This is a rush transcript from "On the Record ," November 11, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: Tonight, Part 2 with Governor Palin. Now, Part 2 takes you deep behind the scenes, the inside story of what Governor Palin and Senator McCain talked about in their first meeting about her joining the ticket.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: I take it you get off the plane, and did you go right to his home or his apartment or...
GOV. SARAH PALIN, R-ALASKA, FMR VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Went — no, went to — it was the next morning that we went to his ranch and spoke with him there and spoke with Cindy there and had just a great conversation about how much alike we were, I think, regarding, you know, having to take on our own party, having to make a lot of — take a lot of political risks — both of our careers were full of that — and knowing that that's what America needed at the time, though, was, we believed, a team of mavericks, literally a team of mavericks, those who had a track record of taking on the good old boy network, taking on those in the party, taking shots all the time from the other party, also — both of us have gone through this — and understanding also that what as governor I've been able to accomplish and how that can help the nation, so — so much in common and great conversations, and then, you know, by...
VAN SUSTEREN: Did he pop the question? Almost sounds like getting — you know, like — I mean, how do you ask someone? I mean, what does he say? Does he turn to you and say, you know, Governor Palin — I mean, what — how does he do this? How does he ask you?
PALIN: He just looking right in my eyes and saying, Are you ready for this? Would you like to do this? And I said, I would be honored to run with you. Absolutely. And I thanked him for taking the chance on me also.
I mean, just talk about — that was the epitome of being the maverick, somebody bold, somebody thinking outside of the box, not going with, no doubt, what a lot of the — more of the conventional wisdom would have dictated, you know, go get somebody who's already on the national scene and perhaps it would be a safer type of pick.
No. He was going to do what he believed was the right thing to do with his pick. And you know, I saw that in his eyes and I respected that. And I said, Absolutely. You are the perfect running mate. I would love to run with you. It was great.
VAN SUSTEREN: So after you said that, I imagine (INAUDIBLE) I would have gone to the other room and sort of pinched myself that I was on a ticket sort of (INAUDIBLE) I mean, Todd wasn't with you. Did you call Todd then? Or I mean...
PALIN: Well, before I said yes. That was Senator McCain's recommendation. He says, Why don't you call your husband and find out, you know, if he's good with this also. I called Todd, and Todd, too, was no hesitation. He was, like, Absolutely. This will be good. Yes, do this. And just good confirmation that, of course, that we were to say yes. And said yes, and then he — it was, I believe, the next day then was the announcement.
VAN SUSTEREN: In Ohio?
PALIN: In Ohio.
VAN SUSTEREN: So you had to get from Arizona to Ohio.
PALIN: Right.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did you go — you didn't go with Senator McCain, did you, on that flight, or not? Do you remember?
PALIN: Where did we — yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: Did you go with him at that point?
PALIN: I'm trying to think if — if we went — if we...
VAN SUSTEREN: Todd showed up on a separate flight with the family.
PALIN: Right. With the kids, that's right.
VAN SUSTEREN: He had lied to them. He told me — not lied to them, but he had sort of said, We're going — I think it was an anniversary or something that...
PALIN: That's right. Yes, he said, Come on, kids. We're going to go surprise your mom at an anniversary party, and told them to — that he needed confiscate their cell phones so that they wouldn't text their friends. And that was — that was earth-shattering, of course, for the kids to have those confiscated. But that was — that was a wise move. Otherwise, absolutely, the kids would have said, We're going to somewhere on an airplane. Don't know where. And that would have leaked out in a minute.
VAN SUSTEREN: I don't remember — I'm trying to think back — I don't remember how you got to Ohio. It's, like — you know, I'm not kidding. You know, for us, I knew where you were at almost every second. I mean, I was constantly getting BlackBerrys where — messages where you were. And I don't remember — I don't remember getting any information where you were at that point.
