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Meg Stapleton, spokesperson for Gov. Sarah Palin and SarahPAC, talks to Eddie Burke on May 19, 2009.

Eddie Burke: Without further ado, Meg Stapleton, a spokesperson for SarahPAC, Governor Sarah Palin, welcome to the program.

Meg Stapleton: Hey, thanks, Eddie. It’s great to be on here.

Eddie Burke: Yes, thank you so much. The FEC, according to an Associated Press story, the Federal Election Commission has dismissed a complaint over the $150,000-plus designer wardrobe the Republican Party bought to outfit Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, the good government group that filed the complaint, argued that candidates aren’t supposed to use donor money for personal expenses such as clothes.

The FEC ruled Tuesday that the ban does not apply to Party money. However, the Alaska governor was Senator John McCain’s pick for Vice-President whose purchases from such high-end stores as Sach’s, Fifth Avenue, and Neiman Marcus drew criticism for Palin, the self-described hockey mom.

Again, it seems like we’re having these event once a week or twice a week, but another complaint dismissed against the governor.

Meg Stapleton: Well, that’s true, Ed, and, you know, we are so pleased to have yet another ethics complaint dismissed. I think if you go back too, Eddie, and look and, you know, it’s filed on October 23rd and even if the merits of something are somewhat legitimate, the legitimacy comes, in my opinion, to after the campaign is over.

You don’t start filing these things within a week or two of a conclusion of a campaign because it shows the intent to just being, “Hey, let’s draw some criticisms and some questions here at how ethical this person who has taken over office and really cleaned up government. Let’s cast some doubt on that, you know, from her critics.”

And so the fact that it came in October 23rd really showed what the intent was of this ethics complaint.

Eddie Burke: Yeah.

Meg Stapleton: And then I’m glad, you know, the FEC, they took a good look at the law and no one can complain in Alaska that, “Ooops, you point at the FEC board.” So it’s great. It’s another frivolous complaint that has been dismissed and, you know, it just… I look at some of the headlines even from this and the left knows this is one of those things the media picks up on and runs with it and I think one of the headlines was even Palin shopping spree, you know, dismissed by the ethics FEC. It’s just… she didn’t even buy a single thing, so it’s, you know, a constant battle.

Eddie Burke: What is… I mean, you’re a part of the political side of this. From a political point of view, I’ve thought that this ethics complaints whether they’re on a statewide level or a national level, they’ve really little to do with the complaint, but more to do about just throwing mud at the governor.

Meg Stapleton: Yeah.

Eddie Burke: Because, you know, we all know if you keep calling somebody a wife-beater long enough, pretty soon they’re a wife-beater, right?

Meg Stapleton: Yeah, you’ve got it. That is definitely the tactic. It’s actually done and maybe they’ve been a little sloppy in that, but it’s been discussed quite openly by those who just can’t stand the governor for the fact that she is breathing, and so it is a tactic. Throw it up there as many times as you can, create anything, whether it’s how she looks, what she wears, what she says, where she said it, just constantly pick, pick, pick, pick, pick, and eventually people will think that maybe she isn’t as ethical as we once thought.

Eddie Burke: Right. It casts doubt, right?

Meg Stapleton: What’s that?

Eddie Burke: It ultimately casts doubt.

Meg Stapleton: Yeah.

Eddie Burke: It’s really a political machine that has worked. It has some success to it if you’re not out there fighting it constantly, is that correct?

Meg Stapleton: Yeah, and you have to get out there and fight it, and the thing is I remember even as a reporter, this became a game before, especially in the legislative recesses, it became a game and (inaudible) because the ethics complaints, you didn’t know whether it was legitimate and so you covered it and then sure enough it became illegal to discuss those ahead of time and I stopped covering them, even though we knew and people would try to leak them to us, we would say, “You know what? No, it’s against the law. You don’t cover them.”

