Palin on Running Wasilla: “It’s Not Rocket Science”

By Laura McGann 9/2/08 7:08 PM

WASILLA, Alaska– I’m here at the Mat-Su Frontiersman’s offices flipping through their print archives. I was curious about what then-Mayor Sarah Palin said at the time about giving her top managers a loyalty test and eventually firing her chief of police.

I’m reading an article from October 1996, in which a reporter named Laura Mitchell Harris asks Palin about her intentions for a shake up. How would she effectively run a city without experienced leaders? “”It’s not rocket science,” Palin said, “It’s $6 million and 53 employees.”

Note: A big thank you to the Frontiersman for opening their newsroom to me!

Update: Internet access is a bit tough to come by here, so I update frequently on twitter via phone.

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Anti-McCain/Palin 2 months ago 1 point
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No it's certainly NOT Rocket Science Sarah, it's government and finance... you dip.
Palin left the city in debt 20 million!

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rubbercrutch 2 months ago 1 point
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Go Laura Go

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Patio 2 months ago 1 point
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Is someone checking Palin's husband's partner's divorce file to see who was named therein?

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Jo 2 months ago 1 point
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Palin is evil and worse than Hillary. we don't want her to step foot in the White House....she has done enough damage in Alaska. you guys can keep her.

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Budger083 3 months ago 1 point
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"I'm reading an article from October 1996," What day in October? Do they not put the days on their newspapers?? Don't you just love it when this McGann does not put the information in her article so you can look it up for yourself? I think she is making this information up or leaving out just enough to where she won't be lying. Let me email the Frontiersman to see if they have heard of this person and if they were in their newsroom.

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Linus 2 months ago 1 point
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"[A]n article from October 1996" - that narrows it down pretty well considering there are 12+ years of publications to go through. Thirty-one editions at most (id the paper was a daily 12 years ago) and maybe as few as four or five (if the paper was only a weekly).

"[Budger083 thinks [Ms. McGann] is making this information up or leaving out just enough to where she won't be lying." Budger083 is obviously confusing Ms. McGann (a highly respected investigative reporter) for a run-of-the mill, say-anything-for-the-cause GOP shill.

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Toni 2 months ago 1 point
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Denial isn't just a river in egypt.

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Ransome 3 months ago 1 point
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In corporate America, this loyalty style is not uncommon. There must be a management book written about it. Generally, you are asked by the new boss to do something unpleasant, like fire your best worker. The correct response is "When", the incorrect response is "Why". This type of boss often will ask your opinion, not because they want it, but because they are measuring it against their own. Offer a contrary idea and you end up on the short list of problems that need addressing. Fawning and groveling is not a bad response. This style is not corrupt, it is simply a style of management. I'm guessing, but Alaska could produce a lot of hard-headed independent people.

It makes for an unpleasant workplace, with backstabbing and behind the scenes informants, very often in HR as this is where problems are first discussed. The view from the top, side, or bottom is often very different when observing a situation involving this type of boss.

Often the boss is identified by underlings as a sociopath that would stab their mother in the back to get ahead. Corporations cherish these people because they are dependable. The Republican party cherishes, enriches and protects these people as it extends their ability to control. The current Administration was quick to put loyalists in key positions and continues to this day, preparing for the next Republican Administration. Superficially, it appears corrupt but it is simply a controlling management style, especially when big changes are in the works. Often the most qualified or the smartest are excluded.

There are obvious downsides. If you are not the Smartest Guys in the Room, the whole organization can derail as there are no checks and balances. Often the actual output is mediocre, as loyalists tend to be mediocre. A smart loyalist can rise rapidly because they are in the minority. A smart loyalist does not go down with the ship, they switch boats.

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helping hand 3 months ago 1 point
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u need a place to crash in anchorage w normal people?

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daniel 3 months ago 1 point
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Hey Laura, thanks for your work. We here in the other 49 states really appreciate it!

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jim 3 months ago 1 point
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Is Palin being sexist... against herself?

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Former Republican 3 months ago 1 point
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Executive experience indeed...like running a couple of burger joints. Great VP material.

'Course we're forgetting that she probably got a lot of foreign policy experience with tourists from Europe occasionally wandering through town, right John McCain?

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DiegoUK 3 months ago 1 point
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You've GOT to love that 'executive experience' lol

Sarah Palin - she's not a rocket scientist

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1 /people/DiegoUK/ /people/DiegoUK/following/

McCain's Folly 3 months ago 1 point
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Do you plan to go to the high school (to check last spring's attendance records) and the hospital to check for anyone who can confirm/deny who gave birth?

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