ABC News - Palin's aides scrambling in Alaska: "It's vetting gone haywire"

[sabra]

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5813754&page=1

Tanning Bed to Troopergate: Palin Aides Kept Scrambling
Questions About Tanning Bed in Governor's Mansion -- the Latest Frenzy for Aides

"It's vetting gone haywire," said Gov. Sarah Palin's beleaguered press secretary, Bill McAllister, as he dealt with a new round of questions about the governor -- this time about a tanning bed installed in the governor's mansion in Juneau.

In the 2½ weeks since Palin was named to the GOP ticket, McAllister's phone has been ringing off the hook from national reporters who have descended on the state to look into the background of the governor.

Monday, US Weekly and a blog, NarcoNews, reported that "the former beauty queen's penchant for a bronzed body" led to the installation of a "private tanning bed" shortly after she took office.

"She paid for it herself," said McAllister from his Anchorage office. He told ABC News he had "no idea" why she had installed the machine but confirmed it was installed in the mansion.

...

McAllister has apparently been cut out of the loop by McCain campaign aides who have taken charge of the "troopergate" issue while leaving the tanning bed questions to him.

"There's some press conference going on somewhere right now, but I don't know where or with whom," McAllister said Monday.

[Tab]

1. Where's my tiny violin?

If the GOP was smart, they would have vetted her long before pushing her up front. Maybe they just figured Alaska was safe by definition. Apparently no one looked too closely or they thought they could sweep it under the rug.

:nopity:

[Richard Steele]

12. They had little choice. No viable Repubs wanted the job.

Palin just shows us how CERTAIN the Repubs are that
McCain is headed for a landslide loss. They had to
scrape the bottom of the barrel REALLY HARD to find
anyone who would be his VP.

And this is the best they can do? A delusional wackjob
of the first order? Yah, GOP- good luck with that! :rofl:

[leftynyc]

30. I think you're wrong about that

Romney would have certainly taken the job as would have Lieberman, Ridge or Pawlenty. They picked Caribou Barbie because they actually think women will vote for anyone with a uterus and they needed to shore up their base.

[truthisfreedom]

2. AND they had to rewire the ENTIRE mansion for that tucking commercial bed

which NOBODY KNOWS the origin of...

[progressivebydesign]

7. No shit? They had to rewire the mansion? Did she pay for that to??

No.. of course she didn't. She's a scammer. "bronze body", that just makes my skin crawl.

[Chloroplast]

25. There's video of a TV nature host visiting Palin & she talks about Todd renovating the mansion.

[BeyondGeography]

3. Wonder if that approval rating is still 80%

Time for another poll.

[Duke Newcombe]

4. SAT question: Windsurfing is to Kerry as tanning beds are to...?

Palin.

Throw it out there, all day, every day. Out of touch, and dangerous.

Duke

[grantcart]

10. we need pictures

[progressivebydesign]

5. I want to see the receipt for the tanning bed she installed "with her own money"

Just curious.. ya know.

Suppose if McCain had Actually vetted her, then this shit wouldn't be necessary. Sad when the National Enquirer has to vett the VP candidate. :rofl:

[Richard Steele]

13. Indeed. nm

[vaberella]

14. I think I remember an article saying she didn't use her own money.

I can't find it now..it's been a while. A week ago and it's like when one scandal comes up there's like thousands of posts on it within hours.

[nc4bo]

21. Maybe it was a gift from Teddy :S nt

[ErinBerin84]

6. ha, did anyone see Howard Fineman on KO last night

"Well, in fairness to her, EVERYONE goes to tanning booths in Alaska!" Uh, ok, Howard.

[TwilightGardener]

8. Why would an Alaskan care about tanning? Unless she was hoping

to raise her national profile and had to look good...

[WinkyDink]

24. "Woman", not "Alaskan". "Former beauty queen", not "Alaskan".

[Ichingcarpenter]

9. $20-$30 thousand for a tanning bed

It is not a sun lamp.... but a tanning bed.



Tanning beds on sale close out.
http://www.tanamerica.com/images/pdf/lpinventory.pdf

[vaberella]

17. I think her's cost 35,000.

http://64.90.166.18/news/sarah-palin-installed-a-tanning-bed-at-the-governors-mansion

[DeschutesRiver]

28. It must be a commercial model?

I did a google of some brand called Wolff, and the least expensive ones were $1499, O percent financing for a payment of $36 per month. They went up from there, but I didn't look any further.

I assume that if the McCain camp isn't squawking about the price, then she must indeed have chunked out $35k. And given what they earn, even if I include Todd's salary, her salary, and/or the oil and gas commission salary, it is still huge chunk of change to pay for a top of the line bed.

I bet you this is a gift, for some portion if not all of it, no matter what Palin is stating at present. I'll go one further - a gift from an oil and gas related person, seeking favors from Palin's office.

[KansDem]

11. "She paid for it herself"

Where did she get the money?

Could this be the reason she charged Alaska a per diem allowance while staying at home?

The $60-a-day allowance is available for state employees when traveling on official state business to cover meals and other sundry expenses. Ms. Palin’s per diems, which included some charges for partial days, totaled $17,059, from Dec. 4, 2006, when she took office, through June 30, 2008, the most recent data available, according to Sharon Leighow, a spokeswoman for the governor’s office. Ms. Palin’s salary is $125,000 a year.

NY Times

Hmmm...

