Sarah Palin: The latest ethics complaint

The latest ethics complaint against Sarah Palin could really sting, said Katharine Q. Seelye in The New York Times. Many of the 19 earlier ethics complaints against the Alaska governor and former Republican vice presidential candidate have been dismissed as frivolous. But this time a state personnel board investigator issued a preliminary report saying contributions to Palin's legal defense fund may amount to improper gifts under Alaska law, so there's a possibility she could be barred from using the money to pay $500,000 in legal bills.

"What a load of crap this is," said Dan Riehl in Riehl World View. If the ethics complaint against Sarah Palin succeeds, we should bar every politician from soliciting donations for a legal defense fund. The personnel board document says Palin can't trade on her public office to ask for help, but it's precisely because of her work as governor that she has to deal with all these silly complaints.

"It’s not that she’s doing anything underhanded or differently from the Clintons or John Kerry or any federal official," said Allah Pundit in Hot Air. "It’s just that Alaska doesn’t allow the governor to accept money that’s in any way connected with the performance of her duties as governor." Even the investigator admits Alaska's system is wacky—which is obvious when you consider that his suggestion for fixing the situation is to have Palin seek reimbursement from Alaska taxpayers.

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