I hate having to defend Todd Palin, who on the surface does not look like someone I would ever be close friends with, but this crap about his influence over his wife is just too disingenuous to be believed. Spouses have ALWAYS had great influence in any administration of government going back in history to Helen of Troy. Hillary influenced Bill. Mamie influenced Ike. God knows Barbara influenced every Bush born after 1900. And Nancy Murkowski was and is Frank’s confidante. That’s the way marriages usually work, if they work at all. The fact that this time the woman is in charge and the guy sits on the chair in the back of the room shouldn’t change the fact that it is simply a spouse doing what spouses have done since time immemorial – influence their other half. Granted Todd may make it more visible than many would like but, for god’s sake, do we really think Hillary was planning tea parties while she was first lady?