Associated Press Reporter D'Oro Has Trouble Googling

Again, paid reporters show incompetence in researching what an amateur can find out in five minutes of research on the internet. This time it's Rachel D'Oro of the Associated Press.

Steve Gilbert at Sweetness & Light found that D'Oro's "independent investigator" Thomas Daniel isn't all that independent having contributed thousands of dollars to Democrats--and that's just from online public information.

It turns out D'Oro didn't look at the report that well either. She reports that Daniel's thinks Governor Palin has an unjust advantage over regular citizens in getting contributions for a legal trust fund.

"In his report, Daniel said his interpretation of the ethics act is consistent with common sense.

"An ordinary citizen facing legal charges is not likely to be able to generate donations to a legal defense fund, he wrote. 'In contrast, Governor Palin is able to generate donations because of the fact that she is a public official and a public figure. Were it not for the fact that she is governor and a national political figure, it is unlikely that many citizens would donate money to her legal defense fund.'"

Apparently D'Oro didn't read the whole report. She leaves out a big hole in Daniel's "common sense" argument. Daniels thinks Alaskan tax payers should pay Governor Palin's legal bills.

"I also recommend that she seek reimbursement from the state for the cost of defending the ethics complaints that have been dismissed."

Can "ordinary citizens facing legal charges" seek reimbursement from Alaskan taxpayers to pay for their legal bills? Don't think so. Actually, Palin's access to Alaska public funds is precisely due to her position as a "public official and a public figure."

Lots of legal funds have been set up for "ordinary citizens" and gotten contributions because of the facts of the case not the political notoriety of those facing huge legal bills. In Oregon we recently had such a case with a family being forced by the nutball Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to spend huge sums in the case of Snowball the deer. But, as far as I know no one has suggested that they go to the state of Oregon to receive reimbursement from Oregon tax payers.

Poor Alaskans live in a state where a few fruitcake residents can run up millions of dollars of state debt easy as pie, an "independent investigator" thinks the state paying for legal bills for politicians is better than voluntary contributions, and no one in the legislature cares a twit to fix this. You get what you vote for.

H/T American Thinker and Conservatives4Palin