Sarah Palin Plans Visit to Daytona 500

Journalists begin plowing through 24K pages

(NEWSER) - Some 24,000 pages of eagerly awaited emails from Sarah Palin’s time as governor have been released, and journalists are diving in—some with public volunteers, notes the Anchorage Daily News . So far, no headlines; indeed, a Palin rep is encouraging “everyone” to read them. The reporters need no encouragement, it seems: Around 30 of them were jammed in a small room in a Juneau state building with three camera crews, all awaiting the boxes, reports the Los Angeles Times . More»

The bipartisan reformist disappeared in 2008: Atlantic profile

(NEWSER) - A new profile of Sarah Palin in the Atlantic by Joshua Green offers a surprising (at least to non-Alaskans and her legions of critics) assessment of her tenure as governor. It's downright flattering in parts, explaining how she took on entrenched oil interests and her own party to improve Alaska's finances. "Palin demonstrated many of the qualities we expect in our best leaders," writes Green. "She set aside private concerns for the greater good, forgoing a focus on social issues to confront the great problem plaguing Alaska, its corrupt oil-and-gas politics. She did this in a way that seems wildly out of character today—by cooperating with Democrats and moderate Republicans to raise taxes on Big Business." More»

'First Dude' had say in virtually every aspect of Sarah Palin's administration

(NEWSER) - Todd Palin had a massive amount of power in his wife’s administration in Alaska, recently released emails confirm. The missives, obtained by NBC through the state’s public records law, show the “first dude” was heavily involved in judicial appointments, contract negotiations with public employees, and state board appointments. He also received background checks on a corporate CEO, and passed financial information marked “confidential” from the oil company that employed him to a state attorney. More»

She made sense while governor; now, not so much

(NEWSER) - Back when Sarah Palin was the governor of Alaska, she was pragmatic and forward-looking on climate change, Eugene Robinson writes, and not the shrill, nonsensical reactionary we now know. She toyed with “carbon-trading markets,” set up a high-level commission on climate change, and acknowledged that the problem affected the “lifestyles and livelihoods of all Alaskans.” What happened? She became the “iconic leader of a populist movement.” More»

'Newsweek' goes deep with Sarah trivia

(NEWSER) - With Sarah Palin fever at its highest point since the 2008 election, Newsweek dares you to test how much you know about the nation's most polarizing politician:

• What question did Palin and strategists plan for her to ask Joe Biden before the start of their debate?
• Mat, Court, Zamboni, and Colt: Which name wasn't considered as a possibility for Palin's elder son, Track?
• True or false: As mayor of Wasilla, Palin, required alleged rape victims to pay $1,200 for their own rape kits.