Sarah Palin lets Greta Van Susteren do her talking for her on Obama's Cuba decision, and the second season of Amazing America attracts a smattering of coverage. Not all of it good.

I don't think that Palin really has any idea what the President's decision to normalize relations with Cuba ultimately means for conservative politics. So until her handlers tell her what to say she is staying relatively quiet on the issue.

However that does not mean she cannot link to her pal Greta Van Susteren who seems perturbed that the President worked to release Alan Gross, who has been imprisoned in Cuba since 2009, and not Andrew Tahmooressi who had been in a Mexico jail for about seven months.

This is from Van Susteren's Facebook page:

I'm very happy ‪#‎AlanGross‬ is home, but still absolutely mystified as to why President Barack Obama wouldn't help our ‪#‎MarineHeldInMexico‬. Watch my "Off the Record" commentary and tell me if you are likewise stumped about the president's lack of involvement in freeing Sgt. Andrew ‪#‎Tahmooressi‬.

Here let me help.

The reason that the President was more hands on with getting Alan Gross out of prison than the conservative's pet border jumping Marine might be because Gross was arrested for smuggling satellite phones and computer components to a Cuban Jewish organization, and Tahmooressi was caught crossing the border with illegal firearms and then repeatedly lied to the Mexican police.

Just a hunch.

As for Palin's second season working the green screen, there is really not a whole lot of buzz thus far.

The Washington Times covered it, barely.

As did Mediaite.

Alaska Dispatch did a little better. (Also revealing Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner's struggle with alcohol and drugs.)

And even Breitbart could only bring themselves to contribute about six paragraphs to the show.

They also used this picture.

Which I think indicates where THEIR interest lies.

What I found more informative were the comments found on some of these media outlets.

For instance: 

They'll do okay until they get in their first fight about what to shoot from the helicopter wolves or pigs, and the whole Palin klan blindsides and jumps Nugent in a drunken orgy of violence. 

You know, a typical Palin family outing. 

And: 

Wow, Nugent and Palin on the same show - between them they might get to double digits in the IQ department. 

As well as: 

...and the caricature of a human is now complete. It seems appropriate that she's standing on the side of a road looking for the best offer to come along, much like she spent her time in the Governor's office. What a waste of skin.

Not that is a hell of a lot more entertaining than anything to be found in this crappy show of hers.

Speaking of entertainment I thought you guys would like to know that my source was beyond thrilled with the response to my post on Monday and is excited to share more.

I will be trying to get together with her this weekend, or early next week.

Before then I thought it might be fun to ask all of you if there are any questions that you would like her to clear up, that perhaps I have not already thought of myself. And before you say it I have already discussed with her the babygate thing and we are working on that.

Mark Begich concedes.

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:  

After holding on to dwindling hope for days, Sen. Mark Begich on Monday conceded he had lost his U.S. Senate race to Republican Dan Sullivan. 

With the concession coming nearly two weeks after the Nov. 4 general election and with few votes left to count, the statement was largely a formality.

As you know I already called this race the day after the election.

The reason I did that is because even though I may be an optimist, I am still a realist and I knew the numbers simply did not add up.

However I would be lying if I did not admit that a part of me secretly hoped that I was wrong and would have to eat crow. Crow would taste so much better than bitter defeat.

Mark was a good guy, and a hard worker for Alaska, who actually understands the people and lives they live up here in the Last Frontier.

Sure many of Mark's votes were in line with President Obama, but much of those votes were ultimately beneficial to the people of our state.

Sullivan does not work for us, and his votes in the Senate will be guided by outside forces. And trust me, few of those will ultimate be of benefit to Alaskans.

In response to lawsuit the state of Alaska did a huge document dump concerning the Alaska National Guard scandal late yesterday. Can you say "redacted?"

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:  

An initial review of Alaska National Guard-related documents released by the state Friday in response to a media lawsuit shows the Parnell administration received more complaints about the guard than have so far been reported. 

But so many words and paragraphs among the 596 pages of emails and attached documents were redacted by state lawyers and the administration that the significance of some of the correspondence was difficult to discern.

The attorney general’s office made the document dump Friday afternoon in response to a court order in a public records lawsuit brought by Alaska Dispatch News and Alaska Public Media. The news organizations sued the state after records requests going back to May were denied or ignored by the governor’s office.

I have only had a little while to go through the e-mails and correspondence, but it is pretty clear that most of what could damage Sean Parnell has been redacted, much like those Sarah Palin e-mails from years ago.

However the one thing that is crystal clear is just how long this problem existed in the Alaska National Guard, and the fact that nothing was really ever done to stop it up until the media started to report on it.

It will take days, if not weeks to go through the entire document dump, and the Alaska Dispatch is asking or help from its readers, so if any of you have the time....

Remember we only have this weekend to find any smoking guns to use against Parnell before Tuesday's election. But hey, no pressure.

Alaska Dispatch has all of the audio from the drunken brawl. No bleeping here folks.

"I love my Bristol!"

So I spent quite a lot of my night last night listening to the audio over at TPM. They have pretty much all of it, so it took quite some time.

I was going to transcribe it but there is just too much.

Then I found that Alaska Dispatch had the audio as well, and made it accessible to be embedded so I have done that below with a few of the most provocative parts. (To listen to them all just head on over to the Dispatch.)
Here is how the Dispatch described this one:

Through sobs, Bristol Palin, described as "heavily intoxicated" in the police report, tells police she was pushed to the ground and dragged across the grass while Klingenmeyer called her names. “They took my $300 sunglasses, they took my f**king shoes and I’m f**king just left here?” 

