Comments on: AC360 Exclusive: The trooper who worried Sarah Palin

By: siyoni

siyoni — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:07:16 +0000

Im sad to see how people try to find any reason to not like someone. I see people chatting about the Obama's Rev wright in here, but no mention of Mc cain's blatant racial and dis respect of the greatest civil rights leader in Dr.King by not allowing celebrations in his state ( Ariz.) You never hear Obama folks bring it up. That's important to know info. before you vote. This is not an Obama story so why is he brought up? If she abuses powers given to her by the people, look out world if she gets in office. Because America has alot of axes to grind with other countries, and we see what those axes bring everyday in Iraq. and we see what a power hungry admin. can offer us.....trouble! And as far as the Michelle basketball comment, like the republican convention..it has no substance behind that statement.

By: Lino

Lino — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:05:49 +0000

"one and only potential scandal involving Gov. Palin"?!?!?!

you're not looking hard enough.. or at all.

Let's see, here's a few:

The bridge to nowhere money that she asked for and then kept – later claiming to have heroically rejected it.

Wasilla school library censorship.

Community organizer insults.

Her own hypocrisy on abstinence education and a woman's right to choose

any of this ringing a bell??

By: Chris - Colorado Spring

Chris - Colorado Spring — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:05:40 +0000

This guy is not State Trooper quality. Tell me, would you want to be pulled over by this guy?

The fact that Sarah Palin is involved is simple. The problem was not being dealt with at his level. The only reason it probably popped up on her radar is that she was close enough via family to see his misdeeds.

I'm sure there are other "rotten" state troopers that need to be addressed. It was obvious the public safety commissioner wasn't going to deal with them, so Palin fired him for not doing his job.

By: bev

bev — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:04:02 +0000

I've held these exhaulted notions of the type of people the leaders of our country should be...individuals with the academic knowledge and experiential background needed to govern and lead, individuals who can select the best and the brightest as advisors; individuals who can put bias aside and measure and weigh each issue on its merit and severity. I'm so naive. Instead, starting with Monicagate, followed by 8 years of Bushism, the office has degenerated into a position where "hockey moms" become the standard of excellence, where family scandals become the focus for media discussion, where religious extremisms is favored over moderation and rational thought, where a degree from the University of Idaho in Journalism is sufficient academic preparation for the highest leadership position in the nation, perhaps the world. I'm stunned. Why are we telling our kids to strive to do their best? To get the best academic training possible? To learn about the world, its people, its belief systems/cultures/ life styles/ geography/political and social differences? If these aren't qualifications anymore for leadership of our Nation, then they shouldn't be needed for any job. Silly me...

By: Dave

Dave — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:03:43 +0000

The issue is NOT Wooten people, the issue at hand is whether or not Palin abused her power to try to get him removed. Wooten may be a scumbag for all we know, but its NOT THE REASON THIS IS AN ISSUE.

Just because you don't like someone, or think that person is dangerous or an idiot, doesn't mean you can be a bully and use your power to remove them outside of the due process system.

Ask yourself this question: say you were at work and some co-worker of yours said that you beat their kid with a baseball bat. What if your boss'es boss came down and said "Fire them, immediately!" before any investigation or formal charges were rendered? How fair do you think that would feel.

Stop getting led by these moronic posts and press coverage and actually follow the thoughts through. Whether the end result is right or not, it may have still been an abuse of power – which then leads us to question not only Palin's judgement, but how she will react to similar situations if she is elected. All you have to do is look at the Bush administration's flagrant abuse of power and "executive priviledge" to see what kind of damage this can cause to our Constitution and our Nation.

A strong union is built on strong values. Not end-runs around any process we don't like.

By: JDE

JDE — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:03:30 +0000

Based on his own admission, this trooper should have been fired. He wasn't because he's in a good union.

I don't think that Gov. Palin did anything wrong in this instance. I like her and I like Sen. McCain but I don't agree with their politics. They've criticized Sen. Obama for not saying precisely how he intends to implement his plans but he oulined them in detail during the Democratic convention and if you go to barackobama.com you'll find detailed writings on his policies.

During their speeches at the Republican convention both Sen. McCain and Gov. Palin used a lot of flowery speech, which they like to criticize Sen. Obama for, and said little in the way of concrete policies. What about the economy? What about the war?

I'm not voting for a party or personality, I'm voting for a president who's ideals are most closely aligned with my own. Instead of focusing on these stupid distractions we need to focus on the issues and demand the same from the candidates.

