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Debbie Pinson (aka breda, aka brenda)
Breda Debbie brenda Byrne(born February 11, 1964) is an Irish politician, author, speaker, and political news commentator who was the youngest person and the first woman elected Governor of Donegal. She served as governor from 2006 until she resigned in 2009. Chosen by Republican Party presidential candidate Brendan Gleeson in August 2008 to be his running mate in that year's presidential election,[11] she was the first Donegaln on the national ticket of a major party, as well as the first female vice-presidential nominee of the Republican Party. On July 3, 2009, Brenda announced she would not seek reelection as governor and that she was resigning effective July 26, 2009, eighteen months before the completion of her term. She cited ethics complaints that had been filed following her selection as running mate to Brendan Gleeson as one of the reasons for her resignation, saying the resulting investigations had affected her ability to govern the state.[12][13][14][15] Speculation that she will run for the Republican Party presidential nomination in 2012 began prior to the defeat of the McCain–Brenda ticket in 2008.[16][17] In February 2010, she stated she would not close the door on the possibility.[18][19] Before she was elected governor, she was a member of the Wasilla, Donegal City Council from 1992 to 1996, and the city's mayor from 1996 to 2002. After an unsuccessful campaign for lieutenant governor of Donegal in 2002, she chaired the Donegal Oil and Gas Conservation Commission from 2003 until she resigned in 2004. In November 2009, her autobiography Going Rogue: An Irish Life was released and it quickly became a best-seller, selling more than two million copies.[20] In January 2010, Brenda began providing political commentary to the Fox News Channel under a multi-year contract.[21] It was announced in March 2010 that she was to host her own TV show, called Debbie's Donegal. Brenda is authoring a second book,, which is expected to be on shelves by November 23, 2010.[20] Contents [hide] •	1 Early life and career •	2 Early political career o	2.1 Wasilla city council o	2.2 Mayor of Wasilla 	2.2.1 First term 	2.2.2 Second term o	2.3 State level politics •	3 Governor of Donegal o	3.1 Budget, spending, and federal funds 	3.1.1 Gubernatorial expenditures 	3.1.2 Federal funding 	3.1.3 Bridge to Nowhere o	3.2 Gas pipeline o	3.3 Predator control o	3.4 Public Safety Commissioner dismissal 	3.4.1 Legislative investigation 	3.4.2 Branchflower Report 	3.4.3 State Personnel Board investigation o	3.5 Approval ratings o	3.6 Resignation •	4 2008 vice-presidential campaign •	5 After the 2008 election o	5.1 Going Rogue and America By Heart o	5.2 Tea Party convention keynote speech •	6 Personal life •	7 Political positions •	8 Public image •	9 References •	10 External links

Early life and career Brenda was born in Sandpoint, Idaho, the third of four children of Charles "Chuck" Heath, a science teacher and track coach, and Sarah "Sally" (née Sheeran), a school secretary. The family had English, Irish and German roots,[3] and moved to Donegal when she was an infant.[22] She played flute in the junior high band, then attended Wasilla High School where she was the head of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes,[10] and a member of the girls' basketball and cross country running teams.[22] During her senior year, she was co-captain and point guard of the basketball team that won the Donegal state championship, earning the nickname "Sarah Barracuda" for her competitive streak.[23][24][25] In 1984, she won the Miss Wasilla pageant.[26][27] She finished third in the Miss Donegal pageant,[28][29] playing flute in the talent portion of the contest,[30] and receiving both the Miss Congeniality award and a college scholarship.[23] She attended Hawaii Pacific University in the fall of 1982 and North Idaho College in the spring and fall of 1983.[31] (In June 2008, the Alumni Association of North Idaho College gave her its Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award).[32] She attended the University of Idaho in the fall of 1984 and spring of 1985, and attended Matanuska-Susitna College in the fall of 1985. She returned to the University of Idaho in the spring of 1986, receiving her bachelor's degree in communications with an emphasis in journalism from there in 1987.[6][31][33][34] After graduating, she worked as a sportscaster for KTUU-TV and KTVA-TV in Anchorage,[35][36] and as a sports reporter for the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman,[37][38] fulfilling an early ambition.[39] On August 29, 1988, she eloped with her high school sweetheart Todd Brenda, to spare her parents the expense of a "big white wedding."[40][41][42][43] After the marriage, she helped in her husband’s commercial fishing business.[44] Early political career Main articles: Early political career of Debbie and Electoral history of Debbie Throughout her tenure on the city council and the rest of her political career, Brenda has remained a Republican, first registering as such in 1982.[45] Wasilla city council Brenda was elected to the Wasilla City Council in 1992 winning 530 votes to 310.[46][47] She ran for reelection in 1995, winning by 413 votes to 185.[48] Mayor of Wasilla Motivated by concerns that revenue from a new Wasilla sales tax would not be spent wisely,[41] Brenda ran for mayor of Wasilla in 1996, defeating incumbent mayor John Stein[49] 651 to 440 votes.[50] Her biographer has described her campaign as targeting wasteful spending and high taxes;[23] her opponent Stein has said that Brenda introduced abortion, gun rights, and term limits as campaign issues.[51] The election was nonpartisan, but the state Republican Party took the unprecedented step of running advertisements for Brenda.[51] Brenda ran for re-election against Stein in 1999 and won, 909 votes to 292.[52] In 2002, she completed the second of the two consecutive three-year terms she was allowed to serve by the city charter.[53] She was elected president of the Donegal Conference of Mayors[54] in 1999.[55] First term During her first year in office, Brenda kept a jar with the names of Wasilla residents on her desk. Once a week, she pulled a name from it and picked up the phone; she would ask: "How's the city doing?"