Sarah Palin has had an unlucky month for endorsements. As The Guardian's Richard Adams reports, Palin-endorsed candidates like Rand Paul and Nikki Haley have fallen under serious scrutiny or endured accusations of unethical behavior. Idaho candidate Vaughn Ward is no exception.

Palin stopped in Idaho to endorse Ward as the GOP nominee to challenge Democratic incumbent Walt Minnick in Idaho's first congressional district. Unfortunately for Palin, Ward has been subject to his own controversy after apparently plagiarizing a speech from another politician: Barack Obama. More specifically, the congressional hopeful cribbed a passage nearly word-for-word from Obama's famous speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, a speech which made him a household name.

"Palin's endorsement is seen as something of great value among Republicans," writes Adams. "But the string of unfortunate events that occurred not long after Palin has given her support makes one wonder if there isn't a 'reverse Midas touch' effect: that rather than turning things to gold, Palin instead turns everything she touches into ... well, the opposite of gold."

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