Governor Palin, horseback, at the Reagan Ranch in California
By Gary P Jackson
Many long time supporters of Governor Sarah Palin, those of us who have followed her career since early 2007, a year and a half before she was to be chosen as the Republican nominee for Vice President and became an international figure, have been wondering why the Governor has been silent now that several Republicans, including her good friend Ted Cruz, have announced they are officially in for 2016. Maybe, just maybe we have our answer.
Other than jabs at Jeb Bush and Mitt Romney in her Iowa speech, which prompted Rick Moran at PJ Media to say this ….
Palin sounds like a candidate to me. And she’s teeing off on Jeb Bush and Mitt Romney, implying that their establishmentarianism is no better than the status quo — a potent theme that will resonate with the conservative base.
She also implies that Bush/Romney aren’t strong enough to get in the trenches with Hillary and the Clinton machine to duke it out. She certainly describes herself when she says she thinks the GOP candidate should be “considered a bit avante garde.” In fact, the way she describes the ideal candidate is like she’s looking in a mirror…
Palin may have other reasons for running, including denying Romney and Bush a cakewalk to the nomination. Her favorability ratings may be a liability, but her name recognition is far better than any other conservative candidate. Her entrance in the race would be a wild card that could peel off support from both establishment and conservative candidates alike.
I have one pick with Moran’s comments though. The last major poll that included Sarah Palin left her off as a potential candidate, but measured her favorables and unfavorables against a huge field of potential candidates. The 2014 poll had Palin’s favorability at 70%, among Republicans and Republican leaning independents. That’s UP from 67% in 2012 and considerably higher than anyone the pollster, Public Policy Polling, offered up as an actual candidate. Also, people shouldn’t dismiss lightly the fact that Governor Palin has been considered one of the Most Admired Women in the Word in Gallup’s annual survey since 2008, never being ranked lower than third on the list! Palin’s supposed unfavorability is more fantasy than fact!
Governor Palin has focused all of her energy, when it comes to 2016, on Hillary Clinton. She has hammered Hillary for not being able to multi-task, and use one phone for official government business, and one for personal use, going so far as to post a photo of herself, as Governor, holding her newborn son juxtaposed against Hillary’s claimed inability to figure it all out:
In yet another scandal, Hillary was exposed as using her device for both personal and official State Department communications. A big no-no!
Earlier Governor Palin reminded Americans that while Hillary has erased her entire email history at the State Department, after using an illegal computer [something that would have anyone else already serving time in prison] Palin’s own e-mails were put under a microscope with the left wing Washington Post actually asking it’s readers to help scour through some 25,000 emails looking for the “juicy parts” WaPo and it’s readers had hoped to find all kinds of incriminating evidence of SOMETHING, but instead found page after page of e-mails proving that not only was Governor Palin incredibly competent, but proved to be one of the hardest working public servants in the country. Something those of us who have followed Governor Plain for the better part of a decade already knew!
The Palin e-mails also put an end to the lie that she supported and took money for a “bridge to nowhere” when they revealed she wanted to give the money back, and earmark it for replacement of the I-35 Bridge that collapsed in Minnesota, killing and injuring many. Of course, as there was no legal way to do that, the money went to Alaska’s general fund. We have a link to many of Governor Palin’s official e-mails, as well as her outstanding record of accomplishments a Governor, here.
Several days ago Governor Palin posted this on Facebook:
America – ready for Hillary? Some of us are. Join us and begin here…
WATCH the Game-Changing New Video That Drops A Bomb On Hillary And Can Finish Her
Governor Palin has consistently said she is “Ready for Hillary” and not in the way the former Secretary of State and world class criminal thinks!
Which brings us to a new mailer from SarahPAC that is making the rounds on Twitter. The letter is titled “I’m ready for Hillary. Are you? A second header proclaims “The First Shot: Clinton vs Palin” Along with the letter, is a copy of the front page of the Boston Herald, dated January 25, 2015 that screams MAKE WAY FOR SARAH and proclaims: GOP Strategists: A Palin ’16 bid is no joke
These mailers are sent to folks who support SarahPAC.
Here are a couple of the tweets, one showing the letter and the newspaper tear sheet, and one with just the newspaper:
The Boston Herald article is now hidden behind a pay-wall, but our friends at Conservatives4Palin archived it. Here’s the important part:
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s announcement that she’s “seriously interested” in running for president in 2016 could shake up the GOP field, say strategists, who point to the former vice presidential hopeful’s strong base, fundraising ability and star power.
“You’ve got to take her seriously because she can raise a lot of money, she has a big following and she has been through a national campaign, which is important to be competitive in a presidential primary,” Republican strategist Chris Brown told the Herald. “I think she really changes the field and she has the potential to hurt a lot of candidates — especially Tea Party conservatives.”
[…]
Former Alabama GOP Chairman Marty Connors said Palin “has built a career around being underestimated.”
“I would immediately put her in as a top- or mid-tier candidate if she decides to run,” Connors said.
[S]he has a built-in constituency and so she wouldn’t have to raise the money that some of the other candidates would and I think she’d be an exciting candidate that a lot of people would rally around.”
As to raising money, I think Haley Barbour got it right when he said of Governor Palin a few years back: “She could raise enough money to burn a wet mule!” In case you don’t speak Mississippian, that means she can raise a hell of a lot of money! But I also agree with Connors, in that she is a known quantity and has not only a huge following, but the ability to attract the news media, who will follow her every move, like the second coming of Elvis!
Governor Palin’s media partner PassCodeCreative recently created a new video for SarahPAC Catch Me If You Can which reminds us about the big stir he bus trip caused a few years back!
Governor Palin and her family drove the media nuts, because she never gave them an itinerary, saying …. rightly so, her trip was about getting out and seeing America and talking to regular Americans, rather than a publicity stunt, like Hillary’s recent Scooby Do bus tour that was a complete and total flop! Governor Palin used this video to make fun of Hillary’s failed tour! And to poke the media again!
