Gov.Palin will visit Native Alaskians on Friday with Samaritan's Purse CEO Franklin Graham

After weeks of criticism for allegedly not responding soon enough to fuel and food shortages in some Alaska communities, Gov. Sarah Palin has now decided she will visit a few of the struggling villages for herself. And not only that: Palin has invited a Christian relief group, run by the son of evangelist Billy Graham, to come along with her to help Alaska Natives.

The group is called Samaritan's Purse, which describes itself on its website as an "international Christian relief and evangelism organization" that "provides spiritual and physical aid to victims of war, poverty, natural disaster, and disease."

In a press release Thursday, the administration said Palin and Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell will travel with Franklin Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan's Purse, to the communities of Marshall and Russian Mission on Friday. "Samaritan's Purse is a nonprofit organization that provides humanitarian aid across the world," the press release says. "Working with private sector and nonprofit resources, an estimated 10,000 pounds of food will be distributed to more than 200 Alaska families in need."

This response seems to kill two birds with one stone: Palin can finally say she visited the frontlines of the rural crisis, and she can hobnob with one of America's more influential evangelists, shoring up her political base with Christians across the nation who have been among her biggest supporters.

This approach will surely anger her critics, however.

The press release fails to credit the hundreds -- perhaps thousands -- of Americans who have already been donating food and money to villages like Emmonak, the community that's come to symbolize the crisis this winter. This grassroots, non-faith-based effort was prompted by several Alaska bloggers and independent journalists, and it was in direct response to allegations that the Palin adminstration had been slow in reacting to pleas from the far-flung corners of western Alaska. The results this past month have been stunning, with donations of thousands of pounds of food, diapers, clothing and other household items, as well as thousands of dolllars.

But in some ways, these results are also embarrassing. This is a rich state sitting on top of the biggest oil fields in North America, with an oil-wealth savings account of more than $30 billion. Why can't Alaska take care of its own? Why do Alaskans have to rely on ordinary Americans, or Christian groups, or the federal government, or anybody else from Outside, to ensure its rural families don't starve? This is a 100-year-old problem that Alaskans -- Native and non-Native -- must solve on their own.

The Palin adminstration insists it never turned a blind eye to these communhities, saying that "for several weeks the administration has been working with residents on the Lower Yukon in an attempt to identify their eligibility for various aid programs for communities and individuals." The press release goes on to say that, "Faith-based, non-profit groups, such as Samaritan's Purse, have partnered with state agencies and have been instrumental in providing assistance to Western Alaska in recent weeks."

The press release ends with a final note that Palin has no plans to head down to the Lower 48 this weekend:

"The governor's trip to Western Alaska, coupled with work on the economic stimulus certification requirements and budget amendments, will prevent her from attending the National Governors Association meeting in Washington, D.C., this weekend." source>>>

Read More