Tag Archives: mark begich

Begich skips unemployment benefits vote for Hawaii

As the Hill first reported, Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Begich skipped a procedural vote on unemployment benefits to give a speech on Wednesday morning to the American Association of Airport Executives. The vote was tight and he was the only Democrat to miss it. Even so, skipping the vote might not have provided fodder to those seeking to unseat him, had not the speech been in Hawaii.

Cue conservative outrage.

According to Begich aides, plans were made for the speech long before the vote was scheduled. While in Hawaii, he attended two fundraisers and met with Hawaiian governor Neil Abercrombie.

Senate candidate Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell’s campaign sent out the following:

“While Mark Begich was off in Hawaii, raising money for his campaign, the Senate was voting on extending unemployment benefits and considering job creating amendments. But unfortunately for Alaska, Begich was the only democrat to skip that vote and his boss Harry Reid has blocked any amendments that would create jobs. It was reported today that only 62% of adults are participating in the workforce – the lowest number since 1968. It is abundantly clear to everyone but Harry Reid that our country needs more jobs today. Now that Begich is refreshed from his trip to Hawaii, maybe he could leverage all the support he has provided Harry Reid over the last five years to support creating jobs for Alaska.”

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Treadwell goes after Begich for lack of enthusiasm to end oil export ban

U.S. Senate candidate Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell’s campaign has been churning out the press releases in the past few days, most of them attacking Sen. Mark Begich for being both soft on energy and for taking money from the national Democratic Party, which is taking money from former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who is fighting for stricter gun control.

Both charges are a stretch, but the last one is particularly elastic. Begich was one of a handful of Democratic senators who broke with the party to vote against gun control, incurring the wrath of gun control groups everywhere, including one funded by Bloomberg.

On energy, Treadwell accused Begich of failing to lend his enthusiastic support for Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s fight to end the 1970-era oil export ban.

Murkowski is leading the charge to do away with ban, with the support of the American Petroleum Institute, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The ban was issued in 1975, following the Arab oil embargo, and was meant to protect American consumers from an unstable market and widely vacillating gasoline prices.

It does not apply to all oil produced in Alaska. However, demand has been high enough that no Alaska oil has been exported since 2004, according to the Energy Information Administration.

As more domestic oil is produced, it’s likely to be one of the biggest energy issues in the coming years.

Although Begich considers a higher priority making sure that Alaska can sell its natural gas to Asia, he does support lifting the ban.

“Alaskans know Mark Begich’s strong record of supporting Alaska’s energy industry and his work to create quality energy jobs for middle class families including his support of exporting Alaska crude oil and natural gas,” a Begich campaign press spokesperson said.

But some top Democrats say that because oil companies will try to sell oil more expensively to other countries, lifting the ban will translate into higher prices for consumers at the pump. Refiners, such as Valero Energy Corp., the largest U.S. refiner by capacity, also opposes lifting the ban, according to Bloomberg News.

“Yesterday, Mark Begich had the opportunity to enthusiastically support Alaskan energy by supporting Lisa Murkowski’s bid to end the oil export ban but he failed to do so. Mark Begich and the Obama Administration cannot claim to support free trade in energy on one hand without reversing policies to produce Alaska energy on the other,” Treadwell said.

U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz is willing to consider lifting the ban.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

D.C. publications focus on Alaska Senate race

On Sunday, two inside-the-beltway publications, Roll Call and The Hill, featured stories focusing on the 2014 Alaska Senate race.

Roll Call headlined its article as one of its 12 “Most Fascinating Races of 2014: Alaska Senate.” The publication announces what Alaskans had known for years: Democratic Sen. Mark Begich is vulnerable. According to the article, the race is currently rated a Tossup/Tilt-Democratic by Rothenberg Political Report/Roll Call. Roll Call said the fight between the top two Republican candidates — Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell and former DNR Commissioner Dan Sullivan — is less about ideology and more about who can beat Begich, which is kind of true. However, Treadwell has increasingly positioned himself to the right, particularly on social issues, while Sullivan has steadfastly refused to go there.

In any case, the first real fundraising test is coming up. FEC financial disclosures are due on Jan. 30.

Enter the money game.

