Question number one for any v.p. vetter should be: Are you involved in any scandals? And, the second question is: Who is your legal counsel for that scandal?

It’s hard to understand how the McCain campaign ignored the answer to question number one — if it was ever even asked of Sarah Palin, who is involved in a major scandal. The answer to question number two should have raised some eyebrows. She didn’t even have a lawyer in a case that could ultimately result in impeachment — until recently. The Anchorage Daily News broke that news late today:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin — Republican John McCain’s pick for vice president — now has a private lawyer representing her and others in the governor’s office in an investigation into the firing of her public safety commissioner.

John McCain keeps touting Palin’s reform credentials — starting with her courageous work at the PTA. Will Sarah Palin cooperate with the investigation — or will Palin, the McCain campaign and her new lawyer try to stonewall the investigation? Real reformers answer questions, I’d say. More from the ADN:

[Special Counsel Steve] Branchflower is still trying to interview Palin. He made a request on Thursday morning, but hasn’t heard back. Palin was in Arizona with McCain on Thursday talking to him about the vice president’s slot. McCain announced on Friday in Ohio that Palin was his pick. “Clearly the Governor’s new political role will make it more challenging for her to make time for this investigation,” [State Senator Hollis] French wrote. “Nevertheless, her repeated promises to cooperate fully with the investigation, as well as statements that her new role as the Republican vice presidential nominee will not interfere with the day-to-day functioning of state business, should result in a concrete willingness to schedule and conclude her deposition.”

This is a test for McCain.

Remember, John McCain had six months to pick a running mate. This was the most important decision McCain has made so far. He had plenty of time to think it through and vet the potential picks. Instead, McCain made a rash, uninformed, impulsive choice. With each passing hour, the McCain campaign’s claims of thorough vetting sound less and less plausible. Again, McCain had six months to get this right, but his campaign was too busy bashing Obama to worry about important matters like choosing the person who could potentially be a leader of the free world. Reckless. Impulsive. Erratic. That’s the kind of leadership McCain would give America. McCain is willing to gamble with our safety and security.

This whole mess really is about John McCain. (But, as so many pundits and reporters noted on Friday, McCain did “win” the media for the day. Look where that got him.)