Sarah Palin fans blamed by US Secret Service over death threats against Barack Obama

[twitchy2.0]

Sarah Palin blamed by the US Secret Service over death threats against Barack Obama

Sarah Palin's attacks on Barack Obama's patriotism provoked a spike in death threats against the future president, Secret Service agents revealed during the final weeks of the campaign.



By Tim Shipman in Washington
Last Updated: 4:04PM GMT 08 Nov 2008

Palin's tone may have unintentionally encouraged white supremacists Photo: Reuters


The Republican vice presidential candidate attracted criticism for accusing Mr Obama of "palling around with terrorists", citing his association with the sixties radical William Ayers.

The attacks provoked a near lynch mob atmosphere at her rallies, with supporters yelling "terrorist" and "kill him" until the McCain campaign ordered her to tone down the rhetoric.

But it has now emerged that her demagogic tone may have unintentionally encouraged white supremacists to go even further.

The Secret Service warned the Obama family in mid October that they had seen a dramatic increase in the number of threats against the Democratic candidate, coinciding with Mrs Palin's attacks.

Michelle Obama, the future First Lady, was so upset that she turned to her friend and campaign adviser Valerie Jarrett and said: "Why would they try to make people hate us?"

The revelations, contained in a Newsweek history of the campaign, are likely to further damage Mrs Palin's credentials as a future presidential candidate. She is already a frontrunner, with Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, to take on Mr Obama in four years time.

Details of the spike in threats to Mr Obama come as a report last week by security and intelligence analysts Stratfor, warned that he is a high risk target for racist gunmen. It concluded: "Two plots to assassinate Obama were broken up during the campaign season, and several more remain under investigation. We would expect federal authorities to uncover many more plots to attack the president that have been hatched by white supremacist ideologues."

Irate John McCain aides, who blame Mrs Palin for losing the election, claim Mrs Palin took it upon herself to question Mr Obama's patriotism, before the line of attack had been cleared by Mr McCain.

That claim is part of a campaign of targeted leaks designed to torpedo her ambitions, with claims that she did not know that Africawas a continent rather than a country.

The advisers have branded her a "diva" and a "whack job" and claimed that she did not know which other countries are in the North American Free Trade Area, (Canada and Mexico). They say she spent more than $150,000 on designer clothes, including $40,000 on her husband Todd and that she refused to prepare for the disastrous series of interviews with CBS's Katie Couric.

In a bid to salvage her reputation Mrs Palin came out firing in an interview with CNN, dismissing the anonymous leakers in unpresidential language as "jerks" who had taken "questions or comments I made in debate prep out of context."

She said: "I consider it cowardly. It's not true. That's cruel, it's mean-spirited, it's immature, it's unprofessional and those guys are jerks if they came away taking things out of context and then tried to spread something on national news that's not fair and not right."

She was not asked about her incendiary rhetoric against Mr Obama. But she did deny the spending spree claims, saying the clothes in question had been returned to the Republican National Committee. "Those are the RNC's clothes, they're not my clothes. I asked for anything more than maybe a diet Dr Pepper once in a while. These are false allegations."

Speaking as she returned to her native Alaska, Mrs Palin claimed to be baffled by what she claims was sexism on the national stage. "Here in Alaska that double standard isn't applied because these guys know that Alaskan women are pretty tough, on a par with the men in terms of being outdoors, working hard," she said.

"They're commercial fishermen, they're pilots, they're working up on the North slopein the oil fields. You see equality in Alaska. I think that was a bit of as surprise on the national level."

Sarah Palin blamed by the US Secret Service for death threats against Barack Obama - Telegraph
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More Palin fans on the loose:


"Troopergate" Trooper Now Pushing Paper

After Palin's Public Comments, Trooper Hit With Threatening Phone Calls

By JUSTIN ROOD

November 7, 2008—

The Alaska state trooper who was the subject of harsh allegations by Gov. Sarah Palin was taken off patrols recently for his own safety, after her comments allegedly prompted a series of threatening phone calls, KIMO-TV in Anchorage reported Friday.

In the early months of Palin's administration, Palin, her husband and top aides worked to get the trooper, Mike Wooten, booted from the ranks of the Alaska State Troopers, according to two separate investigations into what eventually erupted into the "Troopergate" scandal.

In comments to the media and documents released to the public, Palin accused Wooten, her ex-brother-in-law, of making death threats against her family, drinking on duty, tasering his 10-year-old stepson and shooting a moose out of season, among other things.

"The trooper in question here did conduct dangerous and illegal activities," Palin told ABC News' Charlie Gibson Sept. 12, in her first nationally-televised interview after joining the GOP ticket as its vice presidential candidate.

Wooten "threatened to kill my dad and. . . his threats were he was going to bring down the governor and the governor's family," she said.

