From Janie Lauder of the NYTimes Caucus Blog:
It’s official. Sarah Palin stepped down as governor of Alaska on Sunday, without dropping one hint about her future. Instead, she used her farewell address “to exercise my freedom of speech,” as she put it. […]
She cited accomplishments of her abbreviated administration, condemned big government and warned Alaskans against relying on Washington money for state development: ”Be wary of accepting government largess. It doesn’t come free.”
She reiterated her feeling that staying in office for the remaining 17 months of her term would be unproductive, “politics as usual” and said she believes she can serve the state without the title of governor.
CNN:
“Now people who know me, they know how much I love this state … I feel it is my duty to avoid the unproductive, typical, politics-as-usual, lame-duck session in one’s last year in office,” Palin said, just moments before Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell was sworn in as governor.
“With this decision, now I will be able to fight even harder for you, for what is right and for the truth,” Palin continued. “And I have never felt you need a title to do that.”
Palin devoted much of her last address to a rundown of her accomplishments as governor, including winning legislative approval for a massive natural gas pipeline. She said she governed “with fiscal restraint.”
“What I promised, we accomplished,” she told the mostly supportive crowd. […]
She also warned against “anti-hunting, anti-Second Amendment circuses from Hollywood” that use “delicate, tiny celebrity starlets” to push their cause.
“Hollywood needs to know — we eat, therefore, we hunt,” Palin told a cheering crowd.
ADN:
She leaves office today with her political future clouded by ethics probes, mounting legal bills and dwindling popularity. A new Washington Post-ABC poll puts her national favorability rating at 40 percent, with 53 percent giving her an unfavorable rating.
She was interrupted repeatedly by applause. Her crowds still love her. Now she’s free to spend her time with them.