Palins to testify in Troopergate

MAT-SU — Gov. Sarah Palin and her husband are expected to testify this week for the state Personnel Board’s investigation into the Troopergate controversy.

The board’s investigator, Timothy Petumenos, will fly to meet the Palins wherever they are on the national campaign trail, the Associated Press reports. Palin and her husband, Todd, have been stumping for Republican presidential candidate U.S. Sen. John McCain in separate locations in the Lower 48 during the past weeks. The Palins’ attorney, Thomas Van Flein, said he expects the interviews to last three hours.

Earlier this month, an investigation by the state’s Legislative Council concluded Palin abused her power by trying to get her former brother-in-law, Alaska State Trooper Mike Wooten, fired. She was, however, within her right to fire former Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan because he was an at-will employee. A supervisor does not need a reason to fire at-will employees.

One day after the Legislature’s investigator, Stephen Branchflower, released his findings that Palin abused her power, the governor, in a phone call with reporters, said the probe cleared her of any wrongdoing.

Now the Personnel Board is looking into the same abuse of power allegation. Palin has said the Personnel Board is the proper venue to handle ethics complaints and that she will fully comply with the investigation.

She initially agreed to cooperate with the Legislature’s probe as well, but after being tapped as McCain’s running mate Aug. 29 said the investigation had become too partisan. In fact, Palin filed the ethics complaint against herself with the Personnel Board after she said the Legislature’s became too partisan.

McCain spokespeople arrived in Alaska shortly after Palin became McCain’s running mate to hold almost daily press conferences saying the Legislature’s investigation was being run by supporters of Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Sen. Barack Obama and amounted to a smear attempt on Palin.

The Personnel Board’s investigator, Petumenos, is a Democrat who reportedly contributed to Palin’s 2006 gubernatorial opponent Tony Knowles that year.

Rep. Wes Keller, R-Wasilla, who was one of six legislators to bring a lawsuit looking to halt the Legislature’s Troopergate investigation earlier this month, said Monday the Personnel Board is the appropriate place to handle complaints against state employees.

The three members who make up the Personnel Board are appointed by the governor. Two were appointed by former Gov. Frank Murkowski, the other by Palin.

Keller said Petumenos’ apparent Knowles support in 2006 doesn’t amount to the same perceived bias charged to state Sens. Kim Elton and Sen. Hollis French, and Branchflower. Critics of the investigation said all three men are Obama supporters who set out to discredit Palin and make the McCain campaign look bad.

The Personnel Board’s investigation will get some help from the legislative probe after the Legislative Council voted last week to share with Petumenos confidential material Branchflower gathered during his investigation.

It’s still unclear when the Personnel Board’s findings will be made public and there is no indication if Petumenos will release his findings before the Nov. 4 general.

Contact Michael Rovito at michael.rovito@frontiersman.com 352-2252.