Palin on Ted Stevens: 'I have great respect for him'

[Joel73]

Stevens Found Guilty on 7 Counts - washingtonpost.com

Stevens Found Guilty on 7 Counts
Senator Will Remain on Nov. 4 Ballot
By Del Quentin Wilber
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, October 28, 2008; Page A01


Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska, one of Congress's most powerful Republicans, was convicted yesterday of lying on financial disclosure forms to conceal his receipt of gifts and expensive renovations to his house, just eight days before he faces voters in a tight reelection contest.

The 84-year-old lawmaker, the first sitting U.S. senator to go on trial in more than two decades, sat quietly as a jury foreman in federal court read the verdict after less than a day of deliberations: guilty on seven felony counts, each with a maximum penalty of five years in prison. The senator, who probably will face a less severe penalty under federal sentencing guidelines, left the courtroom without answering reporters' questions.

In a statement issued by his office, Stevens maintained his innocence, accused Justice Department lawyers of "repeated instances of prosecutorial misconduct" and vowed to fight for reelection to a seventh full term.

"This verdict is the result of the unconscionable manner in which the Justice Department lawyers conducted this trial," he said. "I ask that Alaskans and my Senate colleagues stand with me as I pursue my rights."

Indicted in July, Stevens requested an expedited trial to clear his name before Election Day. Despite the guilty verdict, he will remain on the ballot and is engaged in a tight race against Anchorage's Democratic mayor, Mark Begich.

If he can pull off a victory, Stevens could cling to his seat in the Senate for months, if not longer, while he appeals the verdict. Tradition allows him to exhaust his appeals before the ethics committee will begin expulsion hearings, according to the Senate Historical Office. It takes 67 votes to expel a senator.

Known as "Uncle Ted" in Alaska, Stevens has been a major figure in his state for more than four decades and has brought home billions of dollars in federal aid during his career. Political handicappers refused to write him off but said his chances of reelection were greatly diminished by yesterday's outcome.

"In another state, he would be toast," said Charlie Cook, editor of the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. "In Alaska, you gotta make him a significant underdog."

It is not clear what role the conviction will play in contests waged by other embattled Senate Republicans who are trying to hold on to their seats. Within hours of the verdict, Democrats were sending out news releases seeking to link their opponents to Stevens's trouble.

"It's a horrible year for Republicans, in a horrific fall, and this is yet another horrific event," Cook said. "This throws them off message; it puts them back on the defensive again. It makes it harder to separate themselves from the party."

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the GOP's vice presidential candidate, has declined to endorse Stevens and issued a statement last night that said: "This is a sad day for Alaska and for Senator Stevens and his family."

"I'm confident Senator Stevens will do what's right for the people of Alaska," she added, without elaborating.

Stevens's attorneys signaled that they will file court papers seeking to overturn the verdict, and U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan did not set a sentencing date. He allowed Stevens to remain free on personal bond.

"This investigation continues, as does our commitment to holding elected officials accountable when they violate our laws," he added, without taking questions.

The verdict came just hours after jurors had re-started their deliberations at 9:30 a.m. yesterday, when one juror whose father died was replaced by an alternate.

By 3:15 p.m., the D.C. panel of eight women and four men sent the judge a note informing him that they had a reached a verdict.


Prosecutors with the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section alleged throughout the trial that Stevens was a miser who approached a close friend to help him remodel his house in Girdwood, Alaska. That friend, Bill Allen, chief executive of the now-defunct oil services company Veco, testified that his company financed extensive renovations to the house from 2000 through 2002.

Veco workers testified in great detail that they helped jack up the rustic cabin on stilts to transform it, adding a new first floor, a garage and two wraparound decks. In extensive e-mail traffic during that period, Stevens was kept abreast of the work by a neighbor, who lauded the work of Allen and two Veco employees.

Stevens contended that Veco played no role in the renovations, that Allen was only providing workers and that he had been paying the firm's moonlighting employees. He and his wife, Catherine, testified that they thought a residential contractor had been in charge of the remodeling work. They paid that firm about $132,000 in 2000 and 2001 and paid other workers about $30,000.

