(CNN) – Sarah Palin did not visit troops in Iraq, a spokesperson for the Republican VP nominee confirmed Saturday, as new details emerged about the extent of the Alaska governor’s foreign travel.
In July of last year, Palin left North America for the first time to visit Alaskan troops stationed in Kuwait. Palin officials originally said her itinerary included U.S. military installations or outposts in Germany and Kuwait, and that she had visited Ireland. An Alaska spokeswoman for Palin had said Iraq was also one of the stops on that trip.
The Boston Globe reported Saturday that Palin visited the Iraqi side of a border crossing - but never journeyed past the checkpoint.
Earlier: McCain defends Palin's experience level
Earlier, campaign aides confirmed reports that Palin’s time in Ireland on that trip had actually been a re-fueling stop.
(UPDATED with campaign statement after the jump)
The Obama camp – which has increasingly accused the McCain campaign of deliberately lying in ads and on the stump – was quick to highlight to that story, along with a news report that explored whether the McCain campaign have been sending out wildly inflated crowd estimates.
The McCain team has twice pointed to law enforcement as the source for those estimates – but the same officials denied to Bloomberg News that they had provided the numbers cited by the Republican nominee’s campaign.
"The McCain campaign said Governor Palin opposed the Bridge to Nowhere, but now we know she supported it,” said Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor in a statement. “They said she didn't seek earmarks, but now we know she hired a lobbyist to get millions in pork for her town and her state. They said she visited Iraq, but today we learned that she only stopped at the border. Americans are starting to wonder, is there anything the McCain campaign isn't lying about?”
A Palin spokesperson also confirmed Saturday that the governor had visited Mexico on a personal vacation trip. She has also visited Canada.
UPDATE: The McCain-Palin campaign issued a statement late Saturday in which they said Palin had traveled into Iraq, although she did not go beyond the border crossing:
"Last summer, Governor Palin travelled to Kuwait where she visited Alaskan National Guard troops deployed to the war in Iraq at Camp Arifjen. While she was there she travelled to the K Crossing on the Kuwait-Iraq border, and a quarter mile into Iraq. According to the General who travelled with her, while she was there she presided over a re-enlistment ceremony of an Alaskan National Guard soldier. En route back to the United States, she travelled to Ramstein Air Base in Germany. While in Germany, Governor Palin visited wounded soldiers at the Landstuhl military hospital. She then returned home. She has also visited Canada, as well as Mexico for a vacation."
From CNN Politics
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Palin is not relevant at all in this election. CNN should be ashamed of these boring coverage of her.
There is so much more to this Palin and more will be revealed.
Seriously why don't you just have a lottery to pick your president? Seems like it would be more impartial and fair then your current model. Heck, at this stage of things, it would be just as big of a joke too!
I don't understand why the lie.... These according to the interview were "Life changing moments" experienced by Palin, guess she got confussed with the difficult interview.
There has to be a point where McCain-Palin have to be accountable for all of these lies. Why is she constantly boasting her resume only later to have to report that it was inaccurate. If any of us did that in a job interview we'd be toast!!!!
Obama-Biden 08!
Do we really even need to leave comments. This article speaks volumes for McCain's campaign...the Straightalk Express, huh?
She took a vacation..........SO WHAT ???
In her interview she said she had been to Kuwait ... but I wasn't under the impression that she had ever been to Iraq ... so this news means nothing to me.
She's had so few trips overseas you would think she and her staff could very easily remember where she went!!!!
Palin is no Hillary !! I am glad McCain nominated a woman, but her views are even more right wing than McCain's. She's got to be the biggest flip-flopper ever...changes her mind on earmarks, the bridge to no where that she was for before she says she was against it (even though she took the 300 million dollars anyway), says she never asked that any book to be banned even though she fired the librarian, etc etc etc etc
She has no credibility and she is the real flip-flopper.
Looks like McCain-Palin continues to have some trouble with the truth.
Have you ever seen the movie liar liar?.... Oops, I forgot, the trailers are being played everyday starring Sarah Palin and the RNC.
So her landing in Ireland qualifies as a "visit"? Give me a break.
At least Obama tells the truth. I think I prefer honesty over Palin's extensive international experience.
I find it interesting that the McCain/Palin campaign would lie about such sill nonissues. If they would lie about something like this, it make me wonder what else they are lying about.
And the lies just keep on rolling.
Hopefully enough Americans will start seeing that the McCain and Palin campaign is just about lies. The lies they tell about themselves, and the lies they tell about Obama.
And personally...I think the lipstick would look better on the pig.
CNN- Wake up and call a lie A LIE already!!
They're lying, and they will only get away with it if YOU let them.
The truth shall set you free!
How many lies are the American people going to accept from the GOP? McCain and Palin are a complete disgrace.
How on God's green earth can any right minded individual tha has really paid attention to the last 8 years vote for ANY Republican administration. Please people, accept change and NEW possibilities....I have nothing against Mccain as a person ( I have love for our older generation), but I would like to see a brighter future for our children and we won't get it with Mccain-Palin ticket.
What else is new?
Lies, lies and more lies is the Republican mantra.
Just keep lying until u get caught and then come up with excuses
to cover your lies.
Doesnt even matter if your execuses are also lies.
Just lie and win, baby.
It works all the time with the gullible who dont see beyond skin color
and wedge issues.
Now, will they hold her to the same standard as they did Obama?
Do anyone get the feeling that Palin wasn't vetted properly nor was she honest with the question's that was asked during her ONE time seeing McCain, or do you get the feeling McCain told her the voters WOULD be stupid enough to VOTE for her anyway? As a professional woman with three kids, I care nothing about how many she has, when she get time for them or NONE of that..........that's her BUSNIESS, but her lies and the welfare of MY Country is my BUSINESS......This is not a PROFESSIONAL woman, this is a LYING professional.
I'm so sick of the lies coming from this woman. The fact that the McCain camp can blatantly lie like this, not once, not twice, but many times in the past week already shows me that McCain is just like Bush. His Administration would be just as corrupt as Bush's and he would lie to us right in the face just like Bush did. He doesn't deserve the Presidency. If people vote for these frauds, they deserve everything that happens to them.
Obama/Biden ticket will win this race by restoring the American image
MCcain/Palin will ruin this race by distorting the actual message!!!
Are the wheels starting to come off? Hummm!
When will the lies stop? When will McBush/Palin address the serious issues that we care about? When will the American people wake up? When? When? When?
So?
Obama didn't visit the troops on his "meet the American Idol" tour in Berlin! And, he has no governing or foreign affairs experience at all.
Then, of course, there is the little matter of his being at th top of the democratic ticket not the VP spot.
But, we all know that Obama's resume is so tissue thin that he is a ridiculous candidate for president and so, it is easier for camp Obama to attack the new and rising star!
And, Obama's judgment in picking Biden and not Hillary for the VP spot was an arrogant, foolish blunder!
McCain/Palin 08! They will deliver the authentic reform Americans can believe in! And, they will do it with integrity!