In the C4P article we mention above, Steve Flesher links to another Boston Herald article written around the same time by Adriana Cohen that explains the GOP needs a strong Conservative woman, if they intend to defeat Hillary Clinton [or Liz Warren, for that matter]
The GOP needs women on the ticket for many reasons, not least because it steals the Democratic Party’s thunder. They want to be the “first” at breaking cultural barriers and glass ceilings. With Hillary Clinton expected to be their front-runner in 2016, they’ll use her gender as a tactic to gin up support from their base — especially female voters.
I can already see Emily’s List pushing out emails nationwide saying, “Let’s make history by electing the first female president of the United States.”
Cohen goes on to say this about Hillary [and how Sarah is better]: [emphasis mine]
If you’re a female leader on the Democratic ticket, you’re a “hero” regardless of how many times you put your foot in your mouth, embarrass yourself or worse.
We haven’t forgotten Hillary Clinton saying that we should empathize with our enemies or that businesses and corporations don’t really create jobs. Both absurd statements that should disqualify any candidate — male or female — from any race, never mind the top slot.
But if you’re a female conservative? Watch out! Liberals will pounce and do everything they can to marginalize a conservative woman who runs for office no matter how educated, or talented, or accomplished she is. Liberals only “tolerate” others if they agree with them and follow their agenda.
[…]
The reality is Sarah Palin draws huge crowds at speaking engagements, has millions of social media followers and just as many supporters across the nation.
Hillary Clinton has been giving speeches to half-filled rooms.
Look, we have absolutely no idea what Governor Palin is going to do, but after she considered a 2012 run, for a long, long time, and then didn’t, causing a lot of disappointment among supporters, it’s hard to fathom she would do that again, especially as aggressive as this latest mailer is.
One of our longtime readers, Joy, made an interesting point a few days ago. If you remember, on September 3, 2011 Governor Palin made a powerful speech, to a massive crowd in Indianola, Iowa, which our Stacy Drake recorded.
While Governor Palin spoke of Liberty and Freedom, the main focus was crony capitalism.
Governor Palin has been going after in corruption in government for over 20 years, ever since her earliest days as the junior member of the Wasilla city council! She famously took down the entire Republican Party machine, in Alaska, which rivaled Chicago, and it’s thug politics, in it’s depths of corruption!
The book caused a massive stir, as well as top billing on 60 Minutes. Congress passed a law [though later it was quietly neutered] banning lawmakers from insider trading. Both former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi [D-California] and current Speaker John Boehner [R-Ohio] have made tens of millions of dollars using secret insider information.
Peter’s new book, which is set for release May 5, 2015 is already a Number One Best Seller at Amazon!
I’m not sure Joy is off base here at all.
Most people know this, but Peter Schweizer served as Governor Palin’s foreign policy adviser after she left office and created SarahPAC. Peter literally wrote the books [plural] on President Ronald Reagan’s foreign policy, which Governor Palin had adopted as the basis for her own, adding new lessons learned.
What is interesting to me, is after serving under Palin, Peter has written exclusively about corruption in government. Clinton Cash will be his third Best Seller in a row on the subject.
Again, we have no idea what Governor Palin is up, but we have it from sources close to the family that her decision not to run in 2012 came down to strong opposition from her mother and her oldest son, Track.
That said, Governor Palin posted this on Facebook January 22, three days before the Boston Herald article was published:
“Ha! Believe it or not I received this from… my mom!“:
Take from that what you will!
Is it too early to say Palin-Cruz 2016?!? [or Palin-Jindal]
With the start of CPAC, an online CPAC-American Encore-Twitter straw poll went live. Over the course of the event voters were given a list of 16 candidates to choose from. The way the poll worked is every time someone hit the link to tweet support for their choice for President in 2016, a vote was counted. The tweet included the hashtag CPAC2015 along with the candidate’s name.
The top results from the straw poll are as follows:
Sarah Palin 58%
Ted Cruz 21%
Scott Walker 13%
Rand Paul 8%
As with any straw poll, this is NOT scientific, and merely reflects the sentiments of those who took time to vote. [just like the live in-person vote that took place at CPAC]
A very strong and consistent showing for Governor Palin in this poll, which was live well before she had given her outstanding speech. We don’t know if Governor Palin will actually run in 2016. She has not ruled it out. And as her show on the Sportsman Channel is still in first run, don’t look for anything until the Summer, after the new season wraps, at the earliest.
This op-ed by Governor Palin originally appeared in the Texas Tribune and she posted a note on Facebook :
It’s always a pleasure returning to the beautiful Lone Star State. This week I’m in Houston speaking with the industrious men and women of America’s oil patch at the North American Prospect Expo. These are the unsung heroes of our nation’s energy renaissance.
In the brutal economic environment of the last six years, one sector had good news to report, and it came straight out of America’s oil patch. From 2007 to 2012, employment in the energy industry rose a dramatic 31.6 percent while employment nationwide fell 2.7 percent. U.S. oil production increased from 6.5 million barrels per day in 2012 to 7.4 million barrels per day in 2013, and in December, the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas produced its billionth barrel of oil. Thanks to American energy entrepreneurs’ drive and innovation, we’ve surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world’s largest oil and gas producer. This truly is a great American success story, and it’s a proud moment for those of us determined to educate D.C. bureaucrats on the link between energy and our security and prosperity.
Apparently, the president is pretty proud, too. In his State of the Union address last month, he boasted about the surge in oil and gas drilling, saying, “We are as free from the grip of foreign oil as we’ve been in almost 30 years.” From the way he’s talking, you’d think he coined the phrase “drill, baby, drill.” But it was just three years ago while campaigning in Miami that he lectured, “We can’t just drill our way to lower gas prices.” Respectfully, Mr. President, “yes we can.” And yes we did. Average gas prices were well over $3 in 2012, but in the first months of 2015, they’re near $2, with some states enjoying even lower prices.
