by Andy Barr

Mar. 7, 2011 10:08 AM

POLITICO.COM

Sarah Palin's mother says she's concerned about her daughter's safety following a series of death threats.

In an interview with the BBC, Palin's parents, Chuck and Sally Heath, said the Palin family has been targeted with numerous death threats since the former Alaska governor emerged on the national public stage.

"As a mother I do have concerns about her safety and that of the kids," Palin's mother said. "She knows how I feel, that it's risky."

Palin's father told the network about a man who had recently sent the family a photocopied receipt of a gun he'd purchased. The man was later arrested by the FBI, but Chuck Heath says incidents like that have the family worried.

"We sleep with the guns," Palin's father said.

For her part, the former Alaska governor tried to dissuade notions that she faces serious harm when asked about the threats in the interview.

"Our family is pretty thick-skinned," Palin said. "For the last 20 years in political office our family has put up with a lot of flak. We're still standing and we're doing well, so we're not worried too much about the pressure."

The Arizona Republic is a member of the Politico Network.

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