Speaking of excessive and illegal secrecy on the part of Dick Cheney, it turns out that could-be Cheney replacement Sarah Palin practiced the politics of corruption, deceipt, and secrecy herself in Alaska government:
Palin, it is clear, will not deviate from the Bush-Cheney line of abusing government power and sidestepping public scrutiny.
One of the most appalling aspects of this technique of corrupt governance is attempting to hide communication from the public. Remember the mysteriously missing White House emails, the RNC email accounts used to shield illegal activity in the Bush administration, and Cheney's absurd fiction that his office is not in the executive branch? Palin certainly learned her lessons from the best as her administration sought to shield her actions from the prying eyes of her constituency, the public:
"Throughout her political career, she has pursued vendettas, fired officials who crossed her and sometimes blurred the line between government and personal grievance, according to a review of public records and interviews with 60 Republican and Democratic legislators and local officials...."
Palin, it is clear, will not deviate from the Bush-Cheney line of abusing government power and sidestepping public scrutiny.
One of the most appalling aspects of this technique of corrupt governance is attempting to hide communication from the public. Remember the mysteriously missing White House emails, the RNC email accounts used to shield illegal activity in the Bush administration, and Cheney's absurd fiction that his office is not in the executive branch? Palin certainly learned her lessons from the best as her administration sought to shield her actions from the prying eyes of her constituency, the public:
"Interviews show that Ms. Palin runs an administration that puts a premium on loyalty and secrecy. The governor and her top officials sometimes use personal e-mail accounts for state business; dozens of e-mail messages obtained by The New York Times show that her staff members studied whether that could allow them to circumvent subpoenas seeking public records.
Rick Steiner, a University of Alaska professor, sought the e-mail messages of state scientists who had examined the effect of global warming on polar bears. (Ms. Palin said the scientists had found no ill effects, and she has sued the federal government to block the listing of the bears as endangered.) An administration official told Mr. Steiner that his request would cost $468,784 to process.
When Mr. Steiner finally obtained the e-mail messages — through a federal records request — he discovered that state scientists had in fact agreed that the bears were in danger, records show.
“Their secrecy is off the charts,” Mr. Steiner said.
State legislators are investigating accusations that Ms. Palin and her husband pressured officials to fire a state trooper who had gone through a messy divorce with her sister, charges that she denies. But interviews make clear that the Palins draw few distinctions between the personal and the political....
...It is part of a pattern, Mr. Fagan said, in which Ms. Palin characterizes critics as “bad people who are anti-Alaska.”
As Ms. Palin’s star ascends, the McCain campaign, as often happens in national races, is controlling the words of those who know her well. Her mother-in-law, Faye Palin, has been asked not to speak to reporters, and aides sit in on interviews with old friends.
At a recent lunch gathering, an official with the Wasilla Chamber of Commerce asked its members to refer all calls from reporters to the governor’s office. Dianne Woodruff, a city councilwoman, shook her head.
“I was thinking, I don’t remember giving up my First Amendment rights,” Ms. Woodruff said. “Just because you’re not going gaga over Sarah doesn’t mean you can’t speak your mind.”
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