Palin's clothing spending spree cleared
The Federal Election Commission today threw out a watchdog group's complaint against Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin, the Republican National Committee, and several political operatives associated with the RNC, alleging that they improperly spent $150,000 on clothing for Palin and her family.
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics cited news reports that clothing and accessories purchases for Palin and her family included $49,425 spent at Saks Fifth Avenue and $75,062 at Neiman Marcus. The group said the shopping excursions violate campaign finance law because the law specifically prohibits a candidate for federal office from converting campaign funds to personal use, including clothing.
But the law has a loophole for money raised, not by individual candidates, but by political parties. The FEC ruled that the clothing purchases were permitted as “coordinated party expenditures.”
"In effect, the FEC is claiming its hands were tied and it could not penalize the RNC or Governor Palin," CREW said today.
"This means that the FEC will allow political parties to buy candidates whatever they want at whatever cost, and that the candidates and their families may keep these purchases. Despite the fact that Governor Palin and the RNC claimed the clothing would be donated to charity, it is not clear this ever happened, and in any event, according to the FEC, the law does not require it. Notably, this past March the FEC asked Congress to enact legislation to extend the personal use prohibition to all political committees, including party committees and leadership PACs. Unsurprisingly, Congress has yet to act."
Still, Palin's wardrobe malfunction did help cost her in popularity after an initial burst of enthusiasm, especially from the Republican rank-and-file. The Alaska governor is still in the conversation, however, for 2012.
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She needed the clothing so we would look at her and not be reminded when she spoke like the north end of a south bound horse.
I love Sarah!!! You have my vote in 2012!!! You Betcha!
So all the left-leaning media outlets made a big deal about phony ethics charges in yet another attempt to disparage a good person whose beliefs differed from theirs. The left's mantra: "Freedom of speech-unless we disagree."
Please make this vile woman go away for ever....
Now that that's overwith- why don't you get on the DNC, Obama's illegal campaign contributions and ACORN?
That would be doing something productive.
Sarah 2012!
www.campaignwatch.com
www.newsmeat.com
You can buy clothes for a Palin, but it's still a Palin...
Meanwhile Pelosi accuses the CIA of a federal crime because of her lies... but Foon and this ridiculous group concentrate on Palin's wardrobe.
Good choice of priorities.
I doubt very seriously if it "cost her in popularity," since the only people I know who were evenly remotely interested in that non-story were those who didn't like her in the first place. Judging from the size of her rallies, in the tens of thousands by the way, after the whole "wardrobe" story became the focus of the media, I saw no decrease in her popularity. As for Palin being in the conversation for 2012, she IS the conversation. No other person who is considering running right now generates as much interest as Palin. She has shown more willingness to stand up for what she believes in and fight for it, than the rest of the GOP put together.
Won't she please just go away.
I love Sarah...with or without any clothes. Her mind is Brilliant!! She is so hot! Free speaking, educated Democratic women don't understand how Republican women just want to be told what to do...and geeky republican guys love the idea of a strong, narrow minded women... Go get 'em Sarah - you are the new republican lara croft... All she needs now is really hot republican breast implants!!
And what did this circus cost the taxpayer?
anyone ask how much obama spent on clothing and his family? SUCH a double standard went on during that election... sarah has my vote too
The Democrats and their pundits are proving to be the largest bunch of clowns in recent memory. They lie, attack, and point fingers at ANYTHING Bush or Republican. They can't let it go, and as a result thier rants continue to backfire on them. Nancy Pelosi now knows this all to well...
We are supposed to worry about what the former canidate for VP spent on clothing when the current First Lady shows off $500.00 sneakers and various other vapid expenditures while advocating greater confiscatory taxes.
Funny how Democrats have "watchdog groups" but Republicans have "special interests". Orwell is spinning like a lathe.
What is a chairty going to do with those clothes? Are they going to donate her $2,000 silk suits so a homeless woman can walk around in them? I hope she runs in 2012, it'll be fun to watch Barack destroy her a second time (this time with no one to blame).
All you people would do the same. If you go offered a nice job and they said here is 10K to get some new suits. You would go buy new suits and not from K&G. What do you care were that money came from. Its a perk.
Here's a list of amusing yet cringe-worthy "Bidenisms" made during the vice president's more recent political career.
When criticizing former GOP nominee John McCain in Athens, Ohio, on Oct. 15, 2008, Biden said, "Look, John's last-minute economic plan does nothing to tackle the number-one job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word: jobs. J-O-B-S, jobs.
"In a Sept. 22, 2008, CBS interview, Biden misspoke when he said Franklin D. Roosevelt was president when the stock market crashed in 1929.
"When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened," he said. Herbert Hoover -- not Roosevelt -- was president in 1929, and television had not yet been invented in 1929.
During a Sept. 12, 2008, speech in Columbia, Mo., Biden called for Missouri State Sen. Chuck Graham, who is wheelchair-bound, to "stand up.