Well, we do still have that same obligation that’s felt and on the executive side, there’s no punishment. So okay, let’s create this sensational headline. Let’s get a great massive front page of the paper and then to dismiss them will be, you know, either buried in the show or buried in the newspaper as a minor paragraph, “Oh, by the way, that one was dismissed.” and so it works, that’s why they keep doing it.

Eddie Burke: Right, yesterday, I was talking about some of these complaints and I’ve mentioned Zane Henning, his wife Val Henning, as you know, Mr. Henning has filed an ethics complaint against the governor, his wife Val called the show in somewhat of a frantic mode and I said, “Well, your husband has filed one,” and she readily said, “You know, we got the tape. I can play it back. I may file one, too.”

You know, what caught me on her statement there is that it wasn’t about whether or not she thought the governor had done anything wrong. It was just that, “Yeah, and since I can file one, I’m going to, too.” And I thought it was just what an abuse of the ethics complaint system.

And we also know that these are being orchestrated. I mean, you can read the liberal blogs and it’s just out there.

Meg Stapleton: Well, you know, and the thing is, I think it was the last dismissal. I can’t keep track of them because the dismissals are coming in so fast, which is just incredible, but, you know, the last one said, “Look, I think Alaskans, in their quest to bring someone so popular across this nation down, they’re confusing ethics with politics.”

And they may disagree with the governor on, “You know what? We don’t want [...] Alaskans and Americans, so let’s shoot her down.”

And well, the thing is okay, that’s a political discussion. It doesn’t mean anything unethical with that and, you know, they’re confusing that.

Eddie Burke: Well, I think that’s a point that, let’s see, we have invited Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics on Government on today’s show. They have declined, just so that people know that they’re the people who filed this complaint, this ethics complaint, against the governor with the FEC.

I have a question for you from an e-mail. Since how does Meg respond to national pundits that says Governor Palin needs to have more presence on the national stage. This is a quote from a recent political article. What she really needs is somebody who has good political sense to move to Alaska, said a Washington-based Republican who wants her to succeed and until that happens, she is going to continue floundering.

It’s pretty tough for the Governor to get out on the national stage because every time she does, her critics are throwing dirt clogs at her.

Meg Stapleton: Oh, it exactly is. It’s kind of…. I laughed when I read that because that’s exactly what we’re trying to get away from. It’s that inside the beltway mentality, that in order to be successful in this world, “you got to one of us and you have to listen to us and we only have the right way to do it” and they keep messing things up in their own personal and, you know, national ambitions for her and they’re fighting against the governor’s constant quest and constant… I mean, she’s always out there saying, “My focus is on Alaska.”

And her constant need to focus on Alaska and that desire to focus on Alaska and the people who… you know, it’s very flattering in one sense. They see her as the future.

Eddie Burke: Yeah.

Meg Stapleton: But you got to get out there and you’ve got to be a part of us and you’ve got to come to these parties and you’ve got to join this circuit of friends and you’ve got to… no, actually, she is focused on getting gas to Alaskans and now, the in-state lifeline and that requires a lot of attention and she can do that, although she has to do it. You know, it is a constant give and take.

Eddie Burke: Yeah.

Meg Stapleton: I mean, we’re winning, but the political fight of the governor is just focused on Alaska, too. We are not out there saying, “Okay, there’s going to be this, you know, ha-ha project.

Eddie Burke: All right. Hey, Meg. We’re just speaking with Meg Stapleton, the spokeperson for SarahPAC.org. Hey, could you stick with us another segment?

Meg Stapleton: I assure you that, Eddie.

Eddie Burke: Okay, thank you. With Meg Stapleton, we’ll be right back. If you have any questions or concerns, 274-529-7866 or 610-5297 or you can always e-mail me at eddie@kbyr.com. We’ll be right back.

Eddie Burke: Hi, welcome back to the program. It’s 3:22 in the afternoon. This is Eddie Burke Show and I’m your host, Eddie Burke. Meg Stapleton, spokesperson for SarahPAC.org.