PALIN: No, they did a good job in keeping that all under wraps. That was — and I thought that that was smart, too. It gave Senator McCain and — we had a lot of opportunity to talk through those two days also, and you know, figure out how we're going to get from Point A to Point B. And at the same time, it was fun because it was, like, Hey, people don't know this, this is going on, and we know it. And that was a fun aspect of it all, so — but it was very good, very good. It was very good every single day on the trail with him also. It was amazing.
VAN SUSTEREN: Where did you pick up the Secret Service?
PALIN: Picked up the Secret Service there in — well, in fact, they were on the airplane flying from Alaska back, so they had come up the day before.
VAN SUSTEREN: Flying from Alaska back meaning when?
PALIN: They — the Secret Service flew with me to Sedona, Arizona, so they had already evidently, you know, been — a couple of them had been hired to...
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, that's interesting, the Secret Service were — before you'd even been asked, you had Secret Service?
PALIN: Well, yes, unless they were just John McCain's Secret Service. I don't know. I haven't even had time to ask those questions about how all that worked!
VAN SUSTEREN: But see, you know, we don't know the behind-the-scenes, sort of the mechanics stuff. We know that (INAUDIBLE) we cover from the outside and we listen to the speeches (INAUDIBLE) was, like, sort of the — you know, the intrigue aspect of it. We don't know.
PALIN: Yes. Well, and it was all intriguing and it was just a neat experience, you know, from the very beginning. But you asked if I took time perhaps to pinch myself and try to figure out (INAUDIBLE) Still haven't had time to even do that. And again, though, maybe to some on the outside would look at it as sort of this surreal thing that has happened, but it felt comfortable from the very beginning. It felt like, yes, there had been doors opened through the years, and I plowed through some doors on my own that hadn't been open but went through them anyway. And there was a lot of preparation and opportunity that met at the same time, and that was — that to me was a really neat thing that happened.
And again, with just great appreciation for Senator McCain, just recognizing that, yes, we didn't have to just go with the status quo type of politics as usual. He could think out of the box and he could do something bold there.
VAN SUSTEREN: I would have asked that same pinching question, by the way, of Senator Biden. Just so know, is that I — that would be — I mean, in the sense that it's, like, at least — when you're running for president, you plan it. I mean, it's — I mean, it's — you know, it goes on, and this one for 21 months. A vice president all of a sudden is sitting at home, a vice presidential nominee, and gets the call. And that's why I meant the pinching. It wasn't, you know — you know, because that — you know, it's not exactly what you had in mind, or that you expected, rather.
PALIN: Right.
VAN SUSTEREN: You know, so I would ask the same thing of him.
PALIN: That's true. You know what I thought — in following the news around that time of the VP pick, I thought, knowing Senator McCain as I knew him from his reputation and from the record that he had, I knew he was going to do something different, though. I knew that he was going to — he'd tap into either — a person who represented a demographic that hadn't been represented before, be that gender-based or be it just part of their background or where they're from in the country. I knew he was going to do something different. So perhaps that, too, allowed me to not be overly shocked by his offer to me to run with him. I knew it was going to be kind of avant-garde.
VAN SUSTEREN: I see that potholder. That's the kind we used to make when I was a kid.
PALIN: Does it remind you of back in the day?
VAN SUSTEREN: Yes, did you make that, though?
PALIN: I didn't make that. The kids...
(CROSSTALK)
PALIN: But remember when we used to make these? Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: I haven't seen one of those in years. I bet most people don't even — with the little loom. With the little loom.
PALIN: Yes. Isn't that neat?
VAN SUSTEREN: I haven't seen one of these in years.
(LAUGHTER)
VAN SUSTEREN: That is sort of fun.
PALIN: It is.
VAN SUSTEREN: But I mean, it was fun for women. I mean, it was fun for women watching Senator Clinton. It was fun to — you know, for women to watch you, you know, because it is still — it's still a glass ceiling, you know, for women.