[TwilightGardener]

15. She was hardly ever AT the Governor's mansion, apparently--did she just go there to tan?

[vaberella]

18. It's important to keep up appearances when one has a meeting. n/t

[Eric J in MN]

16. I'll believe that she paid for it herself when someone independent....

...says so after examining the transaction.

As long as it's just the word of a spokesperson for Sarah Palin, I suspect that she used state money.

[hamsterjill]

20. My thoughts exactly!

Was she charging a per diem while she roasted herself?

Palin shallow beyond belief.

[Vinca]

19. Essentially you've got the top of the ticket a victim of skin cancer

and the bottom of the ticket trying to acquire it via a tanning bed.

[Lucky 13]

22. Just to play devils advocate... I would like to point out at least one cultural difference in Alaska

After living in Alaska for a few years, I can tell you that MANY people there use tanning beds and people having one in their home is not uncommon. The extreme lack of daylight during the winter months can be pretty hard to cope with. Not only do you have shortened daylight, but even when the sun is up, there is usually dense cloud cover.

In addition to preventing you from turning the pastiest color of white, tanning also gives you a little fake-seratonin boost. It FEELS like you've been out in the sunshine... even if you haven't seen the sun for months. It can help your mood, your ability to concentrate, and your ability to SLEEP - which the human body is just not good at when variations in daylight are so dramatic.

I never used a tanning bed until I went to Alaska but really helped me make it through my last long winter there. My friend (ironically also from Wasilla) had a tanning bed installed in her home for the same reason. They weren't rich or elitists... just sick of living in the dark.

Learning that Palin installed a tanning bed in the Governor's mansion is not at all surprising or controversial to me at all. And I think if you ask Alaskan DUers they might say the same.

There have been a couple of instances where Sarah Palin has been slammed for doing something that definitely seems odd to the lower-48-folks, but is quintessentially Alaskan. Every time I see that happen, I cringe. You're not just clowning Sarah Palin, but Alaskans in general - and it can be hurtful. So all I'm saying is just be careful. There are a million other things to be critical of her for... lets try to stay away from the things that aren't exclusive to Sarah or fundie whack-jobs and not also attributable to ALASKANS, or WHITE WOMEN, or MOTHERS or stuff like that.

just my $0.02.

[dkf]

26. Its all part of how much is that person like you.

For most people tanning booths are not normal, so Palin will get weird looks on this. Doesn't matter if Alaskans do it all the time.

And I wasn't happy that Hawaii was tagged "exotic" either. But it is what it is.

[XemaSab]

27. I think that the more they play the "Alaska card"

such as "Everyone in Alaska eats mooseburgers!," "Everyone in Alaska gives their kids wierd names!," or "Everyone in Alaska owns a private floatplane!," instead of making Sarah seem more normal, it just makes Alaskans seem more wierd.

I like Alaska, but if making Sarah look like an eccentric guest star on Northern Exposure is what we have to do to win this thing, so be it.

[Lucky 13]

29. Alienating Alaskans (or anyone for that matter) is not smart politics.

The point is people in the lower-48 simply do not understand Alaska and it's people. There are so many misconceptions it's ridiculous.

FICTION:
-Everyone in Alaska eats mooseburgers.
-Everyone in Alaska gives their kids weird names.

FACT:
-Many people own floatplanes. Unless you're sticking to the meager road system (Anchorage, Fairbanks, Delta Junction) plane or float plane is the only way to get to most places in Alaska. Some of the most common, simple folk in Alaska own planes and snow machines. (Don't call them snow mobiles there. People look at you funny.)
-Many people own tanning beds.
-Many people there are outdoorsy. They hunt, fish, camp, track, and trap. It IS a way of life.
-Many people there own guns. I never ever ever ever thought I would want to own a gun. But after you encounter an enormous bear in the middle of a downtown roadway or have a bull moose charge you, you begin to reconsider. If you do ANYTHING in the backcountry you would be SUICIDE not to have one, or go with someone who has one, or at a MINIMUM have bearspray and a hunting knife... but even that is risky.


If Palin says or does something stupid and plays it off as being Alaskan, she should be called on it. She shouldn't be able to disparage Alaskans anymore than us. If she says or does something that is culturally acceptable and common in Alaska, let it go. There's a lot of resentment in Alaska towards the lower 48 and this is a big reason... judgment and interference. I realize there may not be many swing votes there and we have almost certainly lost the chance to turn Alaska blue this time, but make no mistake, when next election rolls around if they feel that the Dems were slamming Sarah, not for being a fundie rightwing kook, but for being typically Alaskan - they will remember and it will further alienate them from Democrats.

Let's do what we need to to win, but not tear down normal Alaskans, normal AMERICANS in the process. Obama doesn't want us to do that - especially considering the "exotic" places he is from. It's all about uniting the country.

And there's so much other shit to focus on. She hired and fired people based on personal issues. She left Wasilla in tremendous debt. She carries out vendettas. She LIES. She manipulates. Who the fuck cares if she owns a tanning bed?!

[PermanentRevolution]

23. For me, the most interesting part is this...

"McAllister has apparently been cut out of the loop by McCain campaign aides who have taken charge of the "troopergate" issue while leaving the tanning bed questions to him."

If they're cutting Palin's own staffers out of the loop on Troopergate, it's because they've discovered a need for serious damage control. My guess - Sarah's admitted that it's all true, and the ethics committee will discover as much. Hence the scramble to paint it as a partisan attack somehow engineered by Obama.

[Hutzpa]

31. This need to go VIRAL

cost of tanning $30.000 while Americans are suffering with
the economy, throw it out there.