Photo by experience LA

Our favorite former Vice Presidential candidate (sorry Stockdale) has sure been doing a heck of a lot of press lately! Her latest escapade has her doing an interview while a turkey is being slaughtered in the background. classy. At least she keeps calm, sipping her Starbucks…

Photo by Sen. Ted Stevens

Senator Ted Stevens, 84, was found guilty of corruption charges yesterday — seven felony counts!! At least when he commits to something, he really goes for it. Stevens is currently the first U.S. Senator to face criminal charges in 15 years for concealing financial disclosure statements for gifts from oil companies. Here’s what Stevens had to say about the verdict:

I am obviously disappointed in the verdict but not surprised given the repeated instances of prosecutorial misconduct in this case.  The prosecutors had to report themselves to the Justice Department’s Office of Professional Responsibility during the trial for ethical violations.  Exculpatory evidence was hidden from my lawyers.  A witness was kept from us and then sent back to Alaska.  The Government lawyers allowed evidence to be introduced that they knew was false.  I will fight this unjust verdict with every ounce of energy I have.

I am innocent.  This verdict is the result of the unconscionable manner in which the Justice Department lawyers conducted this trial.  I ask that Alaskans and my Senate colleagues stand with me as I pursue my rights.  I remain a candidate for the United States Senate.

So, Republicans running for office are trying to distance himself or herself as much as possible, from one of the most senior members of Congress. Presidential Candidate John McCain is calling for Stevens to step down. As Yael T. Abouhalkah from the Kansas City Star says, Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin has thrown Stevens under the bus. “The verdict shines a light on the corrupting influence of the big oil service company that was allowed to control too much of our state,” Palin said in a statement today. “That control was part of the culture of corruption I was elected to fight. And that fight must always move forward regardless of party or seniority or even past service.” You may remember that the Alaska Senator and the governor of the state have/had a solid relationship. She headed a 527 Group in 2003 to re-elect Ted.

Stevens is still running to be re-elected this November against Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich. According to a Real Clear Politics poll conducted earlier this month, Begich was up by half a percent. A Rassmussen poll conducted around the same time has Stevens up by one point. The results in this contentious race could be a cog in the wheel to get the Democrats to 60 seats in the Senate, a goal that would give likely President Barack Obama a mandate.

Photo by Transplanted Mountaineer

“With the challenges and crises we face right now, we cannot afford to divide this country by race or class or region; by who we are or what policies we support. There are no real parts of the country and fake parts of the country. There are no pro-America parts of the country and anti-America parts of the country. We all love this country, no matter where we live or where we come from. Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, young, old, rich, poor, gay, straight, city-dwellers. Far dwellers. It doesn’t matter! We’re all together.”

-Barack Obama in Richmond, VA on Wednesday.

You may remember a little ditty from Sarah Palin charging quite the opposite… oy.

A group of young women from the Bay Area air their pleas to Veep candidate Sarah Palin… it’s kinda touching if you’re a feminist like me.

So Sarah Palin won’t answer any questions from reporters, but she’ll go on Saturday Night Live…

As usual, we saw that when she’s not unhinging her jaw, gobbling up the democratic process, and spitting it out in the form of hockey pucks and small towns, she’s actually charming…ish.

So here’s Sarah Palin in the cold open — seriously, I hope Tina Fey is on some sort of contract, because she’s been on almost every episode since the season started. They’re taking her away from finally bringing back 30 Rock!

And here she is again during Weekend Update. Again, she does very little, smartly.

In any case, where the hell is Barack Obama!? He was supposed to make an appearance in the first episode, and he has yet to do that.

Photo by Richard McFarland

So that whole big ridiculous Troopergate Investigation? Turns out Palin “abused her power as governor of Alaska” but did not break the law. Though, I thought abuse of public office was breaking the law, but whatever…

Firstly, if you’re not aware, basically Palin attempted to get her brother in law fired after he became a douchebag to her sister. When his boss wouldn’t budge, she fired him.*

The 263-page report concludes that Palin “had herself exerted pressure to get Trooper Michael Wooten dismissed, as well as allowed her husband and subordinates to press for his firing, largely as a result of his temperament and past disciplinary problems” says the New York Times. The lead investigator says Sarah Palin’s permission for Todd Palin to pressure police to fire Wooten was wrong — she also let him abuse the office of the governor by allowing him access to state employees, to persist in getting the trooper fired.  However, she’s been cleared for firing Public Safety Officer Walter Monegan (the trooper’s boss).

Here’s a quote from a statement she made on the matter:

“I’m thankful that the report has shown that, that there was no illegal or unethical activity there in my choice to replace our commissioner, so now we look forward to working with the personnel board that the entity that is charged with looking into any activity of a Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, or an Attorney General,” Palin said. “A partisan kind of process that had been undertaken by some of the legislators that haven’t been real happy with anything that I’ve done along the way as Governor, that process now is over with that finding that I haven’t done unlawful in replacing a commissioner, now it’s up to the personnel board.”

Wait, no “unethical activity?” What part of “abuse of power” doesn’t this woman understand?! I would say abusing the office of the governor, and letting your husband meddle around and do your dirty work isn’t ethical. Lack of ethics may not land you in jail, but they sure have some social consequences. At least Monegan is OK with the end result:

“I feel vindicated,” Monegan said. “It sounds like they’ve validated my belief and opinions. And that tells me I’m not totally out in left field.”

It’s not clear what could go down in Palin’s future — maybe a legislative sensure, but that seems unlikely. How will this help or hurt the McCain-Palin presidential campaign? We’ll see in the coming days…

*Note: I’ll be honest, if my either of my sisters’ future husbands was a douchebag and put either of them through a brutal divorce, I would certainly consider trying to make his life hell, too. And I’d take anyone down who wasn’t on my side. I’m sure they would do the same for me. But the three of us aren’t governors, or public figures… so yeah.