PALIN: Well, it is. And Greta, too, it was — you know, throughout my campaign also, man in America has so progressed. I mean, look at both tickets, the representation on both tickets, obvious progression there. But still, still that — kind of that double standard there with a female on the ticket. Hillary went through the same thing, of course. It shows us that we still have a bit further to go here until everyone is treated equally and not held to a different standard.
And I say that not complaining about it, just facing reality the way that it was on the trail and the treatment by the media. And I'm not complaining about it, I'm just stating my opinion is that's the way it was. There were certainly double standards there in...
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, I think many women would agree with you that there — you know, that there remains that double standard. I don't think, you know — you know, I may not be the right one to be asking these questions because, you know, I — I mean, I do believe that Senator Clinton and you got a little different treatment by the press.
PALIN: I do think that we were treated a little differently, and I don't complain about it, I just acknowledge that that's the way that it was. Don't complain about because I think, hey, if I can be an example for young girls, especially, who need to know also that there perhaps will be an extra hurdle or two in front of them in terms of career or the choices that they want to make down the road, then let's deal with the reality of some double standards, of a couple of extra hurdles in front of them, and let's work harder.
Let's be stronger. Let's be smarter. Let's study harder. Let's plow through those hurdles. And it makes victory, then, and success that much sweeter. And that's something that, hopefully, I'm going to help young girls be able to recognize that's there. That's reality. Let's not complain about it, let's just make victory even sweeter by working even harder.
VAN SUSTEREN: Piper seems a lot like you.
PALIN: Are you a lot like me?
PIPER PALIN, DAUGHTER: (INAUDIBLE)
PALIN: Like what, do you think? She's a fun kid. She's a fun kid.
VAN SUSTEREN: Have you ever talked to Senator Clinton?
PALIN: Have not, but I'm going to call her tomorrow.
VAN SUSTEREN: You are?
PALIN: Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: What are you going to tell her?
PALIN: Yes. I'm going to tell her, More power to you. You — I've got a lot of respect for what she has accomplished. And she — you know, I feel like she certainly — having gone before me, she helped shatter glass ceilings left and right. And yes, that one is still there above Hillary, above me, above every woman.
But she certainly cracked it a lot. And I have respect for what she was able to accomplish. Still disagree on a lot of the policies that she would adopt if she were to have been elected, but just understanding what she went through also, and that life-work balance that no doubt she's had to strike all these years. I have a lot of respect for that.
VAN SUSTEREN: It is different for women. I mean, you've got all the kids. You got — but women often multi-task. I mean, it's not just being governor, but I mean, a lot of them are teachers, or you know, running businesses. I mean, that's sort of the job.
PALIN: Every woman I know has, you know, tremendous challenges. I have it a heck of a lot easier, though, than most any other woman that I know, though, because of Todd and his — the comfort level that he has in doing a whole lot of the domestic stuff and the kids' stuff and the flexibility that he has. Though he has a very busy work schedule, it's flexible enough where when he is home, he takes over a lot of the house duties and the kids' duties. And that allows me to balance out timewise, also, allows me to do other things.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Up next: Remember the infamous interview when Katie Couric asked Governor Palin what she reads? Well, Governor Palin has something to say about that next.
And then, a chance of a lifetime, riding a snow machine. How fast? Real fast. The "First Dude" likes to go fast. You'll see.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAN SUSTEREN: The governor of Alaska is happy that the lower 48 is finally taking notice of Alaska.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PALIN: Kind of neat, though, Americans getting a look at some of the Alaskan lifestyle, though, with some of the shows that are on, the ice trucker show and the — what is that commercial fishing show, Todd?
TODD PALIN, HUSBAND: "Deadliest Catch."
PALIN: "Deadliest Catch" and some survival show in Alaska, too.
(CROSSTALK)
VAN SUSTEREN: I would think, though, some Alaskans wouldn't want that because it — you know, it seems like there's sort of people who up here are happy to be up here and not have all of us in the lower 48 coming out here so much. I mean, come up here and throw your dollars around as tourists, but go home.