Despite his newfound appreciation for drilling, the president fails to mention that most production is on private and state lands out of his control rather than on federal lands he can over-regulate and lock up. In fact, under the Obama administration, natural gas production on federal lands — onshore and offshore — has fallen an astonishing 28 percent while production on private and state lands, many sitting atop prolific shale plays like the Bakken and Eagle Ford, thankfully increased by 33 percent. Similarly, under Obama, oil production on federal lands has fallen 6 percent but increased by 61 percent on nonfederal lands.
Though they like to take credit for this energy renaissance, politicians weren’t the ones who searched the shale formations for resources to extract. It was our private sector, and its responsible use of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, that spearheaded the shale gas surge.
Our nation is blessed with the natural resources, the knowledge and the workforce to now take this energy renaissance to the next level. What we lack is the political leadership and courage to do so. T. Boone Pickens summed up the problem by observing that “a five-minute conversation on energy can’t happen in Washington, because within three minutes, you’ve run out of everything they know.” The private sector’s natural adversary has always been the market forces of supply and demand, so the last thing it needs is the artificial adversarial forces of political machinations.
Alaskans understand both of these frustrations. We know the challenges of wildly fluctuating oil prices. During the heyday of our trans-Alaska oil pipeline, oil prices were high, the boom was on and state government spent fast. Then the bottom fell out: $9 per barrel. Alaskans drove around with bumper stickers that read, “Dear God, give us another oil boom and we promise not to piss it away this time.” Alaskans also know the frustration of fighting against politicians in D.C. who constantly attempt to lock up huge swaths of our resource-rich Arctic land and water. Just last month, the Obama administration released a plan to potentially expand offshore drilling in Virginia and the Carolinas while placing millions of acres in Alaska off limits to future development. The president’s advisers would have you believe he’s being pragmatic, but to those in Houston and Anchorage, it looks like pretzel logic.
If the administration sincerely wanted to help our domestic energy sector, it would lift the four-decade-old ban on exporting crude oil. American producers shouldn’t have to beg permission of our own government to export our resources while the White House negotiates increased oil exports with Iran. For an administration not shy about acting on its own, it has no excuse to ignore this and not even consider lifting the ban. I challenge the watchdog press to ask why this is so.
The energy sector has been a star athlete, and Washington is scrambling on the sidelines, unaware of how to react. Let’s remind them that our government is supposed to work for us, not get in our way. Let’s tell them, “Just watch.” Watch how America’s oil patch fuels our nation’s economic engine. Watch how continued investment, innovation, exploration and production allow the U.S. to remain the global economic powerhouse. Watch the men and women of America’s new energy boomtowns in states like Texas show the bureaucrats in D.C. that no matter what roadblocks are placed in their way, they’ll find a way through and build a stronger America.
Besides the facts Governor Palin always brings to the table, the most interesting thing, to me, is where the appeared originally. The Texas Tribune is based in Austin, Texas and is as far left in it’s editorial content as can be. Kudos to the Tribune for hosting the Governor’s op-ed and allowing it to be seen by an audience that wouldn’t normally take the time to read anything Palin writes. Now let the further speculation regarding 2016 begin!
Former Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin will take part in the Iowa Freedom Summit in Des Moines on Jan. 24.
The inaugural event is being held by Citizens United and Congressman Steve King. The summit will serve as a place to discuss conservative ideas, as people get ready for the upcoming Iowa Caucuses next year.
Other featured guests include Ben Carson, Newt Gingrich, Senator Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee, Senator Rick Santorum and others. It will be held at Hoyt Sherman Place in Des Moines.
Here’s a flashback: Governor Palin’s powerful Restoring America speech in Indianola, Iowa on September 3, 2011 to get everyone through a cold winter’s day:
This is the speech where, among other things, Governor Palin takes on crony capitalism, in BOTH political parties.
Let the speculation for 2016 begin.
Video courtesy Ron Devito.
Above: Governor Sarah Palin hams it up with local law enforcement in Indianola, Iowa
Last weekend, Governor Palin gave a measured and thoughtful speech at the Western Conservative Summit, speaking primarily in the tone of the “forgotten man”–“the hard working middle class man who can’t catch a break”. She also used a masterful analogy of the “calloused hand that built America”. What a stark contrast between an open hand calloused from hard work and the clenched fist of socialism. What a stark contrast, too, between Governor Palin’s speech that hit a tone that resonates with middle class America and the tonedeafness and lack of self-awareness of Washington.
Take, for example, the Left’s newest pivot to the economy–raising the minimum wage. On Thursday, Illinois Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky tweeted her menu for the week of “living the wage”:
For the Congresswoman who wines and dines in D.C. and represents an area seen by some as one of Ivy Leagues of the Midwest (Northwestern University is in her district), that may seem like punishment to her palate, but to many of us that looks like a normal menu. The forgotten man eats such meals with thankfulness, not as a gimmick to raise the minimum wage because of the negative effects of liberalism on the American economy. President Obama also took to Twitter to push to “raise the wage” with these two tweets yesterday:
The price of food has indeed increased since President Obama took office, which is a testament to the destructive policies he supports. In fact, food prices in general have increased 13% since last September. This, in part, is due to a loose monetary policy supported by the president which has led to inflation. Sean Davis at The Federalist wrote a great article earlier this week taking to task even the “conservative” economists and pundits who support the actions of the Federal reserve. Davis writes in part:
Prices are rising, they’re rising faster than wages, and they’re rising for items that comprise a large chunk of the budgets of working American families. Those are facts. The question is what to do about those facts. The subtext to all of the inflation critiques from the likes of Perry, Pethokoukis, and Ponnuru is that we should leave the Federal Reserve alone. Stop blaming the Fed for inflation, you guys. Please ignore that QE, QE2, QE3, and a multi-year zero interest rate policy, etc. were all intentionally designed to increase inflation, you guys. Just ignore all the different goods for which prices are rising really rapidly, you guys. Ignore the fact that higher prices and middling wages are eroding standards of living, you guys.