The Hill’s article, “Five Fundraising Numbers To Watch,” focuses on the importance of former Alaska DNR commissioner Dan Sullivan’s year-end campaign cash totals as a number to watch:

Republican strategists have been predicting a big fundraising quarter from Sullivan, a former Bush appointee with close ties to a number of national Republicans. His brother is a top fundraiser for Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio).Sullivan’s main primary opponent, Alaska Lieutenant Gov. Mead Treadwell (R), has struggled so far with fundraising, bringing in just $200,000 last quarter. If Sullivan can post a huge fundraising quarter, it could help establish him as the clear front-runner on the GOP side. But if he fails to live up to the hype, the primary could turn into a slugfest.

If nothing else, the article suggests that Sullivan’s D.C. Republican squirrels have been chirping into the ears of reporters, which I suppose is indicative of a campaign that’s capable of raising money. But it’s also worthy of note that those chirpers likely themselves have a financial interest in Sullivan’s fundraising prowess.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

King Cove decision will provide fodder for Republicans eyeing Begich’s seat

Although both of Alaska’s U.S. senators voted to confirm Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, both Sens. Mark Begich and Lisa Murkowski expressed outrage over her decision to block the building of a gravel road that would allow King Cove residents access to Cold Bay.

“It’s the same sad story—a federal agency that doesn’t listen to Alaskans,” Begich said. Murkowski called it “heartless.” Rep. Don Young, as is his wont, was more colorful. He called it the “largest pile of horse manure ever delivered on Christmas.”

For dozens of years, residents of King Cove — a village of about 900 on the Aleutian chain –have been lobbying for a small, gravel road that would allow residents access to medical care through the all-weather airport in Cold Bay. The state of Alaska and King Cove Native Corp. have offered a land exchange for the gravel road The state and King Cove proposed giving up nearly 60,000 acres of land for the nearly 2,000 needed for the road, which would include 200 acres from the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge.

On Monday, Jewell said that the proposed land exchange wouldn’t compensate for the loss of food for migratory birds that stop in the region. “(T)o place eelgrass and waterfowl above human life is exactly what I would have expected from the Grinch, but not from an Administration that preaches access to quality healthcare for all,” Young said.

Because Young is a member of the House of Representatives, he didn’t vote on Jewell’s confirmation, but Murkowski and Begich both voted yes in April, 2013. Eleven Republicans voted against the nomination. It’s unclear what the ramifications of that vote will be for Murkowski when she is up for reelection in 2016. However, those who are eyeing Begich’s seat have already been making his vote an issue, and the decision today will provide fodder.

Last month, Republican candidate Joe Miller took Begich to task over his vote after Jewell said in a speech that there are areas “too special to develop,” including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She also said that the Obama administration would consider taking unilateral action to “protect” certain lands.

Begich wrote a letter to Jewell in response, warning that he would “fight any effort by the Obama Administration to make ANWR off limits.”

“It is a mystery to me how Mr. Begich can imagine that he has any credibility on this issue when he is, at least in part, personally responsible for elevating the very people to power who are blocking access to Alaska’s resources,” Miller said.

Begich campaigned on opening ANWR in 2008, when he ran against the late Sen. Ted Stevens. His claim then was that it would be more effective to have at least one Democrat in the state’s congressional delegation to fight to open the refuge. That was five years ago. The area is still closed to drilling and it looks like nothing is going to change soon.

Republican candidate Dan Sullivan issued a press release on Monday, following Jewell’s decision.

“This decision once again highlights Senator Begich’s ineffectiveness within his own party. Sally Jewell should have never been confirmed as Secretary of Interior without a commitment to move this road forward.” Sullivan said. “Senator Begich was sent to Washington to work and educate the White House and his fellow Democrats in Congress, but has again failed to deliver for our state.”

Begich’s staff was immediately unable to say whether or not Begich spoke with Jewell about the King Cove road situation prior to confirmation.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Group attacks Begich for packing court with ‘liberal’ judges

The conservative Judicial Crisis Network will begin airing an ad in Alaska today attacking Sen. Mark Begich for voting to confirm “every single one of President Obama’s liberal activist judges.” The group said it will spend more than $100,000 airing the ads.

As of Dec. 11, the Senate has confirmed 211 Obama-appointed judges. However, the ad seems to be more interested in Begich’s yes vote for the two Supreme Court justices, as well as his recent votes, following filibuster reform, on the nominations that had been blocked by Republicans. It should be noted that Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski has also voted to confirm some of these nominees.