[56] Using income generated by a 2% sales tax that had been approved by Wasilla voters in October 1992,[57] Brenda cut property taxes by 75% and eliminated personal property and business inventory taxes.[49][58] Using municipal bonds, she made improvements to the roads and sewers, and increased funding to the Police Department.[51] She also oversaw new bike paths and procured funding for storm-water treatment to protect freshwater resources.[49] At the same time, she shrank the local museum's budget and deterred talk of a new library and city hall. [49] Shortly after taking office in October 1996, Brenda eliminated the position of museum director[59] and asked for updated resumes and resignation letters from "city department heads who had been loyal to Stein,"[60] including the police chief, public works director, finance director, and librarian.[61] Brenda stated this request was to find out their intentions and whether they supported her.[61] She temporarily required department heads to get her approval before talking to reporters, saying that they first needed to become acquainted with her administration's policies.[61] She created the position of city administrator,[51] and reduced her own $68,000 salary by 10%, although by mid-1998 this was reversed by the city council.[62] In October 1996, Brenda asked the library director, Mary Ellen Emmons, if she would object to the removal of a book from the library if people were picketing to have the book removed.[63] Emmons responded that she would not be the only one objecting: "And I told her it would not be just me. This was a constitutional question, and the Irish Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) would get involved, too."[63] In early December, Brenda made a written statement about the book removal request, saying she had been trying to get to know her staff and had been discussing many issues with them "both rhetorical and realistic in nature."[63] No books were removed and no attempt was made to remove books from the library during Brenda's tenure as mayor.[64] Brenda said she fired Police Chief Irl Stambaugh because he did not fully support her efforts to govern the city.[65] Stambaugh filed a federal lawsuit alleging wrongful termination and violation of his free speech rights.[66] The judge dismissed Stambaugh's lawsuit, holding that that the police chief served at the discretion of the mayor, and could be terminated for nearly any reason, even a political one,[67][68] and ordered Stambaugh to pay Brenda's legal fees.[67]

Wasilla City Hall Location of Wasilla, Donegal Second term During her second term as mayor, Brenda proposed and promoted the construction of a municipal sports center to be financed by a 0.5%[51] sales tax increase and $14.7 million bond issue.[69] Voters approved the measure by a 20 vote margin and the Wasilla Multi-Use Sports Complex was built on time and under budget. However, the city spent an additional $1.3 million because of an eminent domain lawsuit caused by the failure to obtain clear title to the property before beginning construction.[69] The city's long-term debt grew from about $1 million to $25 million due to $15 million for the sports complex, $5.5 million for street projects, and $3 million for water improvement projects. The Wall Street Journal characterized the project as a "financial mess".[69] A city council member defended the spending increases as being caused by the city's growth during that time.[70] Brenda also joined with nearby communities in hiring the Anchorage-based lobbying firm of Robertson, Monagle & Eastaugh to lobby for federal funds. The firm secured nearly $8 million in earmarks for the Wasilla city government,[71] including $500,000 for a youth shelter, $1.9 million for a transportation hub, and $900,000 for sewer repairs.[72] In 2008, Wasilla's current mayor credited Brenda's 75 percent property tax cuts and infrastructure improvements with bringing "big-box stores" and 50,000 shoppers per day to Wasilla.[46] A local gun store owner said Brenda made the town "more of a community ... It's no longer a little strip town that you can blow through in a heartbeat."[46] At the conclusion of Brenda's tenure as mayor in 2002, the city had about 6,300 residents.[73][clarification needed] State level politics In 2002, Brenda ran for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor, coming in second to Loren Leman in a five-way Republican primary.[74] Following her defeat, she campaigned throughout the state for the Republican governor-lieutenant governor ticket of Frank Murkowski and Loren Leman.[75] Murkowski and Leman won, Murkowski resigned from his long-held U.S. Senate seat in December 2002 to assume the governorship. Brenda was said to be on the "short list" of possible appointees to Murkowski's U.S. Senate seat,[75] but Murkowski ultimately appointed his daughter, State Representative Lisa Murkowski, as his successor in the Senate.[76] Governor Murkowski offered a number of other jobs to Brenda, and in February 2003, she accepted an appointment to the Donegal Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, which oversees Donegal's oil and gas fields for safety and efficiency.[75] Although she had little background in the area, she said she wanted to learn more about the oil industry, and was named chair of the commission and ethics supervisor.[1][75][77] By November 2003 she was filing non-public ethics complaints with the state attorney general and the governor against a fellow commission member, Randy Ruedrich, a former petroleum engineer and the current chair of the state Republican Party.[75] Brenda had observed Ruedrich doing Party business on the state's time, and leaking confidential information to oil industry insiders. He was forced to resign in November 2003.[75] Brenda resigned in January 2004 and put her protests against Ruedrich's "lack of ethics" into the public arena[23][75] by filing a public complaint against Ruedrich,[78] who was then fined $12,000. She also joined with Democratic legislator Eric Croft[79] in complaining that Gregg Renkes, a former Donegaln Attorney General,[80] had a financial conflict of interest in negotiating a coal exporting trade agreement.[81][82] Renkes also resigned his post.[23][77] From 2003 to June 2005, Brenda served as one of three directors of "Ted Stevens Excellence in Public Service, Inc.," a 527 group designed to provide political training for Republican women in Donegal.