Alaska for Sale
~State Senator Lesil McGuire You know how some things that are technically legal still smell funny? Well, there’s something in the air right now. This week, Sen. Lesil McGuire glowed as she introduced the newly formed “magical challenger slush fund” for Gov. Sean Parnell at the Petroleum Club. Her word-salad about being a backbone herself for the Republican Party, and the Senate bipartisan working group needing more GOP in it, was, well, Palinesque. As someone who supports the “grown-ups” in Juneau, it was disappointing to see Sen. McGuire show up with her hand out to a governor whose oil tax…
Begich Votes to Let Tax Cuts Expire for the 2%
In case you missed it, something good actually passed in the Senate this week. I know, right? Grab a hand rail. They voted 51 to 48 to end the Bush era tax cuts for those with incomes over $250,000 – otherwise known as the 2%. And one of those we have to thank for it is none other than our own Senator Mark Begich, who voted in favor to end the policy. How did our other senator vote, you might ask? If I reminded you that she’s a Republican would that be a good hint? Lisa Murkowski voted lock-step…
Don Young Endorses Dem. What the… ?
Ever have one of those moments where you literally can’t believe your eyes? Well, here’s one for you. Imagine my surprise when I clicked on the Daily News headline “Young blasted for endorsing Democrat in Senate race.” Then my eye fell on the word “Hawaii.” At first, my mind went to Hawaiian Democratic Senator Daniel Inouye. He was a great friend of the late Senator Ted Stevens, who called Stevens “brother” and even came to Anchorage for his funeral and delivered a very moving eulogy. “Why would they blast Don Young for endorsing Inouye?” I thought to myself. And while…
Muni Played Favorites With Ballots (*Update*)
In last week’s installment of the Municipality of Anchorage’s continuing 2012 Election debacle, new Municipal Clerk Barbara Jones made a disturbing find while attempting to (quite literally) clean up the old Municipal Clerk’s mess…141 unaccounted-for ballots. This has led the trusty Election Commission to meet this coming Thursday and review the ballots they missed the first two times around. While all of that has been going on, members of our Recount Observation Team have continued to research and slowly pursue the auditing process the Municipality has refused to provide. …and it’s been free of charge… The latest bombshell was discovered…
The Wrath of Captain Zero
Well, somebody’s still mad. After he didn’t get his way during the legislative session, he broke his crayons and went home. After Governor Sean Parnell’s embarrassingly botched special session that cost Alaskans upwards of $30,000 a day, in which his woefully underprepared administration tried in vain to get the Alaska Senate to green light his second $2 billion dollar a year, no-strings-attached, prezzie to the oil companies, he’s now got another plan. Revenge. It didn’t register with the governor that Alaskans actually didn’t like his oil tax plan. They didn’t like the idea of moving $10 billion over the next…
Uncounted Ballots: A New Can Of Worms
I’ll admit it…I’m tired of the Anchorage Municipal Election of 2012. It’s a kind of migraine-inducing, bone-aching, paralysis-producing exhaustion that I’ve rarely experienced. I know that’s how I felt after our team of 10 qualified voters and fabulous volunteer observers worked their butts off on the hand recount. The team “observed” and went above and beyond to report the issues and the craziness that happened during this hand recount. However, they did not stop there. The Team also poured (and continues to pour) time and energy into further investigation of the election issues in general, going way-beyond their “job description”…
Alaska Gets Gouged
I’m never surprised by the unabashed glee with which those on the right shill for the rich and powerful, but the Republican support for the fuel price gougers here in Alaska has even me flabbergasted. Alaska’s gas prices are through the roof. Why? Oiligopoly. Two refiners control virtually 100 percent of the gasoline market — with Tesoro controlling 80 percent and Flint Hills, owned by the Koch brothers, controlling 20 percent. You know the Koch brothers: job creators extraordinaire. They’ve enjoyed a decade of low taxes, fired 13,000 workers since 2007 and seen their net worth skyrocket from $34 billion…
“Potentially uncounted” Municipal Ballots Found
Just when you thought the Anchorage municipal election of April 3, 2012 had come to a completely unsatisfying and maddening conclusion, there’s this. Sent out to the press at 6:30 on a Friday night (where news stories go to die) was an announcement from City Hall which ironically began: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE And followed up with this: “Anchorage Assembly Chair Ernie Hall and Municipal Clerk Barbara Jones announce that 141 potentially uncounted ballots in total from three precincts in the April 3, 2012 municipal election were located in precinct election bags on July 11, 2012. The 141 ballots were found…
Ineligible to Run – House Candidate Bachmeier
After a ruling by Alaska Division of Elections Director, Gail Fenumiai, House District 13 in Anchorage will have one fewer candidate on the August 28 primary ballot. If candidate Barbara Bachmeier wants her name on the ballot, she’s going to have to go through the courts. You may remember Bachmeier from the recent Anchorage Tea Party forum. She is also the one who signed up for the Democracy for America Democratic training academy last year. And she even applied for, and won a scholarship courtesy of the generosity of former Democratic Senate candidate Scott McAdams. And then she took…
Who Let the Dogs Out? Romney at the NAACP
Who Let the Dogs Out? Romney’s speech at the NAACP Today, Republican Presidential Nominee Mitt Romney will be addressing the 103rd National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Convention in Houston, TX. No. Really, he will be. Unless he gets a cold at the last second or maybe the family dog gets sick from the ride over – he will be speaking at the convention that has the theme “This is my power. This is my decision. This is my vote.” The likelihood that any of the people in the convention hall will be using their power, decisions or…