“Commander-in-Chief of the Alaska National Guard”

… who has no role in the Guard’s national-defense mission, and isn’t even briefed on situations.

Not!

Of course, it was a pretty silly claim in the first place, and the claim that the proximity of Alaska to Russia put Sarah Palin toe-to-toe with Vladimir Putin was silliness on stilts.

But now the Adjutant General of the Alaska National Guard tells the AP that, while the Governor oversees the Guard’s domestic functions,

he and Palin play no role in national defense activities, even when they involve the Alaska National Guard. The entire operation is under federal control, and the governor is not briefed on situations.

[emphasis added]

Nice try, fellas. Wanna try again?

Kudos to Ted Anthony of the AP, who seems to have a different idea about the role of a journalist than, for example, Ron Fournier.

Author: Mark Kleiman

Professor of Public Policy at the NYU Marron Institute for Urban Management and editor of the Journal of Drug Policy Analysis. Teaches about the methods of policy analysis about drug abuse control and crime control policy, working out the implications of two principles: that swift and certain sanctions don't have to be severe to be effective, and that well-designed threats usually don't have to be carried out. Books: Drugs and Drug Policy: What Everyone Needs to Know (with Jonathan Caulkins and Angela Hawken) When Brute Force Fails: How to Have Less Crime and Less Punishment (Princeton, 2009; named one of the "books of the year" by The Economist Against Excess: Drug Policy for Results (Basic, 1993) Marijuana: Costs of Abuse, Costs of Control (Greenwood, 1989) UCLA Homepage Curriculum Vitae Contact: Markarkleiman-at-gmail.com