Here's a video clip of Sarah Palin's statement today. The original reports that the governor didn't say why she's stepping down early are wrong. She does give a reason; it just doesn't make any sense. In the speech she says that she isn't running for re-election, so Alaskans would be stuck with a lame duck governor. And unlike other lame duck governors who "milk it" by traveling to Europe and the other fifty states on trade commissions, she refuses to do politics as usual because she's just not made that way.
Her voice is quavering and weak and she is clearly extremely nervous. It's an incredibly bizarre performance for a female politician whose biggest strength was her toughness. She's bailing out early instead of using millions of taxpayers' dollars to take expensive trips? Since when did that become the only option for a governor with over a year left to govern? How about finishing the job she was elected to do? Take a look:
