Palin RESIGNS

Timothy McNulty | July 3, 2009

We'll put the roundup of stories on one of the biggest names in the GOP here.

AP:

WASILLA, Alaska (AP) -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin says she is resigning from office.

She didn't say why she decided to step down, but the surprise announcement stirred speculation that she would focus on a bid for the 2012 Republican nomination for president.

The former Republican vice presidential candidate made the announcement from her home in suburban Wasilla on Friday morning. She said she would step down July 26.

Spokesman Dave Murrow says Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell will be inaugurated at the governor's picnic in Fairbanks at the end of the month.

Palin was first elected in 2006 on a populist platform. But her popularity has waned as she waged in partisan politics following her return from the presidential campaign.

NYT:

"We know we can effect positive change outside of government," she said in making the announcement.

Ms. Palin, who was known as Sarah Barricuda when she played basketball in high school, used point guard analogy, saying she knows "exactly when to pass the ball so the team can win."

WashPost:

Palin's decision comes amid polling that showed her losing altitude from the stratospheric heights to which she ascended following her election in 2006 but remained a strong favorite to win reelection.

Palin is the second potential 2012 candidate to decide against reelection. Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty chose not to run for a third term last month.

More from the WashPost's Chris Cillizza on why running for prez from Alaska is so difficult:

• Geography is Destiny: Being from Alaska is a HUGE hurdle for Palin's national ambitions from a logistical point of view. Alaska is four hours behind east coast time and takes the better part of a day to travel to or from. That means that Palin, if she is committed to running for reelection, can't simply pop into Iowa or New Hampshire for the day -- she needs to take at least two days away from Alaska (a fact her Democratic opponents are sure to take note of) to do the sort of soil-tilling in these early primary and caucus states that is absolutely necessary for a presidential candidate. If she announces some time soon that she will not be running for a second term, she will not only be more free to travel to key states between now and 2010 but will be able to devote full time to campaigning in the critical year between January 2011 and January 2012.

National Review -- via HotAir -- says resigning hurts her prez ambitions:

David Schuster is offering a typical sneering tone, but it doesn't make it any less accurate: "If it's true that she's leaving the governorship before her first term is complete, her national political career is done." A broken clock can be right twice a day, and Schuster is right here. If Sarah Palin wishes to someday be President of the United States, then she had to serve at least one full term in statewide office. (Yes, Obama had been in the Senate for about two years before running for president, but he had a lot of stars align for him at the right moment. Beyond that, at some point, "but Obama did it that way" isn't a persuasive argument.)

Departing with little or no warning, after about 30 months in office, is beyond surprising. I'm sure the Lieutenant Governor will do fine, but there's definately a sense of leaving with work unfinished and as her career was just beginning to take off.

I know we've heard a lot of chanting "Governor, it's time to resign," but we meant Mark Sanford.

CNN:

A Republican source close to her political team told CNN's John King that it was a "calculation" she made that "it was time to move on." The governor's "book deal and other issues" were "causing a lot of friction" in her home state, the source said, adding that he believes she is "mapping out a path to 2012."

Here's the really long Vanity Fair piece from Todd Purdum that dredged up a lot of Palin stuff from the campaign this week, and sparked new fights inside the GOP.

Her official statement (much shorter than her speech above) is here.