*Oh Snap* Travelgate on Yahoo!News frontpage: Alaska funded kids travel, AP probe finds.

[TheDonkey]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Gov. Sarah Palin charged the state for her children to travel with her, including to events where they were not invited, and later amended expense reports to specify that they were on official business.

The charges included costs for hotel and commercial flights for three daughters to join Palin to watch their father in a snowmobile race, and a trip to New York, where the governor attended a five-hour conference and stayed with 17-year-old Bristol for five days and four nights in a luxury hotel.

In all, Palin has charged the state $21,012 for her three daughters' 64 one-way and 12 round-trip commercial flights since she took office in December 2006. In some other cases, she has charged the state for hotel rooms for the girls.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081022/ap_on_el_pr/palin_family_travel

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This on top of Macy's-gate ie. spending $150,000 on clothes at high-end department stores.

Can Palin possibly pile on MORE -gates in the last 2 weeks of this election? I wouldn't count it out. It's becoming painfully clear that she has no regard for professional ethics or the law.

[WCGreen]

1. Blssfully unaware of the damage she is doing to herself and McCain...

[TheDonkey]

3. Now we just need the MSM to bite on these stories. In an economy in peril she's shoe shopping off

donors backs and flying her kids to snowmobile races and DECEPTIVELY trying to cover her tracks.

[life_long_dem]

2. eewww ! That photo.

She is just as ugly on the outside as she is on the inside.

[elkston]

6. Gotta agree on the inside bit, but you must admit, she looks radiant in that photo.

It would be hard to turn down a tussle with her.

[Matariki]

8. Maybe if you're 72.

Seriously, she looks too much like Dick Cheney. I think it's the sneer.

[H2O Man]

10. And blind,

deaf and dumb. Especially dumb.

[Liberal_in_LA]

4. Repubs are trying to justify it by saying clothing is to go to charity...link

http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/10/republicans_disgusted_by_rnc_s.php

"With all of the important issues facing the country right now, it's remarkable that we're spending time talking about pantsuits and blouses. It was always the intent that the clothing go to a charitable purpose after the campaign." --McCain-Palin spokesperson Tracey Schmitt on this Politico story.

There is already an attempt to blame the media -- as in, the liberal media would have looked askance at Palin if she wasn't clad in Neiman Marcus, but this won't wash. Republicans, RNC donors and at least one RNC staff member have e-mailed me tonight to share their utter (and not-for-attribution) disgust at the expenditures.

This sort of spending is without precedent -- the closest approximation for any campaign I've ever covered is make-up expenses for television interviews and commercial shoots -- , and Schmitt's weakly defensive response tonight indicates that the campaign is deeply embarrassed by it and has nothing to say in their defense. Spokespeople have clammed up, a sure sign that they're trying to figure out who authorized the expenses and who knew about them. Did Palin wear all of the clothing? Where is it kept?

[TheDonkey]

5. They'll try to spin but this is a toxic story. One second talking about "Joe six-pack" the next

blowing a cool $70,000 at Saks 5th Ave. :eye: Wow.

[Matariki]

9. To be fair, she had a whole lotta rednecks to try and make look presentable

From 'First Dude' to Bristol's baby-daddy.

[No Elephants]

7. I'll make a big deal out of anything when talking to Pubs, but, just among us chickens, as scandals

$21K is practically petty cash.

[shaniqua6392]

11. It is about time the media dug up a little bit of truth.

What the hell took them so long???