Hey, how was the new political fund trust going, the defense fund for the governor. She has incurred, it had been reported nearly half a million or over half million dollars fighting these bogus ethics complaints. Is that something that’s been good for the governor?

Meg Stapleton: Well, you know, the outpouring of support is just phenomenal and I can speak to it only because Kristan Cole is the trustee to the Alaska Fund Trust and I know it’s part of SarahPAC to get envelopes with donations to the legal expense fund to SarahPAC and that we, you know, forward and the notes, Eddie, are just unbelievable. It’s “Paying this economy, I’ve got $5. Please let the Governor know I’ll give another $5 in a month.”

Eddie Burke: Right.

Meg Stapleton: Then it’s just, you know, and then others are saying, “I wish we could contribute more, you know, I’m giving my maximum,” and they just really believe in her and what they’re watching is… you know, they’re watching this barrage of attack and the negativity and politics has really, really changed.

It’s no longer just this forum of ideas and ideals, but its just that “let’s attack people and tear them down to absolutely nothing”.

Eddie Burke: But here’s… the question is that the attacks we know are out there. Is it true that there are more of them against this governor, against Sarah Palin than other candidates? To me, in my opinion, there is maybe because she’s a hometown girl. I pay close attention to her. Maybe I shouldn’t refer to her as a hometown girl, but anyways, that’s what she is to me. So is that true?

Meg Stapleton: Oh, I think it’s…

Eddie Burke: And why?

Meg Stapleton: Without a doubt.

Eddie Burke: Have you guys sat around your think thank and thought why are the attacks so… why is there so much venom against Sarah Palin?

Meg Stapleton: I think we have… I’ll just give one example. When you are in Florida then you that is set aside for 3,000 to 5,000 people to show up at a campaign rally and 50,000 to 60,000 people show up then you have conservatives who are worried, who want to run for office. You have liberals who are frightened to pieces, and you have independents saying, “Ha, let me listen.”

And so you have this just phenomenon and I will say it’s a phenomenon because I had traveled with her a couple of times. In Evansville, the Right to Life dinner, I literally thought how ironic. We’re going to be crushed to death at a Right to Life event. I mean, it was thousands.

Eddie Burke: Yeah.

Meg Stapleton: Just pouring in around us and then when I was there it feels warm for dinner. You have the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. You have a President of the United States. You have Rupert Murdoch. I mean, people in this world that others line up to see and instead literally, the only line there and I was with the Governor at the reception.

Eddie Burke: Wow.

Meg Stapleton: It was to see our Governor.

Eddie Burke: Right.

Meg Stapleton: Twenty to forty-five minutes, congressmen, senators, and justices of the Supreme Court are waiting to shake her hands and talk to her.

Eddie Burke: Right.

Meg Stapleton: People aren’t dumb. They look at that and say, “Holy cow. We need to control that. We need to knock it down because whether you’re conservative or liberal, we haven’t seen a reaction or stuff like that.”

Meg Stapleton: Right. Well, that’s just a big mistake that I think the naysayers are doing and that is whether you like Sarah Palin or not, she is a huge advocate for Alaska and if you like Alaska, that these people are lining up to her, they’re lining up to speak to her, they’re lining up to listen to her and why would you not want her out there speaking on behalf of Alaska and driving home these issues that are important to us; the gasoline and water, another resources development that we can provide national security.

You see, I think it’s shortsighted to say it’s national politics over state good.

Meg Stapleton: Maybe it is shortsighted and I think during the campaign, a lot of the key Democrats, Waffle Halton, a bipartisan, to get some of these things for Alaska. They really have a great opportunity to say, “Yeah, I was a part of that.”

Eddie Burke: Right.

Meg Stapleton: And instead they weren’t thinking, they were shortsighted and, you know, in DC I was given as another example, we’re out at dinner at an Alex House, she is sitting next to Dick Cheney across from Madeleine Albright and in front also Diane Feinstein.

Eddie Burke: Sure.

