Palin's resignation day arrives, future unclear

FAIRBANKS, Alaska — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin steps down Sunday giving few clues about her political future, which has been clouded by ethics probes, mounting legal bills and dwindling popularity.

A few things are known: She is scheduled to speak Aug. 8 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California, and has said she plans to write a book, campaign for political candidates from coast to coast and build a right-of-center coalition.

She also plans to continue speaking her mind on the social networking site Twitter.

"Wrapped up Anch Gov's Picnic, awesome," she wrote in a message posted Saturday. "Now road trip to Fairbanks for farewell speech/changing of the guard. Camper full of kids & coffee."

Friend and foe alike have speculated that Palin may host a radio or TV show, or launch a lucrative speaking career. Her political action committee, SarahPAC, has raised more than $1 million, said Meghan Stapleton, a spokeswoman for the committee and the Palin family.

Stapleton disputed the notion that Palin is running for president or has media deals lined up.

"I cannot express enough there is no plan after July 26. There is absolutely no plan," she told The Associated Press. "The decision (to quit) was made in the vacuum of what was best for Alaska, and now I'm accepting all the options, but there is nothing planned."

Palin's surprise announcement July 3 that she was stepping down as Alaska governor 17 months before the end of her first term pushed her favorability rating down to 40 percent, according to a Washington Post-ABC poll. Fifty-three percent of those polled gave her an unfavorable rating.

Last summer, almost six in 10 Americans viewed her favorably.

Palin will hand over the governor's office to Lt. Gov Sean Parnell at a Sunday afternoon picnic at a Fairbanks park. Parnell, 46, of Anchorage, has promised to push many of Palin's initiatives, including controversial terms to build a natural gas pipeline.

"Sean knows he has big high heels to fill," said Mark Lewis, moderator of a farewell picnic hosted by Palin on Saturday in Anchorage, the state's largest city.

Parnell acknowledged he is likely to draw less attention than Palin, whose near celebrity status threatened at times to overwhelm her administration. He called Palin "a good, honorable and decent human being who loves Alaska."