Unfortunately, the constant Federal Reserve apologetics are seriously clouding these pundits’ collective judgment about an increasingly important political issue: whether America’s current political class has what it takes to make rising standards of living — rather than just rising prices — the norm for American families again. That is why families are so anxious today. They’re worried that the American dream is slipping away, and that only thing people in Washington and New York care about is protecting people in Washington and New York.
President Obama’s solution for the problems that he has perpetuated are only indicative of the economic disasters of his administration. You cannot fix a poor economy by raising the minimum wage. You fix a poor economy by maximizing employment mobility and minimizing cronyism and destructive regulation. President Obama’s home state of Illinois has one of the highest minimum wages in the country, yet it consistently has one of the country’s highest unemployment rates and the poorest economic environments. Liberal policies keep people poor and dependent; free market principles help people become economically mobile and independent. As Governor Palin noted in her speech last week referencing a comment on her Facebook page:
I grew up poor. My mother was a die-hard FDR Democrat. When I turned eighteen the first president I voted for was Ronald Reagan. My mother was beside herself. When she asked me why I had voted for him, I told her I didn’t plan on staying poor.
The manicured hands of Washington craft out-of-touch, unproductive policies, but the calloused hands of the forgotten man are what make America exceptional and give her promise.
I can see Washington from Sarah’s house.. sort of. It felt like the two worlds within the Republican party who have been at war can finally merge and be united again under Reaganesque leadership that only Sarah could bring. That’s what it felt like. The video shows.. well.. enjoy the surprises for yourself.
Reince Priebus couldn’t come around to uttering Sarah’s name, but it doesn’t matter. The fact that he did this was enough (for now). The sooner the GOPe gets into the habit of validating her and repeating her merits for all to see, the sooner they will see how good it feels to stop going against the wishes of the base and just get on board. It was impressive whether it was for show or not. ShePac is not SarahPac, which I contribute to, and they have posts on anyone with an R next to their name; but Sarah is a transformational figure, in the best possible way, and it does the party good to raise her profile more. The leadership within the GOP of Jeb Bush and crony Karl Rove will certainly never bring us together.
When E! News asked what Palin would like Amazing America to teach the young girls who tune in, Palin was quick to respond saying, “That they need to be, and can be, and have to power to be self-reliant. They can be independent and they too have equal opportunity to get out there and enjoy all that has been given to us here in America.”
While Governor Palin’s intention is, for the most part, to eschew politics, the show’s cultural message will be 180 degree different than the liberal message of female empowerment through governmental reliance. Instead the show will be a modern day, American culturally-based equivalent to Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. Governor Palin will highlight the true promise zones of America–her people and their achievements. As USA Today reports:
Palin, wearing black except for flag-patterned high-heeled shoes, says it’s “not going to be some kind of fake scripted reality show” but will “showcase people, places and things in order to restore, fundamentally, what makes America great,” including her own family. Red-state Americans live an organic lifestyle that’s not limited to urban “granola” fans. “Their dinner just happens to be wrapped in fur rather than cellophane. So be it that we go out and shoot our dinner first.”
As for Governor Palin’s additional message to young women, she also noted:
“I think this world would be better off having more young women holding a fish in a picture than holding their camera in front of a bathroom mirror, talking a selfie.” The 2008 Vice Presidential candidate announced to a room full of reporters at the Television Critics Association Friday morning.
I tend to agree. Choose snapper over Snapchat and crappie over cropping.
You may have gotten a glimpse of it already but posts like this are just wonderful to read over and over. This one exudes energy, spirit, and the goodness (God’s goodness working through giving hearts) that was present at Port Alsworth in Alaska on Sunday. Sarah Palin was nothing short of effusive in describing the worthy project and her admiration for the work that Franklin Graham and Greta Van Susteren are doing. She also gave another shout out to her friends Parnelli Jones and Walker Evans who came a long way to be there. The pure love she feels for the troops, their families, and the appreciation she has for their sacrifice and patriotism just jumps off the page and makes you want to be there. I felt it.
Franklin Graham’s Samaritan Purse again steps up to the plate to positively impact lives! We’re so thankful for Samaritan’s Purse’s presence in Alaska, where Franklin has traveled and virtually homesteaded for decades. (He first arrived at… age 17 to work blue-collar jobs on our Trans-Alaska Pipeline!) He’s so engaged in assisting our wounded warriors, and this unique program he leads with passion and hands-on humbleness is changing our heroes’ lives. Franklin knows firsthand a soldier’s sacrifice, having a son serving honorably in the U.S. Army, so he brings injured troops and their spouses to a fishing camp in a special, very remote community to enjoy “God’s Country” (as Todd calls it; it’s his old stomping grounds in the Bristol Bay area), and helps our brave warriors heal in body and soul and relationships?
What an awesome team Franklin has assembled to embrace our troops! The entire tiny town of Port Alsworth gathers along their gravel airstrip to welcome the arriving planes carrying our wounded. American flags and children’s handmade posters are proudly waved, serving as a substitute for the traditional Welcome Home ceremonies these young families missed out on, as most of the guys were rushed from war zones to hospitals instead. Enjoy the pictures Greta Van Susteren posted on Gretawire:
With such charitable hearts (and a soft spot for the Last Frontier!), Greta and her husband asisted this worthy cause as she took time away from Fox News to travel across the country to honor our troops. This picture shows the soldiers’ plane arriving to the town’s enthusiastic greeting, and of course the individual up front — working non-stop to capture this mission of goodness — is Greta! I consider her an Alaskan sourdough, proving herself a great fisherman and breakfast cook on this trip.
Thank you for your effective efforts, Greta and John, Franklin Graham and Samaritan’s Purse, our friends Parnelli Jones and Walker Evans (who traveled far to pay tribute), and all of Port Alsworth! And infinite amounts of thanks go to our troops and their families for serving something greater than self. We love and honor you.
– Sarah Palin
Updated @ 8:17 p.m.
Cabins warriors and spouses stayed in, fishing with Greta and Rev. Graham:
The picture above is from the lodge for wounded warriors. Gretawire: We have nine couples this week. Most are recovering from multiple injuries. They are some of America’s best.
