In a wide-ranging interview with Politico which took place in Washington D.C., Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, who is running for U.S. Senate, all but called prospective candidate, Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Dan Sullivan, a carpetbagger.
“I’ve got a jar of mayonnaise in my refrigerator that’s been there longer than Dan Sullivan’s been in Alaska,” Treadwell told Politico.
Sullivan’s partial response, via email: “(A)fter moving to Alaska over 16 years ago, I learned something new today — not to eat any of Mead Treadwell’s sandwiches.”
Sullivan hasn’t officially announced, but has resigned his job effective Sept. 24, and everyone, including Treadwell, knows he’s going to. This will pit him against Treadwell and tea party candidate Joe Miller in a three-way primary race before running against U.S. Sen Mark Begich in the general election.
“Politically, this helps Joe Miller. And most importantly, it helps people who want to help Mark Begich by fomenting division in the Republican Party,” Treadwell said.
Asked about whether or not he would be a better candidate than Sullivan, Treadwell said that he’s “very happy to put my record out there and let the voters decide.”
Sullivan moved to Alaska in 1997 after getting a Georgetown law degree to clerk for judges, including Chief Justice Warren Matthews. He was in private practice until 2002, when he moved to D.C. to head the International Economics Directorate of the National Economic Council and National Security Council under George W. Bush. He left the White House to become an assistant secretary of state.
In 2009, then Gov. Sarah Palin appointed him to become Alaska’s attorney general. He’s now the commissioner of DNR. Sullivan has also served in the Marine Corps since 1993, both on active duty and in the reserves. He was recently called to active duty to work on a counterterrorism mission in Afghanistan.
Treadwell moved to Alaska in 1978 to work on Wally Hickel’s losing gubernatorial run. He returned in 1982 armed with a master’s from Harvard to work for Hickel’s company, Yukon Pacific which tried, but failed, to build a natural gas pipeline that would run from the North Slope to tidewater in Valdez. Hickel ran again for governor and won in 1990 and Treadwell served as his deputy commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation.
In 2001, Treadwell was appointed to the United States Arctic Research Commission by President George W. Bush. He became president of the commission in 2006. Throughout, he invested in a series of tech companies. He has been the state’s lieutenant governor since 2010, a job that’s been described by this writer, and by a columnist for the Anchorage Daily News, as not worthy of a “warm bucket of spit.”
According to Politico, Treadwell has been traveling across the country raising money. He’s recently been in Chicago, Columbus, Ohio and Oklahoma City. It’s unclear if any of these trips involved state business, and if not, whether Treadwell will reimburse the state for the time he has spent traveling for fundraisers.
Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com
Competition is what politics is all about. The sad thing is that Treadwell already sounds defensive and Sullivan hasn’t even joined the race. Sullivan’s remark was classy and funny. Politics has gotten caustic and someone with Sullivan’s intellect and humor can go a long way to address the rancor that is Washington. Miller had his shot and blew it–also no qualifications whatsoever to be dog catcher. It will be an interesting year and let’s hope we can replace Begich who won because of an abuse of government power and is, in earnest, the illegitimate senator.
Mead’s little “white lie” mayonaise reference is so par for the course. Big lies, little lies and all kind of lies come out of his mouth all the time. He’s the kind of politician that will say anything to curry favor without regard for the truth. Wasn’t he reprimanded as DEC deputy commissioner for lying ? Seems like there was something. Hey Mead, you’ll have some time after the August primary to clean out your refrigerator. This independent voter is for anyone but this guy.
Sounds as if Treadwell is throwing in the towel before the race gets underway. Liked Casey Reynolds description of Mead on his radio show. Said that if you don’t like one of Mead’s positions don’t worry, he’ll change his position depending on who he’s talking to. Guess this is his problem I think.
This blog makes politics fun.
Mead’s comment about his jar of mayonaise is very telling and demonstrative of who he is. He’s someone who has difficulty telling the truth. It’s sad that Mead has so little to say good about himself that he has to resort to negative comments about a candidate not yet even in the race. Wake up Mead, this is why people aren’t supporting your campaign. The headline is accurate and Sullivan will eat Treadwell’s luncch in the primary.