KTVA Channel 11 put up Mayor Dan Sullivan’s picture on their website when they announced the Club for Growth endorsement. The endorsement actually went to the real Senate candidate, former Commissioner Dan Sullivan. This begs the question: if the media is confused, it certainly excuses others who are like-wise confused, particularly as Sullivan hasn’t yet exactly barraged the public with ads.
The Alaska House has sense? The Alaska state House on Monday voted unanimously to pass a “sense of the House”– basically a version of a resolution—condemning EPA chief Gina McCarthy’s comments about gifts she received while visiting Alaska. Specifically, she told a Wall Street Journal reporter that a gift of moose given to her by an Alaska Native girl “could gag a maggot,” Also, after she was given a pin by the mayor of North Pole, she “threw the f…ing thing away.”
The resolution doesn’t go far enough for some. Rep. Bob Lynn, who isn’t retiring, ever, wants her fired. For his part, Gov. Sean Parnell’s campaign posted a picture of him and his COS Mike Nizich, dressed in camouflage, lording over a hopefully-recently shot moose.
House Finance Co-chair, Alan Austerman’s daughter, Carol Austerman, made it official today: She’ll be running for the seat her father will be vacating.“Growing up in a family involved in state and local government, I have been raised to know the importance of public service and providing leadership – it is part of my heritage,” she said in a release.
Why is the former executive director of the Democratic Party, Deborah Williams, involved in trying to kill pot legalization? She was seen at the UAA debate on the upcoming initiative, manning the table for the national anti-legalization group, Project SAM, short for “Smart Approaches to Marijuana.”
SAM might have some pretty good arguments to keep underground one of the most available, and relatively harmless drugs out there. However, if the battle revolves solely on names, my money’s on the pro-pot group: The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, or TCTRMLA, for short. After all pith, like the War on Drugs, is so 1990s.
Gov. Sean Parnell continues to raise money, holding several events last week, ending the week with an event on Friday at the Embassy Suites in Anchorage and a Sunday brunch in Girdwood. Those in the know say both events had respectable crowds.
From the annals of once-a-state-worker-always-a-state-worker: Former Alaska state Sen. John Torgerson is the new acting director of the Alaska Vocational Technical Center in Seward.
Some Anchorage Assembly candidates will go to great lengths to get voters’ attention. Perched in the snow on Saturday in the median strip on Minnesota at the Northern Lights intersection sat Phil Isley waving his political signs.
Early voting has begun for the muni election.
Former Gov. Bill Sheffield is having a fundraiser for Dan Coffey on Tuesday, who’s running for Anchorage mayor in the 2015 election.
The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission was hoping to get a $750,000 budget increase even though the agency had $660,000 unspent from the previous year. Surprisingly, the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, which tends not to have big love for regulators, or big spending, wrote a letter in support of the increase.
Don Habeger is now the new deputy commissioner of the Department of Administration. Habeger come from Commerce, where he was the former director of Corporations, Business and Professional Licenses.
Lite gov. candidate Bob Williams has a web video up. With yeasty props, even.
It’s odd, isn’t it, that once you announce that you might take a run against an incumbent governor, then some people begin to give you wide berth. Even those who used to embrace you. Enter Brad Keithley, who hasn’t been to Juneau once to testify this session on oil and gas issues. For the last few years, he was practically a fixture there. It’s a shame, because he has an interesting power point on the gas line just in case. Legislators might learn a few things from it. Late addition: Keithley is scheduled to speak that the MatSu Business Alliance on Friday.
An announcement from Senate candidate Dan Sullivan’s campaign:
Tomorrow afternoon, (Tuesday) Alaska veterans will speak out against the shameless attacks on Dan Sullivan leveled by Senator Mark Begich’s SuperPAC.
Earlier this week, a SuperPAC affiliated with Senator Begich’s reelection efforts launched their latest attack ad against Dan Sullivan. During the period of time that is referenced in the ad, Dan Sullivan was working in the service of his country. The new ad “Fishy” follows the same trail as “Home” to attack Sullivan’s time in the US Marine Corps, the White House and U.S. State Department.
WHAT: Veterans speak out against latest Begich SuperPAC ad attacking Dan Sullivan
WHERE: Anchorage Veterans’ Memorial – Delaney Park, Anchorage, AK
WHEN: 1:00pm AKDT (Tuesday)
Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com
I’m concerned about the marijuana initiative. I don’t believe that people should be jailed for posession; however, total legalization is going to cause problems, be even more readio youth and still serve as a gateway drug to more serious and dangerous addictions. We spend millions warning people of the perils of smoking, second hand smoke and then paying for theor health care that to promote it at the same time thru legalization is plain crazy.
The AKLNG project was intentionally not properly vetted. The AKLNG project was not placed before the legislature until the 2nd year of the legislative session. Wasn’t that delay of this complex issue intended to force a rapid series of hearings?
Mr. Keithley and other knowledgeable and concerned experts who might have refused to participate in this scripted performance were banned from invited testimony. Why wasn’t the Robert Marks analysis which pointed out potential pitfalls of the project included in the hearing documents? The state paid $4,900 for that report yet we cannot see it. Even the public testimony announcement was obscured by not posting the notice of public testimony on the Basis Page for SB138. You had to search the database to find the announcement.
Now you will hear no more about gas lines, certainly not before the November election, because that was the intent of this hurried subjective legislative process.
I watched the web ad that Mr. Williams has posted for his campaign for Lite Governor. While he appears to be enthusoiatic and passionate, he makes little sense. Maybe we should elect him. At least he could do less harm there than he’s probably doing in the class room if he’s being as factuallly irresponsible with his classes as he’s being in his ad. Why do Democrats hate the state’s biggest economic sector so much and fabricate facts to advanve their arguments. Shouldn’t they figure out that their arguments are weak if they have to fabricate their arguments so much? Disappointing.
The more I think about it, isn’t “a sense of the House” an oxymoron?