In the biggest hypocritical whoppers of the election, one of the main points of Sarah Palins support since she was chosen by John Mccain as Vice Presidential running mate. is that she stopped “the bridge to nowhere”, a proposed bridge to replace the ferry that currently connects Ketchikan, Alaska, to the Ketchikan International Airport on Gravina Island. a.k.a “Gravina Island Access Project” for those who want to do your own fact finding.
Palin told the crowd at the Republican National Convention: “I told Congress, thanks but no thanks on that bridge to nowhere, and if we need one, we’ll build it ourselves“. It drew a rousing smattering of applause from convention delegates, with a few yelps of “Here..Here!”
According to archived news reports and many, many information outlets there seems to be a little convenient hypocrisy in her statements. Actually during her race for Governor of the State of Alaska, Sarah Palin actually supported the Ketchikan Bridge and lobbied for Earmrked funds to build the $398 million project.
During her campaign for Governor, Sarah Palin visited Ketchikan in September of 2006 to address her support for the Gravina Island Bridge project. At a forum in Ketchikan, Palin was seen holding up a t-shirt designed by a Ketchikan artist, Mary Ida Henrikson with “Nowhere Alaska 99901″ on it, referencing the buzzword of Bridge to ‘Nowhere’, and the primary zip code of Ketchikan, Alaska. At the same forum, she was quoted: “OK, you’ve got Valley trash standing here in the middle of nowhere,” Palin said. “I think we’re going to make a good team as we progress that bridge project.
Three years ago, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the plan to spend hundreds of millions to connect Ketchikan with its airport on Gravina Island became a national symbol of Congressional excess, much to the dismay of Sen. Ted Stevens and Rep. Don Young.
Sen. John McCain has made it a habit to ridicule the bridge project during his presidential campaign.
In 2006, the Anchorage Daily News asked Sarah Palin specifically if she would support the Gravina Island Bridges”
5. Would you continue state funding for the proposed Knik Arm and Gravina Island bridges?
Yes. I would like to see Alaska’s infrastructure projects built sooner rather than later. The window is now - while our congressional delegation is in a strong position to assist.
It is listed as one of the major accomplishments from the Governors office in 2007 in:
http://gov.state.ak.us/omb/09_omb/budget/Trans/comp2297.pdf
“Awarded a $25.7 million design-build contract for the first stage of the Gravina Island Highway, which is the road component of the Gravina Island Access project.”
Listed in a 2006 draft for earmarked projects is “Improve surface access between Ketchikan and Gravina Island, including the Ketchikan International Airport.”
http://www.dot.state.ak.us/stwdplng/cip_stip/assets/draft_stip/04amdemrk.pdf
As you can imagine residents of Alaska and Ketchikan shave been outraged by Palin’s two faced, and convenient show boating. Many claim Palin only rebuked the bridge, after it became a national symbol of excess, and it was evident funding would not be supported.
In early September, the McCain campaign released a television advertisement that said, “She stopped the Bridge to Nowhere.” Howard Kurt, of the Washington Post, called this a “whopper”, writing: “She endorsed the remote project while running for governor in 2006, claimed to be an opponent only after Congress killed its funding the next year and has used the $223 million provided for it for other state ventures.
In other words, she did not give back any money!
Sarah Palin campaigned for Governor of Alaska on a Build the Bridge platform, but after she was elected, she reversed her support for the project.
Sarah Palin;s image as a reformist, and agent of change is deep rooted in this action and is a catalyst for her platform against wasteful spending. If this is, in fact , stretching the truth a little, what about the Vice Presidential Candidate is true ?
I have been accused of picking on Sarah Palin since she was announced to be John McCains running mate, so I will just post links to the information and let you all make your own decisions.
I am feeling particularly charitable today.
Chris Wallace Fact-Checks Sarah Palin’s Bogus ‘Bridge To Nowhere’
Palin Accused of Using Bridge for showboating
Rueters- “Palins Bridge to Nowhere Line Angers Alaskans
There are many more stories, but I got tired, that should be sufficient. I guess neither John Mccain , nor Sarah Palin have a grasp on how the internet works, and that nothing ever goes away. I found the photo on Wikipedia. LOL!
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