Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) says she fired the state's first Native public safety commissioner because he was disloyal to her administration.

Walt Monegan was not a "team player on budgeting issues," Palin said. She said Monegan was asking state lawmakers for more money when he couldn't fill trooper vacancies. She also said he wasn't doing enough to address alcohol abuse among troopers.

Palin, however, continued to deny that she fired Monegan because he refused to take action against a trooper who was going through a messy divorce with her younger sister. But she released an audio tape in which one of her aides brought up the trooper's status and mentioned Monegan by name.

"I'm telling you honestly, you know, she really likes Walt a lot, but on this issue, she feels like it's, she doesn't know why there is absolutely no action for a year on this issue. It's very, very troubling to her and the family. I could definitely relay that," the aide said, according to news reports.

Monegan said he was pressured by Palin's aides and even her husband -- who is also Native -- to take action against the trooper.

Get the Story:
Palin staff pushed to fire trooper (The Anchorage Daily News 8/14)
pwlat
Palin aide says he acted on his own when pressing for trooper to be fired (AP 8/13)

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