PALIN: I don't know. There's enough space for everybody, though. It's — yes, I think that Alaska's misunderstood and a lot of the people are misunderstood, and perhaps that craving that so many Alaskans have for independence, that's misunderstood also, kind of exploited in some sense. But it's just so huge and diverse that there's plenty for everybody. Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: Misunderstood in what way, though?
PALIN: Well, that — I don't know. I think there is a perception perhaps that Alaskans are perhaps not wanting to be a part of more of what's going on in their country also. And I got a little sense of that in terms of the questions that were asked of me along the trail. You know, a number of the questions like, Well, what you read? What — how do you stay in touch with what's going on in the country? And I remember that question sure took me aback. And just some of those questions that were asked that made me realize, Oh, people think that Alaska is so far away and that people here perhaps are out of touch.
And yet, I think — I look at Alaska as being situated to allow us to be leaders in a lot of the policy that needs to, I think, progress the state — the nation, energy policy especially, and you know, geographically where we're located. We're the air crossroads of the world. There are so many things that Alaska has to offer, and hopefully, we can help people understand where Alaska is, what we have to contribute, and we will kind of be better utilized, even, as a state. This very young state that we are, we are a great attribute to the rest of the nation.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, I guess I sort of thought that people looked at it more with awe, in the sense that you have all this beauty and that the rest of us would sort of like to think, you know — you know, we'd like to live up here. Instead, we're sort of trapped in some of these horrible urban environments because we can't — you know, we can't pull ourselves away. And you come up here and you see, you see the natural resources and you — and you can't — I mean, more in awe, not — not the "What do you read" so much. I mean, it's — in fact, it looks like — you know, I'd like to sit in your front yard and read.
(LAUGHTER)
VAN SUSTEREN: Actually, when you look at that...
PALIN: We do a lot of reading.
VAN SUSTEREN: I bet you do a lot of — I mean, that's...
PALIN: We do. Yes, that's a good perspective there, too. I do think that Alaska — I believe that this whole run for VP has been good for our state in that it has opened people's eyes to the resources that we have, and I think that there will be more acknowledgement of Alaska's position in our nation, as we seek to develop more, safely, responsibly, and start contributing more to the U.S.
Remember when we became a state and we had struck deals with the federal government, saying, Let us into the union, you know, 50 years ago. Let us into the union and we'll be as self-sufficient as possible. But we — neither the state nor the feds have really held up their own ends of the bargain here when we became a state and our statehood compact was crafted and our state constitution say, OK, we will derive benefit, maximum benefit for the people of Alaska as we develop our God-given resources up here, and then we won't be reliant on the federal government. And the feds said, yes, come on in, and you must be self-sufficient, and you do that by developing your resources.
Well, in a lot of respects, the federal government hasn't allowed us to develop to our potential because less than half of 1 percent of all of Alaska's lands are even in the private sector's hands. The government controls — native corporations and the government controls all of our lands.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Next, Governor Palin says she is dealing with a major national security issue in Alaska. What probably has the governor so concerned tonight? She tells you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAN SUSTEREN: We continue now with Governor Sarah Palin from her home in Wasilla, Alaska. And one of the issues the governor campaigned hardest about is domestic oil drilling.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: So many people in the lower 48, for instance, don't want drilling, the ANWR drilling, and they've been here. People in Alaska, who are here, want it.
PALIN: Right. You know why people in Alaska want it? They know that not only with the job creation that will result and the benefits that will be derived from feeding very hungry markets here in Alaska and across the U.S. with a resource that is plentiful up here, but people up here want to allow that development because they know that we can do it safely and responsibly because we care more about the land and the water and the wildlife and the air up here than anybody else. We live here. Our roots are here. Our kids are going to grow up in this state. You know, we're going to be here until the day that we die. It would be irresponsible of us to ever consider development that would adversely affect our environment or the wildlife or anything else.
