Books like Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin: A Memoir of Our Tumultuous Years

Even though I believed it from the time I watched that infamous Katie Couric interview, after reading this book I am soooooooo relieved that our country chose not to have Sarah Palin in the position of being a heartbeat away from the presidency. Especially considering the fact the would-be president was 72, a cancer survivor and had spent five years in a POW camp. Even as governor of a state with only 700,000 residents, the woman was way over her head.Author Frank Bailey describes what it was like inside the Palin inner circle, first as a campaign aid for her 2006 run for governor and then as a Director of Boards and Commissions in her administration. He went in believing she was a breath of fresh air, changing "business as usual" attitude in his state. He believed Palin would clean up Juneau and get rid of the corruption and secrecy of the old boy network that had been in power for decades."We'll hold ourselves to a higher standard," was their motto. And he threw himself into his quest, as one of the original "rag tags," running their grassroots campaign on a shoestring where paying $362 for a half page ad in a local newspaper was a strain on the budget.But early on he found himself fighting Palin's personal battles, from combating the negative comments of talk radio hosts to his role as "Troopergate Guy" when, as directed by the Palins, he tried to get Sarah Palin's ex brother-in-law fired from his job as a state trooper. Those around Palin were subject to her mood swings, relying on the phone calls from her husband Todd warning them of her potential rages.Yes, the author is a disgruntled employee, writing another tell-all to make money. But there is the ring of truth and redemption to this book, at least for Frank Bailey. And although the book is written in first person, unlike his former boss, he does not pretend to have written it himself. Ken Morris and Jeanne Devond have their names on the front cover as contributors. (Devon is the editor of the wonderful blog http://www.themudflats.net about Alaska politics which I highly recommend.)Bailey has many apologies in this book, especially for his wife and children who were essentially deserted for four years. He explains how he got sucked into it this way:"The process is seductive, the game addictive and the feeling of power can end up devastating lives, much like a river of ice..." I'm sure Frank Bailey and I would disagree on many political issues. But I believe he's a good man who learned a painful lesson.