Two college kids went dumpster diving at California State University and found something rotten all right, but it wasn't expired food. In a scene out of made for TV spy thriller Ashli Briggs heard that there was "suspicious activity taking place at the administration building" grabbing her friend Alicia Lewis they went to investigate.
There they found boxes of documents and shredded files. Nothing suspicious right? But in those boxes was Sarah Palin's speaking contract. No, the school hadn't decided that it was a bad idea to have her speak and tossed out the documents in a moment of sanity. They were, it seems just trying to cover their tail. Like, Watergate (another cover-up done badly) they failed miserably.
In the documents, which were handed over to the California Attorney General Jerry Brown. Who is now opening an investigation into the scheduled June 25th Palin speaking event.
à ‚¬ "Round-trip, first class commercial air travel for two between Anchorage, Alaska and event city"
à ‚¬ Presumably for Palin's guests, "full, unrestricted round-trip coach airfare for two between event city and lower 48 US States."
à ‚¬ If the university chooses to use a private jet, "the Speaker, their traveling party and the plane crew will be the only passengers."
à ‚¬ Ground transportation in both the originating city and the event city "will be by SUV(s) from a professionally licensed and insured car service."
à ‚¬ "security arrangements as deemed necessary by [Washington Speakers Bureau] and the Speaker."
à ‚¬ Accommodations are to include "a one-bedroom suite and two single rooms in a deluxe hotel" as well as a "laptop computer and printer (fully stocked with paper) and high speed internet" and "all meals and incidentals."
à ‚¬ "For Q&A, the questions are to be collected from the audience in advance, pre-screened and a designated representative shall ask questions directly of the Speaker."
Not listed, but shown in the documents are her specific guidelines on which what people should approach and leave her presence when they have their photograph taken with her.
These sort of requests are not uncommon among the Hollywood elite that Palin constantly holds up as what's wrong with this country. The documents do not mention her pay which is reportedly in the realm of $75,000 to $100,000.
By now I'm sure that most of you have heard the stories of Palin's earnings, $100K for the Tea Party convention, $7 million for her first book deal, untold earnings from her appearances on Fox News and now her reality show. ABC News (http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/sarah-palin-earned-estimated-12-million-july/story?id=10352437) is reporting that she has now earned $12 million since July of last year.
According to the Daily Beast (http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-03-25/palins-alaska-pay-day/?cid=tag:all1) TLC, the same channel that brought us the family show Jon & Kate Plus 8 will be paying her a quarter of a million an episode for 'Sarah Palin's Alaska.' That's a total of $2 million for 8 excruciating episodes. Details on the DVD sales and iTunes downloads are unknown. What has been little reported in this over-reported story is that Alaska will more than likely foot the bill for her reality show. Alaskan journalist Shannyn Moore called the story "Grifter TV" on her indispensable blog - ShannynMoore.com.
Shannyn wrote back in March "When Alaska Senator Johnny Ellis introduced a bill to subsidize film and television production in Alaska, no one thought then Sarah Palin could be a recipient. On June 4, 2008, she signed the film subsidy in to law." Well it looks like Palin could. The Anchorage Press reported that (http://www.anchoragepress.com/articles/2010/03/24/news/doc4baab04b56be1087900428.txt)
"the state of Alaska's film subsidy program would allow Burnett, or anyone who hires an Alaska resident as a talking head, to get back 40 percent of those wages, or $400,000. Production companies that shoot between October and March qualify for an additional two percent, and there's a two-percent rural shooting bonus. So if a company pays an Alaska politician--or an Alaska fifth grader--$1 million to travel to Barrow and chatter in front of cameras about the first sunrise of 2011 next January, the production can qualify for $442,000 in state tax credits."
So I wonder, what's next for Palin, which character in Stephen Frears "The Grifters" does she play? Cusacks small time con? The Mother who's been at it for years? Or the girlfriend playing them all?
Either way Anjelica Houston or Lily Dillon's mantra fits what Palin must be thinking "A person who don't look out for himself, is too dumb to look out for anybody else."
Zach Roberts is making his own Sarah Palin reality show, but doesn't have Palin's corporate friends. Please go to http://www.TheRogueCandidate.com and support the film that will uncover Palin's REAL Alaska. Interviews with Greg Palast, Shannyn Moore, Allison Kilkenny, Jamie Kilstein, Lee Camp and many many more.
Trailer to The Grifters - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocCWEBSC4-0