So we care more than anybody else. And we care to the extent that we have stringent oversight, probably the most stringent oversight in the world with our developments. And since my administration came into office now more than two years ago, we've even ramped that up, creating an office that just focuses on the petroleum developments in Alaska, making sure that — you know, that we are doing anything, everything possible to prove to the rest of the U.S. that we can do this safely, we can do this responsibly.
And then cleaning up corruption, politically speaking here, with those in the legislature, many of the guys in prison now for, you know, corrupt votes that were taken that had to do with oil taxes. Ethically, also, our commitment to developing resources — it has to be environmentally friendly, it has to be ethical, all these things that are coming into place at this time. We're in a perfect position to finally, again, start contributing more to the U.S., producing more, ramping up development so we're less reliant on foreign sources of energy. And we should be leading, and there has been failed energy policy in our nation for 30 years. It's virtually been nonexistent, an energy policy that's comprehensive in the U.S. And Alaska is in a position to lead on that.
VAN SUSTEREN: What about the environmentalists? I mean, is there — is it — are they — is everyone just not talking? You think that's the problem (INAUDIBLE) people who object to the — are just not talking to each other or not going and looking? I mean — I mean, they seem to be, you know, locking horns.
PALIN: And enough of that, too. There's been closed-mindedness involved in this debate of whether the development should be allowed to take place in Alaska or not. And I don't want America to be in such a desperate situation in terms of national security and on the economic front also that there's going to be this forced development up here that we have no choice. I want everybody to understand that it can be done safely, ethically. It's possible, and we're ready to prove that. I don't want it to take some catastrophe or some — you know, some foreign regime using energy as a weapon and cutting off supplies, you know, perhaps Chavez, who has threatened to do this as we import sources of energy from him, or say Russia getting control over a couple of the pipelines that feed European markets. I don't want it to take that for people's eyes to be open to understand why we do all have to work together to see the domestic solutions tapped into, plugged in, that allows us to become more energy- independent.
Right now, we're still too far apart, environmentalists and the pro- development world. We need to get it together. And again, when we talk about development of Alaska's resources, when we have stringent oversight, we have the commitment, at least in my administration, that we're going to protect the environment as we develop, there needs to be that consideration that we're going to do it right.
Do you think foreign — foreign supplies of energy that are being tapped into right now, do they care as much as about the environment as we do? Do they care as much about worker safety as we do? I doubt that they do. In fact, there's proof that they do not, not to the degree that Americans and Alaskans want to see that, safe, sound development, that responsible development that we're committed to.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Up next: OK, we've flown with the Blue Angels and the Thunderbirds, (INAUDIBLE) in an aircraft carrier and catapulted off. So why not a snow machine ride with an Iron Dog champ, yes, a ride on the snow machine with "First Dude" Todd Palin. How fast? You're going to have to watch to find out.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAN SUSTEREN: Now more of the interview with Governor Sarah Palin. She is, of course, the Governor of Alaska, the largest state in the union.
How do many people get around in Alaska? By snow machine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: People don't realize how big this state is.
PALIN: Yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: Have you seen it all?
PALIN: We have flown over a lot of it but I don't think that any person has seen all of Alaska.
It is vastly untouched, too, of course. Todd, you have seen a lot of it.
TODD PALIN, HUSBAND OF SARAH PALIN: Every year I see 2,000 miles of it.
VAN SUSTEREN: Up close and personal. Will you do that again this year?
PALIN: In February.
VAN SUSTEREN: When does the training start?
TODD PALIN: This week.
VAN SUSTEREN: Is it physical in the gym, or is it just out riding the snow machine?
TODD PALIN: Just tearing snow machines down and building them back up, and then practice on a snow machine.
VAN SUSTEREN: How many people compete?
TODD PALIN: There are about 60 teams.
VAN SUSTEREN: Most of us think that is pretty wild. Maybe even crazy.
TODD PALIN: It is one of those Alaska events.
VAN SUSTEREN: One of my favorite times during the campaign was Senator McCain was talking about you, and he said "Have you met," and I don't know if he said "The First Dude" or Todd, and with a big grin on his face he said, "He's insane," or something like that. It was all because of the snow machine stuff.
