Journalism in the Public Interest

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Scandal Watch Update: Palin, Kilpatrick Jump In

by Paul Kiel, ProPublica - September 2, 2008 4:32 pm EST

GOP VP Pick Sarah Palin (Credit: Al Grillo/AP Photo) There are two new additions to Scandal Watch today.

First, after a weekend of intense coverage following John McCain's pick of Gov. Sarah Palin as his VP, the allegations surrounding Palin's dismissal of Alaska's top cop makes the list. Here's our backgrounder on the "Troopergate" allegations. Also, we're tracking the ongoing coverage around the Web.

Second, we’ve added Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's ongoing saga. Tomorrow, Kilpatrick will face his first day of reckoning when the governor holds a hearing on whether he should be booted from office. Even if he survives, Kilpatrick still has two criminal trials on the horizon.

Also, following some reader questions about the feature, we've recently refined our methodology for choosing which scandals make the list. First on our checklist: Is there a clearly identifiable alleged act of wrongdoing by a person with power?

As always, you can keep track of these and other scandals down on the right side of the page, and don’t forget to check back on Friday to catch our weekly roundup of the major developments.

Coming This Week…

by Sharona Coutts, ProPublica - September 2, 2008 3:39 pm EST

Wednesday, September 3

Credit: ProPublica Sen. John McCain's pick for running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin, will speak at the Republican National Convention on Wednesday evening, according to news reports. The official schedule is still blank. (Palin's "Troopergate" has just earned the top spot in our Scandal Watch.)

Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm will hold a hearing into accusations of corruption and perjury against Detroit Mayor, Kwame Kilpatrick. Granholm, a fellow Democrat, has the power to dismiss Kilpatrick if she finds he enriched himself by endorsing a multi-million dollar settlement with three fired police officers, or that he perjured himself over allegations that he was having an affair with his then chief-of-staff. Kilpatrick also faces assault charges and broke his bail conditions by going to Canada for a meeting. (The mayor's problems are now ranked at number two on our Scandal Watch.)

Thursday, September 4

Disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff faces court for sentencing for tax evasion, fraud and corruption of public officials. Abramoff has been in prison on a separate fraud conviction since November, 2006. Prosecutors are asking for a sentence of five years and four months, which would be served concurrently with the earlier sentence.

Breaking on the Web: September 2, P.M. Edition

3:36 pm EST

In Depth: Palin’s Record as Mayor - Nathan Thornburgh, Time
Troopergate Investigator: McCain Camp Pushing to Delay Report Until After Election - Brian Ross and Len Tepper, ABC News
In Depth: Wounded, Troubled Soldiers Sent Back to War - Erin Emery and David Olinger, Denver Post
Activists Ask Congress to Investigate Calif. Police Killings - Jason Song and Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times
Judge Allows Hearing of Detroit Mayor to Proceed - Zachary Gorchow and Joe Swickard, Detroit Free Press
Court: DHS Can’t Use Wikipedia to Decide Asylum Cases - Ryan Singel, Wired
Race Gap Found in Milwaukee Pothole Patching - Keegan Kyle, Grant Smith and Ben Poston, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Federal Plan Would Halve Habitat for Endangered Sheep - Leslie Carlson, Los Angeles Times
Police Arrest Radio Host and Staffers - Sasha Aslanian, Minnesota Public Radio

Palin ‘Troopergate’ Investigation Moves Forward

by Eric Umansky, ProPublica - September 2, 2008 11:16 am EST

GOP VP pick, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Revelations about Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin have been coming fast and furious. (Asked why so many tidbits were coming out on Labor Day, a top adviser for the McCain-Palin campaign told the New York Times, "We are going to flush the toilet.") Lost in the flurry were some new developments in so-called Troopergate.

Palin has been accused of firing the Alaska public safety commissioner in July for refusing to do the governor's personal bidding and fire a trooper who was Palin's former brother-in-law. The commissioner, Walt Monegan, has said Palin's aides and family repeatedly pressured him to fire the trooper, Mike Wooten, who was involved in a nasty divorce with Palin's sister.

Palin, who appointed Monegan, initially didn't offer details for Monegan's firing. Instead Palin explained she just wanted to move in a new direction. All of which has prompted an investigation by a bipartisan panel in Alaska's legislature. Palin subsequently said that Monegan hadn't been doing enough to fill state trooper vacancies and wasn't a "team player on budgeting issues."

DoJ Report: Gonzales ‘Violated Basic Dept. Regulations’ for Classified Info

by Paul Kiel, ProPublica - September 2, 2008 10:47 am EST

Alberto Gonzales (Chris Graythen/Getty Images) A report out today from the Justice Department's inspector general says Alberto Gonzales mishandled classified documents on a number of occasions during his tenure as attorney general, violating "basic Department regulations and procedures."

The violation was so severe that Inspector General Glenn Fine referred the matter to the Department's National Security Division for possible prosecution, but prosecutors there declined to pursue the matter, according to the report (PDF).

The 32-page report focuses mainly on Gonzales' handling of his notes of a March 10, 2004, meeting with congressional leaders regarding the NSA's surveillance program. Investigators found that Gonzales, after being sworn in as attorney general, had taken the notes from his White House office to his house, but didn't store them in a secure safe because he didn't know the combination. And when he returned to the Justice Department, he did not store them in the required special facility for top secret information.