Stevens's attorneys argued that the couple believed they had paid fair market value for all of the work. They attacked the credibility of Allen, who previously pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges in a wide-ranging investigation of corruption in Alaska politics. Stevens's attorneys pounded prosecutors for withholding evidence and allowing a witness to quietly return to Alaska.

The judge chastised prosecutors several times for mishandling documents and struck some testimony and records because Justice Department lawyers did not turn over information to the defense.

Two senators -- Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii) and Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) -- and former secretary of state Colin L. Powell testified to Stevens's reputation for integrity.

Stevens also was accused of accepting other gifts, including a sled dog and a $2,700 massage chair. Prosecutors said Stevens received the dog from a friend who bought it from a nonprofit at a 2003 auction for $1,000. Stevens reported the value of the dog, Kiely, as $250 -- the price he paid for another puppy -- and said it had been given to him by the nonprofit, not his friend.

"He worked so hard to hide a dog's true value," said prosecutor Brenda Morris, who added that Stevens's other alleged misdeeds were easy to believe if he went to "those lengths for a dog, to not provide the truth when he knew full well what the truth was."

"The little things prove the big things," Morris said in closing arguments.

In the case of the chair, a friend testified that he gave the Brookstone lounger to Stevens as a gift. But the senator sent him an e-mail at the time saying the chair was just a loan. Stevens repeated that on the witness stand, though the chair has been in his basement for seven years.

Staff writer Paul Kane contributed to this report.

[PBzeer]

Barack Obama Praises His Racist Minister Rev. Jeremiah Wright » Blue Star Chronicles

with video

[Joel73]

nice try but no dice. last time i checked wright was not the guilty sr. republican senator that stevens is. the S.S. McCain is going down... glub glub glub....

[cardiacpaul]

alrighty...
this guy, his "mistake" was keeping $90,000 in his freezer. I guess he doesn't trust banks.

kalb.com - U.S. Representative William Jefferson Faces November Runoff Elections

[TxLnghrn]

From boycottliberalism.com

William Jefferson Clinton- Impeached by the House of Representatives over allegations of perjury and obstruction of justice, but acquitted by the Senate. Scandals include Whitewater - Travelgate Gennifer Flowersgate - Filegate - Vince Fostergate - Whitewater Billing Recordsgate - Paula Jonesgate- Lincoln Bedroomgate - Donations from Convicted Drug and Weapons Dealersgate - Lippogate - Chinagate - The Lewinsky Affair - Perjury and Jobs for Lewinskygate - Kathleen Willeygate - Web Hubbell Prison Phone Callgate - Selling Military Technology to the Chinesegate - Jaunita Broaddrick Gate - Lootergate - Pardongate

Edward Moore Kennedy - Democrat - U. S. Senator from Massachusetts. Pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident, after his car plunged off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island killing passenger Mary Jo Kopechne.

Barney Frank - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Massachusetts from 1981 to present. Admitted to having paid Stephen L. Gobie, a male prostitute, for sex and subsequently hiring Gobie as his personal assistant. Gobie used the congressman's Washington apartment for prostitution. A move to expel Frank from the House of Representatives failed and a motion to censure him failed.

DNC - The Federal Election Commission imposed $719,000 in fines against participants in the 1996 Democratic Party fundraising scandals involving contributions from China, Korea and other foreign sources. The Federal Election Commission said it decided to drop cases against contributors of more than $3 million in illegal DNC contributions because the respondents left the country or the corporations are defunct.

Sandy Berger - Democrat - National Security Advisor during the Clinton Administration. Berger became the focus of a criminal investigation after removing highly classified terrorism documents and handwritten notes from the National Archives during preparations for the Sept. 11 commission hearings.

Robert Torricelli - Democrat - Withdrew from the 2002 Senate race with less than 30 days before the election because of controversy over personal gifts he took from a major campaign donor and questions about campaign donations from 1996.

James McGreevey - Democrat - New Jersey Governor . Admitted to having a gay affair. Resigned after allegations of sexual harassment, rumors of being blackmailed on top of fundraising investigations and indictments.

