Secession occurs when persons in a country or state declare their independence from the ruling government. When a dissatisfied group secedes, it creates its own form of government in place of the former ruling government.
The fact that Palin was a member of the Alaska Independent Party for TWO YEARS is horrid. Forget the child rearing failures.
In other countries, membership in organizations is punishable as treason.
Most countries have laws that punish persons who secede or attempt to secede. The United States has no specific law on secession, but the federal government and state governments maintain laws that punish Sedition and other forms of insurrection against the government.
On the federal level, for example, chapter 115 of title 18 of the U.S. Code Annotated identifies Treason, rebellion, or insurrection, seditious conspiracy, and advocation of the overthrow of the government as criminal offenses punishable by several years of imprisonment and thousands of dollars in fines.
These are the types of crimes that can be charged against persons who attempt to secede from the United States.
This was the type of vetting McCain did.