Wooten has denied the claims or said his actions were misrepresented. His supporters have said Wooten was unfairly targeted by Palin and her family, because of his prolonged custody battle with Palin's sister, Molly.

Following Palin's comments about Wooten in the national media, "people with little or no knowledge of the situation call and make complaints, make threats, talk about what a danger he is," explained John Cyr, head of the Alaska trooper's union, to KIMO. "All it takes is one person to show up and do something stupid." Sources at the Department of Public Safety confirmed Cyr's account to KIMO, an ABC affiliate.

Wooten is now working a desk job, KIMO reported. The troopers' union has expressed concern because the new position means he can no longer earn overtime pay.

Palin fired her then-Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan in July, after he repeatedly declined to take action against Wooten beyond the short suspension ordered by an internal agency review.

The first Troopergate investigation, by the Alaska legislature, found that Palin had broken state ethics laws in her quest to punish Wooten. The second probe, by the state's gubernatorially-appointed Personnel Board, found she did not. Palin did not respond to inquiries from KIMO.

ABC News: "Troopergate" Trooper Now Pushing Paper

[Grimmlok]

these people need to be locked up.

[ana-mish-ana]

There should be a way where they could actually prosecute people for inciting hatred like this.

[Brookie]

I don't get how anyone can read this shit about her and take her seriously for anything except Head Moose Shit Shoveler. How did she get to be governor? How long is she going to be allowed to deny deny deny without being accountable? I could see reasonable doubt if one "insider" ratted on her, but the sources calling her a diva and whack job are multiple.

If someone calls you a jackass once, you question it. You get called a jackass more than once, you better go out a buy a saddle.

[AgentOrange]

She does seem to be getting the blame for everything these days - Oh what the hell, I blame her for the outcome of the World Series!! With her meddling in sports, droppin' hockey pucks, the athletes were probably terrified she'd show up to grab some attention, and spark a riot!!

Now it's you turn - what will you blame on Sarah!! Try it, it's fun, and the best part is, some one's getting blamed and it's not you!! Such mad fun!!

For the record I'm not a Sarah fan - she came off like a power happy ding bat. However she does seem to be getting scapegoated lately by a series of stories that are leaking out, and not from Pres Obama or his supporters. They wouldn't have leaked this cause they've already won the election - this is Republican Party infighting (you can tell 'cause so much of it is getting aired on FOX). If McCain wants to know who poisoned America against the conservatives, then he should look at the guy who held office for the past 8 years! Oh yeah, him - the guy who single handed plunged the world into chaos ( - & the worst part is now we'll never find those weapons of mass destruction ).

Saddam Hussein - granted no sweetheart - got executed for crimes against humanity. Bush gets to waltz back to the ranch. Now this is a guy who makes Richard Nixon look like Mahatma Gandhi. When is the inquiry on the past 8 years gonna start?? If one tenth of what they say about W is true, then he's guilty of treason. Clinton got yanked up before committee to answer for himself, and I think that Bush has far more serious questions to address than Good Time Willie did. If America really is a democracy then doesn't there have to be some kind of serious and public inquiry over what exactly happened over the past 8 years, and how exactly Bush and his administration got everyone into this?

[MontanaMama]

But it has now emerged that her demagogic tone may have unintentionally encouraged white supremacists to go even further.

I take issue with the use of the word "unintentional." She has the maturity of a high school mean girl with a massive vindictive streak - who thought the election was a popularity contest. What's funny is that all of us here on GR have been saying these exact same things about her since she came on the scene.

[tinroofbusted]

If any actual attempts are made, I fully blame her for firing up the lunatics. Whether it was due to sheer ignorance, or she really is an evil bitch, or most likely, both - the hateful fearmongering rhetoric that she spewed all over the McCain campaign is why I cannot find her amusing. She caused serious damage with how "she stirred up the base."

(I choose to trust that the secret service will protect the President properly - I won't give energy to the thought that something unspeakable could actually happen.)

[ymeman]

I think whoever is doing this needs to keep talking until she is thoroughly accepts the fact that she will not be running as a republican candidate ever again and shuts the fuck up.

As far as Bush goes, McCains' campaign slogan was 'taking america back' af if the rethugs hadn't been running the country for 8 years. So everyone's forgotten about Bush? Well, that's just what they wanted. Palin can pay the piper.

[panda]

"unintentional" my ass, that crazy bitch knew exactly what she was doing and she should be arrested!

[ymeman]

It's starting to look like they are sending her a message...the more you talk back, the worse it is going to get for you. Hopefully she will keep sputtering on so that every bit of the dirt will come out...

[cmmdee]

This woman is such a fucking bitch.
She ought to be ashamed of herself for inciting so much hatred at her rallies. I hope she doesn't sleep well at night and I am a firm believer in karma.
She better be ready for it.
UGH she is SUCH A FUCKTARD.