The ads might hurt Begich. Most of what Alaskans know about Begich is filtered through news about the state. Aside from the Supreme Court nominees, not much has been made about Begich’s judicial voting record and its potential impact on Alaskans. Nor has much been made about his recent votes on nominees to the D.C. courts .These courts are considered the most important courts in the nation because they handle cases regarding federal regulations, including EPA regs.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Anthony Weiner and Mead Treadwell make Rothenberg’s award list for 2013

Stuart Rothenberg, political fortune teller and Roll Call political blogger, has published his annual “end-of-the-year awards.” The award categories range from the worst political decision of the year, which had Anthony Weiner’s name, or whatever, all over it, to the five most vulnerable incumbents up in 2014. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., made the list. Surprisingly, Sen. Mark Begich didn’t.

Perhaps that’s because Rothenberg doesn’t think much of Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, one of Begich’s main challengers, whom he gave an award for the most “interesting” candidate interview. According to Rothenberg, the interview was, “Memorable because the candidate couldn’t get his chip off his shoulder. Never has a candidate spent so much time complaining about an earlier article about him.”

Rothenberg was referring to an interview he conducted with Treadwell, among other GOP Senate hopefuls, in October. It’s unclear what exactly Treadwell’s specific beef was, but here’s what he wrote about Treadwell then:

Of the four,Treadwell was the most difficult to figure out, possibly because he spent so much of his time complaining about an article that my colleague, Nathan Gonzales, had written for my newsletter. No matter what question we asked, Treadwell somehow brought it back to what he regarded as an oversight or mistake in the article. He was clearly peeved, and that made him less affable and likable.

Rothenberg has yet to write anything about Dan Sullivan, the other GOP Senate candidate. Perhaps that’s because, although it’s been two months since he announced, finding Sullivan’s website or his contact information on Google takes about as long as it takes for the Senate to pass a bill, pre-filibusterer reform.

Rothenberg did, however, include GOP Senate candidate Annette Bosworth from South Dakota in his list of most interesting interviews. He called Bosworth charismatic and compelling, with “quite” a personal story. “But did it all add up?” Rothenberg asked. “Plus, I rarely see candidates who have absolutely no clue how to put together a winning campaign,” he wrote about Bosworth.

When you Google “Annette Bosworth for Senate” her website is on the top of the page. Just saying.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Bill introduced encouraging small donors to contribute to federal candidates

For the past few weeks, U.S. Sen. Mark Begich and a handful of other Senate Democrats have been sending out emails trying to get voters to sign a petition urging Congress to overturn Citizens United, the Supreme Court decision that allows for unlimited giving to super PACS.

It’s unlikely that it will happen anytime soon. For one, it’s rare for Congress to pass a law that directly conflicts with a Supreme Court decision. And even if it does, the Supreme Court would have to be convinced to change its mind. Secondly, it’s unlikely that Congress will change the law given that so much super PAC money is involved in the electoral process. (It should be noted that there’s a super PAC set up to promote Begich’s candidacy.)

One legislator is trying to counterbalance the big money that goes into elections. U.S. Rep. Tom Petri, a Republican from Wisconsin, recently introduced legislation to restore tax credits and deductions for small political contributions. Under H.R. 3586, small donors would be eligible for a federal tax credit of up to $200 ($400 on a joint return) for contributions to a national political party or a candidate for a federal office. The bill would also allow a campaign contributor to elect a tax deduction, instead of a tax credit, of up to $600 ($1,200 on a joint return).

It’s not a new idea. Such tax incentives were repealed in 1986 as part of an effort to simplify the tax code. With the repeal went many small donors.

According to an analysis from Dēmos, a nonprofit that tracks political donations, in the last election cycle, candidates for House and Senate raised the majority of their money from those who donated $1000 or more, and 40 percent of the money from those who gave $2500 or more, or .02 percent of the population.

Nearly 60 percent of super PAC funding came from just 159 donors contributing at least $1 million. More than 93 percent of super PACs money came in contributions of $10,000 or more from just 3,318 donors, or the equivalent of 0.0011 percent of the U.S. population.