Gretawire: This picture was taken a little while ago in front of Samaritan Lodge Alaska.
There is good reason that the acronym of Illinois’s nickname is LOL. True–it does stand for Land of Lincoln, but it is also indicative the fact that our state is the laughingstock of the country. We’ve been approaching a fiscal cliff for quite sometime. Our budgets are bloated, and our state continually borrows money. Our pension systems are massively underfunded, and our credit rating is being downgraded on a seemingly monthly basis.
Our pension problems are our latest fiscal fire. There are five state pension systems–one for legislators, one for judges, one for teachers outside of Chicago, one for state employees, and one for state university employees. Right now, these pension systems are underfunded by $83 billion (although new rules in such estimates put that number at $206 billion) and have the potential to go bankrupt by 2018. The 67% state income tax increase and 46% corporate tax increase passed in a lame duck session in early 2011 has done little if anything to help better fund education or help improve the pension situation.There are two ideas that have been pushed by Governor Quinn–pension reform and a federal bailout. Pension reform was not achieved during the most recent regular session, nor a special session this past summer. The pension reform plan that Governor Quinn proposes includes increasing individual contributions, reducing cost of living adjustments, increasing the retirement age, and requiring that state pensions only be provided to state workers (i.e. make school districts responsible for providing teacher pensions). If implemented, these partial reforms would perhaps help, but in some respects, these changes would be considered merely nibbling at the margins. These ideas are not relentless reform.
In addition to his pension reform plans, Governor Quinn is toying with another idea to help stabilize the state’s fiscal situation–a federal bailout. In his FY2012 budget speech, Governor Quinn stated (emphasis added):
Consider the state’s unfunded pension liability as a mortgage on future public employees’pension payments. Illinois has a long history of high unfunded liability—a big, decades-long mortgage problem, a big risk. After fiscal year 2010, following losses from a deep recession, the unfunded liability sat at over 60 percent. While the pension reform of 2010 improved the situation by decreasing future liabilities—and certainly the economic recovery improved net assets for the pension funds significant longterm improvements will come only from additional pension reforms,refinancing the liability and seeking a federal guarantee of the debt, or increasing the annual required state contributions. Until one or more of these options is achieved, pension funding issues will persist.
So much for that Illinois state motto of “state sovereignty, national union”! When you become dependent on outside sources to hold up your debt and subsidize your failure you begin to lose your sovereignty. The same could be said about America as a whole with roughly a third of our debt held by foreign nations.
The Illinois Policy Institute (a conservative think tank akin to a Heritage Foundation or Cato Institute) has pushed two key ideas to tackle the state pension problems. One is to change the pension funds from a defined benefit to a defined contribution system, which means that taxpayers no longer shoulder the liability of pensions and how they are invested. The other is to reject a federal bailout, as it would create “winner and loser” states throughout the country and runs counter to the constitutional concept of federalism. In short, the answer to Illinois’ problems could simply be: “listen to Governor Palin”.
American taxpayers should not be expected to bail out wasteful state governments. Fiscally liberal states spent years running away from the hard decisions that could have put their finances on a more solid footing. Now they expect taxpayers from other states to bail them out, which will allow them to postpone the tough decisions they should have made ages ago and continue spending like there’s no tomorrow. Most Americans would say these states have made their bed and now they’ve got to lie in it. They accepted federal dollars and did not voice opposition to the unfunded federal mandates, and they even re-elected politicians who foisted debt-ridden programs on them that could never be sustained.
[…]
My home state made the switch from defined benefits to a defined contribution system, and as governor, I introduced a number of measures to build on that successful transition, while also addressing the issue of the remaining funding shortfall by prioritizing budgets to wrap our financial arms around this too-long ignored debt problem. When my state ran a surplus because we incentivized businesses, I didn’t spend it on fun and glamorous pet projects for lawmakers – though that would have made me quite popular with the earmark crowd. In fact, I vetoed more excessive spending than any governor in our state’s history, and I used the state’s surplus to bring our financial house in order by paying down our unfunded pension plans that some other governors wanted to ignore. This fiscal prudence didn’t make me popular with the state legislature. In addition to vetoing hundreds of millions of dollars in wasteful spending, I put billions of dollars into savings accounts for future rainy days, much like most American families do in responsibly planning for the future. I also enacted a hiring freeze and brought the education budget under control through a commitment to forward-funding. I returned much of the surplus back to the people (it was their money to start with!) through tax relief and energy rebates. I had proven as the mayor of the fastest growing city in the state that tax cuts incentivize business growth, and though the state legislature overrode some of my veto cuts and thwarted an additional tax relief request of mine, the public was supportive of efforts to rein in its government.
It’s one thing to veto spending and reduce the size of government when your state is broke. I did it when my state was flush with revenue from a surplus – though I had to fight politicians who wanted to spend like there was no tomorrow. It’s not easy to tell people no and make them act fiscally responsible and cut spending when the money is rolling in and your state is only 50 years shy of being a territory and everyone is yelling at you to spend while the money is there to build. My point is, if I could fight this fight in Alaska at a time of surplus, then other governors can and should be able to do the same at a time when their states are facing bankruptcy and postponing this fight is no longer an option.
The reforms that Governor Palin implemented helped lead to a 34.6% decrease in total liabilities during her tenure. In fact, Alaska is third best in the nation in the percentage of its pension system that is funded. Additionally, due in part to pension reform and other fiscal measures implemented by Governor Palin, Alaska’s credit rating has twicebeen upgraded by Standard and Poor’s and once by Moody’s since 2008. In addition to the bias of the media and the ill intentions of the GOP establishment, Governor Palin’s stellar record is not as well known as it should be because she prevented problems from reaching a tipping point by nipping them in the bud. She didn’t have to put out the proverbial fiscal fire because she removed the kindling before the fire could start. That doesn’t mean, though, that governors on both sides of the aisle can’t learn from her by implementing the reforms that helped make Alaska one of the most fiscally sound states in the country.