Jesse Jackson - Democrat - Democratic candidate for President. Admitted to having an extramarital affair and fathering a illegitimate child.

Gary Condit - Democrat - US Democratic Congressman from California. Condit had an affair with an intern. Condit, covered up the affair and lied to police after she went missing. No charges were ever filed against Condit. Her remains were discovered in a Washington DC park..

Eliot Spitzer- Democrat - New York governor - resigned from office after being tied to a prostitution ring.

Sowande Ajumoke Omokunde - Democrat - the son of newly elected U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, was booked on charges of criminal damage to property for allegedly slashing tires on 20 vans and cars rented by the Republican Party for use in Election Day voter turnout efforts.

Daniel David Rostenkowski - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Illinois from 1959 to 1995. Indicted on 17 felony charges- pleaded guilty to two counts of misuse of public funds and sentenced to seventeen months in federal prison.

Melvin Jay Reynolds - U.S. Representative from Illinois from 1993 to 1995. Convicted on sexual misconduct and obstruction of justice charges and sentenced to five years in prison.

Charles Coles Diggs, Jr. - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Michigan from 1955 to 1980. Convicted on eleven counts of mail fraud and filing false payroll forms- sentenced to three years in prison.

George Rogers - Democrat - Massachusetts State House of Representatives from 1965 to 1970. M000ember of Massachusetts State Senate from 1975 to 1978. Convicted of bribery in 1978 and sentenced to two years in prison.

Don Siegelman - Democrat Governor Alabama - indicted in a bid- rigging scheme involving a maternity-care program. The charges accused Siegelman and his former chief of staff of helping Tuscaloosa physician Phillip Bobo rig bids. Siegelman was accused of moving $550,000 from the state education budget to the State Fire College in Tuscaloosa so Bobo could use the money to pay off a competitor for a state contract for maternity care.

John Murtha, Jr. - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania. Implicated in the Abscam sting, in which FBI agents impersonating Arab businessmen offered bribes to political figures; Murtha was cited as an unindicted co-conspirator

Gerry Eastman Studds - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Massachusetts from 1973 to 1997. The first openly gay member of Congress. Censured by the House of Representatives for having sexual relations with a teenage House page.

James C. Green - Democrat - North Carolina State House of Representatives from 1961 to 1977. Charged with accepting a bribe from an undercover FBI agent, but was acquitted. Convicted of tax evasion in 1997.

Frederick Richmond - Democrat - U.S. Representative from New York from 1975 to 1982. Arrested in Washington, D.C., in 1978 for soliciting sex from a minor and from an undercover police officer - pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. Also - charged with tax evasion, marijuana possession, and improper payments to a federal employee - pleaded guilty.

Raymond Lederer - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania from 1977 to 1981. Implicated in the Abscam sting - convicted of bribery and sentenced to three years in prison and fined $20,000.

Harrison Arlington Williams, Jr. - Democrat - U.S. Senator from New Jersey from 1959 to 1970. Implicated in the Abscam sting. Allegedly accepted an 18% interest in a titanium mine. Convicted of nine counts of bribery, conspiracy, receiving an unlawful gratuity, conflict of interest, and interstate travel in aid of racketeering. Sentenced to three years in prison and fined $50,000.

Frank Thompson, Jr. - Democrat - U.S. Representative from New Jersey from 1955 to 1980. Implicated in the Abscam sting, convicted on bribery and conspiracy charges. Sentenced to three years in prison

Michael Joseph Myers - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania from 1976 to 1980. Implicated in the Abscam sting - convicted of bribery and conspiracy; sentenced to three years in prison and fined $20,000; expelled from the House of Representatives on October 2, 1980.

John Michael Murphy - Democrat - U.S. Representative from New York from 1963 to 1981. Implicated in the Abscam sting. Convicted of conspiracy, conflict of interest, and accepting an illegal gratuity. Sentenced to three years in prison and fined $20,000.

