PALIN WAS WARNED ABOUT TROOPER-GATE

But she didn't listen. When she was mayor, she didn't pay attention to established customs and that led to the beginning of a recall movement. As governor, she seems to think that whatever she wants is legal.

Ethics Adviser Warned Palin About Trooper Issue
Letter Described Situation as 'Grave,'
Called for Apology
By JIM CARLTON
September 11, 2008; Page A8
WALL STREET JOURNAL

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- An informal adviser who has counseled Gov. Sarah Palin on ethics issues urged her in July to apologize for her handling of the dismissal of the state's public safety commissioner and warned that the matter could snowball into a bigger scandal.

He also said, in a letter reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, that she should fire any aides who had raised concerns with the chief over a state trooper who was involved in a bitter divorce with the governor's sister.

In the letter, written before Sen. John McCain picked the Alaska governor as his running mate, former U.S. Attorney Wevley Shea warned Gov. Palin that "the situation is now grave" and recommended that she and her husband, Todd Palin, apologize for "overreaching or perceived overreaching" for using her position to try to get Trooper Mike Wooten fired from the force.

After his initial letter in July, Mr. Shea followed up with another letter, dated Aug. 4, in which he told Gov. Palin that she probably couldn't legally shun a legislative investigation into the firing of Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan.

The McCain-Palin campaign has argued that the state legislature has no right to look into the matter. Palin spokesmen say the state personnel board is the appropriate investigative body, setting up a showdown between the state's legislative and executive branches.

Mr. Shea, in his Aug. 4 letter, warned Gov. Palin against taking her current approach. "My feeling is this is not a personnel matter. It doesn't have anything to do with the governing of the state of Alaska," he said in an interview this week.