By: Bill - Colorado

Bill - Colorado — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:03:23 +0000

Drew,
If a Colorado state trooper poached a moose or an elk, I would expect him to be fired. He is sworn to uphold the constitution and the laws of the state of Colorado. Poaching is a deliberate act, not one where you can say "I forgot or I didn't know I was over the speed limit". We the people of Colorado don't equip our lawmen with tasers so they can taser their relatives. I don't know if it is against the law in Alaska, but it certainly shows very poor judgment. As for drinking in his patrol car, that alone should get him fired. If the Public Safety Commissioner knew of these actions and didn't fire him, then the Commissioner should be fired. And if the Governor of Colorado knew of a state trooper that had commited these offenses and didn't take action, it makes him an accessory after the fact and he should be impeached and removed from office. I don't know what actions Governor Palin took behind the scene or overtly in this case, but the trooper should have been fired and anyone in the chain of command that didn't take action should also be fired. The trooper intentionally broke the law numerous times and can not be trusted as a public servant and should be dismissed.

By: milton

milton — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:01:17 +0000

Ohhhhh, I can see a book coming.

By: Robert Vail

Robert Vail — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:01:09 +0000

The trooper should have been fired by the Safety Director, by order of the Governor. The Safety Director is a "at will" employee which means he is not protected and serves at the pleasure of the Gov. The Trooper, as a State Employee has legal recourse to contest his firing thru the State Employee management system. It may have been inapproriate for the Gov. to demand the firing of someone who is linked to her immediate family, but not illegal. Besides, because the Trooper admits to other wrong doings, whose to say that the Gov. wasn't receiving complaints about the Trooper bcause the Safety Director was not acting on the complaints he was presented? When citizens complain to their Government regarding State Employees, they usually styart at the Agency responsible. If they feel no actions are being taken or that they are being ignored, they will escalate their complaints to the Governor. I know, I am a State Employye in Florida and see this stuff all the time.

By: Jim F

Jim F — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:00:50 +0000

He tasered his stepson? Shouldn't we first understand the mind of a cop who does that before we consider him a credible witness to anything?

By: Felix

Felix — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:00:28 +0000

Just another attempt to to disgrace Governor Palin with dirty politics.

By: Joe

Joe — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 17:00:22 +0000

This guy is a scumbag, no doubt. Whether he should have been fired is another story. Truly the excuses he gave don't hold a lot of water and anyone who tasers a kid should have their head examined.

if I were a relative, further a former sister-in-law of Wooten, I'd be outraged like Sarah Palin is. And I'd do what ever I can to protect my sister and her family. This guy is scary.

However no matter what anyone thinks of Wooten, as governor of a state, there are no grounds to use your power to settle a personal matter. And another man appears to have lost his job as a result of not firing Wooten, and Palin's excuse for his dismissal is very unconvincing. It appears Palin abused her power here. When the truth comes out (before the election), McCain and his campaign had better have another VP candidate in waiting. This would be a disaster for him and his campaign if she was indicted. This issue is not about Wooten, a scumbag. It is about Sarah Palin, a power abuser.

By: James A Primrose

James A Primrose — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:59:33 +0000

First of all, I am an Obama supporter. Now, #2, Palin is a fine candidate and so is McCain. Both of them have qualities that qualify them fit for the office of President. They both have my respect. But they don't have my vote. We need to turn an economy completely around; and we need some serious changes to our foreign policy. I am taking a chance on Obama and Biden because I believe this is the only viable method of achieving that change. And I hope Gore has a place on that cabinet, too. Palin's family is her business. But I do think she is apt to be our Chief Executive sooner than later if the Republican ticket carries this November. You might want to think about that.

By: Corey

Corey — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:58:13 +0000

Finally, the real story comes out. I feel like if he used his taser on his stepson and illegally killed a moose he should've been fired. I think it's time to put this little story to a rest. Palin is a legitimate candidate and something new to the political scene because she isn't clouded by DC lobbyists and media attention (well, now she has the media attention). Give her a break and let this election get back to the focus on the main candidates.

By: BobSacomano

BobSacomano — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:55:42 +0000

Listen. these guys put their lives on the line for us citizens every day. These guys are true American heroes, what would we do without their service and dedication to our protection? These charges were not totally proven and not enough to warrant his dismissal anyway, we don't really know the whole 'taser' story either.

We should be thanking these guys instead of firing them. Are we all perfect in our own jobs?