John Wilson Jenrette, Jr - Democrat - U.S. Representative from South Carolina from 1975 to 1980. Implicated in the Abscam sting. Convicted on bribery and conspiracy charges and sentenced to prison

Neil Goldschmidt - Democrat - Oregon governor. Admitted to having an illegal sexual relationship with a 14-year-old teenager while he was serving as Mayor of Portland.

Alcee Lamar Hastings - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Florida. Impeached and removed from office as federal judge in 1989 over bribery charges.

Marion Barry - Democrat - mayor of Washington, D.C., from 1979 to 1991 and again from 1995 to 1999. Convicted of cocaine possession after being caught on videotape smoking crack cocaine. Sentenced to six months in prison.

Mario Biaggi - Democrat - U.S. Representative from New York from 1969 to 1988. Indicted on federal charges that he had accepted bribes in return for influence on federal contracts.Convicted of obstructing justice and accepting illegal gratuities. Tried in 1988 on federal racketeering charges and convicted on 15 felony counts.

Lee Alexander - Democrat - Mayor of Syracuse, N.Y. from 1970 to 1985. Was indicted over a $1.5 million kickback scandal. Pleaded guilty to racketeering and tax evasion charges. Served six years in prison.

Bill Campbell - Democrat - Mayor of Atlanta. Indicted and charged with fraud over claims he accepted improper payments from contractors seeking city contracts.

Frank Ballance - Democrat - Congressman North Carolina. Pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering related to mishandling of money by his charitable foundation.

Hazel O'Leary - Democrat - Secretary of Energy during the Clinton Administration - O'leary took trips all over the world as Secretary with as many 50 staff members and at times rented a plane, which was used by Madonna during her concert tours.

Lafayette Thomas - Democrat - Candidate for Tennessee State House of Representatives in 1954. Sheriff of Davidson County, from 1972 to 1990. Indicted in federal court on 54 counts of abusing his power as sheriff. Pleaded guilty to theft and mail fraud; sentenced to five years in prison.

Mary Rose Oakar - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1977 to 1993. Pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges of funneling $16,000 through fake donors.

David Giles - Democrat - candidate for U.S. Representative from Washington in 1986 and 1990. Convicted in June 2000 of child rape.

Gary Siplin - Democrat state senator Florida- found guilty of third-degree grand theft of $5,000 or more, a felony, and using services of employees for his candidacy.

Edward Mezvinsky - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Iowa from 1973 to 1977. Indicted on 56 federal fraud charges.

Lena Swanson - Democrat - Member of Washington State Senate in 1997. Pleaded guilty to charges of soliciting unlawful payments from veterans and former prisoners of war.

Abraham J. Hirschfeld - Democrat - candidate in Democratic primary for U.S. Senator from New York in 1974 and 1976. Offered Paula Jones $1 million to drop her sexual harassment lawsuit against President Bill Clinton. Convicted in 2000 of trying to hire a hit man to kill his business partner.

Henry Cisneros - Democrat - U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 1993 to 1997. Pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of lying to the FBI.

James A. Traficant Jr. - Member of House of Representatives from Ohio. Expelled from Congress after being convicted of corruption charges. Sentenced today to eight years in prison for accepting bribes and kickbacks.

John Doug Hays - Democrat - member of Kentucky State Senate from 1980 to 1982 Found guilty of mail fraud for submitting false campaign reports stemming from an unsuccessful run for judge. He was sentenced to six months in prison to be followed by six months of home confinement and three years of probation.

Henry J. Cianfrani - Democrat - Pennsylvania State Senate from 1967 to 1976. Convicted on federal charges of racketeering and mail fraud for padding his Senate payroll. Sentenced to five years in federal prison.

David Hall - Democrat - Governor of Oklahoma from 1971 to 1975. Indicted on extortion and conspiracy charges. Convicted and sentenced to three years in prison.

John A. Celona - Democrat - A former state senator was charged with the three counts of mail fraud. Federal prosecutors accused him of defrauding the state and collecting hundreds of thousands of dollars from CVS Corp. and others while serving in the legislature. Celona has agreed to plead guilty to taking money from the CVS pharmacy chain and other companies that had interest in legislation. Under the deal, Celona agreed to cooperate with investigators. He faces up to five years in federal prison on each of the three counts and a $250,000 fine

Allan Turner Howe - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Utah from 1975 to 1977. Arrested for soliciting a policewoman posing as a prostitute.

