Going Rogue: An American Life (35 page)

SARAH PALIN

nation), I had plenty of backup when telling Hollywood liberals what I thought of their asinine plans to ban guns. And we to

conttol predators, such as wolves, that were decimating moose

and caribou herds that feed our communities. One animal rights group recruited a perky, pretty celebrity to attack our scientifically controlled, state-managed wolf-control program. It was ironic that she opposed using guns to kill predators that would cause Native people to starve, but apparently not opposed to taking movie roles in which she’d use guns to kill predatory people.

People outside Alaska are often clueless about our reliance on natural food sources. (You know you’re an Alaskan when ar least twice a year your kitchen doubles as a meat-processing plant.) They don’t use common sense in considering why our biologists need responsible tools for abundant game management. But as the ninety-year-old Alaska Native leader Sydney Hunnington told Todd, “Nowadays, common sense is an endangered species.” Todd couldn’t be there for many of the mansion functions, so I always sat at the head of the table as official host, plus I often carried conversation as the official hostess roo. That role traditionally fell to the First Lady, but I wore both hats as best I could and relied on· Bristol to help with some of the finer details, such as choosing flowers, centerpieces, and name-tag fonts. I loved it when Piper joined us at the table for important meetings. We moved in when she was in kindergarten, and she was always very polite when she slipped into a dining room full of dignitaries and asked if she could help pour coffee, serve cake, or just sit on my lap. I wasn’t about to shoo her away, especially during functions with partisan lawmakers, who were gracious and kind over dinner, then pulled the typical political 180 the next morning with lessthan-gracious comments in the press. Piper usually had
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important whispers to share with me at the dinner table, about one of our puppies or what she needed for school the next day. She always kept me grounded and reminded me, of what really mattered.

I particularly enjoyed personal lunches we hosted for Senators Ted Stevens and Lisa Murkowski and Representative Don Young; a lunch for Bill Kristol, Fred Barnes, Dick Morris, and other journalists who stopped in Juneau on cruise ship tours; and one very memorable lunch and tea that Todd hosted for all rhe former Firsr Ladies of Alaska. Two years running, at the end of February, Todd rushed off the Iron Dog trail to husrle back for his official First Genrleman duties, which included accompanying me to D.C. for meetings of the National Governors Association. It seemed he barely had time to tear off his Arctic Cat gear and rip the prorective duct tape off his face before settling in to sip fine tea with Laura Bush and other First Ladies of state at the White House. (He was getting good at those tea parties!) I remember teasing him later-“What? Did .you chat about your snowmachine suspension? Did they ask about top-end speed and size of carbides?” Todd was a good sporr and an awesome First Dude. Todd would develop his own role in contributing to Alaska’s progress while we served in office. His family had long struggled against the tide of increasing state and federal intrusion that was creating a climate of government dependency for rural areas.

Tucked high in the frigid North, Alaska’s Native communities are often isolated and dark, sometimes both literally and figuratively. Todd’s hometown of Dillingham is one of the larger “hubs.” Some villages are as small as a couple dozen people, isolated hundreds of miles

grocery stores and modern amenities, or what people Outside may think of

civilization. Some areas are reminiscent

of a third-world country, without sewer systems or roads. Cell phones and Internet service are of little value in these most remote

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SARAH

PALIN

areas. Many people receive rheir mail and living essentials via bush pilors who land on frozen rivers .and sandbars more ofren than they land on runways, to keep rural Alaskans connected to other parts of the world. “Survival mode” is what hearty residents adopt in the remote areas. This choice of lifestyle is rugged, it’s raw-it’s not an easy living, but it’s a good living. Todd’s family had worked hard to escape a rut rhat some find themselves in when faced with harsh conditions. They saw thar when government programs starred growing, sometimes citizens became dependent on the programs and abandoned the strong work ethic of their elders. This resulted in too many young people giving themselves over to a dependent lifestyle that ofren leads to fractured families, abuse, subpar education, and other problems. Todd and his family appreciated the opportuniry we had as First Family to help share a message of family strength and unity, and a work ethic that should be both expected and rewarded. Todd was, to me, a perfect spokesman to help spread that positive message to all Alaskans, especially those in our rural communities. When I became governor, he devoted himself to workforce development, including vo-tech education designed to get kids excited about real-life work experience and break young men and women free of dependency and rhe limits it imposes, which are as real as any prison bars.

Some First Spouses maintain an office in their stare capitols and often travel with an assistant or staff, but Todd did not. Sure, the critics still accused him of being “The Shadow Governor,” but that’s because they couldn’t find anything legitimate to criticize him about.

The girls fit into their new city right away. All three would visit me at the Capitol Building after school. Most of the staffers had authentic Piper Palin artwork hanging in their offices. And when the Menards gave us a puppy to bring to the mansion (for

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