Arrrrgh. Begich says, “Sink the Pirate Ship!”
Saving Alaska from pirates – it’s the sort of thing I’ll bet those adventuresome souls who join the Coast Guard dream about when they sign on the dotted line. If I’m right, then it was a good day for the crew of the Coast Guard vessel Munro, based out of Kodiak. They seized a pirate fishing vessel on the high seas about 2600 miles southwest of Kodiak, that was full of 30 tons of illegal squid, sharks, and 10 miles of drift net. High seas driftnetting has been illegal since the 1990s because of the indiscriminate netting and deaths of…
EPA v. Polluters – Senators Begich & Murkowski on the Wrong Side
Alaskans have a (how shall I put this) prickly relationship with the EPA for the most part. You can live most anywhere in the lower 48, and chances are you’ve never had to personally interact with the EPA and don’t know anyone who has. You live in your house, you do your thing, and the only time it comes up is when you hear the Tea Party talk about how all them damn regulations keep mucking things up and killing business and jobs. But in Alaska, the EPA and its involvement in development both big and small seems to…
Senator Mark Begich Fights for Flight
Alaska is different. It’s said a lot, and it’s true. Things that work in the contiguous 48 states don’t necessarily work here. The lack of understanding by those “Outside” of this phenomenon contributes to Alaskans’ slightly xenophobic, and more than slight libertarian bent. “Get off my tundra, you meddlesome kids.” Nothing defines Alaska quite so much as the gigantic size and small population. We are far flung, and disconnected. When 1500 miles separates two towns, it’s hard to remember you’re supposed to be in the same state. Alaska is larger than many countries, and pretty darn empty when it comes…
Murkowski & Begich – A Tale of Two Senators (and some guy from San Francisco)
It was a busy week last week. The giant metal gears in Washington D.C. were busy grinding up the hopes and expectations of those who voted for the President in 2008. And then, just as suddenly, something hopeful started to happen. Alaska’s story of the last week is one of the more interesting ones. We are the only state in the union that has not had its 2010 Senate election results certified. Joe Miller, who is raising legal challenges to the apparent write-in victory of incumbent Lisa Murkowski, still has several courses of action he can take. We’ll know Tuesday whether…
Begich on Board with Bernie!
Yesterday, Bernie Sanders distinguished himself and became the hero of frustrated Americans who think that the current plan to deal with the Bush tax cuts fell far short of what it could have been. Bernie Sanders found the spine of the Democratic Party. Sanders (VT-I) spent eight and a half hours standing at the podium, his voice eventually getting tired, leaning on his hands toward the end, not reading the phone book, but speaking eloquently, passionately, sincerely on behalf of the people, and against the deal struck between the President and congressional Republicans. Sanders was aided in his marathon, by…
Senator Mark Begich Talks Economy (video)
And now for something completely different… Today Senator Mark Begich (D) gave a speech on the floor of the Senate. He talked about the economy – the private sector, General Motors, optimism, and… “the other side.” Enjoy.
Alaska’s View from the Hill With Senator Mark Begich
Once again Matt Felling of KTVA sits down for a conversation with a member of Alaska’s congressional delegation. This time it’s Senator Mark Begich (D). He remarks about the surprisingly low turnout in Alaska’s election and the large number of Alaskans who remained undecided until the last moment. He’s calling the race for Murkowski. “I think she’ll have a small drop off, maybe 5 percent, maybe 10 percent — what you see is an end result of an election where she still wins.” He talked about how the money given to Murkowski by Native Corporations had impact, and has some…
Mark Begich on the Public Option, the Kennedy Legacy, and Being Bold.
~~~Mark Begich at his June Anchorage Town Hall Meeting on health care, calling on a constituent who actually raised her hand to speak. Ah, those were the days. I’m going to confess right now, that after 2/3 of a term of Gov. Sarah Palin, and a vice presidential run, and all the Twittering Facebooking adventures of the last year, I thought if I ever heard the word “bold” again come out of the mouth of an Alaska politician, I was going to run screaming into the hills, or smash myself in the head with a brick. So nobody was more surprised…
Senator Mark Begich’s Arctic 7-Pack
Recognizing that the Arctic will play a major role in the nation’s commerce, foreign policy, and energy independence over the next 50 years, U.S. Sen. Mark Begich today introduced a legislative package of seven bills designed to plan and prepare for the changes and challenges in the region. Begich devoted his “maiden” speech on the Senate floor to the issue because of its importance to Alaska. Called the Inuvikput legislation after the Inupiaq expression meaning “the place where we live,” Begich’s package of bills deal with oil exploration, climate change, shipping, health, and diplomacy in America’s arctic. Begich said the…