Jerry Cosentino - Democrat - Illinois State Treasurer. Pleaded guilty to bank fraud - fined $5,000 and sentenced to nine months home confinement.

Joseph Waggonner Jr. - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Louisiana from 1961 to 19 79. Arrested in Washington, D.C. for soliciting a policewoman posing as a prostitute

Albert G. Bustamante - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Texas from 1985 to 1993. Convicted in 1993 on racketeering and bribery charges and sentenced to prison.

Lawrence Jack Smith - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Florida from 1983 to 1993. Sentenced to three months in federal prison for tax evasion.

David Lee Walters - Democrat - Governor of Oklahoma from 1991 to 1995. Pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor election law violation.

James Guy Tucker, Jr. - Democrat - Governor of Arkansas from 1992 to 1996. Resigned in July 1996 after conviction on federal fraud charges as part of the Whitewater investigation.

Walter Rayford Tucker - Democrat - Mayor of Compton, California from 1991 to 1992; U.S. Representative from California from 1993 to 1995. Sentenced to 27 months in prison for extortion and tax evasion.

William McCuen - Democrat - Secretary of State of Arkansas from 1985 to 1995. Admitted accepting kickbacks from two supporters he gave jobs, and not paying taxes on the money. Admitted to conspiring with a political consultant to split $53,560 embezzled from the state in a sham transaction. He was indicted on corruption charges. Pleaded guilty to felony counts tax evasion and accepting a kickback. Sentenced to 17 years in prison.

Walter Fauntroy - Democrat - Delegate to U.S. Congress from the District of Columbia from 1971 to 1991. Charged in federal court with making false statements on financial disclosure forms. Pleaded guilty to one felony count and sentenced to probation.

Carroll Hubbard, Jr. - Democrat - Kentucky State Senate from 1968 to 1975 and U.S. Representative from Kentucky from 1975 to 1993. Pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the Federal Elections Commission and to theft of government property; sentenced to three years in prison.

Joseph Kolter - Democrat - member of Pennsylvania State House of Representatives from 1969 to 1982 and U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania from 1983 to 1993. Indicted by a Federal grand jury on five felony charges of embezzlement at the U.S. House post office. Pleaded guilty.

Webster Hubbell - Democrat - Chief Justice of Arkansas State Supreme Court in 1983. Pleaded guilty to federal mail fraud and tax evasion charges - sentenced to 21 months in prison.

Nicholas Mavroules - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Massachusetts from 1979 to 1993. Pleaded guilty to charges of tax fraud and accepting gratuities while in office.

Carl Christopher Perkins - Democrat - Kentucky State House of Representatives from 1981 to 1984 and U.S. Representative from Kentucky from 1985 to 1993. Pleaded guilty to bank fraud in connection with the House banking scandal. Perkins wrote overdrafts totaling about $300,000. Pleaded guilty to charges of filing false statements with the Federal Election Commission and false financial disclosure reports. Sentenced to 21 months in prison.

Richard Hanna - Democrat - U.S. Representative from California from 1963 to 1974. Received payments of about $200,000 from a Korean businessman in what became known as the "Koreagate" influence buying scandal. Pleaded guilty and sentenced to federal prison.

Angelo Errichetti - Democrat - New Jersey State Senator was sentenced to six years in prison and fined $40,000 for his involvement in Abscam.

Daniel Baugh Brewster - Democrat - U.S. Senator from Maryland. Indicted on charges of accepting illegal gratuity while in Senate.

Thomas Joseph Dodd - Democrat - U.S. Senator from Connecticut. Censured by the Senate for financial improprieties, having diverted $116,000 in campaign and testimonial funds to his own use

Edward Fretwell Prichard, Jr. - Democrat - Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Kentucky. Convicted of vote fraud in federal court in connection with ballot-box stuffing. Served five months in prison.

Jerry Springer - Democrat - Resigned from Cincinnati City Council in 1974 after admitting to paying a prostitute with a personal check, which was found in a police raid on a massage parlor.

