A Real Class Act

The New York Times on 9/14/08 offered a glimpse into the character of the woman who would be the next Vice President of the United States. At the time, she was chairman of the commission in Alaska overseeing oil and gas drilling and would go on to win the 2006 Repub primary for governor. In the article "Once Elected, Palin Hired Friends and Lashed Foes," we read:

Palin discovered that the state Republican leader, Randy Ruedrich, a commission member, was conducting party business on state time and favoring regulated companies. When Mr. Murkowski failed to act on her complaints, she quit and went public.

The Republican establishment shunned her. But her break with the gentlemen’s club of oil producers and political power catapulted her into the public eye.

“She was honest and forthright,” said Jay Kerttula, a former Democratic state senator from Palmer.

Ms. Palin entered the 2006 primary for governor as a formidable candidate.

In the middle of the primary, a conservative columnist in the state, Paul Jenkins, unearthed e-mail messages showing that Ms. Palin had conducted campaign business from the mayor’s office. Ms. Palin handled the crisis with a street fighter’s guile.

“I told her it looks like she did the same thing that Randy Ruedrich did,” Mr. Jenkins recalled. “And she said, ‘Yeah, what I did was wrong.’ ”

Mr. Jenkins hung up and decided to forgo writing about it. His phone rang soon after.

Mr. Jenkins said a reporter from Fairbanks, reading from a Palin news release, demanded to know why he was “smearing” her. “Now I look at her and think: ‘Man, you’re slick,’ ” he said.

Now we know why Sarah Palin can field-dress a moose- she's awfully good with a knife, especially to the back. One word of advice for a President McCain: when the Vice-President offers you a turn at her tanning bed, think twice.