Stacy Drake and Whitney Pitcher have put together a lengthy résumé listing the Executive Accomplishments of former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
It has been said that Sarah Palin accomplished more in her time as Governor than most politicians, including two term Presidents, do in an entire career. As you look over Stacy’s article, I think you’ll find it hard to argue with that.
There are numerous links to even more extensive information. This is something worth bookmarking, as you’ll want to refer back to it often.
~ Gary
By Stacy Drake
Awhile back, Whitney Pitcher and I put together a list of Governor Palin’s executive accomplishments. That list later became an article featured on Breitbart’s Big Government, as an answer to those who proclaim that Governor Palin was somehow “unqualified” to be on the 2008 Republican ticket.
Using facts and historical record, Whitney and I compiled a list that proves every single-one of these people wrong. Keep in mind, most of the people making this assertion (including former McCain staff members), voted for a junior senator from Illinois (with a less than stellar record) in that election.
I wanted to make this information available in list form, as a resource for our readers to help educate America about the good work that Governor Palin has done throughout her career. This information also confirms that Governor Palin was more than qualified to serve as this nation’s Vice President.
Governor Sarah Palin’s Executive Accomplishments
Executive Authority and Success
* Sarah Palin was the youngest governor ever elected in Alaskan history.
[I]t turns out that the Governor’s office in Alaska is one of the country’s most powerful. For more than two decades Thad Beyle, a political scientist at the University of North Carolina, has maintained an index of “institutional powers” in state offices. He rates governorships on potential length of service, budgetary and appointment authority, veto power and other factors. Mr. Beyle’s findings for 2008 rate Alaska at 4.1 on a scale of 5. The national average is 3.5.
* Historically High Approval Ratings
* Governor Palin had a 89% and 93% approval rating in May 2007:
“Gov. Sarah Palin, a Republican, has earned 89% and 93% approval ratings in two recent polls. She has won nearly universal support because of her strong stand for honest government in the face of a corruption probe into other members of her party. Her support of a proposed natural gas pipeline to the continental USA has helped, too. Her strength is her independence,” says Alaska pollster David Dittman of Dittman Research in Anchorage. “She distanced herself from the old boy Republican regime and has been completely non-partisan.” Alaska Democratic Party Chairman Jake Westbrook credits Palin with “working across party lines on issues where there is agreement.”
“The triumph came in Alaska where Sarah Palin, a politician of eye-popping integrity, was elected governor. She is now the most popular governor in America, with an approval rating in the 90s, and probably the most popular public official in any state.” – Fred Barnes, The Weekly Standard 07/16/07
* Governor Palin’s approval rating average from the time of her inauguration until John McCain selected her to serve as the vice presidential candidate in 2008, was 77.38%.
Budgeting and Spending
* Cut state spending between 2007 and 2010 by 9.5%.
* Reduced federal earmark requests by more than 80%
In FY2007, Gov. Frank Murkowski requested $350 million in federal appropriations, which Gov. Palin reduced to $256 million in FY2008, $198 million in FY2009, and $69 million in FY2010.
* Invested $5 billion in state savings, overhauled education funding, and implemented the Senior Benefits Program to provide support for low-income older Alaskans.
* Stopped the “Bridge to Nowhere” and wanted to redirect the federal funds to Minnesota after the bridge collapse in 2007. In an email to her staff, she wrote:
[W]e MUST come out with a strong position against AK ‘ s perceived ” Bridge to Nowhere” so we quit looking clueless and selfish across the nation and can clear up the perception that the Gravina project is the state‘ s priority . The $350m bridge is not our priority.
The nation needs to be spending $ on fixing what we have – Minnesota needs ” bridge money” today more than we need a few Alaskans to perpetuate the nonsensical notion that our Gravina earmark is more important than fixing aged infrastructure. We would gain so much if we get that message out there – that the nation can pull, and work , together and make wise decisions on federal priorities … we should see that earmark redirected to Minnesota ‘ s tragedy be the Gravina bridge isn’t going to happen on our watch anyway.
* Rejected much of President Obama’s “stimulus money” in 2009. During a press conference on the matter, she said:
We are not requesting funds intended to just grow government. We are not requesting more money for normal day-to-day operations of government as part of this economic stimulus package. In essence we say no to operating funds for more positions in government.
As I wrote to our congressional delegation on January 7, our administration recognizes that President-elect Obama and the congressional leadership of both parties favor the use of formulas to ensure fairness among the states and to avoid the earmark abuses of the past.
We also have to be mindful about the effect of the stimulus package on the national debt and the future economic health of the country. We won’t achieve long-term stability if we continue borrowing massive sums from foreign countries and remain dependent on foreign sources of oil and gas.
* Proposed a $2.6 billion investment in the Education Fund to help fund public education for the future.
* Used her line-item veto to cut more than a quarter billion in superfluous spending in 2007:
The Governor vetoed nearly a quarter of a billion dollars of projects contained within Senate Bill 53. Establishing a budget process, the Governor focused her decisions on the Constitutionally-mandated services of education, public safety and health, and infrastructure.
* 2007 vetoes included projects such as berry economic development, the AT&T Sports Center, a Salmon Study, a tennis court at the Lions Club, batting cages, gun club facility improvements, motocross course construction, a virus free seed potato project, and numerous other items placed in the budget that were not the State of Alaska’s responsibility.
* In 2008, Governor Palin vetoed more than a quarter billion in superfluous spending:
In all, $268 million was vetoed from the budget bills. “The budgets will provide needed services, will leverage other funds and will make a significant investment in Alaska’s future,” Governor Palin said.
* Provide Alaskan residents with a “resource rebate” to help offset high energy costs:
After funding the state’s priorities, putting billions away in savings and still seeing a budget surplus, the Legislature agreed to a special one-time payment, sharing part of our resource wealth with Alaskans, who under our Constitution are the owners in common of these resources, and who I believe can decide better than government how to use that share.
