Los Angeles - AFP
News outlets including CNN and the Anchorage Daily News asked for Palin\'s emails to be released in 2008
Los Angeles - AFP
Sarah Palin received death threats after she was nominated as Republican John McCain\'s running mate in 2008 presidential elections, according to newly released emails
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The then Alaska governor -- and now possible White House candidate -- also emerges as hard-working and very concerned about her image from the 24,000 pages of emails released under a freedom of information request.
\"Can you believe it?\" Palin wrote in late August 2008, responding to a congratulatory email after she was announced as McCain\'s surprise and controversial pick for vice-presidential nominee.
\"He told me yesterday -- it moved fast! Pray! I love you,\" she added in an email highlighted by the New York Times, which along with other media outlets was rifling through the mass of exchanges released by the state of Alaska.
Just days before the announcement she had been dealing with mundane matters as governor of the northwestern US state, including a request for \"Alaska pins and governor pencils (or pens) to drop off at gladys wood elem school today.\"
In many of the mails Palin -- who is toying with a possible run for the White House next year -- comes across as a hard-working politician, juggling her family and official business on both government and private email accounts.
In the weeks and months after she was catapulted onto the national political stage, she received a number of death threats, the mails reveal.
\"She doesn\'t belong to the NRA (National Rifle Association) to support the right of each citizen to have weapons in an aim of self-defence, but just to support the right of every Southern white citizen to shoot all non-white people legally!\" wrote a sender identified as Dominique Villacrouz.
\"Sarah Palin MUST BE KILLED,\" said the mail, highlighted by the Los Angeles Times.
In another message dated Sept. 12, a resident in Antwerp, Belgium, also called for Palin to be shot, saying that \"only on that moment justice will be accomplished,\" the LA Times said.
The northwestern US state released the mails in print form to a number of media outlets, keen to find nuggets as speculation grows that the Tea Party favorite and former Alaskan governor will run for the White House next year.
News outlets including CNN and the Anchorage Daily News asked for Palin\'s emails to be released in 2008, after Palin became the surprise running-mate of Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
At the time officials said they could not be released because of the antiquated electronic databases they were stored on, complicated by the fact that Palin commonly used a Yahoo account to conduct state business.
The release comes as speculation mounts over whether Palin will run for the Republican nomination in next year\'s election against Democratic President Barack Obama.
Palin has kept the media guessing, including during a \"One Nation\" bus tour when journalists had to scramble to follow her, with no details given in advance about her travel plans.