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H is for Hartpence?

Posted by Sasha Issenberg September 16, 2008 12:15 PM

SHPsignatures.JPG
Sarah Palin's signature on city council minutes.

WASILLA, Alaska -- Why did Sarah Palin change her signature in the winter of 1997?

For several months after being elected mayor of Wasilla in October 1996, Palin signed city documents "Sarah H Palin" -- the middle initial short for "Heath," her maiden name. But some time between January and March of 1997, the "H" disappeared and appears to have never returned, according to a cursory study of city documents from the era.

The subject has a surprisingly rich history in presidential elections: during the 1984 campaigm , the news that Gary Hart had tweaked his signature over the years -- and shortened his birth name -- was used to raise doubts about the candidate's instinct for reinventing himself.

12 comments so far...
  1. This is worth reporting? There's a big difference between dropping a middle initial out of a signature and Gary Hart shortening his birth name.

    Sarah Palin's "H" is as important a detail as Barack Obama's "H," and that is to say it's not important AT ALL.

    Note to Sasha Issenberg: no one cares.

    Posted by William Smith September 16, 08 01:03 PM
  1. Are you serious? Are you frickin' SERIOUS? THIS is what you think is important enough to blog about?

    Holy keeRIST, people! I sometimes sign my name with first initial, last name; sometimes I sign it with my full first name and last name, and sometimes...SOMETIMES I even put my MIDDLE INITIAL in between my first and last names! Holy frijoles, Batman - halt the presses!

    Probably the most moronic blog about the election I've ever read.

    Posted by Linda September 16, 08 02:07 PM
  1. With all due respect to those who are not interested in this blog…speak for yourselves. I, on the other hand, have some interest in the parallels being portrayed.
    The signature alteration is only the tip of the iceberg. Both individuals initially welcomed media popularity. As scandals arose, Hartpence and Heath each lashed out at the media for their own shortcomings. My only hope is that the downfall Hartpence experienced rubs off on Heath

    Posted by twistinatale September 16, 08 04:34 PM
  1. Someone complained "you think is important enough to blog about".

    This IS a blog, for chrissake.

    If you want real news, pick up a decent newspaper sometime.

    Posted by buggssy maloney September 16, 08 08:04 PM
  1. If you look at the two signatures, it would appear that eliminating the "H" makes writing the signature far easier and faster. No need to lift the pen.

    I'm sure after becoming mayor, she had many more papers to sign and found, a few months into the new job, that it was more efficient to drop the middle initial.

    Posted by Pamela September 16, 08 08:19 PM
  1. Sasha dear....so what?

    Posted by Sigmond September 16, 08 09:19 PM
  1. PLEASE - THIS IS SUCH NONSENSE - Why don't you do some REAL reporting?? It just shows that the liberal media is "scraping the bottom of the barrel."

    Posted by Janice Mahoney September 16, 08 09:24 PM
  1. My God In Heaven (for those that believe)- Is this all the news people can find to somehow demonize Palin - what about the "H" as Obama's middle name Hussein and the way that his campaign has tried to eliminate it and focus on Obama!!

    Posted by Arkietwo September 16, 08 09:49 PM
  1. She mut have dropped her brain with the H.

    Posted by Tony Tigernose September 16, 08 09:57 PM
  1. Oh boy, we are diggin deep now!

    Posted by Paul September 16, 08 10:25 PM
  1. "Someone complained "you think is important enough to blog about".

    This IS a blog, for chrissake"
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    To buggsy maloney (#4) - no shit, Sherlock. I *know* it's a blog. I was commenting on the fact that the blogger actually thought that this supposed "issue" was important enough to write about.

    It isn't.

    Posted by Linda September 17, 08 01:22 PM
  1. Ok that was a letdown, was expecting you to deliver some nice insightful conclusion here. Did you forget to paste half of the text or something?

    Posted by darynthe September 17, 08 02:56 PM
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About political intelligence Field reports from Boston Globe reporters and editors covering the 2008 presidential campaign and the national maneuvering of Bay State politicians.

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