TODD PALIN: It's a good race. There are other extreme sports out there that are a lot more dangerous than what we do.
VAN SUSTEREN: I guess.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: We couldn't resist. You don't get a chance like this often, a snow machine ride with an iron dog champ. We get to a fast ride with the first dude.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: I should have snuck out. Check this out. How's the ice. Is it at least frozen?
PALIN: You can travel anywhere in Alaska if you have an airplane and snow machine.
VAN SUSTEREN: Why is the plane out? Because the lake is frozen?
PALIN: Because the lake's frozen and he has not had time to put it on skis. So he'll go park this at an air strip for the winter.
VAN SUSTEREN: Can you fly?
PALIN: That is something I'm not into.
VAN SUSTEREN: Why?
PALIN: To me it's like a little tin can, a tuna fish can that you're flying around in.
TODD PALIN: It's icy.
VAN SUSTEREN: OK.
TODD PALIN: Hop on. You will sit on behind me.
VAN SUSTEREN: OK.
TODD PALIN: How fast do you want to go?
VAN SUSTEREN: I don't know. I want to be shown how it is done.
TODD PALIN: How fast can she go? What's the speed limit?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She has her lawyer here.
VAN SUSTEREN: And I have life insurance.
We went faster than that. We went faster than 70.
Can I tell you that is scary at 70. Ready? Watch out.
Do I have a career in the iron dog? I think I have a career as an iron dogger.
Now I can brag—Blue Angels, Thunderbirds, Tomahawk Aircraft Carrier, and with a champion iron dogger, with Todd. I've gone racing on the snow machine, not snow mobile for all of you people who don't know that.
That was fun.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Do you blame me? Coming up, all of us in the media have been chasing after Governor Palin four weeks. But here's a twist - why did Governor Palin once chase me down a hallway? You will hear next.
Plus, the governor cooks us moose chili. Who killed this moose anyway? Here is a hint — it wasn't the governor.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWS BREAK)
VAN SUSTEREN: We continue now with Governor Sarah Palin inside her home in Wasilla, Alaska. It is time to eat some moose chili cooked by Governor Palin.
Before we do, Governor Palin has a story. Governor Palin tells you about the time we first met.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PALIN: It was at the GOP convention a few years ago. And I kind of chased you down the hall.
VAN SUSTEREN: (INAUDIBLE)
PALIN: And I said, "Greta, I am Sarah Palin. It's nice to meet you." And I said she is on TV. "I thought you were six feet tall." And she said, "I am." She's cool. I like her.
VAN SUSTEREN: The funny thing is that now I am chasing you.
PALIN: Even on a snow machine.
VAN SUSTEREN: And I caught up. Here we are.
PALIN: You did very well. (Put him in a little seat.)
VAN SUSTEREN: I'm hungry. I'm going to eat some chili. Have you eaten yet?
PALIN: Did you guys get some chili?
VAN SUSTEREN: You made the chili?
PALIN: I did.
VAN SUSTEREN: It's delicious.
PALIN: Thank you very much.
VAN SUSTEREN: Who shot the moose, though?
PALIN: I think that maybe my dad did, or maybe my mom did. I just grab some moose meat out of the freezer because we didn't have any moose meat in our freezer the last couple of days.
VAN SUSTEREN: You stole moose meat from your parents?
PALIN: I did. We stole moose or caribou hot dogs from them too. I don't know what it was. They we're marked on the package
VAN SUSTEREN: Explain to me why you don't shoot moose?
PALIN: Because caribou hunts are for me a lot easier. They're easier to take the kids on a caribou hunt walking through the tundra, the area there. It's just been easier.
But if I had an opportunity I would shoot a moose, too. It all depends on what permits you to get that season, also.
VAN SUSTEREN: Do you have to buy a permit?