"During his first campaign rally with Obama as his vice presidential running mate on Aug. 23, 2008, Biden introduced Obama by saying, "A man I'm proud to call my friend. A man who will be the next President of the United States -- Barack America!"
Why is this relevant? Have any of you heard about any of these comments? I wonder why hmmmmmmmmm.
Remember Dan Quayle and the "potatoe" incident. That certainly got a lot of press from the media and comedians. We are so concerned with Palin's attire? Can you imagine what it would be like if she said it's a 3 letter word J-O-B-S? Guess what media the general public is catching on. That's why you are failing.
Michelle Obama got her $500 sneakers the hard way...she earned them!! When will you wingnuts give it a rest!
I love people who hate other people that don't think like them!
I'm a republican, and I hate the Obama machine and all the hype that surrounds him, but I LOVE Sarah Palin and everything SHE'S ever done!
I'm a democrat, and I hate those idiotic, uneducated right wingers, especially that Sarah Palin, but I LOVE Obama and every policy he's changed since he took office!
Nany Oteri, this circus cost the taxpayer NOTHING, unless you donated your money to the Republican Party. CJ, nobody cares what Obama spent on clothing and his family because he used his own money, like a red-blooded American.
Ahhhh complaining. It's the American way!
Republican Horn Dog--your definition of "brilliant" needs work. The woman went to 3 colleges to get a BA, and knows mostly what she's told to know. She might even have a tough time being elected governor again if there's a strong GOP challenger. She's against earmarks, unless they benefit Alaska. She's for abstenence only education, but her daughter had a kid at 17, she's good at working up a crowd, but had little of substance to say. She was chosen to bring in Hillary voters, which didn't work, and because she's pro-life. Simple as that.
It should also be noted the case was dropped on a technicality--that the RNC spent the money, not the McCain campaign.
Sarah Palin in 2012 would guarantee a Democratic victory.
Go Sarah!
Sarah Palin for 2012!
(Sarah Palin in 2012 = 4 more years of Barack Obama :)
Sarah Palin for 2012!
Who cares what she wears, the woman is an underqualified idiot. If that is the best the GOP can come up with ..........it's pretty pathetic.
And dont forget to check out john edwards' mistress/baby payments !!
Instead of focusing on how much money Sarah Palin spent on her campaign wardrobe, let's focus on how many billions of dollars of OUR money and our CHILDREN'S money The Socialist President has spent in only a little over 100 days.
"Michelle Obama got her $500 sneakers the hard way...she earned them!! "
Now THAT'S funny!
Interesting to note that Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics is a group headed by Melanie Sloan who used to work for, Chuck Shumer, John Conyers, and Joe Biden. Not surprisingly the vast majority of their "ethics" complaints are made against republicans. There is a rumor that CREW will essentially refile the same complaint, just altered slightly to keep up the harrassment of the RNC.
Won't Obama please go away??? No wait....that would leave us Joe the VP, Dragon-Lady and Hillary Rodham Hsu in line to the presidency....drats!!!!
To the Moron Democrats that say Sarah Palin is stupid because she went to 3 colleges to get her degree. Do you EVER live in reality? Many people have to transfer schools, you mental midgets. My husband was in the Air Force while I was in college and we were moved many many times to new duty stations. I ended up having to transfer FIVE times and went to FIVE schools to get my degree. Guess what! That doesn't make me stupid, that makes me a hard working, determined woman, who got her education under the most difficult circumstances. I could have given up each time half my credits didn't transfer to the next college, But I just worked harder. Liberals are morons.
Interesting to note that Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics is a group headed by Melanie Sloan who used to work for, Chuck Shumer, John Conyers, and Joe Biden. Not surprisingly the vast majority of their "ethics" complaints are made against republicans. There is a rumor that CREW will essentially refile the same complaint, just altered slightly to keep up the harrassment of the RNC.
Not hard to see this paper still hates Sarah. Note all of the quotes in this supposed article plus the "FEC ruled" link are from the George Soros funded CREW. Nothing direct from the FEC, nothing from the Palin camp.
Sarah Palin is a good woman and perhaps the only reason almost half the country voted for the bland and unappealing John McCain instead of the charismatic darling of the leftist media. YES - SHE almost saved this country and I'll be happy to vote for her again, no matter where she gets her clothes.
To Educated, post #30,
Great post and yes, you should be admired for your work ethic and determination.
P.S. Your comment about liberals is spot on.
LOL, is anyone actually surprised by this? SHe clearly knows which pockets to lube!
RT
www.privacy-center.de.tc
I'm all for Palin 2012 -- I can't think of a better re-election campaign for Obama =)
Reading through these posts reinforces the thought that there should be some sort of intelligence test required to vote. We are a sad nation and we are of the lowest in IQ of developed nations and too much in our society promotes this decline.
First, I do not support Democrats nor Republicans nor their ridiculous amount of receiving and spending of campaign contributions.