Guy Hamilton Jones, Sr. - Democrat -Arkansas State Senate. Convicted on federal tax charges and expelled from the Arkansas Senate.

Daniel Flood - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania from 1945 to 1947, 1949 to 1953 and 1955 to 1980. Pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge involving payoffs and sentenced to probation.

Otto Kerner, Jr - Democrat - Governor of Illinois from 1961 to 1968. While serving as Governor, he and another official made a gain of over $300,000 in a stock deal. Convicted on 17 counts of bribery, conspiracy, perjury, and related charges. Sentenced to three years in federal prison and fined $50,000.

George Crockett, Jr. - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Michigan. Served four months in federal prison for contempt of court following his defense of a Communist leader on trial for advocating the overthrow of the government.

Cornelius Edward Gallagher - Democrat - U.S. Representative from New Jersey from 1959 to 1973. Indicted on federal charges of income tax evasion, conspiracy, and perjury

Mark B. Jimenez - Democrat fundraiser - sentenced to 27 months in prison on charges of tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States and commit election financing offenses.

Bobby Lee Rush - Democrat - U.S. Representative from Illinois. As a Black Panther, spent six months in prison on a weapons charge.

Bolley ''Bo'' Johnson - Democrat - Former Florida House Speaker - received a two-year term for tax evasion.

Roger L. Green - Democrat - Brooklyn Democrat Assemblyman. Pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for accepting travel reimbursement for trips he did not pay for and was sentenced to fines and probation.

Gloria Davis - Democrat - Bronx assemblywoman. Pleaded guilty to second-degree bribe-taking.

I'm sure I can give you more if you'd like

Michael

[cardiacpaul]

Mike,
buddy, what are you doing? Don't you know those convictions were all politcally motivated?
C'mon, man, they were all good and faithful public servants. They all had our best interests at heart, they all looked out for the middle class, tax cuts, fought against the money hungry oil barons....

[cardiacpaul]

And lets not forget this guy...
Mark Foley's Replacement Not Much Better Than Mark Foley

This is almost too good to be true:
Married West Palm Beach Congressman Tim Mahoney, better known as the man who replaced pervy IM-sender Mark Foley, paid a former mistress he had hired as a consultant $121,000 after she threatened to sue him.
Mahoney's spokesperson is denying that the woman in question, Patricia Allen, received any payment, but numerous current and former staffers confirm the story to ABC. Back in 2006, Mahoney campaigned against Foley by promising " a world that is safer, more moral"; an ad featuring him and his wife bared the tagline, "Restoring America's Values Begins at Home."

Or this twit
Bob Wexler...
One of the most liberal members of Congress in Florida Robert Wexler (Obamapropagandist and notorious leftist) is not a resident of his district. He has lived in Maryland since the late 90s. He claims to live in a house in Del Ray (owned by his mother-law) in an active adult community where no children are allowed, though he has three children). You can't live there with kids, it's against the rules of the community.

Another example of Democrat hubris - I am above the law. It seems he has no connection to Florida at all. Clearly it's a phantom residence, he ain't sleeping on monster-in-law's couch with his three children.

[jrd22]

Joel- I posted this in another thread here but I would really like to know how you can endorse someone that leans in the direction of Marx. Before you just blow this off as something from Fox, realize that this is from Sen. Obama himself. What don't you believe about his history, from his own book? Or do you advocate Marxism as the best course for the USA? I honestly don't get it??? We, as a country, are dangerously close to electing a man President that we don't even know.
Obama Affinity to Marxists Dates Back to College Days - FOXNews.com Elections

[erps]

Hmmm,

A video clip dated when the senator was still presumed innocent presented here as some kind of evidence with the benefit of hindsight after the fact. IMO, this hurts Joel's credibility more than Palin's.

From the article:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the GOP's vice presidential candidate, has declined to endorse Stevens and issued a statement last night that said: "This is a sad day for Alaska and for Senator Stevens and his family."

[PBzeer]

Err Joel, I don't believe Palin has had quite the close personal friendship with Stevens that Obama had with Wright.