Sarah Palin must refund family travel expenses to Alaska. You betcha!
Is Gov. Sarah Palin the Republican gift that keeps on giving?
Or keeps on taking?
According to Fox News, the Alaska governor must reimburse her state approximately $7,000 for unnecessary travel expenses involving nine trips taken by her children.
Fox reports that Palin has to reimburse the money within 120 days, according to a settlement filed by a special investigator who was hired by the Alaska Personnel Board to investigate an ethics complaint.
The final amount will be determined by the Alaska Department of Administration, said Palin's attorney, Thomas Van Flein, who guesstimates it will be around $6,800.
There is no state law against the governor's family traveling with her, and the personnel board found no wrongdoing on the part of the governor.
Let's repeat that part, 'cause it's just so delish: NO WRONGDOING.
Correct me I'm wrong here, but if you or I expensed our companies for family members to travel/dine with us while we were on company business, I think we'd be promptly fired.
The charges include airfare and a meal for her daughter Bristol Palin, who went with her mom to New York for Newsweek's Third Annual Women and Leadership Conference in October 2007.
Other trips: Bristol's trip to see "Beauty and the Beast" at the Valley Performing Arts Center, Piper and Bristol's trip to Juneau for the State of the State address, and Piper's trip to see her dad race in the Iron Dog snow machine race and attend the the Alaska Outdoor Council Banquet.
This investigation was sparked by an Associated Press report last year that Palin charged the state more than $21,000 for her three daughters' commercial flights, including events to which they weren't invited, and later ordered the expense forms amended to specify official state business.
What do you think about this refund news? Are you shocked by her use of state money to pay for her family's travel?
Anyone else find this pretty sad?
How about you, Joe Six Pack and Joe the Plumber?
You guys on board with this behavior?
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Photo: Getty Images
Hmmm - you're somehow leaving out the part that she volunteered to pay this, and wasn't required to do so.
http://www.gov.state.ak.us/news.php?id=1662
She's voluntarily holding herself to a higher standard. I look forward to your reporting on Obama using Air Force One to take his family out to eat in Chicago.
How about the cost of 28 new improved yada helicopters for Obama?
How about the new improved heavily reinforced auto for Obama?
Sarah will repay the money. Sarah also will repay (after she gets the amended W-2) the tax on her per diem. Will Obama pay for the house he got without going through appropriate channels?
Sarah is no longer going to use the state owned vehicle, but is driving her personal vehicle.
Bias? Maybe the MSM will give you a job
Dodd and Rangel are up to their ears in financial irregularities to the tune of millions. And you bash Palin over thousands?
Typical "journalist", i.e., propagandist for the Democrats.
She's worth thousands of backbiting, mean-spirited, hypocritical so-called journalists and liberals like you.
You're really afraid of her, aren't you? I can see why. From her acceptance speech: "But here's a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion. I'm going to Washington to serve the people of this country." She threatens worthless gatekeepers like you. More power to her.
stick to Hollywood...
Don't get into Alaskan politics because you obviously have no idea what is going on.
The fact that the investigation found that there was no wrong doing is the only thing that really matters. In fact, the investigation found that the rules governing the travel of family members was so unclear, that new rules will be written. Gov. Palin decided to hold herself to what is expected to be the new standard, and reimburse the state. Maybe she could have told them to deduct it from the $25,000 a year raise she turned down.
If you would actually do some reserach you would have discovered that by selling the governors plane, and traveling on commercial airlines, Gov. Palin has saved the state of Alaska tens of thousands of dollars. Her travel expenses are much much lower than the previous 2 governors.
Of course people like you wouldn't actually bother to do any such research, which is about par for the course for those writing for the LA Times.
By the way, I'm Joe the Retiree, and I have absolutely no problem with her taking her kids with when she travels.
this is a typical distortion by latimes' obamabot squad
substantiated facts for th ignorant
gov palin acted according to rules in place as such she did nothing wrong here . she did not have to reimburse . but this writer in typical obamabot fastion fails to grasp that
gov palin and her family cost the state less than former governors of alaska and other governors in other states .
and don't talk about democrats in congress and obambi himself who hails from capital of corruption . when has he ever stood up to corruption ? he appoints crooks to his cabinet for gods sake!
when did this place ever cover that? never
in the tank obamabots here may shout as much as they want but the facts are facts
why is latimes afraid to publish facts exposng intentonal distorstion in this post ? cowards here covering up for obama huh?
In the meantime we bored, pathetic, anonymous bloggers are sending priority mail, flat rate boxes of food to rural Alaskan villages that are choosing between freezing and starving this winter.
http://anonymousbloggers.com/
Sarah did nothing wrong. the law was unclear on taking her children on state travel dime. sarah took the high road and just paid it off. moving on.
This woman needs to be held accountable for her actions. Ask real Alaskans what she is doing for them Many do not approve of the job she has done. Palin feels she is above the law. She's playing with the big people now and she best get used to it.