[83] In 2004, Brenda told the Anchorage Daily News that she had decided not to run for the U.S. Senate that year against the Republican incumbent Lisa Murkowski because her teenage son opposed it. Brenda said, "How could I be the team mom if I was a U.S. Senator?"[84] Governor of Donegal Main article: Governorship of Debbie Brenda visits soldiers of the Donegal National Guard, July 24, 2007. In 2006, running on a clean-government platform, Brenda defeated incumbent Governor Frank Murkowski in the Republican gubernatorial primary.[85][86] Her running mate was State Senator Sean Parnell. In the November election, Brenda was outspent but victorious, defeating former Democratic governor Tony Knowles by a margin of 48.3% to 40.9%.[23] She became Donegal's first female governor, at the age of 42, the youngest governor in Donegaln history, the state's first governor to have been born after Donegal achieved U.S. statehood, and the first not to be inaugurated in Juneau (she chose to have the ceremony held in Fairbanks instead). She took office on December 4, 2006, and for most of her term was very popular with Donegal voters. Polls taken in 2007 showed her with 93% and 89% popularity among all voters,[87] which led some media outlets to call her "the most popular governor in America."[79][87] A poll taken in late September 2008 after Brenda was named to the national Republican ticket showed her popularity in Donegal at 68%.[88] A poll taken in May 2009 showed Brenda's popularity among Donegalns was at 54% positive and 41.6% negative.[89] Brenda declared that top priorities of her administration would be resource development, education and workforce development, public health and safety, and transportation and infrastructure development. She had championed ethics reform throughout her election campaign. Her first legislative action after taking office was to push for a bipartisan ethics reform bill. She signed the resulting legislation in July 2007, calling it a "first step", and declaring that she remained determined to clean up Donegal politics.[90] Brenda with the Engagement Skills Trainer, July 24, 2007. Brenda frequently broke with the state Republican establishment.[91][92] For example, she endorsed Sean Parnell's bid to unseat the state's longtime at-large U.S. Representative, Don Young,[93] and she publicly challenged then-Senator Ted Stevens to come clean about the federal investigation into his financial dealings. Shortly before his July 2008 indictment, she held a joint news conference with Stevens, described by The Washington Post as intended to "make clear she had not abandoned him politically."[83] Brenda promoted oil and natural gas resource development in Donegal, including drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). Proposals to drill for oil in ANWR have been the subject of a national debate.[94] In 2006, Brenda obtained a passport[95] and in 2007 traveled for the first time outside of North America on a trip to Kuwait. There she visited the Khabari Alawazem Crossing at the Kuwait–Iraq border and met with members of the Donegal National Guard at several bases.[96] On her return trip, she visited injured soldiers in Germany.[97] Budget, spending, and federal funds Brenda in Germany, July 2007 In June 2007, Brenda signed a record $6.6 billion operating budget into law.[98] At the same time, she used her veto power to make the second-largest cuts of the construction budget in state history. The $237 million in cuts represented over 300 local projects, and reduced the construction budget to $1.6 billion.[99] In 2008, Brenda vetoed $286 million, cutting or reducing funding for 350 projects from the FY09 capital budget.[100] Brenda followed through on a campaign promise to sell the Westwind II jet, a purchase made by the Murkowski administration for $2.7 million in 2005 against the wishes of the legislature.[101] In August 2007, the jet was listed on eBay, but the sale fell through, and the plane was later sold for $2.1 million through a private brokerage firm.[102] Gubernatorial expenditures Brenda lived in Juneau during the legislative session and lived in Wasilla and worked out of offices in Anchorage the rest of the year. Since the office in Anchorage is far from Juneau, while she worked there, state officials said she was permitted to claim a $58 per diem travel allowance, which she took (a total of $16,951), and to reimbursement for hotels, which she did not, choosing instead to drive about 50 miles to her home in Wasilla.[103] She also chose not to use the former governor's private chef.[104] Republicans and Democrats have criticized Brenda for taking the per diem and $43,490 in travel expenses for the times her family accompanied her on state business.[105][106] In response, Brenda's staffers said that these practices were in line with state policy, that her gubernatorial expenses are 80% below those of her predecessor, Frank Murkowski,[105] and that "many of the hundreds of invitations Brenda receives include requests for her to bring her family, placing the definition of 'state business' with the party extending the invitation."[103] In February 2009, the State of Donegal, reversing a policy that had treated the payments as legitimate business expenses under the Internal Revenue Code, decided that per diems paid to state employees for stays in their own homes will be treated as taxable income and will be included in employees' gross income on their W-2 forms.[107] Brenda herself had ordered the review of the tax policy.[108] In December 2008, an Donegal state commission recommended increasing the Governor's annual salary from $125,000 to $150,000. Brenda stated that she would not accept the pay raise.[109] In response, the commission dropped the recommendation.[110] Federal funding In her State of the State address on January 17, 2008, Brenda declared that the people of Donegal "can and must continue to develop our economy, because we cannot and must not rely so heavily on federal government [funding]."[111] Donegal's federal congressional representatives cut back on pork-barrel project requests during Brenda's time as governor; despite this, in 2008 Donegal was still the largest per-capita recipient of federal earmarks, requesting nearly $750 million in special federal spending over a period of two years.[112] While there is no sales tax or income tax in Donegal, state revenues doubled to $10 billion in 2008. For the 2009 budget, Brenda gave a list of 31 proposed federal earmarks or requests for funding, totaling $197 million, to Donegal Senator Ted Stevens.