That said, I work in the video production industry and I can definitely see how both the RNC and DNC probably spent that amount or more on their 'Wardrobe' department for just the final candidates. The company I work for did a ton of videos for Mitt Romney in the early days of the campaign, and the truth is that he, along with all other candidates gotta look damn sharp to become the next puppet pres. Notice that it's always the best looking person who wins???
I bet the budget for makeup was huge too! Those people all live for the camera every waking hour during the campaigns...and they always look pretty good.
It's just a shame that expensive clothing is what American's are concerned with whilst their government sells them and future generations further into debt/slavery and eats away at constitutional rights everyday.
Life? Liberty? The Pursuit of Happiness?
How much of any of those basic principles are truly in your hands?
Liberals are proud of their double standards, the more they can get away with, the happier they become. They have no backbone or character, they are the poison in our society. This whole wardrobe ordeal is a prime example of how slimy they are. We need to take our country back, it's time to get off our butts and make things happen in 2012. No one else is going to do it for us...the future is at stake here folks, time to get it in gear and fight back.
go sara i love u respect u cant wait to suport u in2012 u dont need expensive clothes u bonita women i cant said the same of michelle obama no matter wha she wares she istill ? the left makes a f deal but we latinos love u sara
at least she has a birth certificate ------------ Go Sarah
GO SARAH 2012 !!! Love your values! You rock! Keep up the good work and keep telling us what you believe in your heart! IT IS FANTASTIC !!!!! PS - hope you got to keep the clothes!
The world knows as a VP candidate she comes in a close second behind Dan Quayle. No further comment needed.
I can't believe this has gone away yet. Our country in going downhill and picking up speed and this group is interested in this and tying up some Federal Commision and wasting, I'm sure thousands of dollars over clothes. Even the complaining about Mrs Obama's sneekers I found dumb, although not as dumb as paying over 500 buck for sneekers though. I don't care if she earned them or not.
I won't give a dime to the republicans anymore till they start acting like republicans, but I send 15 bucks/month to the Sarah Palin PAC. I voted for Sarah Palin in 2008 and that whatsisname guy she was runnning with and I plan to do it again.
Did you know, even thougth she attended more than one college, Sarah Palin graduated with a higher GPA than obama???
Go ahead progressive types, prove me wrong! The big 0 in the White House had his records locked!! We don't know his GPA from his undregrad or grad school. His medical records are little more than a note from mommy stating barry can go to PE today!
It is amazing to me that you can still worry about some trivial garbage like the clothes budget! What do you care how the RNC spends the money. Did you donate it?
We should be digging into ACORN, Soros, possible illegal contributions from foreign countries, media bias etc ... .
I remember this from the campaign and remember asking myself why no one probed Hillary Clinton's wardrobe or Michele Obama's wardrobe. Now, of course, Michele Obama is all about J.Crew tops and $600 sneakers! Beautiful double standard the democrats wear!
Yeah, like she is the only candidate that had clothes bought for her.... pluuueeezzz Another shallow liberal attempt to degrade when Sarah is someone who has common sense and patriotism,...something liberals know nothing about.
If we need to spend time worrying about clothes, then we need to take a look at the first family's wardrobe. So much for cutting back.
Slowly but surely the massive amount of lies and misinformation about Governor Sarah Palin is being dismantled. Nothing has illustrated more the moral bankruptcy of the Democratic Party, which has left a permanent stain on the Obama Presidency.
Sarah won't go away Dems. No matter how much hate you spew about her. Speaking of hate, I thought you were the party that were against hatemongers. Sounds like your scared to me, and you should be
What do some of you people have against Sarah Palin please explain if you can"t than keep your opinions to your selfs.
You libs are so dilusional. If you lived in the Real World, you would know exactly how many Obamabots have already turned on their Messiah. If you think for a second that that MAN will be re elected in 2012, then you are even more dilusional then I thought. Try learning the facts about Sarah Palin, before bashing her just because MSNBC the most liberal bias TV network out there, needed SOMETHING, ANYTHING that they could possibly make up to make her look bad to steer the votes to their Messiah. Only Libs would care about Sarah's wardrobe. WHO CARES ! I certainly do not, what I do care about is the $14 trillion debt Obama just put my kids into. Thanks to him, over half of their paychecks will go the government for all their working lives. Now that's a great leader ! And NO that's NOT Bush, that debt is 100% Obama !
Of course the complaint was dismissed, like every other one filed against the Governor to distract from all the jaw-dropping scandals of the opposition. Here, we come, Sarah, 2012, through SarahPAC. No organized crime strings attached!
31 states voted for Palin because we sure weren't voting for McCain so to all of you who think we all thought like the big city folk well her popularity grows daily every time o opens his mouth it's more votes for Palin in 2012. And with all the libs moving out of the cities to escape the taxes well who knows how the votes will go. She has cleared any ethic complaints against her and that does not bode well for you libs in 2012, you will have nothing on her. It will be fun to see how the o administration tries to wheedle around in the next election.