dprin339's Blog

Saturday, September 6, 2008 7:30 PM

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The Alaska lawmaker leading an investigation into Gov. Sarah Palin's dismissal of her public safety commissioner should be removed because he appears to be manipulating the probe to damage her vice presidential candidacy, a Republican legislator says.

Alaska state Sen. Hollis French "appears to be steering the direction of the investigation, its conclusion and its timing in a manner that will have maximum partisan political impact on the national and state elections," state Rep. John Coghill said in a letter dated Friday.

Coghill, from North Pole, is on the Alaska Legislature's Legislative Council, the body that appointed French to oversee the investigation. The letter was sent to the council chairman, Sen. Kim Elton, D-Juneau, whom Coghill asks to convene a meeting to discuss whether French should be replaced. Coghill's efforts were reported by Newsweek Saturday.

Coghill said the council instructed French, an Anchorage Democrat, to keep politics out of the investigation.

"He just failed that, in my view," Coghill said Saturday.

Elton did not immediately return a message left at his office.

In July, the council approved $100,000 for an investigation into whether Palin abused her power by firing Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan. Monegan has said he felt pressure form Palin family and staff to dismiss a trooper, Mike Wooten, who went through a messy divorce with her sister before Palin's election as governor.

Coghill wrote in the letter that French was quoted in media reports that the results of the probe were going to be an "October surprise" that is "likely to be damaging to the administration."

Coghill said he was not approached by the McCain-Palin campaign to draft the letter, but that called the campaign to "apprise" them of the letter he sent it.

"I'm on my own in this one," he said.

What an interesting coincidence that French is a Democrat! Or is it?