Today, CREW's Melanie Sloan provided an analysis of the contrast between Gov. Palin’s pledged cooperation and secret subversion on the ethics inquiry.  Our documentation can be found here.

When we released the analysis, Melanie Sloan stated:

Alaska Governor and Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has been quietly undermining the ethics inquiry into her firing of Public Safety Commissioner Walter Monegan from the beginning, even as she publicly pledged her full cooperation.  

Among the examples:

Public Cooperation

On July 28, a bipartisan committee voted to hire an independent investigator to look into Monegan’s termination and Palin’s office promised her full cooperation as well as that of her staff.

Secret Subversion

Palin secretly asked the Attorney General’s office to begin a parallel investigation, which began before the legislature’s chosen attorney, former Alaska Assistant District Attorney Steve Branchflower had even been hired.  Palin did this despite the fact that AG Colberg had contacted Monegan about Wooten.

Public Cooperation

On August 13, the AG’s investigation became public when it was revealed that there was a tape of Frank Bailey, Palin’s chief of commissions, pressuring Monegan to fire Wooten.  The AG said he would turn over information to Branchflower and Palin again pledged cooperation. 

Secret Subversion

On July 19, Palin’s office claimed that Bailey had never had such a conversation with Monegan and that another employee, Department of Administration Commissioner Annette Kreitzer,  could not recall whether she had.  

Public Cooperation

On August 16, the Alaska House and Senate Judiciary Committees cancelled a meeting to discuss issuing subpoenas in the matter, believing the governor’s office was fully cooperating.

Secret Subversion

On August 21, private attorney Thomas Van Flein quietly began defending Palin and her staff in the inquiry.  Van Flein is being paid by the state of Alaska because the attorney general has a conflict of interest – a conflict created by Palin.

Public Cooperation

On August 13, the governor’s office announced that “immediately” following the Legisaltive Council’s move to hire Branchflower the attorney general had “ordered preservation of all state documents that might be relevant to the investigation.”

Secret Subversion

Branchflower was hired on August 1, but there are no public announcements regarding the preservation of records until August 13.

In addition, on August 21, the attorney general issued an opinion concluding -- in conflict with Alaska’s longstanding policy on personal use of technologies -- that state employees have a right to privacy while using state issued communication equipment such as blackberries, setting up legal hurdles to investigators’ efforts to review that material.

It is our belief that the even the perception of public cooperation is ending. 

Palin's attorney, Thomas Van Flein, is unlikely to agree to depositions, forcing the Alaska legislature to issue subpoenas for Palin and other present and past Alaska state employees.  At that time, Van Flein will either move to quash the subpoenas, likely claiming the legislature has no jurisdiction to authorize the inquiry and that subpoenas for records violate the Alaska Constitution’s right to privacy or, those subpoenaed will refuse to appear, forcing the state legislature to seek judicial enforcement of the subpoenas.  The delay will push the conclusion of the investigation past November 4, 2008.

That is the same strategy employed by the Bush adminstration to prevent the congressional testimony of Josh Bolten and Harriet Miers.