Consider this an evolving compilation of info on Gov. Palin.

First and foremost, we have all heard the ringing end of the "Experience" attacks from the GOP. All of the phone-in calls from voters who are "scared that we don't know enough about this Obama guy" should be shaking their heads.

No-one else wants to throw away their career being "The former VP Candidate in 2008", and Ms. Palin has nothing to lose.

The Former "Miss Wasilla"

Ms.Palin served two terms on the Town Council of Wasilla (population 5,500) and served as mayor of that August Metropolis before becoming Governor of Alaska (Population 683,478 - or about 10% smaller than Austin, Texas).

Ms. Palin is an evangelical Christian, belonging to the Pentacostal Assemblies of God.



"Supports opening ANWR to drilling"

What about the idea that McCain would pick someone ready to become Commander in Chief?

Obviously the idea is "Gender or Bust!", hoping that with nothing else to go for, they can play the gender card without risk and pray that more women will vote for Precedent than they will lose to Inexperience.

"The most unknown politician ever to be offered for such a high office," Charles Krauthammer said on FOX this morning. "McCain needs to go for someone safe, someone well known to the conservative base. Not Sarah Palin." Of course, that was before the pick came out. He was talking about Obama in the first part of that statement. Now his latest article, The Perfect Stranger can be applied to the GOP VP candidate.

Not to entirely downplay Ms. Palin's strengths for a GOP ticket. As we and the rest of the country get to know this unknown, get ready for these sorts of endorsements:

Palin showed a committment to her pro-life conservative principles by not bowing to the pressure to abort her mentally-challenged child. Rarely are one's convictions borne out by real-life circumstances, but Palin showed she's willing to live her beliefs.

With a son in the military, Palin will be keenly aware of how her military decisions or the decisions she influences as vice-president will affect the men and women serving in the armed forces. With a son in the military, Palin and her family will have to grit their teeth along with other military families, as their loved-ones carry out the orders associated with those difficult decisions.

At 44, Palin would offer a refreshing balance to the McCain ticket and nullify any advantage Obama would have with his youth. Plus, if Obama decides to bring in Hillary Clinton as his running-mate, Palin would effectively neutralize the female factor. Furthermore, Palin has a likeable style and toughness that neither Hillary nor Obama can match.

Finally, Palin has earned a staggering 90-percent approval rating from her constituents, not the easiest people to please, I would imagine. Her committment to her principles and her willingness to follow through on promises makes her the toast of Alaska and, for now, the darling of the GOP.

Embedded herein, however, are the seeds of the pushback from any Women's Issues voters.

"Palin showed a committment to her pro-life conservative principles", so she will support the repeal of Roe-v-Wade.

Here's her Wikipedia page:

Commissioner dismissal

On July 11, 2008, Governor Palin dismissed Walter Monegan as Commissioner of Public Safety and instead offered him a position as executive director of the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, which he subsequently turned down. Monegan alleged shortly after his dismissal that it may have been partly due to his reluctance to fire an Alaska State Trooper, Mike Wooten, who had been involved in a divorce and child custody battle with Palin's sister, Molly McCann. In 2006, before Palin was governor, Wooten was briefly suspended for ten days for threatening to kill McCann's (and Palin's) father, tasering his 11-year-old stepson, and violating game laws. After a union protest, the suspension was reduced to five days.

Governor Palin asserts that her dismissal of Monegan was unrelated to the fact that he had not fired Wooten, and asserts that Monegan was instead dismissed for not adequately filling state trooper vacancies, and because he "did not turn out to be a team player on budgeting issues." Palin acknowledges that a member of her administration, Frank Bailey, did contact the Department of Public Safety regarding Wooten, but both Palin and Bailey say that happened without her knowledge and was unrelated to her dismissal of Monegan. Bailey was put on leave for two months for acting outside the scope of his authority as the Director of Boards and Commissions.

In response to Palin's statement that she had nothing to hide, in August 2008 the Alaska Legislature hired Steve Branchflower to investigate Palin and her staff for possible abuse of power surrounding the dismissal, though lawmakers acknowledge that "Monegan and other commissioners serve at will, meaning they can be fired by Palin at any time." The investigation is being overseen by Democratic State Senator Hollis French, who says that the Palin administration has been cooperating and thus subpoenas are unnecessary. The Palin administration itself was the first to release an audiotape of Bailey making inquiries about the status of the Wooten investigation.

Wooten and the police union alleged that the governor had improperly released his employment files in his divorce case. However, McCann's attorney released a signed waiver from Wooten demonstrating that Wooten had authorized the release of his files through normal discovery procedures.

Reaction to Exxon Valdez ruling.



On Glenn Beck: Suing the fedreal government over protecting endangered Polar Bears because it impedes drilling for oil.



Local reaction to her State or the State address.

All-in-all seems like a decent enough person, just:

o anti-choice
o pro ANWR drilling
o Pro NRA
o Religious Right
o Anti-EPA
o and by far the least experienced person ever to run for a position in the US executive branch.