The officer asks where she’s injured. “My f**king knees, my face, where’s my sh*t? I have a 5-year-old in the car,” she replies. 

Steve Lebida, identified in the police report as being involved in the fight on the sidewalk in front of the home, is interviewed as he leaves the party. “I think I tripped and fell,” he initially tells police, but later says he was beat up. His driver says she is taking him to the hospital, and police allow him to leave. 

After police interview several other people who are leaving the party, the Palins begin arguing with the officer about why he allowed others to leave. Willow Palin tells the officer, “Seriously, (Bristol) got beat to the ground and you are just going to let him go away?”

Funny how Willow describes Bristol as "mentally hurt" after the fight. I also wish the police had more carefully questioned this Steve Lebida guy, as he is clearly afraid to speak on the record.

And Bristol keeps talking about her "five year old in the car," is very reminiscent of her mother hiding behind Trig to deflect criticism or to keep from answering probing questions.

The second part of the interview is with Mark McKenna who parrots the Palin's version of events, but absolutely throws Bristol under the bus and does not back up her story of being dragged around by her legs.

Here is how the Dispatch describes this portion:

At minute 6:49, homeowner Klingenmeyer recounts his version of events: A fight broke out in the front of the house, after which Klingenmeyer was approached by Bristol Palin, looking to start a fight with another woman. When Klingenmeyer stopped her, Palin hit him in the face, he tells police. 

Matthew McKenna is interviewed after Klingenmeyer, explaining that the fight involving Todd and Track Palin was fueled by alcohol. “(Steve Lebida) was mouthing off to another drunk guy,” McKenna said. 

At 20:21, Todd Palin interjects and confronts Klingenmeyer. “Did you call Bristol a slut, or what’s up man?” Todd Palin says. 

"Todd, really?" Klingenmeyer replies. 

Klingenmeyer tells Palin, “You need to go on another reality show.” 

As the situation escalates, an officer says, “Let’s break this up.” In the background, others tell Track Palin to back off and stay out of the confrontation.

That interaction between Todd and Korey is very interesting and clearly demonstrates why he is called the enforcer. I also find it interesting that Todd seems to be prompting McKenna as to what version of the fight that happened with Todd and Track he needs to tell.

Here is how the Dispatch describes this portion:

Willow Palin can be heard reiterating that Klingenmeyer was calling her sister expletives and says that Bristol never landed a punch on Klingenmeyer. 

At the mention of a possible video of the event, an unidentified man tells police, “These are friends of mine and (the video) ain’t going out to anybody. 

The video don’t exist.” “I don’t have to owe you video because you’re a cop,” the man says.

You can clearly hear Willow in the background claiming that Bristol missed every punch she through at Klingenmeyer, and also that weird "I swear to God on my Down syndrome brother's life" phrase.

And I love hearing Todd telling Willow to shut up.

As for the guy telling the police that he does not "owe the video to you" that is clearly Mark McKenna. And if Klingenmeyer decides to press charge, then despite his protests to the contrary he WOULD have to produce that video.

You can hear Eric Thompson giving his account of events as well. Sounds EXACTLY like what he told the press later.

And the rest of the witnesses on the audio back up Klingenmeyer's version of events.

Here is how the Dispatch describes this portion:

A chaotic scene unfolds in which a child can be heard crying and the Palin family is heard yelling in the background. 

A police officer speaks with Track and Todd Palin, who give a convoluted version of events. Track Palin believes they are in Eagle River at a party that was “kosher” until some men started insulting his sister. 

Todd Palin said a “father-and-son team” came down from the house and “cold-clocked” their friend Steve Lebida. “When that happened it just escalated,” Palin said. 

Witness Brian Horschel tells police that he didn’t see the fights but that Track Palin was picking a fight with Todd inside the house before the altercation began. 

This is the portion where you can clearly hear a child crying. And I am about 99% sure that is Tripp.

Track clearly comes off as an arrogant asshole. And Todd's attempts to control what he says is fails miserably.  (I love the part where Track claims to know Jiu Jitsu. I call bullshit on that buddy.)

At the end you can hear Bristol claiming that she has "no clue" if she hit Korey or not. Clearly extremely drunk.

This last audio is where Klingenmeyer is highly agitated and wants the police to do something, and get the Palins off his property.

Here is how the Dispatch describes this one: 

A highly agitated Korey Klingenmeyer approaches and asks police to take control of the scene. “These Palins running up here on my property acting like they own it is not gonna fly with me. … I don’t give a f*ck if their name’s Palin or f*cking Obama, cause they don’t mean sh*t to me,” he says.

It is pretty clear that Klingenmeyer really wanted to press charges against Bristol, but sadly he was apparently talked out of that. "I want to press charges against Bristol fucking Palin."

There is literally SO much on these audio tapes that there is simply no way to type it all out. So absolutely feel free to share in the comments section anything that the Dispatch and I missed.

Like I said I have listened to this quite a lot, and at this point if I do not have to hear Bristol crying, Willow yelling obscenities, to Track acting the bad ass it will be too soon.

Man they certainly do put the "fun" in dysfunctional.

(P.S. Please make sure to visit the Alaska Dispatch and give them some hits as we owe them for their hard work.)