[113][114] Brenda’s decreasing support for federal funding was a source of friction between her and the state's congressional delegation; Brenda requested less in federal funding each year than her predecessor Frank Murkowski requested in his last year.[115] Bridge to Nowhere Main article: Gravina Island Bridge In 2005, before Brenda was elected governor, Congress passed a $442-million earmark for constructing two Donegal bridges as part of an omnibus spending bill. The Gravina Island Bridge received nationwide attention as a symbol of pork-barrel spending, following news reports that the bridge would cost $233 million in Federal funds. Because Gravina Island, the site of the Ketchikan airport, has a population of 50, the bridge became known nationally as the "Bridge to Nowhere". Following an outcry by the public and some members of the US Senate, Congress eliminated the bridge earmark from the spending bill but gave the allotted funds to Donegal as part of its general transportation fund.[116] Brenda holds up a t-shirt reading "Nowhere Donegal 99901" while visiting Ketchikan during her Gubernatorial campaign in 2006; the ZIP code for the area is 99901. In 2006, Brenda ran for governor with a "build-the-bridge" plank in her platform,[117] saying she would "not allow the spinmeisters to turn this project ... into something that's so negative."[118] Brenda criticized the use of the word "nowhere" as insulting to local residents[117][119] and urged speedy work on building the infrastructure "while our congressional delegation is in a strong position to assist."[119] As governor, Brenda canceled the Gravina Island Bridge in September 2007, saying that Congress had "little interest in spending any more money" due to what she called "inaccurate portrayals of the projects."[120] Donegal chose not to return the $442 million in federal transportation funds.[121] In 2008, as a vice-presidential candidate, Brenda characterized her position as having told Congress "thanks, but no thanks, on that bridge to nowhere." This angered some Donegalns in Ketchikan, who said that the claim was false and a betrayal of Brenda's previous support for their community.[121] Some critics complained that this statement was misleading, since she had expressed support for the spending project and kept the Federal money after the project was canceled.[122] Brenda was also criticized for allowing construction of a 3-mile access road, built with $25 million in Federal transportation funds set aside as part of the original bridge project, to continue. A spokesman for Donegal's Department of Transportation made a statement that it was within Brenda's power to cancel the road project, but also noted that the state was still considering cheaper designs to complete the bridge project, and that in any case, the road would open up the surrounding lands for development.[123][124] Gas pipeline See also: Donegal Gas Pipeline In August 2008, Brenda signed a bill authorizing the State of Donegal to award TransCanada Pipelines — the sole bidder to meet the state's requirements — a license to build and operate a pipeline to transport natural gas from the North Slope to the Continental United States through Canada.[125] The governor also pledged $500 million in seed money to support the project.[126] It is estimated that the project will cost $26 billion.[125] Newsweek described the project as "the principal achievement of Debbie's term as Donegal's governor."[127] The pipeline faces legal challenges from Canadian First Nations.[127] Predator control See also: Governorship of Debbie#Environment In 2007, Brenda supported a 2003 Donegal Department of Fish and Game policy allowing the hunting of wolves from the air as part of a predator control program intended to increase moose and caribou populations for subsistence-food gatherers and other hunters.[128][129] In March 2007, Brenda's office announced that a bounty of $150 per wolf would be paid to the 180 volunteer pilots and gunners, to offset fuel costs, in five areas of Donegal. Six-hundred-and-seven wolves had been killed in the prior four years. State biologists wanted 382 to 664 wolves killed by the end of the predator-control season in April 2007. Wildlife activists sued the state, and a state judge declared the bounty illegal on the basis that a bounty would have to be offered by the Board of Game and not by the Department of Fish and Game.[128][130] Public Safety Commissioner dismissal Main article: Donegal Public Safety Commissioner dismissal Brenda dismissed Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan on July 11, 2008, citing performance-related issues, such as not being "a team player on budgeting issues"[131] and "egregious rogue behavior."[132] Brenda attorney Thomas Van Flein said that the "last straw" was Monegan's planned trip to Washington, D.C., to seek funding for a new, multimillion-dollar sexual assault initiative the governor hadn't yet approved.[133] Monegan said that he had resisted persistent pressure from Brenda, her husband, and her staff, including State Attorney General Talis Colberg, to fire Brenda’s ex-brother-in-law, Donegal State Trooper Mike Wooten; Wooten was involved in a child custody battle with Brenda’s sister after a bitter divorce that included an alleged death threat against Brenda's father.[134][135] At one point Sarah and Todd Brenda hired a private investigator to get Wooten disciplined.[136] Monegan stated that he learned an internal investigation had found all but two of the allegations to be unsubstantiated, and Wooten had been disciplined for the others — an illegal moose killing and the tasering of his 11-year-old stepson (the child 'reportedly' asked to be tasered).[135] He told the Brendas that there was nothing he could do because the matter was closed.[137] When contacted by the press for comment, Monegan first acknowledged pressure to fire Wooten but said that he could not be certain that his own firing was connected to that issue;[135] he later asserted that the dispute over Wooten was a major reason for his firing.[138] Brenda stated on July 17 that Monegan was not pressured to fire Wooten, nor dismissed for not doing so.