If the bill reaches the Democratic-controlled Senate floor, it will be interesting to see how Begich and that handful of Senate Democrats vote.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Sullivan and Begich react to Iranian deal

On Sunday in Geneva, Iran agreed with the U.S. and five other world powers to freeze or reverse much of the progress that the country has made at its key nuclear facilities, including capping or eliminating stockpiles of uranium, not adding new centrifuges, and daily monitoring by international inspectors. In exchange, Iran will experience a modest lessening of international sanctions.

President Obama and others have called the agreement historic, and say it’s a precursor to a wider agreement in six months. Not everybody is thrilled. Those who aren’t include Israel and some Republican hawks, which in this case would include Republican Senate candidate Dan Sullivan, who thinks that the deal is too soft.

Read the Washington Post’s analysis of the deal here.

On Sunday, Sullivan, who had worked at the State Department when sanctions were enacted, sent a release criticizing the deal, which he said had “dubious merit.”

Following Sullivan’s release, Begich sent out a release, which seemed to take a tough stand on Iran without criticizing the deal. “The threat to their neighbors and the entire world of an Iran with nuclear weapons is far too great to use a carrot instead of stick diplomatic approach,” he said.

I reached out to the other main Republican candidates, Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell and Joe Miller, about whether or not they had a response. Neither did by the time of this writing.

Read both statements in full below:

Dan Sullivan:

Chasing deals with the world’s biggest terrorist regime is not the way to enhance Alaska’s or America’s national security. I am proud of my service under former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as a senior U.S. official who helped lead the charge in pressuring Iran with economic and financial sanctions.

Instead of once again rubber stamping this latest Obama Administration initiative of dubious merit, I hope that Senator Begich will work to actually understand the ramifications of this deal for Alaska’s and America’s national security as well as for our allies in the Middle East, and ask hard questions of his fellow Democrats in Washington DC, like Secretary of State Kerry.

We can’t afford another series of broken promises to Alaskans, especially when we’re dealing with a terrorist regime that wants to acquire nuclear weapons.

U. S. Sen. Mark Begich:

Iran is one of the most unpredictable and dangerous countries in the world, so any agreement with their unreliable government must come with strong provisions for verification. I don’t support making any concessions, such as easing sanctions or taking the military option off the table, until they prove to the international community they can be trusted. The threat to their neighbors and the entire world of an Iran with nuclear weapons is far too great to use a carrot instead of stick diplomatic approach.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Alaska Young Republicans ‘appalled’ at Senate candidates’ silence on Begich filibuster vote

The Alaska Young Republicans are going after Republican Senate candidates for their silence on U.S. Sen. Mark Begich’s vote on Thursday to change the Senate filibuster rules. So far, none of the three main Republican candidates — Joe Miller, Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, Dan Sullivan—have condemned Begich’s vote.

“While Senator Begich’s position is not surprising to those closely following his positions on important Constitutional issues, we are surprised and appalled that none of the Republican candidates for US Senate in Alaska have released any statements condemning Senator Begich’s disgraceful stance,” the group said in a press release.

Thursday’s vote, which passed 52-48, allows nominations to executive branch and judicial nominations to proceed with a simple majority, or 51 votes. It does not affect Supreme Court nominees or any legislation. It will, however, likely affect the rest of Obama’s agenda, much of which, including the regulation of greenhouse gases, will play out in the courts.

Critics call the change a “power grab.” Supporters say the the change was necessary because Senate Republicans have been so intransigent that courts and agencies were suffering as a result.

So far, 79 Obama nominees have faced filibusters, more than double the 38 picks of President George W. Bush.

All but three Democrats—Sens. Carl Levin of Michigan, Mark Pryor of Arkansas and Joe Manchin of West Virginia—voted for the change. Pryor and Manchin face tough reelections in their respective red states in 2014. Levin announced his retirement earlier this year.

The young Republicans also want the state party to speak up.

“As the next generation of local and national leaders, we cannot sit idly by as the Alaska Republican Party and our future candidates for office are quiet on issues of such gravity,” they wrote.

“We urge them to stand up for our state and hold Senator Begich accountable for his actions.”

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Unless Treadwell’s fundraising has improved greatly, his campaign appears to be underwater

Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, who is running in the Republican primary to replace Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, has much going for him. He’s a long-time Alaskan, for one. He’s knowledgeable on Arctic issues, and he’s already won a statewide election.

