Alaska's Legislature Overrides Palin Stimulus Veto

Ambitious conservatives cave on most federal aid dollars

(NEWSER) - Tough talk about rejecting stimulus funds earned some GOP governors—and presidential hopefuls—plenty of headlines, but reality has set in, Politico reports. Under fire from their legislatures, Bobby Jindal, Mark Sanford, and Sarah Palin have all requested funds in the past week. “At this point it looks like everybody’s on board with the program,” said an OMB rep. More»

Critics say Alaska gov. is turning down funds to further national political career

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin is refusing to accept almost a third of stimulus funds offered to Alaska, the Anchorage Daily News reports. The governor—who can be overruled by the state legislature—says the funds, including $170 million for education, would expand government, but critics charge that she is going against Alaska's best interests for the sake of her political career. More»

(NEWSER) - Alaskans of all stripes are incensed by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal’s disparaging comments Tuesday about the necessity of volcano monitoring, the Anchorage Daily News reports. It’s “a matter of life and death in Alaska,” Sen. Mark Begich wrote the Republican. Even Gov. Sarah Palin’s office weighed in. “Of course Alaskans want to know if a volcano is going to blow,” a rep said. More»

Cites partisanship, waste; Pelosi, Schumer say it's bipartisan

(NEWSER) - John McCain told Fox News Sunday that he wouldn’t back the stimulus bill as written by House Dems because it’s full of wasteful spending and includes little GOP input, Politico reports. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, on ABC’s This Week, and Sen. Chuck Schumer, also on Fox, disagreed, saying the bill had bipartisan backing, the Hill reports. Also: More»