Palin exonerated by Personnel Board

(By Ed Morrissey, Hot Air) - Sarah Palin did nothing wrong in firing Walt Monegan, the Alaskan State Personnel Board has concluded. Their independent investigator criticized the legislature’s investigator for applying the wrong law. They also said that Todd Palin did nothing wrong in pressing for action against the governor’s former brother-in-law:

A new report just released — hours before the polls open on Election Day — exonerates Gov. Sarah Palin in the Troopergate controversy.

The state Personnel Board-sanctioned investigation is the second into whether Palin violated state ethics law in firing her public safety commissioner, and it contradicts the earlier findings by a special counsel hired by the state Legislature.

Both investigations found that Palin was within her rights to fire Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan.

But the new report says the Legislature’s investigator was wrong to conclude that Palin abused her power by allowing aides and her husband, Todd, to pressure Monegan and others to dismiss her ex-brother-in-law, Trooper Mike Wooten. Palin was accused of firing Monegan after Wooten stayed on the job.

It’s probably too late to address the political damage done by the partisan hack job from the legislature, but at least it will correct the record. The Personnel Board must have concluded that mind-reading isn’t its job or the legislature’s, and that a governor can terminate a political appointee for whatever reason. This has been the truth all along, but some in Alaska — and around the country — conveniently forgot it for just enough time to smear Palin.

Monegan won’t get a hearing from the Personnel Board to “clear his reputation”. Where does Palin go to clear hers after this tempest in a teapot?