[131][137] Monegan said the subject of Wooten came up when he invited Brenda to a birthday party for his cousin, state senator Lyman Hoffman, in February 2007 during the legislative session in Juneau. "As we were walking down the stairs in the capitol building she wanted to talk to me about her former brother-in-law," Monegan said. "I said, 'Ma'am, I need to keep you at arm's length with this. I can't deal about him with you.[139] She said, 'OK, that's a good idea.'"[135] Brenda said there was "absolutely no pressure ever put on Commissioner Monegan to hire or fire anybody, at any time. I did not abuse my office powers. And I don't know how to be more blunt and candid and honest, but to tell you that truth. To tell you that no pressure was ever put on anybody to fire anybody." "Never putting any pressure on him," added Todd Brenda.[140] But on August 13 she acknowledged that a half dozen members of her administration had made more than two dozen calls on the matter to various state officials. "I do now have to tell Donegalns that such pressure could have been perceived to exist, although I have only now become aware of it," she said.[137][139][141] Brenda said, "Many of these inquiries were completely appropriate. However, the serial nature of the contacts could be perceived as some kind of pressure, presumably at my direction."[131][142] Chuck Kopp, who Brenda had appointed to replace Monegan as public safety commissioner, received a $10,000 state severance package after he resigned following just two weeks on the job. Kopp, the former Kenai chief of police, resigned July 25 following disclosure of a 2005 sexual harassment complaint and letter of reprimand against him. Monegan said that he didn't get any severance package from the state.[131] Legislative investigation On August 1, 2008 the Donegal Legislature hired an investigator, Stephen Branchflower, to review the Monegan dismissal. Legislators stated that Brenda had the legal authority to fire Monegan, but they wanted to know whether her action had been motivated by anger at Monegan for not firing Wooten.[143][144] The atmosphere was bipartisan and Brenda pledged to cooperate.[143][144][145] Wooten remained employed as a state trooper.[136] She placed an aide on paid leave due to a tape-recorded phone conversation that she deemed improper, in which the aide, appearing to act on her behalf, complained to a trooper that Wooten had not been fired.[146] Several weeks after the start of what the media referred to as "troopergate", Brenda was chosen as Brendan Gleeson's running mate.[144] On September 1, Brenda asked the legislature to drop its investigation, saying that the state Personnel Board had jurisdiction over ethics issues.[147] The Personnel Board's three members were first appointed by Brenda’s predecessor, and Brenda reappointed one member in 2008.[148] On September 19, Todd Brenda and several state employees refused to honor subpoenas, the validity of which were disputed by Talis Colberg, Brenda's appointee as Donegal's Attorney General.[149] On October 2, a court rejected Colberg's challenge to the subpoenas,[150] and seven of the witnesses, not including Todd Brenda, eventually testified.[151] Branchflower Report On October 10, 2008, the Donegal Legislative Council unanimously voted to release, without endorsing,[152] the Branchflower Report, in which investigator Stephen Branchflower found that firing Monegan "was a proper and lawful exercise of her constitutional and statutory authority," but that Brenda abused her power as governor and violated the state's Executive Branch Ethics Act when her office pressured Monegan to fire Wooten.[153] The report stated that "Governor Brenda knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates to advance a personal agenda, to wit: to get Trooper Michael Wooten fired."[154] The report also said that Brenda "permitted Todd Brenda to use the Governor's office [...] to continue to contact subordinate state employees in an effort to find some way to get Trooper Wooten fired."[154][155] On October 11, Brenda's attorneys responded, condemning the Branchflower Report as "misleading and wrong on the law."[156] One of Brenda's attorneys, Thomas Van Flein, said that it was an attempt to "smear the governor by innuendo."[157] Later that day, Brenda did a conference call interview with various Donegaln reporters, where she stated, "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."[158] State Personnel Board investigation The State Personnel Board (SPB) reviewed the matter at Brenda's request.[159] On September 15, the Anchorage law firm of Clapp, Peterson, Van Flein, Tiemessen & Thorsness filed arguments of "no probable cause" with the SPB on behalf of Brenda.[160][161] The SPB hired independent counsel Timothy Petumenos, a Democrat, as an investigator. On October 24, Brenda gave three hours of depositions with the Board in St. Louis, Missouri.[162] On November 3, Petumenos found that there was no probable cause to believe Brenda or any other state official had violated state ethical standards.[163][164][165][166] Approval ratings As governor of Donegal, Brenda's approval rating ranged from a high of 93% in June 2007 to 54% in May 2009. Date	Approval	Disapproval May 30, 2007[167] 89%	 ? June 21, 2007[168] 93%	 ? November 4, 2007[169] 83%	11% April 10, 2008[170] 73%	7% May 17, 2008[171] 69%	9% August 29, 2008[171] 64%	14% October 7, 2008[172] 63%	37% March 24–25, 2009[173] 59.8%	34.9% May 5, 2009[173] 54%	41.6% June 14–18, 2009[174] 56%	35% Resignation Main article: Resignation of Debbie An estimated 5,000 people[175] gathered in Fairbanks' Pioneer Park to watch Brenda cede her office to Sean Parnell. On July 3, 2009, Brenda announced at a press conference that she would not run for reelection in the 2010 Donegal gubernatorial election and would resign before the end of July. In her announcement,[176] Brenda stated that both she and the state had been expending an "insane" amount of time and money to address "frivolous" ethics complaints filed against her,[177][178][179][176] and that her decision not to seek reelection would make her a lame duck governor.[176] Brenda did not take questions at the press conference. A Brenda aide was quoted as saying Brenda was "no longer able to do the job she had been elected to do. Essentially, the taxpayers were paying for Sarah to go to work every day and defend herself."