PALIN: It depends. Different areas you are in a drawing, and if you're lucky enough to win one of the permits you get to get out there and shoot it. Or there are areas where you don't have to have a drawing permit. There are enough caribou were you can just go out there and shoot.
It all depends on what the game management has provided in terms of numbers. If the herd's big enough you just go shoot.
VAN SUSTEREN: This is delicious. It is sweeter, almost.
PALIN: It is sweeter and much healthier than beef.
VAN SUSTEREN: It's healthier?
PALIN: That's something else that maybe people don't understand about Alaska is we manage our wildlife so that there is a large population of the moose and the caribou because that is what people eat, especially in rural Alaska.
They don't want to have to import beef and pay those huge transportation costs to feed their children beef that is perhaps has steroids or chemicals in it. They want to live off the land. So we need to game management that allow for healthy populations of moose and caribou, which means taking care of the predators, which is controversial in some parts of the world, especially the east coast, the animal rights groups that do not want to see Alaska have predator control programs.
VAN SUSTEREN: What kind of predators?
PALIN: Usually wolves.
VAN SUSTEREN: They are the ones going after the moose and the caribou?
PALIN: Right, because it the wolf population grows too rapidly then they decimate the population of caribou and moose and then the people can't eat.
So it's a fine balance that has be struck also with game management and predator control allowing healthy populations of all the different species. And that is why we have some of the best biologists and scientists in the world to work for our Department of Fish and Game to make sure that they can strike that balance.
VAN SUSTEREN: When I was here in 1978, the first night I arrived here, the people who picked me up at the airport took me to downtown Anchorage. And I know this isn't unusual, but it seemed peculiar to me. There was a giant moose walking down the middle of the street.
PALIN: Always. You can probably see one this morning walking down the street in Anchorage. Yes. All the time. In our yard.
VAN SUSTEREN: You have moose in your yard?
PIPER PALIN: (INAUDIBLE) I mean, a bear, just walking down across road in Anchorage.
PALIN: Tell her about our Juneau governor's house. What did we see outside that front door?
PIPER PALIN: (INAUDIBLE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Bears?
PALIN: A mama bear and two baby bears. There are two cubs right outside our door in the governor's mansion in Juneau.
But it was like it was a staged for "People" magazine. They were here doing a story on Trig. The mama duck and all the babies waddle across the yard. And immediately after a mama moose and two day old calves that had just been dropped down the driveway a couple of days earlier, they came prancing across the lawn.
And these "People" magazine photographers, I'm sure they thought this is surreal, what a unique place. But that was a neat photo op for them.
VAN SUSTEREN: When I was here even before that, what I was told if you see a mama moose with her calf, go up a tree, because she is not friendly with a calf.
PALIN: You don't mess with them, just like a mama grizzly when her cubs are around. You go the other direction.
VAN SUSTEREN: At least if you went up the tree, the moose cannot maneuver as quickly and get to you as you scurry up the tree.
PALIN: That's true. People kind of flirt with disaster when they do mess with a mama moose when a calf is around, thinking it is just a nice friendly encounter. No. The moose will fight to the death to protect her calve.
VAN SUSTEREN: How many caribou do you think you shot?
PALIN: Just a few. It depends on who has the permits and who maybe hasn't shot one in a while. Everyone shares in the game, all the family and friends.
VAN SUSTEREN: Where do you do this?
PALIN: It depends upon what district, what area is open, and how convenient it is.
For caribou it is about an hour drive where we go to hunt. Moose, depending on the season, again, and permitting, you see moose around here in this area, and they can be harvested.
The processing of it, though, it's kind of a cultural thing where everyone gets together and does the processing of it. Usually the patriarch of the family, my dad, he'll do the butchering, and then we all held bone the meat and process it ourselves, making hamburger and sausages, and all that.
Nowadays because there are a couple of meat processing plants, we will drop it off there and they process it. Then everyone stays up all night long wrapping it and delivering it to different freezers. And then you consume it through the winter.
VAN SUSTEREN: Could a moose feed your family for the winter?
