cabinet-level officials she<BR>> > appointed were not
donors. In every state, he added, people who "apply to<BR>> > serve in a
voluntary role are typically supporters of the governor."<BR>> ><BR>>
> Records show that Palin donors obtained state-subsidized business
loans<BR>> > from the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority,
or AIDEA,<BR>> > whose mission is to encourage "economic growth and
diversification of the<BR>> > state, including expansion of small
businesses."<BR>> ><BR>> > In one case, Jae G. Lee, a former Los
Angeles businessman who is the<BR>> > proprietor of Party Time, a rundown
grocery store and bottle shop in<BR>> > Anchorage, sought a $2.7-million
state loan to buy an aging strip mall in<BR>> > midtown Anchorage. It was
on the market because of a glut of similar malls<BR>> > in the area, all
of them losing customers to big-box stores.<BR>> ><BR>> > Lee and
his wife, who had contributed $3,000 worth of office space to<BR>> >
Palin's 2006 campaign, won the low-interest, state-backed mortgage<BR>> >
although it was unclear how the old mall would add jobs. Lee said he did<BR>>
> nothing to improve his acquisition, but with the cheap loan his
profits<BR>> > have been robust.<BR>> ><BR>> > Lee said he did
not seek Palin's help to obtain the loan.<BR>> ><BR>> > Two other
state-backed loans with favorable terms and questionable<BR>> >
development benefits went to Palin contributor and local dentist Scott<BR>>
> Laudon and his partners. The investors got $1.2 million to refinance
debt<BR>> > on Northern Lights Village -- a gritty collection of shops
including<BR>> > massage and tattoo parlors, a secondhand-clothing store
and a video<BR>> > arcade. Its neighbors along a 1 1/2 -mile stretch of
Northern Lights<BR>> > Boulevard in midtown Anchorage include a dozen
strip malls.<BR>> ><BR>> > Laudon and other partners also received
$3.6 million to buy two automated<BR>> > car washes in Anchorage. The
benefit to Alaska, according to the approval<BR>> > documents, was the
retention of five jobs -- which would have remained<BR>> > without the
subsidy. Laudon declined to comment.<BR>> ><BR>> > The Times
requested documentation on the Lee and Laudon loans, including<BR>> >
interest rates, from AIDEA on Sept. 25, but the agency has not released<BR>>
> the materials and has declined to discuss details.<BR>> ><BR>>
> The agency "probably looked at it this way: 'This is a good loan that
will<BR>> > be paid back,' " said Bob Poe, former AIDEA chief. "That helps
them<BR>> > produce income to make other loans, much like a bank." As
economic<BR>> > development, however, both loans sound questionable, he
said.<BR>> ><BR>> > Three Palin appointees to the AIDEA board also
gave to her campaign for<BR>> > governor. This year the board picked Palin
donor Ted Leonard as chief<BR>> > executive of the $1.2-billion agency.
His principal credential was having<BR>> > been financial manager of tiny
Wasilla, Alaska. Palin appointed him to the<BR>> > city post when she was
mayor.<BR>> ><BR>> > Agency spokesman Karsten Rodvik said that Palin
was not directly involved<BR>> > in the selection and that Leonard was the
top applicant because of his<BR>> > long and diverse experience in finance
and economic development. He also<BR>> > said that AIDEA managers were
"not aware" of any influence by Palin or her<BR>> > aides on any
loans.<BR>> ><BR>> > Some of Palin's other appointments have been
controversial.<BR>> ><BR>> > Franci Havemeister, one of several of
Palin's childhood friends tapped for<BR>> > leadership jobs, heads the
state agriculture division. A former real<BR>> > estate agent, she was
ridiculed in Alaska after it was reported that she<BR>> > had cited among
her qualifications for the job a childhood love of cows.<BR>> ><BR>>
> And Palin's choice for attorney general, Talis Colberg, stirred<BR>>
> considerable puzzlement: He was virtually unknown beyond her circle
near<BR>> > Wasilla. Colberg, who had a solo law practice and little
management<BR>> > experience, now oversees 500 professionals.<BR>>
><BR>> > Colberg was criticized by both Republican and Democratic
legislators for<BR>> > his handling of the recent investigation of Palin's
actions in a<BR>> > controversy involving her ex-brother-in-law -- a state
trooper -- and<BR>> > Monegan. A Superior Court judge overruled Colberg's
move to quash<BR>> > investigative subpoenas in the case.<BR>>
><BR>> > --------------------------------------------------<BR>>
><BR>> > Seeya round at Farmers' Market and the Homecoming Parade,
Moscow.<BR>> ><BR>> > Tom Hansen<BR>> > Moscow, Idaho<BR>>
> UI '96<BR>> ><BR>> > "We're a town of about 23,000 with 10,000
college students. The college<BR>> > students are not very active in local
elections (thank goodness!)."<BR>> ><BR>> > - Dale Courtney (March
28, 2007)<BR>> ><BR>> ><BR>> >
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=======================================================<BR>> Kai
Eiselein<BR>> Editor, Latah Eagle <BR>> <BR>>
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<DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman">Kai Eiselein<BR>Editor, Latah
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