A Colorado Department of Transportation employee is under investigation for e-mailing an image of President Obama polishing former lawmaker Sarah Palin’s shoes.

The individual, who was not named, faces disciplinary action up to and including being fired. The image was forwarded to four people, at least one of whom was outside the department, and it was quickly reported as “offensive.”

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[The image originally here has been removed at the can be read here.]

“The original sender of the e-mail, who isn’t a state employee, wrote ‘It appears he (Obama) has found his niche,'” the Associated Press reported.

“It’s certainly an inappropriate email to begin with, but its the fact too that it’s being sent on state time and using state resources and for that we find that very unacceptable,” a department spokeswoman told Colorado’s NBC 9News.

The sender of the e-mail was identified only as a 73-year-old woman and a registered Democrat, 9News added.

According to The Denver Post, Colorado’s Democratic Governor Bill Ritter called the e-mail “very distasteful.”

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This video is from NBC 9News, broadcast Dec. 30, 2009.