Connecting the Dots from PA to AK
~Paul Pozonsky, right I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. When someone does something that looks bad, I usually assume incompetence rather than conspiracy. That said, follow along with me and see what you make of this. The job of Hearing Officer for the state of Alaska is a pretty important job. In other states, hearing officers are called judges and wear black robes. Talis Colberg, a former Alaska attorney general, went on to serve as a Hearing Officer for the Department of Labor after leaving the AG job. Hearing Officers decide the fates of Alaskans every…
What are they up to?
Let’s do a quick check-in, and see what people are up to during the lull at the holiday season between the election, and the beginning of the next legislative session Mark Begich – Mark Begich is busy getting gold stars. The latest is for voting for the Feinstein Amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which takes steps to end allowing the indefinite detention of American’s in the United States. Lisa Murkowski Lisa Murkowski is “outraged” about the Benghazi incident. And “she has no patience for the constantly changing stories coming out of the White House and even less for…
Parnell – Time to End the Hypocrisy
Earlier this month, Governor Giveaway asked for disaster relief funds from the federal government to help Alaskans. This week he refused to set up a state-run health care exchange, which would have helped tens of thousands of Alaskans buy insurance cheaper on the free market by pooling together. That’ll teach the federal government! It reminds me of when I was a teenager. I wanted to go out with my friends. It was a Friday night, and I was 17. “Be home at 10,” Pop said. “What? 10?! Are you kidding me?” “OK, 9:30.” “But Pop!” “9 is fine.” “That doesn’t…
Oyster Roundup!
~Thick and fast they came at last, and more, and more, and more! Here’s your news on the half-shell for this week. Belly up to the oyster bar! Busting a Move Elizabeth Warren, the new Democratic Senator from Massachusetts has been up front with her declaration that she’ll be a senator of consequence. To that end, she plans to start off her freshman year with a bang. Or a bust. She wants to bust the filibuster. Republicans in the senate have effectively rewritten the spirit of the Constitution which requires a simple majority to get things done – to a…
Jesus Gets Punked by Exxon
Election day may be over here in Alaska, but now is when the fun begins. The results of a couple close races are hinging on absentee and questioned ballots yet to be examined, and shiny new lawmakers are angling for committee assignments and chairmanships. Pundits, meanwhile, examine and expound upon the results of the Citizens United meets Big Oil meets Jesus campaign machine. Let me be one of them. During this time, it’s good to remember the lessons of the past. The genius of Ronald Reagan was his ability to unite two completely different groups of people—with completely different policy…
Senate Fundraising Report
We all know that the Citizens United ruling means an unprecedented amount of cash will be flowing from the coffers of well-funded special interest groups into our eyes and ears via political advertising this year. But those well-honed messages don’t always coincide with a candidate’s actual level of support from constituents, or the voting and donating public. Worthy of note is an article in today’s Anchorage Daily News that talks about the actual campaigns and their fundraising ability so far. Those examined are the competitive Alaska State Senate races which will determine the makeup of that body for the next…
Religious Groups and Koch Bros. Target Voters
Editor’s Note: The Mudflats team has been reporting on a developing story here in Anchorage (LINK, LINK) . Zach Roberts, whose journalistic efforts on this topic have been recognized on a national level has this piece cross-posted at TruthOut.org. ********************* In audio obtained from a Family Council fundraiser in Anchorage, Alaska, Truthout has learned that a number of right-wing religious groups, including Focus on the Family, have been working with the Koch brothers to target voters across the country using their multimillion-dollar voter database known as Themis. At a fundraiser held at the Anchorage Middle Eastern restaurant Aladdin’s last week,…
Money Changers in the Temple
Someone called me a communist this week. Pop Moore was a teacher and principal at Nikolaevsk, a Russian village near Homer, from 1970 until 1992. My mother taught school there. I grew up hearing stories from Old Believers who had escaped Soviet communism, about barns full of men, women and children burned to death for not renouncing their faith. I saw handwritten holy books that had been strapped to the heads of men swimming across rivers into China to escape, before China went communist. I was about as tall as the post office counter when a clerk said to Pop,…
Dismantling Alaska Bipartisanship
Alaska Family Action, the political arm of the Alaska Family Council, recently welcomed Governor Sean Parnell to a fundraiser. The event brought together social conservatives who seek to add their voices to those supporting the governor’s oil tax plan. With the specific goal of destroying the State Senate’s bipartisan coalition next month, the organization is banking on a new fundraising strategy and new access to personal data about voters to fuel its “Reclaiming Juneau Initiative” in November. Jim Minnery addressed the event’s roughly 25 attendees, explaining that his Alaska Family Council became frustrated by the political limitations it encountered via…
Oyster Roundup – Lights, Fights, & That’s-Not-Rights
A half-dozen news bites from the week. Overheard Juicy Bits: A certain Alaska Republican Party Chairman and a certain Republican pollster were overheard at a certain eating establishment by a certain Mudflatter this week. Apparently, the former thinks Charisse Millet is “a twit” and candidate Bob Roses is a “yes man” who will do whatever he’s told. That’s what we need more of in Juneau – twits and sheep. Please feel free to vote for Patti Higgins and Bill Wielechowski. Convicted Militiaman Will Appeal: Coleman Barney, one of the three men found guilty in the summer’s Fairbanks militia trial will…