By: Jamie

Jamie — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:53:17 +0000

You know, this election is being touted by the Republicans as a "small town America" versus "big town elite DC" struggle in the fight for the presidency. Well where do they think all these people in DC come from? Most aren't born in th DC area; most come to DC from small towns to do the nation's business...Having myself come from a small blue collar town in the rustbelt, spending half my life there and less than half my life here in DC, I can see the irony of this "small town versus big town" battle with "troopergate". I have no doubt that Mr. Wooten is a jerk. I grew up around law enforcement, as my dad was a cop for 30 years. I know that often cops from small towns get a little carried away with the power trip and think that they are untouchable. But, the things that Wooten is accused of–at least the ones that have been sustained by internal investigations–strike me as punishible, but not fireable offenses. On the other hand, for a Governor of a State to insist on the firing of a state trooper, who just happens to be her ex-brother in law embroiled in an ugly divorce and custody battle dispute, seems exceptionally unethical and smacks of the petty disputes typical to small towns. To then fire people who haven't carried out her wishes borders on criminal. We've already suffered eight years with someone who claims to be "one of the people" and proven to pull similar antics with people who disagree. Ms. Palin would be only a heartbeat away and we don't need more of the same. I certainly will not be voting for McCain.

By: Nicole

Nicole — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:53:03 +0000

Although the guy sounds like a jerk, one thing that's been left out in a lot of reports is that, when her sister began seeing Wooten, Palin had nothing but praise for him, and actually wrote him a glowing recommendation to help him get ahead. Then, when she didn't like him anymore, she intervened again to get him fired. And also took out her grudge on other people, firing the commissioner who was standing in her way. It's a question of judgement - if he was so shady, why did she recommend him in the first place? Just because her sister was dating him? *That's* the part that makes me really question her on this incident.

By: DAN KEMETICK

DAN KEMETICK — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:51:16 +0000

OK, rightys, let me get this straight, it's sexist and wrong for us to want to know everything there is to know about Sarah Palin, but despising Barack Obama and his "friends" is OK. All I can say is I hope that this womans past doesn't destroy my country's future. Now,she's had an affair? We should believe it in the Enquirer, they were right about John Edwards AND Rush Limbaugh! I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK FROM THESE CRAZY EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS!

By: Kim in Houston

Kim in Houston — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:49:54 +0000

This is stupid fodder with the exception that if Palin committed a crime as governor for snooping into this jerk's record and not letting the state troopers or unions deal with him. In that case, I might begin to believe she is mean and vindictive and lacks class and respect for others like what we saw in parts of her now famous convention speech. I'm more concerned that this self-proclaimed "bulldog" is really a miniature dachsund now that she may have been quickly elevated to this new role which may be beyond her level of competence – we don't know yet – the "bulldog" won't meet with mainstream press now that it's time to answer tough questions. Maybe Obama is the real bulldog since he showed himself tough (but always classy and respectful) in his interview with Bill O'Reilly. I imagine that if I had a boss in my corporation who talked about our competitiion like Palin and others did, I would get sick to my stomach – it may sound funny at first then you start to feel real ill. Fortunately, I happen to work for a company that has leaders that only focus the troops on what to do better to win rather than waisting time on mindless critiques of the competition – I was disappointed with McCain for allowing such nonsense to dominate. Then again, he's not really in charge of his party – it's that enxtreme, radical right wing religious set of cooks (kinda like the kooky extreme Islamic fundamentalists) running the show over there. They pointed their finger in McCain's face and told him what he'd better do and he fell in line like a good soldier, not the commander he claims he is – go figure. Who the hell is he, really?

If the McCain-Palin ticket wins in November, I'm sure average Americans have lost their collective minds – who honestly believes after the last 8 years the Republican have the best economic interests of the average citizen in mind? I'm convinced they hate "big government" so much they don't know how to govern anything larger than the state of Alaska. After all, if you put all the big lobbyists that they love and revere in one large hotel, probably would be the same size as the population of Alaska – that's as much as they can handle ya'll.

By: William

William — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:48:44 +0000

People on the left are so bitter, angry and cruel. Almost every post I read from a liberal or Democrat is so full of hate it's pathetic.

And why would anybody care what you think of Sarah Palin? She's not on your side of the ticket – so get over it. It's funny though how now all of a sudden the left is all up in arms about Palin, who they claim has no experience.... but when these same arguments come up for Obama, it's totally off limits and we must be RACISTS or something if we want to question his experience.

As for the nut job that said we should look into her brother being in jail.... you're exactly the kind of person that brings this country down. Why on Earth should anyone be blamed for a family member that does something stupid?