Sarah Palin’s PAC spent $63,000 on her own book
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In November and December, Sarah Palin’s political action committee spent more than $60,000 to provide copies of her book ‘Going Rogue’ to supporters. ABC News reports:
The former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate had her political organization spend more than $63,000 on what her reports describe as ‘books for fundraising donor fulfillment.’ The payments went to Harper Collins, her publisher, and in some instances to HSP Direct, a Virginia-based direct mail fundraising firm that serves a number of well-known conservative politicians and pundits.
The book, which is currently in hardcover, has a suggested retail price of $28.99 -- if that was the price paid by the PAC, more than 2,000 may have been sold. If the PAC paid wholesale, or the low $9.99 price-war price offered by Amazon and Wal-Mart, then far more books were purchased and distributed to Palin supporters by ... Palin supporters.
Because Palin does not currently hold office, it seems that the book-buying and distributing expense is legal. According to ABC:
Palin would not be the first politician to use a PAC to underwrite the purchase of a memoir. The Federal Election Commission has heard a number of cases on the question of whether it is an appropriate expense. The rules are somewhat complex, but because Palin is neither a candidate for office, nor a sitting member of Congress, her PAC is free to purchase the book under current law, according to Jan Baran, a campaign legal expert.
Palin’s ‘Going Rogue,’ which held onto the top spot on Amazon’s bestseller list for some time, has dropped to No. 60. Palin is expected to appear as a contributor on Fox News this year.
-- Carolyn Kellogg