According to FEC reports, however, raising money isn’t one of his strengths. His campaign spokesperson said that things have picked up since the last filing period, which is from July 1 to Sept. 30, when he raised $196,000.

“Our campaign finances are just fine,” Treadwell’s campaign spokesperson ~~manager~~ Fred Brown said. “We have improved each quarter and will undoubtedly have the resources to not only win the primary but replace Mark Begich in November.”

But unless things have turned around significantly for Treadwell the last two months, it appears that his campaign is underwater financially.

During the last quarter, Treadwell raised $196,000, leaving him with about $154,000 on hand. However, his debts and a campaign loan total $50,000. Too, $26,700 of that money is designated for the general election, meaning that it’s earmarked to be used after the primary.

As of Sept. 30, he only had $43,300 cash on hand. During this period, he appeared to be spending roughly $57,000 a month.

U.S. Sen. Mark Begich raised $813,000 during the same time period, and ended the period with $2.4 million cash on hand.

Dan Sullivan, who is also running, didn’t enter the race until Oct. 15 and therefore didn’t fill out a report. Joe Miller, the other candidate, only raised $31,900 from individuals this year.

A few things to note: At the end of September, Treadwell hired national high-powered fundraiser Lisa Spies who has organized fundraisers all across the country for Treadwell. The spoils of her efforts won’t be clear until the next filing date, which is in mid January. But Treadwell has also beefed up staff and taken on other substantive expenses since the reporting period.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Correction: The original article said that Fred Brown was Treadwell’s campaign manager. He’s his spokesperson.

New attack ad: Alaska woman would have done it better

The New York Times is reporting that the woman who is attacking Sen. Mark Begich on healthcare in a Koch brothers’ funded commercial isn’t a real Alaskan. She is actually an actress who lives in Maryland, which likely came as a surprise to few who watched the ad. She simply didn’t have an Alaskan vibe. (Though I chickened out on saying so in my piece about the ad earlier today, lest she be a recent transplant who hadn’t yet shed her Outside suburban skin.)

The actress’s name is Connie Browman, and she has appeared in other commercials. Ironically, one of them touted the importance of regular mammograms. Under ObamaCare, the healthcare bill that Browman says in the commercial, among the 14 free preventative service benefits for women are mammograms.

“We don’t want to lose even one person to breast cancer. Which is why regular, digital mammogram screening is so important,” she tells the audience, using that same, earnest voice she used in the Alaska commercials. “Senator Begich didn’t listen. How can I ever trust him again?” she said, in the background the kind of kitchen that I want to set up camp in.

This is not to say that Begich shouldn’t in some part be held responsible for the mess that ObamaCare has become. It’s just that if you’re going to try to pass off a Marylander as an Alaskan in an attack ad, you should at least try to make her look a little cold, or forlorn, or tough, and always pretty, of course.

It’s a rookie mistake often made by heavy-footed Outside consultants who don’t understand the political landscape of Alaskans, say nothing of the kind of kitchen they cook in.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Miller hits Begich where it hurts

Nearly every day lately, I’ve been getting press releases from one of the Republican candidates running for U.S. Sen. Mark Begich’s seat about the failures of ObamaCare and about Begich’s yes vote on the bill. Frankly, the attacks are not only getting boring, but are possibly shortsighted. This is because the health care law will likely get more popular as more people who have been living without insurance are able to buy into the market for the first time in their lives, and as they do so, the public will be continually reminded of the unjust system that the act is trying to address.

But Joe Miller sent out a press release today that sows the seed of an issue that will likely grow: drilling in ANWR, that festering wound that has eaten at most Alaskans since Congress voted to lock it and its gobs of oil up in 1980.

That was five years ago. The area is still closed to drilling and it looks like nothing is going to change soon. On Oct. 31, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell spoke at the National Press Club, where she renewed calls for protecting areas that are “too special to develop,” such as ANWR. She also said that the Obama administration would consider taking unilateral action to “protect” certain lands.

Begich wrote a letter to Jewell in response, warning that he would “fight any effort by the Obama Administration to make ANWR off limits.”

Begich voted to confirm Jewell, a fact that isn’t lost on Miller.

“I think it is worth noting that Mark Begich’s way of fighting for ANWR development includes voting to confirm Sally Jewell as Secretary of Interior.” Miller said. “It is a mystery to me how Mr. Begich can imagine that he has any credibility on this issue when he is, at least in part, personally responsible for elevating the very people to power who are blocking access to Alaska’s resources.”

