Sarah Palin

Alaska Investigates Initiative Donor

Joe Mathews — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 16:00:00 -0400

The Anchorage Daily News is reporting that the state is investigating $2 million in possibly illegal donations to last year's ballot initiative to limit the Pebble mine. The focus of the investigation is a wealthy businessman, Bob Gillam, who enjoys fishing and was worried about water quality.

That initiative, which failed, has been the subject of intense debate. Gov. Sarah Palin's public opposition to the measure led to demands that she be investigated for abusing her office.

Palin Builds Comeback With Ballot Initiative

Joe Mathews — Mon, 04 May 2009 15:19:00 -0400

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, attempting to recover from various political wounds, is backing a ballot initiative in her state that would require notification of a parent or guardian before a minor may obtain an abortion.

This may prove to be a smart political strategy. What's not smart -- or justified -- are attempts to attack Palin for involving herself in a ballot initiative campaign. Governors all over the country --- both Democrats (Ritter of Colorado and Napolitano of Arizona most recently) and Republicans (Schwarzenegger) -- have led such campaigns, even drafting and sponsoring initiatives themselves. But the left in and out of Alaska has tried to accuse Palin of ethical transgressions for supporting measures. Their argument is that a governor, by involving herself in a campaign, is using the resources of her government office for politics. While I have concerns about governors creating plebiscites, Palin's strategy is hardly out of line, or unusual. And her opponents are allowing her to pose as a champion of free speech by attacking her in this way. It'd be wiser to go after Palin for her views on issues and her less-than-distinguished record as governor.

Back On The Home Front...

Joe Mathews — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 18:49:00 -0400

Scanning email and the news from Bern, here's a bit of d.d. news.

PALIN AND PROPS: The Washington Post takes a look at Gov. Sarah Palin's last-minute intervention on behalf of mining interests against a ballot initiative this August. The Post suggests she may have broken state law barring the use of government resources to support or oppose a ballot measure.

FIRST 'YES ON 8' AD: It's brutal but effective. The supporters of the same-sex marriage ban in California debut a clever TV advertisement that stars Gavin Newsom, a same-sex marriage supporter. They don't make an argument against the marriage. They make an argument that you're being forced to accept same-sex marriage. (Newsom is quoted as saying that such marriages are coming whether you like it or not). It's not an idea pulled out of thin air. The state Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage this spring declared that gay couples had a constitutional right to acceptance of how they form families. It was a strong moral argument, but, in my reporting, some same-sex marriage supporters worried that it might be vulnerable politically (and perhaps legally).

PROP 10 DODGES A BULLET: I reported last week in the Scientific American the expectation that money might materialize from unions against Prop 10, the $5 billion bond for renewable fuels on this November's California ballot. (You may know it not by its number but by its sponsor, oilman T. Boone Pickens). Well, Prop 10 may not have the funded oppositions some of its opponents had anticipated. The California Teachers Assn., the best-funded union in the state, is spending money against four initiatives -- but not Prop 10. CTA had been expected by some to take the measure on because the bond is a general obligation bond, meaning that money will be repaid out of the same budget that funds education. (Hat tip, Education Intelligence Agency).

BOWEN BLASTS ARNOLD: The Secretary of State of California, Debra Bowen, issues a press release criticizing Gov. Schwarzenegger's veto of several seemingly uncontroversial election-related bills. One would have made it easier for signers of initiative and referendum petitions to rescind their signatures.

Palin's 'Salmongate'

Joe Mathews — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 00:57:00 -0400

The Republican vice presidential nominee's decision to take the side of mining interests in an Alaska ballot initiative on water regulation last month may have been a violation of state law. And the net roots have given it a name: "Salmongate."

A Palin Vulnerability

Joe Mathews — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 15:09:00 -0400

Governors are not supposed to use the state government to advance their side of a political campaign. And Alaska governors, under state law, are not supposed to take sides in ballot initiatives. But Gov. Sarah Palin, the Republican vice presidential nominee, appeared to do both those things in a recently concluded ballot initiative campaign you'll likely be hearing more about.

Measure 4, which went down to defeat in last Tuesday's Alaska elections, would have put new regulations on mining -- it was aimed at one particular mine -- in the name of clean water. Whatever its merits, it's clear that the state's Department of Natural Resources, which Palin supervises, set up a web site and had staff advocates against the measure. And Palin, as a point of "personal privilege," came out strongly against the measure. Expect to see Democrats and the press make much of this. The issue is a twofer--Democrats will use it to argue that she doesn't support the environment AND is not the good government reformer she's been billed as.

The Palin Pick, and Alaska's Direct Democracy

Joe Mathews — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:00:00 -0400

Get ready, America, for a lesson in one of our country's strangest states. What makes Alaska so different? It's not just the cold and the empty landscape. (CORRECTED 9/4): Alaska is one of a few states to have had direct democracy since its founding. Arizona has had the initiative and referendum since statehood, and Oklahoma since shortly after it joined the union.

So it's fair to say that Alaska has been shaped more profoundly by direct democracy than almost any other state in the union. As every bit of Gov. Sarah Palin's life is scrutinized, you'll hear lots of odd things for which direct democracy is part of the answer. (Here's my strongest prediction about this choice: once Americans learn how Alaska works, Leno and Letterman will start making jokes -- and it'll be years before they stop). For example, she'll have to admit -- as she has done in the past -- that she smoked marijuna. But she'll have an explanation that may surprise people. Marijuana was LEGAL in Alaska until 1990, and not just for medicinal purposes. Thank the voters for the right. The voters also took the right away.

You'll also hear about her love of hunting and fishing, and her husband's work as a commercial fisherman and in the oil fields. You'll hear a lot from environmentalists about state management of public land. Alaska law in all these matters has been profoundly shaped by the ballot. And you also should expect to see her attacked by good government types as "not a real reformer" for her decision not to back a ballot initiative establishing public finance in Alaska. The measure was defeated in Tuesday's primary elections there.

For an overview of Alaska's initiative and referenda history, check out the state page on ballotpedia.