Sarah Palin Defends Herself Against Criticism in FOX News Interview
FOX News’ Greta Van Susteren went to Alaska to get Gov. Sarah Palin’s reflections on the presidential election.
After a whirlwind campaign alongside Sen. John McCain, Sarah Palin is defending herself against criticism stemming from the tens of thousands of dollars spent on her wardrobe as well as several reported foreign affairs missteps.
Nov. 9: FOX News
“When I arrived at the convention, there were clothes waiting for me, and clothes being ordered for me and the family, for eight of us,” the Alaska governor told FOX News’ Greta Van Susteren, in an interview that aired Monday night. “And ever since then, those clothes, knowing that they didn’t belong to me … we boxed them all up, sent them back to the rightful owners, the Republican National Committee, and that’s the story on the clothes.”
Attorneys for the Republican National Committee are still trying to determine exactly what clothing was bought for Palin and exactly what has been returned, The Associated Press reports.
Palin dismissed the controversy over the reported $150,000 bill as “irrelevant,” along with claims from Republican aides that she could not identify the members of NAFTA or that she thought Africa was a country — and not a continent.
“It just seems like such an irrelevant issue when you consider what is going on in the world today and how a new administration is being ushered in and people being concerned about the direction of the nation and policies that will be adopted,” Palin said. “Clothes just seem irrelevant.”
Palin continued, “I just think that there was unfair criticism that maybe lingers today, that my family and I asked for anybody to pay for any our clothes.”
Regarding the reported Africa gaffe, Palin said, “And never, ever did I talk about, well, gee, is it a country or is it a continent? I just don’t know about this issue. So I don’t know how they took our one discussion on Africa and turned that into what they turned it into … Along those same lines, of course, was the criticism that supposedly I didn’t know who the participants in NAFTA were.”
Amid speculation nationwide about Palin’s political future, the governor told FOX News that she’s unsure of what 2012 will bring, but added that she doesn’t intend on running away from future criticism.
“Your life is an open book and you open yourself up to criticism and you’d better be ready to take that criticism,” Palin said. “In other words, don’t run for office if you can’t handle it.”
Palin, who could seek re-election in 2010 or potentially run for president in four years, said she will rely on faith.
“Putting my life in my creator’s hands — this is what I always do,” she said. “I’m like, OK, God, if there is an open door for me somewhere, this is what I always pray, I’m like, don’t let me miss the open door … And if there is an open door in ’12 or four years later, and if it is something that is going to be good for my family, for my state, for my nation, an opportunity for me, then I’ll plow through that door.”
Palin’s father, Chuck Heath, told the Associated Press that Palin spent part of the weekend going through her clothing to determine what belongs to the Republican Party.
“She was just frantically … trying to sort stuff out,” Heath told AP. “That’s the problem, you know, the kids lose underwear, and everything has to be accounted for. Nothing goes right back to normal.”
Palin’s father said his daughter told him the only clothing or accessories she personally had purchased in the past four months was a pair of shoes.
The McCain-Palin campaign said last week that about a third of the clothing was returned immediately because it was the wrong size, or for other reasons. However, other purchases apparently were made after that, a campaign official told AP.
In Wasilla, her hometown backers welcomed their former mayor, putting aside their disappointment over her unsuccessful bid.
Jessica Steele, proprietor of the Beehive Beauty Shop and keeper of the governor’s up-do since 2002, cannot wait to see what Palin does next move.
“That’s something I want to talk to her about: What’s our vision for her hair?” Steele told AP. “I can’t wait to see her and say, ‘OK, I’ve got you alone for three hours. Just relax, and how are you, really?”‘
While Palin remains popular, the reality of defeat is evident.
Bags of fan mail, as many as 400 letters a day, partially fill a room at her parent’s house. But Palin’s parents no longer meet Secret Service agents when they pick up their children at Cottonwood Creek Elementary, where Palin’s youngest daughter, Piper, is a student. The reporters and camera crews are gone from the Palin home on Lake Lucille, once patrolled by Coast Guard boats. Now a thick sheet of ice covers the lake.
Four state troopers still guard the governor 24 hours a day, Heath told AP — something Palin never had before.
And in a bit of familiarity, Heath said he brought a pot of moose chili to Palin’s house this past weekend.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
More at http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/11/10/sarah-palin-defends-criticism-post-election-interview/
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[...] Sarah Palin Defends Herself Against Criticism in FOX News Interview FOX News’ Greta Van Susteren went to Alaska to get Gov. Sarah Palin’s reflections on the presidential election. After a whirlwind campaign alongside Sen. John McCain, Sarah Palin is defending herself against criticism stemming from the tens of thousands of dollars spent on her wardrobe as well as several reported foreign affairs missteps. “When I arrived at [...] [...]