Ouch. Though I don’t have a crystal ball, I’m willing to bet that this vote will likely hurt Begich as much, if not more, than his healthcare vote.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

American Crossroads targets Begich on health insurance claim

American Crossroads, the Karl Rove-backed super PAC, has begun web ads that target Alaska U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, along with two other vulnerable incumbent Democratic senators who are running in 2014. The video takes aim at the claim that under the new healthcare law, you can keep your insurance if you like it, which has kind-of-sort-of been debunked.

The situation is more complicated than what the ad would have you believe. In Alaska anyway, the truth is that you can keep the exact insurance policy, but you’ll pay more. Or you can go onto the exchanges, and in many cases get the same or better healthcare and pay less, a fact that Premera Blue Cross/Blue Shield, the largest provider of individual insurance policies, hasn’t pointed out when it sent Alaskans cancellation letters.

However, as they say in politics, he who has to explain the most loses.

In addition to Begich, the videos are also targeting Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and Kay Hagan (D-N.C.).

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Martha McKenna: she’ll work hard to keep Begich in office

You’ll likely never meet her, see her face, or even hear her name, but one way or another, you’re going to be touched by Martha McKenna in the next year. According to Roll Call, McKenna will be leading the independent expenditure program for Senate Democrats in the 2014 race.

The independent expenditure, or IE, arm of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee controls tens of millions of dollars spent on Senate races each cycle, much of which will end up in the pockets of Alaska’s expanding media outlets.

In Alaska, the group will support U.S. Sen. Mark Begich against Republican challengers Joe Miller, Mead Treadwell and Dan Sullivan, who are running in the Republican primary.

Although a party’s IE can be effective, those kinds of expenditure groups haven’t received the kind of attention that the super PACs have received, which have fewer restrictions but cannot coordinate with a party. Often, as opposed to groups associated with a political party, super PACs are homespun and more nimble.

So far in Alaska’s Senate race, Jim Lottsfeldt is running a super PAC to support Begich. Art Hackney is running one to support former DNR Commissioner Dan Sullivan. Stephen Wackowski ~~and Taylor Bickford are~~ is running Mead Treadwell’s super PAC.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com

Correction: The original story said that Taylor Bickford was running Treadwell’s super PAC. That’s incorrect.

Gay rights bill set to pass Senate with support of Murkowski and Begich

With the support of a handful of Republican senators, including Sen. Lisa Murkowski, it’s likely that the most significant piece of gay rights legislation passed by Congress since it repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 2010, will pass out of the Senate next week.

All of the Senate Democrats support the bill, including Sen. Mark Begich.

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act would ban workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. It is crafted to mirror Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, though unlike that act, it has certain religious and small-business exemptions.

A version of the bill passed the Democratic controlled House in 2007, but the Senate filibustered it.

The landscape has changed since then, and it’s likely that the bill has enough support to stave off a similar filibuster. Murkowski is one of our Republican senators supporting the bill. The other three are Mark Kirk from Illinois, and Orrin Hatch from Utah, and Susan Collins from Maine.

One more vote, and they get to 60, which is the magic filibuster-proof number. Four Republicans are said to be wavering: Rob Portman (Ohio), Patrick J. Toomey (Pa.), Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) and Dean Heller (Nev.)

In recent years, Murkowski has been an advocate for gay rights. Some say that such a stance will hurt her reelection chances, particularly in the Republican primary, where she’ll likely be challenged.

But a lot can happen between now and then, and perhaps because of the evolution of support of gay rights, opposition to this bill hasn’t been nearly as strong as with other bills dealing with the issue. The Family Research Council has apparently decided not to expend political capital on the fight. The political action arm of the Heritage Foundation, Heritage Action, is urging members to vote against the act. They say that it would “severely undermine civil liberties, increase government interference in the labor market, and trample on religious liberty.” But it appears that they aren’t putting too much time into it.

Although the bill is expected to die in the Republican-controlled House, gay rights advocates think that they have a winning issue here, and plan to use congressional members’ votes against them in the mid-term elections.

It’s unclear where Rep. Don Young stands on the issue. His spokesman did not return a phone call requesting comment. In any case, his appears safe, and a vote either way probably won’t change that.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com