Meg Stapleton: And they’re having a very disputed discussion about this stimulus package, its impact on Alaska.

Eddie Burke: Right.

Meg Stapleton: On what she needs and is asking for as governor, not pretending to be part of the congressional delegation, but say, “Hey, Governor. There are just some things that we need that you’re not thinking about, that you’re not paying attention to.”

Eddie Burke: Sure.

Meg Stapleton: And Madeleine Albright and Dick Cheney don’t have to do that, but Diane Feinstein does and Mel Martinez does and other who are also at that party and these were all these questions and then, you know, “As former Vice-President, you know, have you come up to Alaska in a bit. Have you talked about… Hey, we could use some assistance with the gas line.”

Eddie Burke: Sure.

Meg Stapleton: It’s constant. It’s always Alaska with her. It’s just doesn’t matter who the audience is, it is come visit Alaska, let me tell you about Alaska, do you know what we need in Alaska, can I talk to you about what our future is, it is always Alaska in her heart.

Eddie Burke: Let’s take a call here. Meg Stapleton is my guest. She is spokesperson for SarahPAC. Vern on Line 1, 274-5297. Vern, you’re on with Meg Stapleton.

Vern: Yeah, I saw it kind across from mine. I have a couple of lawsuits against me in the past and I found that countersuits kind of helped a whole bunch. Maybe she should acquire or talk to some bulldog lawyers around the country to create an attempted defamation type of lawsuit, monetary based, so that when these people throw these things up in the air at her and try to make them stick, if they don’t, they know that they’re immediately going to get served with this kind of paperwork.

Eddie Burke: Well, what does make…

Vern: In other words, attack back.

Eddie Burke: Meg, what was the political discussion. How does the Governor fight back? You know, sometimes you want to… if someone smacks you, you want to smack him back, but then you sit around and you politically talk about it, that’s not the best thing to do. What is the Governor’s plan? What is she doing to fight back and clear her name as these ethics complaints continue to get dismissed?

Meg Stapleton: Well, I think a lot of it is just educating people right now. We have been trying to –

Eddie Burke: Go ahead.

Meg Stapleton: — take the higher road by saying hey look, this is just the tactic of the White House of the DNC, of the DCCC. They have gone out of their way to pull in a number of Alaskans and say, “Hey, here’s your role. Here’s your role. Here’s your role.”

They all have the grand scheme of things and we’ve tried to take that higher road. I think we are to a point where we may have to say, “You know what? This is enough and if we have to stop it to the extent where we become more aggressive, then we have to become more aggressive because it is sickening how Alaskans cannot do their work because of the inundation of the frivolous complaints, comments, [...] request. It’s just again, it’s the abuse of process and abuse of the system that is designed to, of course, keep an eye on people, of course, make people accountable, but not abused.

Eddie Burke: You know, I don’t want to hold you through the break, but I want to do it quickly, the book deal is, is that done? Is it pretty well inked up? In a minute or so, can you give us an update on that?

Meg Stapleton: Well, you know, it’s really exciting and again, kind of as you pointed out earlier, I think this is the Governor is just unfettered opportunity to tell not only her story, but Alaska’s story. She is so excited and even her critics I’ve heard some just say, “You know what? This is actually really good for Alaska.”

I think we’re going to get a great story out there and people who may have a different perception of a state that is just as rich and wonderful as ours and then they’ll get a different idea now because of the Governor.

Eddie Burke: Well, one thing I hope out of this talk that it gets a 206 success and 206 out of it and then maybe he’ll take me flying. That’s the only thing I hope for. So, hey, Meg. I’m sorry. I know it’s not politically correct to say things like that, but you know what?

Meg Stapleton: Well, not you ever.

Eddie Burke: Todd can use 206. I could use a 206. All right. Hey, thank you so much. Meg Stapleton, a spokesperson for SarahPAC. It’s always a pleasure.

Meg Stapleton: Oh, thank you, Eddie.

Eddie Burke: All right. We’ll be right back, folks.