Repeated Gaffes from Wasilla Republican
(This piece is cross-posted at The Huffington Post – HERE) Wasilla City Councilman, Republican State House candidate (and former candidate for Alaska Lt. Governor in 2010), Mark Ewing just keeps talking. And then trying to untalk. And then talking again. And it’s just not good. In a recent debate at the Greater Wasilla Chamber of Commerce candidates forum, Ewing squared off with his Republican primary opponent. All started predictably with both candidates in favor of a controversial coal mine, a controversial copper mine, and another boondoggle bridge to almost nowhere. But soon Mr. Ewing distinguished himself in the Rock ‘em…
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…
Bipartisanship is Not on the Map
By Shannyn Moore My friends, once again, Alaska is charting new waters. The GOP-heavy redistricting board, in its zeal to break up the bipartisan coalition in charge of the Alaska Senate, has made Joe Hazelwood look like a model seaman. Let’s see how the entire state “fetched up.” Alaska’s Supreme Court, listing like a dinghy in 20-foot seas, decided by a 3-2 vote that we can run this year’s election on an unconstitutional map of election districts. Why? No time to do a constitutional version. The board’s map still has one last hurdle to clear: the Department of Justice, which…
Parnell Kills His Own Special Session. Blames Senate. Pouts.
Things aren’t going well for Sean Parnell. It all started last week when he called the legislature into special session to talk about three things, the most difficult and contentious of which was oil and gas production taxes. The governor sent his team to Juneau with a bill. For purposes of readability, we’ll refer to this bill (SB3001) as what it is metaphorically – a cow pie. Hatching the Idea What the governor wanted in this new “hybrid” bill was to give all kinds of breaks to big oil companies for fields that are already producing, and not so much…
Quitter 2.0 – Parnell Breaks Hockey Stick, Says ‘Puck You.’
And the crowd goes wild! Remember when I compared the Resources Committee meeting of the State Senate to a hockey game, and said I thought that they ought to have a rule just like in the peewee leagues, where when one team is like 20 points up they just call the game so the other side can slink away and lick their wounds instead of continuing to endure the public humiliation? Well, guess what? Even though that rule doesn’t exist, Bryan Butcher, Bruce Tangeman, and Co. have been recalled back to the locker room. That’s right – Parnell’s…
End of Session, Pre “Unspecial Session” Update – The Good, Bad and Ugly.
As the bulk of the blogging community continues our meditative practice of biting off pieces of the election debacle, chewing thoroughly, swallowing, digesting and then regurgitating, we thank Rep. Les Gara for pinch hitting with a great wrap-up of the legislative session. The “special” session marches ahead, but we must ask ourselves how many times you can have a special session before it just isn’t “special” any more. On a personal note, Rep. Gara is facing some health challenges (which you’ll read about below), and all of us here at the Mudflats wish him a quick and complete recovery. He…
Dick Puts Foot in Mouth
It’s been at least a couple weeks since Rep. Alan Dick has made headlines for jaw-dropping comments that offend large numbers of people. But now, he’s back. Last time it was suggesting that women should have permission slips signed by their impregnators before they have an abortion. Stunned at public outcry, he then issued a statement saying that what he really meant was not so much the consent that he’d previously espoused, but rather simply notification of the other party. Oh, and he was super sorry IF you were offended by what he said. He promised to choose his words…
Parnell Nominee to Board of Game Rejected by Legislature
Nominee to Alaska’s Board of Game, Lynn Keogh, was rejected Tuesday by the Legislature. He had the support of Governor Sean Parnell, and of the powerful Alaska Outdoor Council hunting lobby. He needed 31 votes to retain his appointment. He got 29. As reported earlier in the week, an email obtained by The Mudflats showed Republican Party Chair Randy Ruedrich forwarding an email from Rod Arno of the Alaska Outdoor Council threatening legislators with strong-arm tactics if they didn’t approve Keogh’s appointment to the Board of Game. From: Randy Ruedrich <[email protected]> Date: March 30, 2012 8:09:07 AM AKDT To: <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]> Subject: Anti’s go…
North Pole Republican Wants to Eliminate Government Regulation… of Food
~Want some yummy fish? You’ve got to hand it to Alaska State Rep. Tammie Wilson. Right in the middle of the “pink slime” debacle that is turning stomachs across the nation, and increasing scrutiny on what we are putting in our mouths, she’s got a project – and it’s worse than pink slime. At least that gelatinous cow-part goo was designed to preserve food. She wants to deregulate food – even hazardous food. Just like many of her right wing cohorts, she thinks there’s just too much government regulation these days, specifically at your local farmers’ market. Sanitation is overrated…
It’s Time. Tell Lawmakers, “Don’t Give Away Alaska’s Oil!”
In the last weeks of the legislative session, the oil companies and their pet legislators have pulled out all the stops. Their bloggers are blogging, their mouthpieces are bloviating, their legislators are lying, and their money is cranking out ad after ad, and all of them are hoping to make you so afraid, you’ll ask lawmakers to give away our oil. Don’t fall for it. And, get this! This week the opposition is actually charging Alaskans $40 for a chicken lunch so they can have the privilege of listening to the oil company shills ask for billions more… They are…