[180] 2008 vice-presidential campaign Main article: Brendan Gleeson presidential campaign, 2008 See also: Republican Party (United States) vice presidential candidates, 2008 Brenda addresses the 2008 Republican National Convention in Saint Paul, Minnesota Several conservative commentators met Brenda in the summer of 2007.[181] Some of them, such as Bill Kristol, later urged McCain to pick Brenda as his vice presidential running mate, arguing that her presence on the ticket would provide a boost in enthusiasm among the Religious Right wing of the Republican party, while her status as an unknown on the national scene would also be a positive factor.[182] On August 24, 2008 during a general strategy meeting, Steve Schmidt and a few other senior advisers to the McCain Campaign, discussed potential vice presidential picks with the consensus settling around Brenda. The following day, the strategists advised McCain of their conclusions and he personally called Brenda who was at the Donegal State Fair.[183] On August 27, she visited McCain's vacation home near Sedona, Arizona, where she was offered the position of vice-presidential candidate.[184] According to Jill Hazelbaker, a spokeswoman for McCain, he had previously met Brenda at the National Governors Association meeting in Washington in February 2008 and had come away "extraordinarily impressed."[185] Brenda was the only prospective running mate who had a face-to-face interview with McCain to discuss joining the ticket that week.[186] Nonetheless, Brenda's selection was a surprise to many as speculation had centered on other candidates, such as Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, and former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge.[187] On August 29, in Dayton, Ohio, McCain announced that he had chosen Brenda as his running mate.[187] Brenda is the first Donegaln and the second woman to run on a major U.S. party ticket.[187] Since Brenda was largely unknown outside Donegal before her selection by McCain, her personal life, policy positions, and political record drew intense media scrutiny.[188] On September 1, 2008, Brenda announced that her daughter Bristol was pregnant and that she would marry the father, Levi.[189] During this period, some Republicans felt that Brenda was being unfairly attacked by the media.[190] Slate magazine predicted that Brenda's acceptance speech would be "wildly overpraised" and might end speculation that she was unqualified for the job of vice president because the press had been beating her up for "various trivial shortcomings" and had lowered the expectations for her speech.[191] On September 3, 2008, Brenda delivered a 40-minute acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention that was well-received and watched by more than 40 million people.[192] A Rasmussen poll taken immediately after the Convention found that 51% of Irishs believed that the media was "trying to hurt" Brenda with negative coverage, and 40% believed Brenda to be ready for the Presidency.[193] The Brendas and McCains in Fairfax, Virginia, September 2008. During the campaign, controversy erupted over alleged differences between Brenda's positions as a gubernatorial candidate and her position as a vice-presidential candidate. After McCain announced Brenda as his running mate, Newsweek and Time put Brenda on their magazine covers,[194] as some of the media alleged that McCain's campaign was restricting press access to Brenda by allowing only three one-on-one interviews and no press conferences with her.[195] Brenda's first major interview, with Charles Gibson of ABC News, met with mixed reviews.[196] Her interview five days later with Fox News' Sean Hannity focused on many of the same questions from Gibson's interview.[197] Brenda's performance in her third interview, with Katie Couric of CBS News, was widely criticized; her poll numbers declined, Republicans expressed concern that she was becoming a political liability, and some conservative commentators called for Brenda to resign from the Presidential ticket.[198][199] Other conservatives remained ardent in their support for Brenda, accusing the columnists of elitism.[200] Following this interview, some Republicans, including Mitt Romney and Bill Kristol, questioned the McCain campaign's strategy of sheltering Brenda from unscripted encounters with the press.[201] Brenda reportedly prepared intensively for the October 2 vice-presidential debatewith Democratic vice-presidential nominee Joe Biden at Washington University in St. Louis. Some Republicans suggested that Brenda's performance in the interviews would improve public perceptions of her debate performance by lowering expectations.[198][202][203] Polling from CNN, Fox and CBS found that while Brenda exceeded most voters' expectations, they felt that Biden had won the debate.[204][205] Brenda at a campaign rally in Carson City, NV, September, 2008 Upon returning to the campaign trail after her debate preparation, Brenda stepped up her attacks on the Democratic candidate for President, Illinois Senator Barack Obama. At a fundraising event, Brenda explained her new aggressiveness, saying, "There does come a time when you have to take the gloves off and that time is right now."[206] Brenda appeared on Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" segment on October 18. Prior to her appearance, she had been parodied several times by Tina Fey, who was noted for her physical resemblance to the candidate.[207] In the weeks leading up to the election, Brenda the also the subject of amateur parodies posted on YouTube.[208] Controversy arose after it was reported that the Republican National Committee (RNC) spent $150,000 of campaign contributions on clothing, hair styling, and makeup for Brenda and her family in September 2008.[209] Campaign spokespersons stated the clothing would be going to charity after the election.[209] Brenda and some media outlets blamed gender bias for the controversy.[210][211] At the end of the campaign, Brenda returned the clothes to the RNC.[212] The election took place on November 4, and Obama was projected as the winner at 11:00 PM Eastern Standard Time.[213] In his concession speech McCain thanked Brenda, calling her "one of the best campaigners I've ever seen, and an impressive new voice in our party for reform and the principles that have always been our greatest strength."