Todd Palin rips author about book on Sarah

WASILLA, Alaska, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- Todd Palin, husband of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, ripped a new book about his wife, saying it was replete with "disgusting lies, innuendo and smears."

Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, has said she will decide by the end of September whether she would enter an already crowded field seeking the 2012 GOP presidential nomination.

"The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin," by Joe McGinniss, has a Sept. 20 release date.

Todd Palin, in a statement released Wednesday, said, "This is a man who has been relentlessly stalking my family to the point of moving in right next door to us to harass us and spy on us to satisfy his creepy obsession with my wife. His book is full of disgusting lies, innuendo, and smears," USA Today reported Thursday.

The National Enquirer reported Wednesday that, among other things, the book alleges Sarah Palin had a tryst with basketball player Glen Rice in 1987 before her marriage, and confirms a 2008 Enquirer story that she an extramarital affair with a business partner of her husband.

Todd Palin's statement was released through Sarah PAC, his wife's political action committee, USA Today reported. A check of Sarah Palin's Facebook and Twitter pages Thursday did not show a response from Palin, now a political commentator for Fox News.

McGinniss moved to Alaska last year to conduct research for his book, renting a house next door to the Palins, who later built a privacy fence.