7 Palin aides reverse their refusal to testify in abuse of power inquiry

SEVEN aides to Alaska governor Sarah Palin have reversed course and agreed to testify in an investigation into whether the Republican vice-presidential nominee abused her powers by firing a commissioner who refused to dismiss her former brother-in-law.

There is no indication, however, that Palin or her husband will agree to testify in the legislative inquiry, which has dogged her for several months and could hurt John McCain in the final weeks of the presidential race.

Palin, a first-term governor, is the focus of a legislative investigation into her firing of public safety commissioner Walt Monegan a year after she, her husband and key advisers began questioning him about getting rid of a state trooper who had gone through a nasty divorce with her sister.