Palin has mixed record as fiscal conservative

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the Republican nominee for vice president, bills herself as a fiscal conservative. But her record is mixed: She increased to historic proportions the annual bonus each Alaskan receives from the government yet gained prominence by raising taxes on the oil industry. When Palin signed an operating budget this spring authorizing roughly $11 billion in spending _ more than $16,000 for every man, woman and child in Alaska _ she told state lawmakers she had three goals: "To slow the growth of government, live within our means and save for the future." Palin vetoed more than $250 million in projects from the public works budget around the same time, the second consecutive year she angered legislators by cutting their pet capital projects. Palin's record as a fiscal conservative has been... [read full story]