Speaking of train wrecks

This from Economist.com this morning about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin (R) joining the state GOP chorus calling for US Sen Mark Begich to resign so a special election for the seat formerly held by Ted Stevens (R):

New frontiers in sore loserdom
Posted by: Economist.com l WASHINGTON

THIS may be the first case of a politician being asked to resign over something his opponent did. On Wednesday, the Department of Justice moved to toss out charges against Ted Stevens, the 40-year senator who was convincted on seven counts of corruption a week before the November 2008 elections. It wasn’t that Mr Stevens was guiltess; prosecutors had botched the case.

The reaction to this from Alaska’s Republicans was strange, but within the realms of partisan nonsense: they demanded that Mark Begich, the Democrat who’d defeated Mr Stevens, resign his office. But what was Sarah Palin, who came a few million votes short of the vice presidency, thinking?

Gov. Sarah Palin concurs with [the state Republicans] and believes a special election is appropriate, said a spokeswoman for Palin’s political action committee, Meg Stapleton. “I absolutely agree,” Palin said in a statement.

Leave aside the thuggery of demanding that a duly elected senator resign for something the voters did. Months before the November election, Mr Begich was polling ahead of Mr Stevens, who had been beset for years by ethics scandals. After the verdict came down, many of Mr Stevens’ colleagues demanded that he step down, including… yes, Sarah Palin. In the days after the election, when it seemed Mr Stevens might be re-elected but unable to serve, the governor’s office declined to tamp down rumours that he’d be replaced by… yes, Sarah Palin. In defeat, Mrs Palin has done a good job of convincing Americans that they were right to reject her bid for higher office.

 

It’s not looking like Sarah Palin is willing to cede her crown as “Empress of Crazy Town” to US Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN) just yet. And it’s not like US Attorney-General Eric Holder said Stevens was innocent or even vindicated. Stevens was kicked on one of those “legal technicalities” Republicans love to scream about during elections.

I don’t know about y’all, but I think Alaskan politics are starting to look more and more like how its done here in South Cack-a-lackey…. minus the federal and state government handouts that Ted brought home for all those years.