Politico published another Sarah Palin hit piece on Sunday evening, and much like the last one, authors Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei couldn't find one disparaging source to actually go on the record with his or her negative opinions.
Grabbing the article hot off the presses, Fox News's Greta Van Susteren and her guest Palin trashed "all these brave" faceless people as well as the so-called journalists willing to write hit pieces without any named sources (video follows with transcript and commentary, h/t Mediaite):
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS ON THE RECORD: Do not adjust television. It may be Sunday night but ON THE RECORD is live in New York because we don't want to miss one second of this national show down. Our jam packed selection special begins with former Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin. Good Evening Governor.
SARAH PALIN, FORMER ALASKAN GOVERNOR: Good evening how are you?
VAN SUSTEREN: Very well. All right governor. I want to talk you about a lot of things got to do with politics. But Bret Baier my colleague just gave me an article hot off the press Politico that is essentially and I've just finished reading it. It's a beating of you a trash piece and let me read to you the full some of the sources in here.
And Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei are the ones who wrote that. And here are the sources on the article. So hang on to your seat. Top Republicans advisors to Maine 2012 presidential contenders, other veteran Republican operatives, GOP elites, establishment figures argue not for attribution comments.
Determined, focused, establishment effort, top advisors to candidates, top Republicans, top advisors, longtime Republican leaders and top advisors to rival campaigns. Not one named source and they're all saying that you that the GOP is terrified of you and they need to stop Palin.
Not one named source. All these brave people.
PALIN: And these are the brave people who want to lead the nation and run the world. And but they're not brave enough to put their name in an article.
VAN SUSTEREN: You know, I guess I'm a little bit unglued at this because you know I take journalism seriously and people assigned names to things. When you go to court and you raise your hand and you say I'm so and so I promise to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth.
We don't use anonymous sources. There's a reason so that you don't trash people unfairly. And you would think in this article there be one named source. And these are two veteran journalists. But they take you apart limb by limb by limb with nothing but descriptions of anonymous sources.
PALIN: Well that's why I don't talk to some of these reporters who are a part of this yellow journalism world of not using name sources I think it's very unprofessional. And I to with a journalism degree I learned back in the day that who, what, when, where, why of journalism.
You report that facts you let other people decide what their opinion is going to be.
So having unnamed sources in an article like this is very, very, disappointing you know. And it doesn't do anybody any good. It doesn't educate anybody.
VAN SUSTEREN: See I, you say it doesn't educate anybody. You say disappointing I saw horrifying. I saw it's actually much worse than that.
PALIN: I'm getting used to it though unfortunately Greta. And that's the state of affairs of we're in if I had to get used to it.
VAN SUSTEREN: It's funny that you say that. It's funny that you say that because what they also write. These are not the anonymous sources but the journalist they say that a quote from it "still she has never face serious criticism in public in a campaign setting.
PALIN: Me?
VAN SUSTEREN: Yes.
PALIN: OK well that's surprising that they claim that I haven't faced criticism. Holy geez where have they been the last couple of years.
You know that been our world. First you know even the content and I haven't read the article yet but it sounds like content is coming from the GOP the establishment the self-proclaimed elite as named as sources.
You know its define how do you do when you consider that Todd and I our family we've given our life to the cause the mission the last couple of years of making sure that people are hearing a common sense conservative Republican message out there.
So to get torn apart limb by limb you know it's like gosh guys come on.
VAN SUSTEREN: But it's worse though because I mean you and I look at it a little differently I suppose because I'm obviously not the one being trashed. But the whole idea that you know if we're going to have this dialogue you know have the courage to stand up and have the courage to take Sarah Palin on or anybody else on this campaign whether it's Tim Pelenti or whether it's Marco Rubio or Vice President Biden.
Take them on on the issues.
PALIN: Right.
VAN SUSTEREN: You know and this I mean and it's bad enough that the politician are doing it among themselves but when the journalist are so stupid to be had and these journalist were had. They thought they had a good story and they were basically they shamed themselves.
