Real Palin story of the week lost by the media

The real Sarah Palin story of last week was not that she made David Letterman back down and apologize for his crude attempt at raunchy humor, nor was it her tour de force in New York State, where she made many new friends, was warmly received by enthusiastic crowds and raised a lot of money for charitable causes. The dateline for the big Palin story was not New York City nor New York State, but right here in Texas.

In an article published by Digital Journal, Gary Jackson reminds us that Sarah Palin's announcement from Dallas last week that ExxonMobil had joined with TransCanada to cooperate on the governor's signature AGIA natural gas pipeline project was nothing short of historic:

Alaskans have tried for over 30 years to build a natural gas pipeline from Alaska to the lower 48. Previous Governors have tried to make this happen, and Alaskans have went back and forth on how it should be done.

Governor Palin made this a centerpiece of her administration. Within weeks of taking office, the wheels were set in motion to get this done. The AGIA legislation was passed 57-1 through Alaska’s legislature.

Of course, there were plenty of critics, this was a big undertaking. At $126 billion, the 1712 mile pipeline is the largest infrastructure project in history.

Many thought that Governor Palin had just bit off more than she, or anyone else could chew. There were worries about the market for natural gas. But the demand for the fuel is expected to rise as much as 40 percent by the year 2030.

Obama administration officials who had nothing to do with this, like Energy Secretary Ken Salazar, rushed to claim credit for all of this. A pretty good endorsement of Governor Palin’s efforts.

Though her political enemies have criticized the massive pipeline project, her efforts have won acclaim from those in the energy industry and those who follow it closely.

The government-run media, however, managed to drown out the real story of a genuine achievement by the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate with the loud noise surrounding the nastiness of a late night comic. Don't get us wrong -- cultural matters are important, and it is of no small consequence that Sarah Palin took a stand against sexism and the demeaning of young girls. And she no doubt won a lot of respect and admiration from many who had previously dismissed her out of hand. But the governor's latest achievement on the gas pipeline is a major accomplishment and one which could likely be critical to the nation's energy security. Without energy a country cannot move, and its economy could be brought to a complete standstill. Without energy, a nation cannot defend itself, as military aircraft, non-nuclear-powered ships and ground transportation would be uselessly stranded.

Jackson's op-ed provides much good information about natural gas and its many uses (including as a motor fuel), and we highly recommend it for a full read. Alaska has been blessed with massive deposits of the clean-burning and relatively inexpensive energy resource, and no one has talked it up more than Gov. Palin. She understands what a huge role natgas could and should play in our country's future:

Governor Palin has again lived up to her billing as an authority on energy. The Governor who previously was chairman of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, as well as the chair of the National Governor’s Association Natural Resources Committee, and the Chairman of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, is uniquely qualified to lead on energy independence. And she is most certainly using her industry experience to move America in that direction.

The author praises Sarah Palin's progress on the AGIA pipeline project as a grand slam home run which will make America stronger, and we fully agree.

- JP