memeorandum: Did a Scandal Sink the U.S.S. Palin? (The Daily Beast)

11:00 AM ET, July 4, 2009

Top Items:

Did a Scandal Sink the U.S.S. Palin? — Blogs and Stories — The suddenness of Sarah Palin's resignation raises questions about whether a coming scandal caused her to leave office. Max Blumenthal looks at one possibility. — Plus: Read more of The Daily Beast's coverage of Palin's resignation and the GOP implosion.

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, Firedoglake, The Huffington Post, The Reaction, The Huffington Post, Pam's House Blend, TalkLeft, American Power, D-Day, Liberal Values, Blogs and Stories, Glenn Thrush's Blog and DownWithTyranny!

Brad Friedman / The BRAD BLOG:

EXCLUSIVE: PALIN RESIGNATION ‘DAMAGE CONTROL’ FOR COMING ‘ICEBERG SCANDAL’ ... MORE: EMBEZZLEMENT INDICTMENTS COMING? — [See update below for exclusive source details from Alaska...FURTHER UPDATE now added below: AK sources say ‘embezzlement’ scandal related to Palin's house, federal indictments may be in offing.

Discussion: Associated Press, Conservatives4Palin.com, The Reaction, Hot Air, Atlantic Correspondents, Firedoglake, The Mahablog, DownWithTyranny!, CNN, skippy the bush kangaroo, The Huffington Post, Des Moines Register, Washington Monthly, The Politico, The Confluence, Dr. Melissa Clouthier, Unqualified Offerings and Raw Story

Erik Sean Nelson / The Huffington Post:

Palin Will Run In '12 On More Retardation Platform — In Sarah Palin's resignation announcement she complained about the treatment of her son Trig who always teaches her life lessons. She said that the “world needs more Trigs, not fewer.” That's a presidential campaign promise we can all get behind.

Discussion: Erick's blog, Hot Air, The Confluence, Gateway Pundit and Pundit & Pundette

KTUU-TV:

Gov. Sarah Palin to resign her office — Updated: — ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin will resign her office in a few weeks, she said during a news conference at her Wasilla home Friday morning. — Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell will be inaugurated at the Governor's Picnic at Pionner Park …

Faiz Shakir / Think Progress:

Did an embezzlement scandal force Sarah Palin to resign? — Max Blumental reports on The Daily Beast that Sarah Palin may have quit her job today because she was trying to avert a major, yet-to-be-disclosed corruption scandal. The gist of the rumor is that an Alaska building company called …

Discussion: Donklephant, Firedoglake, Blogs and Stories and The Reaction

Mickey Kaus / Kausfiles:

5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,11, 12, 13, 14 Palin Theories — I can see [5 6 7] [8] [9 10] [11 12] [13] 14 Palin theories ... and counting: 1) She's running for president; 2) She's undergoing fame withdrawal and plans to get more attention in the lower 48; 3) She wants to cash in ($); 4) …

Discussion: The American Scene and Pajamas Media

Rachel Sklar / The Huffington Post:

Sarah Palin, You Owe The Media An Apology — “I told you so” moments are pretty sweet — and thanks to Sarah Palin, now I've got one. Ten months to the day after her speech at the Republican National Convention, I would like for this woman to eat her words:

Discussion: And So it Goes in Shreveport, No Sheeples Here!, The Other McCain, American Street, Politics Daily and Pajamas Media

William Kristol / Weekly Standard:

Kristol: A Contrarian Take — If Palin wants to run in 2012, why not do exactly what she announced today? It's an enormous gamble - but it could be a shrewd one. — After all, she's freeing herself from the duties of the governorship. Now she can do her book, give speeches …

Discussion: TPMDC, Washington Monthly, The Huffington Post, Washington Wire, Ezra Klein, The New Republic, Balloon Juice, Winds of Change.NET, Talking Points Memo and Lawyers, Guns and Money

Bruce Reed / Slate:

In Sarah Palin's GOP, the leaders keep quitting and the troubles don't. — “It may be tempting and more comfortable to just keep your head down [and] plod along,” Sarah Palin said Friday, in an attempt to suggest that serving her full term as governor would add to the nation's apathy.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Atlantic Politics Channel and Alas, a blog

New York Times:

Palin's Move Shocks G.O.P. and Leaves Future Unclear — Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska abruptly announced on Friday that she was quitting at the end of the month, shocking Republicans across the country and leaving both parties uncertain about whether she was leaving national politics or laying the groundwork for a presidential run.

Discussion: WTOP.com, Washington Monthly, The Caucus, The Huffington Post and The Page

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Surreality Only Beginning — As David noted below …

Discussion: Jezebel and No More Mister Nice Blog

Versha Sharma / Talking Points Memo:
Full Text Of Palin's Resignation Speech

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo, First Draft, Celtic Diva's Blue Oasis, The Impolitic, The New Republic, Hendrik Hertzberg, neo-neocon and Amygdala

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
First Signs What Happened — Okay, we're getting our first indication of what happened.

