All Blog Posts from Political Hotsheet

One of the stranger aspects of Sarah Palin's announcement Friday that she will resign as governor of Alaska was the notion that it followed naturally from her decision not to seek reelection next year.

The argument goes that executives who can't – or in Palin's case simply choose not to – seek reelection are no longer accountable to their constituents. Their legislative counterparts no longer have to worry about continuing to work with them. So they just amble on, enjoying the fancy dinners and chartered jets that come with their positions, accomplishing little in their waning days in office.

Palin put it this way in her resignation speech:

And so as I thought about this announcement that I wouldn't run for re-election and what it means for Alaska, I thought about how much fun some governors have as lame ducks... travel around the state, to the Lower 48 (maybe), overseas on international trade - as so many politicians do. And then I thought - that's what's wrong - many just accept that lame duck status, hit the road, draw the paycheck, and "milk it". I'm not putting Alaska through that - I promised efficiencies and effectiveness!

She made the same argument in a July 4th Facebook post, saying, "Once I decided not to run for re-election, my decision was that much easier - I've never been one to waste time or resources."

It’s a tough justification to swallow. Are we really to believe that serving out her term would be an automatic waste of time and resources? For one thing, its logical endpoint would be that all presidents should resign as soon as they're elected to a second term, lest they waste America's time with four years of unaccountable lame duck status. Senators and congressmen should resign too as soon as they see retirement or a losing electoral fight on the horizon.

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After a revealing interview with the Associated Press Tuesday, South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford is facing tougher critics than ever.

On Wednesday, word came that 12 of 27 state senators and six South Carolina newspapers are calling upon the governor to resign following his mysterious disappearance and revelations of adultery. Even the Greenville News revoked its statement supporting the governor after the interview.

"Gov. Mark Sanford should resign immediately and allow South Carolina to begin picking up the pieces. The two-term governor has destroyed any shred of credibility with his lies unnecessarily added on top of other lies. His ability to govern this state has been compromised so severely that he cannot fulfill the duties required of this state's governor until a successor takes the oath of office in January 2011," the paper wrote.

Seven U.S. senators, meanwile, issued a letter Tuesday demanding he leave office, The New York Daily News reports.

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In a move that comes late on a Friday afternoon – the traditional time to release news that one wants buried – the White House has released a photograph of the controversial Air Force One flyover that spurred panic in downtown New York City and anger from administration and city officials.

The photo, taken from a nearby F-16 fighter, is above.

The White House also announced that the Director of the White House Military Office, Louis Caldera, has resigned as a result of the controversy. Caldera took the blame for authorizing the $328,835 photo-op.

"I have concluded that the controversy surrounding the Presidential Airlift Group's aerial photo shoot over New York City has made it impossible for me to effectively lead the White House Military Office," Caldera said in a resignation letter. "Moreover, it has become a distraction to the important work you are doing as President."

President Obama accepted Caldera's resignation.

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Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn is calling on Sen. Roland Burris to resign.

"Under the current circumstances, where our state needs a strong voice in Washington on so many different issues, I don’t think it’s in the public interest or the common good to have a U.S. senator who has to spend an undue amount of time going over and over matters on how he obtained the office," Quinn said at a news conference today.

Burris was appointed to the Senate by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, the man whom Quinn replaced after Blagojevich was impeached and removed from office following corruption charges.

Blagojevich appointed Burris to the seat while still in office but after charges were filed against him. Democrats first vowed not to seat Burris, but they eventually relented amid assurances from Burris that he had not acted improperly.

Burris has since acknowledged, however, that he had contact with multiple Blagojevich associates about his interest in the seat. He also said he tried to fundraise for the embattled then-governor while being considered.

The revelations prompted calls for a perjury investigation of Burris, since they apparently contradicted his testimony before the Blagojevich impeachment committee. They have also led to calls for his resignation from state legislators, two House Democrats, and Chicago pastors.

Burris insists that he has done nothing wrong.

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