For the second year in a row, unemployment insurance tax rates have dropped.
“The 2009 unemployment insurance tax rates will be the lowest Alaska employers have experienced in 29 years,” Governor Sarah Palin announced today. An employer in the average rate class will pay approximately $93 less for each employee than in 2008. The rates are applicable to the first $32,700 of the individual employee earnings.
* Cut property taxes as Mayor of Wasilla. She eliminated small business inventory taxes; cut property tax mil levy every year she was in office (6 years straight)
Fiscal Management
*Reformed the state’s pension program by ensuring a successful transition from a defined benefits to a defined contributions system and addressing the $8 billion unfunded liability in Alaska state’s retirements, making it more solvent and leading to a decrease of 34.6% in state liabilities during her tenure.
* Left Alaska with an improved credit rating during and following her tenure as Governor:
Standard & Poor’s raised Alaska’s credit rating from AA to AA+ in April, 2008:
“Our fiscal prudence is being recognized by the financial markets. It affirms our efforts to control government spending and live within our means,” Governor Palin said. “We have been working hard advocating for Alaska, both within the state and outside, and I am pleased to see it paying off.”
* Moody’s upgraded Alaska’s credit rating to AAA in November 2010 and Standard & Poor’s upgraded Alaska to AAA too in January in large part due to Governor Palin’s policies as indicated below. Each italicized bullet point is a point provided by Standard and Poor’s as an indicator for credit upgrade:
“The state’s strong financial management and generally conservative forecasting”: during her tenure, Governor Palin cut spending 9.5% and reduced earmarks 80%.
“The state’s financial flexibility, enhanced by the maintenance of large reserves derived from windfall oil revenues since fiscal year 2008”: Governor Palin’s oil tax reform plan implemented in FY2008 was a severance or production tax on oil companies—a tax they paid as a recompense for developing the Alaskan owned natural resources has helped create fiscal reserves for the state.
“The state’s moderate debt burden”: During her tenure, Alaska’s overall debt decreased nearly more than 157 million dollars between FY2007 (her predecessor’s final budget year) and FY2010 (her final budget year), while debt outstanding increased at 4.2% annual rate (between FY 2007 and FY 2010) compared to the 6.8% annual rate of her predecessor (between FY2003 and FY2007).
“An accumulation of multiple budget reserves equal to more than 200 percent of the general fund budget”: Due to legislation like ACES and the frugal budgeting of Governors Palin and Parnell, Alaska now has a 12 billion dollars in savings. During the VP campaign, Governor Palin was able to tout a more than $5 billion surplus.
ACES replaced the corruption tainted oil tax plan of the previous administration which was passed in secret and ultimately lead to the indictment of several Alaskan state officials and oil company personnel. ACES provided oil companies with incentives to develop. The progressivity of the tax meant producers were protected when oil prices were low while the interest of the resource owners—the people of Alaska— were appropriately protected as well.
* Natural resources and logging jobs increased 13.7% during Governor Palin’s tenure according to Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development data.
AGIA (Alaska Gasline Inducement Act) — After many decades of unsuccessful attempts to bring a gas pipeline project into existence, Governor Palin and her team introduced to Alaskans the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act (AGIA) in March 2007.
AGIA passed the Legislature by a vote of 57-1 in May 2007. The framework for America’s largest private sector infrastructure project—a natural gas pipeline—was signed into law by Governor Palin on June 6, 2007. In August 2008, the Alaska Legislature authorized the Palin Administration to award the AGIA license to TransCanada Alaska. In June 2009, Exxon Mobil signed an agreement with TransCanada to partner on the project.
Governor Palin’s AGIA legislation was conducted out in the open, made use of a competitive bidding process and placed not only Alaska, but the nation on a path toward energy independence.
* The stated purpose of AGIA is to expedite the development of a natural gas pipeline that:
* Facilitates commercialization of North Slope gas resources in the state.
* Promotes exploration and development of Alaska’s oil and gas resources.
* Maximizes benefits to the people of the state from the development of oil and gas resources.
* Encourages oil and gas lessees and other persons to commit to ship natural gas from the North Slope to a gas pipeline system for transportation to markets in Alaska or elsewhere.
AGIAestablishes mutual commitments and responsibilities between the State of Alaska and the AGIA licensee, specifically, commitments to include regular expansions of the pipeline, local hire, instate delivery service at reasonable costs and a firm timeline for development.
In exchange for meeting the state’s requirements, the successful AGIA project applicant is entitled to certain inducements that will facilitate project development, notably, up to “$500 million in matching funds, which will help reduce the financial risks that such a huge project faces in its early stages.”
* Pt. Thomson: Under Governor Palin’s leadership, drilling Commenced at Pt. Thomson after Exxon Mobil had sat on their leases for more than 25 years The Point Thomson field contains one of the largest untapped and proven reserves of oil and gas on the continent.
PSIO addresses lax maintenance practices on the North Slope that came to light last year after corroded pipelines spilled 200,000 gallons of oil, leading to production shut-downs at Prudhoe Bay and interruption in the flow of oil revenue to the state, she said.
PSIO requires industry to establish and maintain quality assurance programs, and requires the state to inspect facilities to ensure operators comply with those programs. PSIO will also search for any gaps in laws, regulations or industry practices that threaten the integrity of the state’s oil and gas infrastructure. If necessary, the office will step in and exert the state’s authority as issuer of development leases to ensure the system and the state’s interests are protected.
* Took on “Big Oil”: Governor Palin stood up for her constituents when dealing with the powerful oil companies:
“What bothers me is that Alaska tried it Exxon’s way. The result was a contract that is not viable. It did not have the support of the public or the legislature. That’s why we need a competitive, open, and transparent process,” said Governor Palin. “It’s painfully obvious that Exxon Mobil does not want that process. We know exactly where we’re going and have a plan to move forward. Exxon doesn’t like that plan because it puts the interests of Alaska and the nation, first – and not Exxon.”