You know they completely shamed themselves and I'll be curious to see whether any other journalist has the guts to stand up and call. But Politico has become quite influential in the world today.
PALIN: Right, right. Where Politico goes the mainstream media pickups where what they have sad them and then it gets into some hard news copy. Whatever the content of this story is. I don't know maybe in the end I can pull a Sharon Angle I can send them flowers and thank them for what it is that they did in this piece because I think it will draw attention to what I been trying to draw attention to.
And that is a sad state of affairs in the world of journalism today. It is unfair to Americans to not be able to trust what should be a cornerstone of our democracy. A free press. A fair press. When we can't trust what it is their reporting.
And of course you can't trust something if it only citing unnamed anonymous sources. You can't trust them then where we are in the state of journalism is extremely, a scary place to be, a sad place to be.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well you know, certify they actually have one name in here, Karl Rove. And I think about as Karl Rove who's also a Fox News contributor is quoted as saying something about your upcoming reality show on cable TV.
Is the show you're doing on cable TV a reality show or not? Does Karl have that right?
PALIN: For the Discovery Channel and the Learning Channel no. And Karl Rove he knows that it isn't a reality show. He knows that its eight episodes documenting what Alaska has to offer our resources, our activities, the unique livelihoods that are made up there.
And the family comes along for the ride. So after I guess see it to believe it. But now Karl has planted a few other political seeds out there that are quite negative and unnecessary. You know what I kind of feel like why did he feel so threaten and so paranoid.
I'm here to help the cause. So are I hoping all other potential candidates in the future? We're here as hopefully team members to help turn this country around and get the economy moving again.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well whether or not people agree with you or I agree with you or anybody, to me I - it's not some issue. It's whether or not that it's on the issues and that it's treated fairly and the most bizarre thing is that these very people who so bravely wouldn't name themselves and instead trash themselves in the stupid journalist who were had.
These are the very people think they can take on Al Qaeda and National Security for the country but they're afraid to speak up in a political piece.
PALIN : Yes that's a great, that's a great point and no I don't think that the paper that we just printed this article on you know it's not worth even wrapped in my King Salmon in. And I'm very disappointed in what it is that they produced but on the other hand I think that it's very reflective of the state of affairs and we plow through that and we do seek to discuss issues.
We seek to debate in a healthy arena what it is that Americans need to start talking about and you know I'll just ignore this crap.
VAN SUSTEREN: Alright. Well I want to through one other stink bomb out. I look forward to see you at the Ombudsman and organization. We'll see you at the Ombudsman NPR think about this or any of these Ombudsmen about whether you know this is real journalism and whether this is really how we want to foster debate and encourage (inaudible).
PALIN: When did this become real journalism? Where you can insight anonymous (inaudible).
VAN SUSTEREN: (inaudible) Bret anonymous sources. Bret just got off the air and he handed to me because happen between his time. Bret Baier got off the air and I got it.
PALIN: Well Politico, Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei they're jokes. This is a joke to have unnamed sources tearing somebody apart limb by limb.
VAN SUSTEREN: Without a source?
PALIN: Without a source that's the point. If they would cite themselves. If they would man up and if they would you know make these claims against me then I can debate them. I could talk about it. But when they're just - to me they're making stuff up again.
VAN SUSTEREN: Whether terrified of you, which is another interesting whole phenomenon they're scared - I was going to say scared something of you but that, we're on TV even though it's cable.
If this is the kind of stuff coming out in 2010, can you imagine what the mainstream media are going to do in 2012 if Palin actually does run for president?
It'll be open season on this woman and her family like possibly nothing America has ever witnessed.
Makes you wonder why she'd even consider putting herself and her loved ones through it.
Or is that the point? Are the attacks during this election cycle when Palin isn't even running for anything a shot across the bow to give her an idea of what she faces if she dares to toss her name into the ring?
I wouldn't put anything past these shameless advocates.
*****Update: Mark Levin offered his view of this hit piece via email...
The political operatives and their masters in DC don't like Palin and their favorite outlet for trashing her is Politico. None of them matter. The people will speak tomorrow. And they will speak thereafter as well.
