Live blogging Sarah Palin’s “Going Rogue”
Veteran Reuters political correspondent Steve Holland is reading Sarah Palin’s “Going Rogue: An American Life” and sharing his thoughts on Twitter. He’s well-qualified as a reader — he broke the news of Bristol Palin’s pregnancy on the eve of the Republican National Convention.************Follow Steve on Twitter***
Sarah Palin is REALLY tired of Levi Johnston
Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is striking back hard at her daughter’s ex-fiance, Levi Johnston, for what she called “mean-spirited, malicious and untrue attacks.”
Palin, and Johnston, who had a child out of wedlock with Palin’s daughter, Bristol, have been in a war of words since Levi and Bristol broke off plans to marry early this year.
Johnston appeared on CBS’ “Early Show” and repeated a charge he made in a recent Vanity Fair interview that Sarah Palin would often refer to her son with Down Syndrome, Trig Palin, as being “retarded.”
Johnston also talked about his plans to appear nude in Playgirl magazine, saying it will be done tastefully.
“I’m not gonna just go out there and get naked,” he said.
All this comes as Palin prepares to issue her memoir next month, “Going Rogue, An American Life.” She resigned as Alaska governor last summer and remains popular with conservative voters after running as John McCain’s vice presidential candidate last year.
Palin’s financial disclosure: $1.25 mln advance for “Going Rogue”
The following is reported by Yereth Rosen in Anchorage, Alaska.
Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin got a $1.25 million advance from HarperCollins for her soon-to-be-released memoir “Going Rogue.”
Palin listed the advance, which she received while still governor, in the 2009 financial disclosure form filed Monday with the Alaska Public Offices Commission. See the form on The Anchorage Daily News Web site.
“The Governor has complied with Alaska disclosure law by her filing yesterday. Now, as a private citizen, her business dealings, including her publishing agreement, are confidential,” Palin spokeswoman Meghan Stapleton said in an email.
The report covers Palin’s last seven months as governor. She announced her resignation on July 3 and left her post on July 26. During that time, she received a state salary of $73,000 and perdiem payments of $6,370.80, according to her financial disclosure report.
Palin also reported taking out an unspecified home loan from Wells Fargo Bank to pay for “legal fees to fight false allegations while governor,” according to her handwritten explanation.
And she reported that she has set up a marketing business, called Pie Spy LLC, with headquarters at the office of her Anchorage attorney.
Palin proving she’s as status quo as every other politician in this country, sell out on her people in order to make a few extra bucks.
Bristol Palin urges teens to abstain from sex
Nearly a year after becoming the most celebrated pregnant, unmarried teenager in the United States, Bristol Palin is launching off on a campaign to encourage teens NOT to have sex to avoid getting pregnant.
After shying away from the spotlight since her mother Sarah — John McCain’s vice presidential running mate — announced that her then 17-year-old daughter was pregnant, Bristol did a series of interviews today to announce explain her plans.
“Regardless of what I did personally, I just think that abstinence is the only way that you can effectively, 100 percent foolproof way to prevent pregnancy,” she said on ABC’s “Good Morning America”, while avoiding a direct answer to a question about how she ended up expecting.
“I want to go out there and promote abstinence and just say – this is the safest choice. This is going to prevent teen pregnancy and prevent a lot of heartache,” she said. “Learn from my example.”
Asked if she thought her pregnancy was a mistake she said on NBC’s “Today Show” about her son Tripp: “He’s not a mistake, he’s a blessing. But it’s just a lot of work, a lot of responsibility … it’s not like an accessory on your hip, it’s hard work.”
Palin said telling her parents she was pregnant was “harder than labor” and one of the most difficult things she ever had to do.
“I hope that me speaking out now will prevent girls from having to do that in the future.”
This young lady says to “Learn from my example”. Her example appears to be: have unprotected sex, get pregnant, have a baby that “is a blessing”, get tremendous social support from your family and go on tv. I would imagine that any teens that heard Bristol’s message of practicing abstinance would hardly be pursuaded by her “do as I say and not how I do (did)” message that only strains her credibility. It’s a shame that Bristol is wasting her time and any influence she might have on this issue. I think that she would be a potent advocate for all of the unwed mothers who desperately need one. However, I doubt her family would even consider allowing that.
Palins’ Tripp on TV
Tripp, the latest twig on the Palin family tree, made his TV debut at the tender age of almost two months old.
His 18-year-old mom Bristol Palin, and grandmother Alaska Governor Sarah Palin also showed up on Fox News to chat with Greta Van Susteren, who said: “You will not see this anywhere else.”
She’s probably right about that.
Bristol Palin made headlines when her unwed pregnancy was publicly revealed during her mother’s campaign for vice president on the Republican ticket with John McCain.
Bristol says Tripp, who was born December 27, has changed her life. “It’s just, like, I’m not living for myself any more. It’s, like, for another person, so it’s different.”
She said telling her parents about the pregnancy was “harder than labor” and her parents and her boyfriend Levi’s parents were “scared” because their children had to grow up too fast. But everyone was excited about the baby.
Bristol says she wishes the pregnancy had happened 10 years from now ”so I could have a job and an education and be, like, prepared and have my own house and stuff.” Her advice to other teens: wait.
any news about tripp is only going to be news,if it bad news. because she din,t fall in line and sample the wonderful services of planned parenthood she has no standing with the cool crowd. hang in there tripp obama started his life like your baby and see what he has achieved,but alas his father did,t hang around.
I still haven’t figured out Reuters fascination with Palin, she eats or drinks and they write about it.If I could get one blog about Ron Paul for every 50 they give Sarah Palin I’d be in heaven, cuz he certainly has at least as many supporters.Oh but that’s right, he’s not a status quo politician like all the other ones they constantly talk about.