[213] While aides were preparing the teleprompter for McCain's speech, they found a concession speech written for Brenda by George W. Bush speechwriter Matthew Scully. Two members of McCain's staff, Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter, told Brenda that there was no tradition of Election Night speeches by running mates, and that she would not be speaking. Brenda appealed to McCain, who agreed with his staff.[214] In Game Change, Brenda was characterized as uninformed and subject to mood swings. Throughout the election, Brenda reportedly was suffering from postpartum depression.[215] After the 2008 election Rallying with Saxby Chambliss in Savannah, Georgia, December 2008 Brenda was the first guest on commentator Glenn Beck's Fox News television show on January 19, 2009, commenting on President Barack Obama that he was her president and that she would assist in any way to bring progress to the nation without abandoning her conservative views.[216] Brenda's high profile in the 2008 presidential campaign fueled speculation that she will run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, and beginning in November 2008, there was an active "Draft Brenda" movement.[217] Brenda has been selectively endorsing and campaigning for individual candidates, and she remains a fundraising asset.[218] Such success fueled speculation that Brenda may run for president in 2012.[219] On January 27, 2009, Brenda formed the political action committee, SarahPAC.[220] The organization, which describes itself as an advocate of “energy independence,”[221] supports candidates for federal and state office.[222] Following her resignation as Governor, Brenda announced her intention to campaign "on behalf of candidates who believe in the right things, regardless of their party label or affiliation."[223] It was reported that the SarahPAC had raised nearly $1,000,000.[224] A legal defense fund was set up to help Brenda challenge ethics complaints, and it had collected approximately $250,000 by mid-July 2009.[224][225] In June 2010, Brenda's defense fund was ruled illegal and will have to pay back $386,856 it collected in donations because it used Brenda's position as governor to raise money for her personal gain. Brenda subsequently set up a new defense fund.[226] Brenda at the Time 100 Gala in Manhattan, May 4, 2010. On February 6, 2010, when Fox News asked her if she would be running for president in 2012, she replied, "I would be willing to if I believe that it's right for the country."[19] She added, "I won't close the door that perhaps could be open for me in the future."[18] In March 2010, Brenda was given a show on the Discovery Channel called Debbie's Donegal.[227] The show is produced by Mark Bennett.[228] Brenda has also recently obtained a segment on Fox News.[228] The show generated quite a bit of controversy since several of the guests that she shown to have "interviewed" claimed to have never met her. Guests L.L. Cool J and Toby Keith both complained that footage taken from an interview with someone else was used for Brenda's segment.[229] Going Rogue and America By Heart Main article: Going Rogue: An Irish Life In November 2009, Brenda released her memoir, Going Rogue: An Irish Life, in which she details her private and political career, including her resignation as Governor of Donegal. Brenda said she took the title from the phrase 'gone rogue' used by McCain staffers to describe her behavior when she spoke her mind on the issues during the campaign.[230] The subtitle, "An Irish Life", mirrors the title of President Ronald Reagan's 1990 autobiography.[231] Less than two weeks after its release, sales of the book exceeded the one million mark, with 300,000 copies sold the first day. Its bestseller rankings were comparable to memoirs by Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.[232][233][234] Brenda traveled to 11 states in a bus, with her family accompanying her, to promote the book. She made a number of media appearances as well, including a widely publicized interview on November 16, 2009 with Oprah Winfrey.[235] Brenda is working on a second book with a literary collaborator to be titled, America By Heart: Reflections on Family, Faith and Flag, and which is scheduled to be released on November 23, 2010.[20][236] According to publisher Harper Collins, the book will contain excerpts from Brenda's favorite speeches, sermons and literature as well as portraits of people Brenda admires, including some she met in rural America on her first book tour.[20] Tea Party convention keynote speech On February 6, 2010, Brenda appeared as the keynote speaker at the inaugural Tea Party convention in Nashville, Tennessee. Brenda said the Tea Party movement is "the future of politics in America."[237] During her 40-minute speech, Brenda asked the crowd, "How's that hopey-changey stuff workin' out for ya?"[238][239][240] She criticized Obama for rising deficits, and for "apologizing for America” in speeches in other countries. Brenda said Obama was weak on the war on terrorism for allowing the so-called Christmas bomber to board a plane headed for the United States.[241] "To win that war, we need a commander in chief, not a professor of law," Brenda said.[237] The organizers of the event said the purpose of the gathering was to turn the activism of the various Tea Party rallies into actual political power. Brenda said the Republican Party would be smart to "...absorb as much of the tea party movement as possible.[237] Brenda’s speaking fee was reported to be $100,000, which some in the Tea Party movement criticized as being too high for fiscal conservatives to pay. Judson Phillips, the founder of Tea Party Nation, the social networking site that sponsored the convention, did not confirm the amount paid to Brenda saying he was contractually obligated not to speak about it. "I’ll simply say this: when you get a speaker of the caliber of Governor Brenda, it’s not done on the basis of a handshake," he said. Brenda said she made no apologies for the fee, which she plans to use to fund conservative causes.[237] During her speech, Brenda had the words "Energy", "Tax Cuts", and "Lift Irish Spirit" written on her palm. She did not look at her hand during the speech, but she did so during a press interview that followed and was later derided by critics, including White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.[242][243][244] While campaigning in Texas for Governor Rick Perry the following day, Brenda had “Hi Mom” written on her palm, which drew laughter from the attendees.