Salon has a solid piece that someone in the MSM should have done by now on the role of Todd Palin in Sarah Palin’s gubernatorial administration.

(Though to be fair, the Times did report a couple of days ago that Todd Palin would help his wife go over the state budget and decide where they wanted to cut and where they wanted to increase funds.)

Todd appears to have had an unusually strong role, the extent of which remains unclear. He is not on the state payroll and was never elected — but the First Dude has crossed over from the standard-issue supportive political spouse to something far more influential, weighing in on policy and political matters in ways that few observers seem to understand. His apparent influence in his wife’s administration — some in Alaska have referred to him as the “shadow governor” — has raised questions about whether a Sarah Palin vice-presidency would hand the same type of backstage power to Todd, and what that might mean in the running of the U.S. government.

….Sarah Palin has used a private e-mail address on most of the e-mails her husband was copied on, and reportedly was advised by aides that such nonofficial communications could be protected from potential subpoena. Legislators and political insiders in Alaska say a small circle of trusted Palin aides keep most decisions and deliberations close to the vest, with Todd Palin among them.

The more you learn about Sarah Palin, the creepier she gets.