The Legacy of the McCain Campaign in Alaska -- "Rogue"

[Blue_In_AK]

From Celtic Diva's Blue Oasia

http://divasblueoasis.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=176

Sarah Palin gave a telephone "interview" Saturday to selected journalists. This was the interview where she provided everyone with that Scooby Doo double-take moment:

Well, I'm very very pleased to be cleared of any legal wrongdoing ... any hint of any kind of unethical activity there. Very pleased to be cleared of any of that.
Huh?

As amazing as that response may be, the question I found most interesting was one asked by KTUU:

KTUU-Channel 2: Governor, so good to hear from you. Do you approve of the way that your campaign has handled themselves here in Alaska? We've had a lot of people voice concerns about what they call attacks of good people in our state while you are away.
Palin: Well I haven't heard of any attacks on good people in Alaska from our campaign. If you have specifics there, maybe I could answer specifically. But no, in John McCain's mission here, in taking the high road, as you're going to see too with a lot of unfair shots he has taken in this campaign with some of his opponents' supporters, McCain and I taking the high road, being positive. I wouldn't support nor would I condone taking shots at any good Alaskans.

KTUU-Channel 2: Let me answer your question since you asked for specifics.

Palin: Sure.

KTUU-Channel 2: Walt Monegan was called "rogue." How do you feel about that?

Palin: Rogue isn't a negative term when you consider that in a cabinet you need a team effort going forward with a governor's agenda. And our agenda has been to find efficiencies in every department and make sure that we are serving the people of Alaska to the best of our ability given the resources that we have. And remember I fought very hard to increase funding for state troopers so that we could fill positions there and goals not being met that included not being able to recruit and retain all the state troopers that I wanted to best serve Alaska. That could be characterized I think as a cabinet member who - it's not a negative term I think -- being rogue in terms of not meeting those goals.


I see...so then, when you called Mike Wooten a "rogue" that's what you meant as well?

The governor's lawyer has accused the troopers of turning a blind eye to an alleged rogue officer, Mike Wooten, who also is the governor's ex-brother-in-law.

Amazingly, while I've been sitting here writing this article, (9:30 AM, 10/13/08) Meghan Stapleton just called Mike Wooten a "rogue trooper" again in her interview with Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC. Are we expected to believe there's some kind of "positive" aspect to this word?

Of course not!

<snip>

The word "rogue" used in association with a police officer sends a specific signal of on-the-job instability, lawlessness and dangerous behavior...none of which are reflected in the career of Mike Wooten. As unfair as it may be using "rogue" to describe Mike Wooten, using the same word in conjunction with Walt Monegan is downright evil. If you talk to Betty Monegan, Walt's mom, about what the McCain Campaign has done to her son, that's the word she brings up first.

While Les Gara's on-camera argument with Meghan Stapleton was very satisfying, we need to keep it up. Everyone...not just legislators and press...needs to pound the use of the word "rogue" home everytime they see Meghan on the street, with her kids in a store, when she's with O'Callaghan in a press conference, with her husband at a restaurant...she shouldn't get a moment's peace.

She doesn't allow the targets of her smears to get any.

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This is exactly why Sarah's popularity is slip-sliding away here in Alaska.

[central scrutinizer]

1. so rogue is the new maverick?

Or is it the other way around? I am confused. Has she palinated another word?