Discussion: Firedoglake

The Huffington Post:
GOP Official Who Emailed With Palin Moments Before Decision, Explains Her Move

Discussion: The Mudflats, The New Republic, The League of Ordinary … and NO QUARTER

Noel Sheppard / NewsBusters.org:
HuffPoster: 'Palin Will Run In ‘12 On More Retardation Platform’

Discussion: Bloggasm, Pajamas Media and protein wisdom

Los Angeles Times:
Sarah Palin's exit as Alaska governor stuns, puzzles observers

Discussion: The Swamp and Megan McArdle

The Huffington Post:
Sarah Palin Resignation Speech: FULL VIDEO, TEXT

Discussion: marbury, Politics Daily, Gateway Pundit and PunditMom

New York Times:
Text: Palin's Announcement

Discussion: Washington Monthly

Matthew Cooper / The Atlantic Politics Channel:
Three Theories of Palin's Resignation

Discussion: ProfessorBainbridge.com

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
The Miniseries Ends — I guessed right, which I suppose reflects …

Discussion: Jack & Jill Politics

Michelle Malkin:
But I'm doing what's best for Alaska"

Discussion: Piece of Work In Progress, The Corner, Fausta's Blog, Pundit & Pundette, The Campaign Spot, Hot Air, YID With LID, Ace of Spades HQ, Don Surber, The Strata-Sphere, Atlas Shrugs, The Anchoress, GayPatriot, Right Wing Nut House and Christian Science Monitor

Mark Halperin / TIME.com: 10 Possible Reasons for Palin's Decision

Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Is Palin's national political career over?

Discussion: The Corner, Firedoglake, AmSpecBlog, Open Left, Winds of Change.NET, Anchorage Daily News, Taegan Goddard's …, Mere Rhetoric and PoliGazette

Washington Post:
Sarah Palin to Resign as Alaska Governor, Citing Probes and Family Needs

Discussion: Ezra Klein, CBS News, The Washington Note, The Nation and Above the Law

The Caucus:
Palin to Resign as Governor of Alaska

Discussion: AndrewHalcro.com, Reuters, Swampland, The Huffington Post, Guardian, New York Times, Top of the Ticket, Politics Daily, News Desk, Brutally Honest, Devil's Advocate, TalkLeft, Whiskey Fire, Minnesota Independent, The Hill's Blog Briefing Room and Balloon Juice

Steve / Sweetness & Light:
Palin To Resign - ‘State Media’ Wins!

Discussion: RADAMISTO, The Hill and Emptywheel

Dan Balz / Washington Post:
Analysis: Once Again, the Enigma That Is Sarah Palin Plays It by Her Rules

Discussion: msnbc.com, The Campaign Spot, The Moderate Voice, Lawyers, Guns and Money and Crooks and Liars

Kathryn Jean Lopez / The Corner:
Mother Palin — Who knows all the reasons — Todd and Sarah Palin …

Discussion: The Campaign Spot, NewsMax.com, The Daily Dish, The Huffington Post, Runnin' Scared and Townhall.com

CNN:
DNC reacts: Palin decision ‘continues a pattern of bizarre behavior’

Discussion: The Other McCain

Washington Post:
Palin's Reasons for Stepping Down

Discussion: American Thinker, Taylor Marsh, Donklephant, Conservatives4Palin.com, Atlas Shrugs and Maggie's Farm

Quin Hillyer / AmSpecBlog:
Palin's Dereliction of Duty

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog and MyDD

Paul Volpe / The Fix:
Palin To Resign, Focus on Presidential Run

Discussion: Erick's blog, Taegan Goddard's …, RedState, Right Wing News, PostPartisan, Instapundit, Outside The Beltway, Opinion L.A., The Confluence, Sadly, No! and TigerHawk

Kimberly Krautter / The Huffington Post:
Sarah Palin — What a Schmuck

Discussion: Paco Enterprises, American Power and skippy the bush kangaroo

Rachel D'Oro / Associated Press:
Palin resigning as Alaska governor on July 26

Discussion: Daily Pundit, RealClearPolitics Video Log, The New Ledger, Classical Values, Hot Air, Associated Press and Gawker

CNN:
Palin won't run for re-election in Alaska, source says

Discussion: Washington Times, JONATHAN TURLEY, Open Left, Harry's Place, The Confluence, JammieWearingFool, The Swamp and The Moderate Voice

Mark Steyn / The Corner:

Cutting bait — With respect to many of the Palinologists below, I think they're getting way too hepatomantic over the entrails. As a political move for anything other than the 2010 Senate race, today's announcement is a disaster. And I'm not sure it's a plus for the Senate - and …

Discussion: protein wisdom, Cold Fury and BizzyBlog

Victoria Gill / BBC:

How honeybee mobs smother giant hornets to death — Honeybees mount a very effective mobbing defence — Honeybee hordes use two weapons - heat and carbon dioxide - to kill their natural enemies, giant hornets. — Japanese honeybees form “bee balls” - mobbing and smothering the predators.

Tracy Wilkinson / Los Angeles Times:

Tensions mount as Honduras defies OAS — Supporters of the new government, lead by Roberto Micheletti, rallied at the presidential palace as the Honduran army maintained control. Ousted President Manuel Zelaya is set to return to the country over the weekend; Micheletti has threatened to arrest him.

Discussion: Not Tucker Carlson and A Gut Reaction

Michael Slackman / New York Times:

Top Reformers Admitted Plot, Iran Declares — CAIRO — Iranian leaders say they have obtained confessions from top reformist officials that they plotted to bring down the government with a “velvet” revolution. Such confessions, almost always extracted under duress, are part of an effort …

Discussion: Salon, The Washington Note and Enduring America

CNN:

ANDERSON COOPER 360 DEGREES — AP: Diprivan Found at Michael Jackson's Home; Alaska Governor Sarah Palin Steps Down — THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED. — ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: And, if you're just joining us …

Discussion: Washington Monthly