PALIN: Yes, depending on how it is processed, sure. Moose and a caribou and then the fish that we catch through the summer. Yes, you could definitely go all winter long without ever purchasing meet.
VAN SUSTEREN: Do you fish?
PALIN: We fish a lot.
VAN SUSTEREN: Are you any good at it?
PALIN: Yes. We spend most of our time commercial fishing, which you catch thousands of pounds a day.
So the sport fishing, which I enjoy also because I grew up sport fishing with my dad. But Todd gets bored with that. When he pulls in the nets in his commercial fishing operation with tens of thousands of pounds. He doesn't have time to play with his food he says, sport fishing.
But we still do it because it is fun.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Up next, listen to this—why the is each Alaskan child getting a check for $1,200? What are they dealing with that money? Governor Palin will tell you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAN SUSTEREN: We continue with Governor Sarah Palin. This year each Alaskan got a check in the mail for $1,200 and that includes each child. Do you know why?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: The last time I was up here, some little boy about eight showed me his fancy bright green tennis shoes. And he said "I just bought these with my $1,200 check."
PALIN: Oh, yes.
VAN SUSTEREN: I think his mother got the understanding that he could buy one thing and the rest got put away.
Most Americans don't understand. What is this $1,200 check these Alaskans are getting?
PALIN: It is the Alaska permanent fund dividend check. Every year as oil development takes place and revenues derived from this development, a chunk of the money goes into the stock market and makes the money for Alaskans and it goes into the permanent fund. It is about a $30 billion fund right now, it's a savings account.
And then Alaskans get a dividend as a result of the savings in that account.
And it is good, because our constitution says that it is Alaskans who own resources underground. It is not like other states where perhaps the oil company actually owns all the resources underground and they're the ones that solely benefit from development. Here in Alaska we partner with the oil industry. Alaskans own the resources and the oil companies lease the ground and lease the rights to develop, and they make a healthy, healthy profit, of course, from the development of our resources.
But our constitution says that Alaskans own the resources, so they derive benefit every time the resource is developed and the money is made on it. That is what the Alaska permanent fund dividend check is every year that people get.
It is good because Alaskans then keep an eye on what is going on in the oil industry and they make sure that we are not taken advantage of.
We had been taking advantage of, and that is something that our administration came in and was cleaning up, taking on the oil companies and the oil service company VECO that had bought votes in the legislature, and we said no more of that.
But when the citizens of Alaska have such a stake in their own resources and how they're developed, they pay attention. They pay attention to who they elect. They pay attention to any of the scandals or potential scandals in the political arena up here.
Because they know that the oil industry's had such control over the political process and policies up here that they want to make sure that things are run cleanly, responsibly, ethically, because they have a stake in this, a financial stake in the resource development.
VAN SUSTEREN: Piper, did you get your check?
PALIN: My kids have never seen their check. It was put away. She has herself a college fund going, though.
VAN SUSTEREN: I suppose that's what most of the families do, let the kids buy something, because the kids get it too, and then tuck it away for school and stuff.
PALIN: That is what we do. But our kids have never seen their checks. Someday some they will remind us that they have some checks coming.
But I would rather than mom and dad be responsibly with those dollars. It would be way too tempting for some kid to go blow it, of course.
VAN SUSTEREN: They are all excited about it.
PALIN: They will get like 100 bucks out of it.
I think too, not only is it constitutional, this is what you do with your resource development dollars in Alaska, the people of Alaska who own the resources get a share of it. But it a good tool for our kids to be able to see why he is so important that it is responsible development and they have a stake in this, and why it is so important that politicians don't get away with any shenanigans and self dealing through all this.
So 85 percent of the state budget is built on the price of oil and oil developments up here. So that is how important the oil industry is to Alaska. And that also why it is so important that this state not be taken advantage of by oil companies.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Go to GretaWire.com right now and tell us what you thought of our interview with Governor Palin. You can also check out clips of the interview that you might have missed the first time around.
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