There’s an entire book about Sarah Palin’s battles with “Big Oil“: Sarah takes on Big Oil: The compelling story of Governor Sarah Palin’s battle with Alaska’s ‘Big 3’ oil companies, as told by the state’s top oil and gas editors, Kay Cashman and Kristen Nelson Long title and a must read if you want to understand Governor Sarah Palin and how she fought corruption. You can order it from Amazon.com.
~ Gary
* Served on national energy committees: Governor Palin served as Chair of the National Governors Association and as the Natural Resource Committee and Chairman of the Interstate Oil & Gas Compact Commission.
* Chair, Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, 2003-2004
Jobs and Business Growth
Jobs:
* Alaska was 2nd in job growth compared to all other states during her tenure as governor.
* Alaska was 3rd in the nation in terms of change in the unemployment rate relative to the national average.
* She signed legislation allowing Alaska-based businesses the same opportunities as out-of-state businesses, within Alaska.
* The number of oil companies doing business in Alaska doubled following the passage of ACES.
* Alaska’s exports grew to a record-high $4 billion in 2006, a 12.6 percent increase.
* Alaska’s exports for 2007 reached $3.9 billion, the second best year for exports.
Ethics Reform and Transparency
* Governor Palin fought for and signed sweeping bipartisan ethics legislation which restricted lobbyists, improved disclosure laws, and improved executive and legislative branch ethics laws.
She has pushed through ethics legislation amid a burgeoning corruption investigation of Alaska lawmakers. She has bucked her party’s old guard. And she has ordered her administration to seek fewer congressional earmarks.
“What separates her from the others is that at a time when Republicans have suffered from the corruption, she represents clean politics” John J. Pitney Jr. December 27, 2007
* She released her ACES—oil tax bill—to her constituents 17 days prior to the special legislative session where it was to be discussed.
* Forward funded education to allow districts greater flexibility. She stated in an email to her staff at the time:
My goal is to get more money into the classroom; the teaching profession will be honored and teacher profiles elevated on my watch; educ is priority; nothing’s more impt than our kids;
I want AK to feel the same vigor for educ as we have for the gasline; we’ll succeed in forward funding ( eventually ); on our watch our students will have opportunity to be successful via our innovative educ reforms.
* Supported increased vocational training and early education funding with a 3-year plan: $1B for early learning, vo-tech, accountability.
* Increased funding for the Alaska Youth Challenge Academy 18.8% in her first year in office (FY2008) compared to her predecessor’s final year (FY2007).
* Governor Palin’s FY2008 capital budget included $2.5 million for special needs housing (a 42% increase in capital funding over her predecessor) and $250,000 for Special Olympics facility upgrades.
The bill would establish an Alaska health care information office to give consumers factual information on quality, cost and other important matters to help them make better-informed decisions about health care in the state. Recognizing that health care must be market-and business-driven, rather than restricted by government.
* Proposed repeal of Certificate of Need—a layer of bureaucracy that prevents medical facility development.
* Established the Alaska Health Strategies Planning Council in the Office of the Governor.
* Sued the federal government when the Department of the Interior began listing the polar bear as a threatened species because it such a listing would hamper Alaska’s economy:
“Inappropriate implementation of this listing decision could result in widespread social and economic impacts, including increased power costs and further increases in fuel prices, without providing any more protection for the species,” Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Irwin said.
“While the state is challenging the listing, we remain committed to assuring Alaska’s polar bears are conserved,” Governor Palin said. “The state will continue to monitor Alaska’s polar bear populations and their behaviors in relation to changing sea ice conditions.”
“The State of Alaska has worked cooperatively with the federal government to protect and conserve beluga whales in Cook Inlet,” said Governor Palin. “This listing decision didn’t take those efforts into account as required by law.”
[…]
“While challenging the listing, we will continue to protect beluga whales,” said Governor Palin. “We will also be assisting Alaskan communities and stakeholders with navigating the complex bureaucratic process this listing decision imposes on their projects and working cooperatively with federal agencies on the required consultations, designations of critical habitat and development of a recovery plan and objectives.”
* Chose to monitor rather than participate in national standards for education, noting that state and local standards and accountability are better. Instead, she chose to implement a pilot program to improve readiness for school, to employ an initiative to ensure struggling school districts have the needed capacity to serve their students, and maintain a state director of rural education:
“The State of Alaska fully believes that schools must have high expectations of students,” Governor Palin said. “But high expectations are not always created by new, mandated federal standards written on paper. They are created in the home, the community and the classroom.”
* Transitioned responsibility for the quality of Alaska water resources from federal to state control.
State Constitution:
* Vetoed HB4001 which prohibited the commissioner of the department of administration from adopting same-sex regulations:
“HB4001, is unconstitutional given the recent Court order of December 19th, mandating same-sex benefits. With that in mind, signing this bill would be in direct violation of my oath of office.”
Military
* Governor Palin shared strategic command over the 49th Missile Defense Battalion of the Alaska National Guard:
Alaska is the first line of defense in our missile interceptor defense system. The 49th Missile Defense Battalion of the Alaska National Guard is the unit that protects the entire nation from ballistic missile attacks. It’s on permanent active duty, unlike other Guard units.
As governor of Alaska, Palin is briefed on highly classified military issues, homeland security, and counterterrorism.
* Governor Palin was also Commander- in-chief of the Alaska State Defense Force (ASDF):
She’s also the commander in chief of the Alaska State Defense Force (ASDF), a federally recognized militia incorporated into Homeland Security’s counterterrorism plans.
Palin is privy to military and intelligence secrets that are vital to the entire country’s defense. Given Alaska’s proximity to Russia, she may have security clearances we don’t even know about.
* Governor Palin supported state constitutional amendments or legislation that would have stated abortion is not a right & made coerced abortion a crime.
* She also signed the ‘Safe Haven’ Bill into law.
Civil and Safety Issues
* Signed the Sonya Ivanoff Act. SB 45, mandating the maximum sentence for first-degree murder when committed by an on-duty peace officer.
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A Time For Choosing 