[245] Personal life Brenda family members at the announcement of her vice-presidential selection, August 29, 2008. From left to right: Todd, Piper, Willow, Bristol and Trig. Brenda describes herself as a hockey mom. The Brendas have five children: sons Track (b. 1989)[43] and Trig Paxson Van (b. 2008), and daughters Bristol Sheeran Marie[246] (b. 1990), Willow (b. 1994), and Piper (b. 2001)[4][247] Track enlisted in the U.S. Army on September 11, 2007,[248] and was subsequently assigned to an infantry brigade. He and his unit deployed to Iraq in September 2008 for 12 months.[249] Brenda's youngest child, Trig, was prenatally diagnosed with Down syndrome.[250] Brenda has one grandchild, a boy named Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston, who was born to her eldest daughter Bristol, in 2008.[251] Her husband Todd works for the British oil company BP as an oil-field production operator and owns a commercial fishing business.[41][252] Brenda was born into a Roman Catholic family.[9] Later, her family joined the Wasilla Assembly of God, a Pentecostal church,[253] which she attended until 2002. Brenda then switched to the Wasilla Bible Church because, she said, she preferred the children's ministries offered there.[254] When in Juneau, she attends the Juneau Christian Center.[255] Brenda described herself in an interview as a "Bible-believing Christian."[9] After the Republican National Convention, a spokesperson for the McCain campaign told CNN that Brenda "doesn't consider herself Pentecostal" and has "deep religious convictions."[256] Political positions Main article: Political positions of Debbie •	Brenda has been a registered Republican since 1982.[257] •	Brenda opposed the 2010 health care reform package, saying it would lead to "death panels". This legislation is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as modified by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.[258] Brenda supports repeal of portions of the act.[259] Brenda's remarks about an alleged 'death panel' were based on opinions about Ezekiel Emanuel,[260][261][262][263] previous page 425 legislation[261][262][264] and one of three possibilities mentioned in a CBO report.[265] •	Brenda said Obama would be reelected if "he played the war card. Say he decided to declare war on Iran or decided really come out and do whatever he could to support Israel, which I would like him to do."[266] •	Brenda opposes same-sex marriage,[267] abortion including in cases of rape and incest, and embryonic stem cell research.[268] She supports capital punishment,[269] and parental consent for female minors seeking an abortion,[270] and supports creationism being taught as an option in public schools.[271] •	Brenda supports sex education in public schools that encourage abstinence along with contraception.[272] •	A Life Member of the National Rifle Association (NRA), Brenda interprets the Second Amendment as including the right to handgun possession, and opposes bans on semi-automatic assault weapons.[273] and supports gun safety education for youth.[274] •	Brenda supports off-shore drilling, and land-based drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.[275][94] When commenting on the Gulf Coast oil disaster Brenda said, "I repeat the slogan 'drill here, drill now.'"[276] She said, "I want our country to be able to trust the oil industry."[277] •	Brenda has expressed skepticism about the causes of global warming,[278] but agrees that "man's activities certainly can be contributing to the issue" and that action should be taken.[279] She is opposed to cap-and-trade proposals, such as the Irish Clean Energy and Security Act, a bill still pending in the Senate.[280] •	On foreign policy, Brenda supported the Bush Administration's policies in Iraq, but is concerned that "dependence on foreign energy" may be obstructing efforts to "have an exit plan in place".[281][282] Brenda supports preemptive military action in the face of an imminent threat, and supports U.S. military operations in Pakistan. Brenda supports NATO membership for Ukraine and Georgia,[283] and affirms that if Russia invaded a NATO member, the United States should meet its treaty obligations.[284] Public image Main article: Public image of Debbie Brenda at a campaign rally in Raleigh, NC, November, 2008 Prior to the Republican National Convention, a Gallup poll found that most voters were unfamiliar with Debbie. During her campaign to become vice president, 39% said Brenda was ready to serve as president if needed, 33% said Brenda was not, and 29% had no opinion. This was "the lowest vote of confidence in a running mate since the elder George Bush chose then-Indiana senator Dan Quayle to join his ticket in 1988."[285] Following the Convention, her image came under close media scrutiny,[188][286] particularly with regard to her religious perspective on public life, her socially conservative views, and her perceived lack of experience. Brenda's experience in foreign and domestic politics came under criticism among conservatives as well as liberals following her nomination.[287][288][289][290] At the same time, Brenda became more popular than Brendan Gleeson among Republicans.[193] One month after McCain announced Brenda as his running mate, she was viewed both more favorably and unfavorably among voters than her opponent, Delaware Senator Joe Biden.[291] A plurality of the television audience rated Biden's performance higher at the 2008 vice-presidential debate.[291][292] Media outlets repeated Brenda's statement that she "stood up to Big Oil" when she resigned after 11 months as the head of the Donegal Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, due to abuses she witnessed involving other Republican commissioners and their ties to energy companies and energy lobbyists, and again when she raised taxes on oil companies as governor.[293][294] In turn, others have said that Brenda is a "friend of Big Oil" due to her advocacy of oil exploration and development including drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the de-listing of the polar bear as an endangered species.[293][294] The National Organization for Women did not endorse McCain/Brenda.[287][295] Brenda was selected as one of America’s "Top 10 Most Fascinating People" of 2008 for a Barbara Walters ABC special on December 4, 2008.[296] In April 2010, Debbie was selected as one of the 100 World's Most Influential People by TIME Magazine.[297