Cover Up? Why Palin's Emails Won't Be Released Before Election Day

[kpete]

Cover Up? Why Palin's Emails Won't Be Released Before Election Day

By using at least one private email account for state business, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has virtually guaranteed that most of the emails she sent as governor--which are subject to the state's Open Records Act--will not be publicly released before Election Day.

After Senator John McCain, the GOP presidential nominee, picked Palin to be his running mate, a number of news organizations, including Mother Jones filed Open Records Act requests for copies of emails Palin had received or sent. (For a comprehensive list of all the requests received by Palin's office, see here.)On September 22, in response to the Mother Jones request, Palin's office replied that it would cost $2,249.46 to conduct a search of her official email account. This did not include copying fees. The fee was later reduced to $590.06. But money was not the issue.

Palin has used at least two private email accounts in addition to her state account. That posed a serious challenge to the record-keepers in her office: how to find the emails to and from these accounts. The information managers had easy access to the emails she generated and received with her official account. But they did not have access to a Yahoo account she used for official communications and another private account she might have used for state business.

more at:
http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2008/10/10122_palins_email_cover-up_open_records_act.html
via:
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/

[Blue_In_AK]

1. However...

Pieces Fall Into Place for Troopergate Inquiry http://www.adn.com/troopergate/story/549113.html

Nearly everyone investigator had hoped to question, minus governor, will be on record.

By WESLEY LOY
[e-mail]

With his Troopergate report due Friday, legislative investigator Steve Branchflower appears to have the makings of a fairly complete account, despite weeks of resistance from the Palin family and administration.

Branchflower has, or soon will have, answers from nearly all the people he'd hoped to question regarding Gov. Sarah Palin's firing in July of former Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan.

Some of the final witnesses include seven state employees, including the governor's chief of staff, who lost a court fight to kill subpoenas Branchflower obtained through the Alaska Senate Judiciary Committee to compel their testimony.

The seven this week are answering a list of questions known as interrogatories. The answers are submitted under oath.

Another key witness, Todd Palin, the governor's husband, also is answering a list of questions in writing, and has a deadline of today to turn them in.

<snip>

Monegan, the man at the center of the Troopergate affair, said he spent nearly a day answering Branchflower's questions in person. He said he also turned over some documents.

"I'm looking forward to whatever Steve finds out," Monegan said. "One, I want the truth to come out. But two, I am sure I'm like the rest of the state in that we'd like to see some conclusion to this thing."

Monegan said he wasn't sure at first, but has come to believe that his failure to heed pressure from Palin, her husband and others to sack state Trooper Mike Wooten is what cost him his job as public safety commissioner.

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What's next?

• The Alaska Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for 3 p.m. today to hear an appeal from five Republican legislators seeking to shut down the Troopergate investigation.

• Legislative investigator Steve Branchflower is due to hand in his report by Friday.

• The Legislative Council has scheduled a meeting for 9 a.m. Friday in Anchorage to receive the report and possibly release it publicly.

[Wapsie B]

2. Ok, so some office staffers and inhouse IT people couldn't get in.

But why couldn't Homeland Security get into it? Where's all our tax $$$ going?