‘IF YOU’RE A CRIMINAL … I STRONGLY SUGGEST YOU GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN’
Gov. Michael Dunleavy gave a big-picture speech as his first State of the State Address on Tuesday night. The theme was that he plans to keep the promises he made in the campaign: No change to the Permanent Fund dividend calculation without a vote of the people, turning the economy around and growing jobs, and having a budget that reflects what actual revenues are.
But most of all, he focused on crime. It was clear there’s a new sheriff in town, and in that section of his speech, he delivered his most powerful lines of the evening:
“To law-abiding Alaskans, I say this to you: I care if your house is burglarized. I care if your car is stolen. And I care if your loved ones are threatened.
“But to the criminals, and to the rapists and molesters who see women and children as nothing more than opportunities, I say this to you: We will do everything in our power to stop you, apprehend you, and put you in prison for a very long time.”
Dunleavy showed compassion for those Alaskans who have gotten mixed up with opioids or other addictive substances and want help.
“We are a compassionate people as well. Therefore, as part of our public safety approach we will provide ways for you to break this habit and get back into society and be productive individuals.”
But let me be perfectly clear. If you are a criminal, this is going to be a very dangerous place for you, starting now. I strongly suggest you get out while you can. No more coddling, no more excuses. Your days are over. – Gov. Michael Dunleavy
Dunleavy went on to reiterate his pledge to repeal and replace SB 91, the criminal justice reform bill that is widely blamed for the increase in crime across Alaska.
With SB 91, we broke the People’s trust and now is the time to restore it. By doing the right things, we can fix what is broken and restore the trust that was lost.
The speech went for about 23 minutes and it was his first address to the Alaska Legislature. The State of the State address is a tradition, but not a requirement. The governor must give a report on the state of the state every year to the Legislature, and by custom, it is a speech that is televised, as this one was at 360North.org. It was streamed live on KTUU.com and KTVA.com.
During the speech, he introduced the families of victims of crime: Scotty and Aaliya Barr of Kotzebue, who lost Ashley Johnson-Barr in a gruesome killing, and Edie and Ben Grunwald of Palmer, who lost their son David to an execution-style murder. The Grunwalds were not able to make it into Juneau because of fog at the airport.
“Unfortunately, we all know their tragic stories too well — two beautiful young Alaskans taken from their families by individuals who have no regard for human life.”
KEEPING PROMISES – THREE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Dunleavy didn’t dive into specifics on his plans for the budget, but he reiterated that the budget he will present will be far smaller than the one that was handed to him by Gov. Bill Walker.
For growing the economy, he said he had assembled a top team of experts that will focus on bringing businesses to Alaska. He highlighted two small businesses in Alaska that have been successful at manufacturing in the 49th state: TriJet Manufacturing Systems in Palmer and Bambino’s Baby Food in Anchorage, which now employs 25 people.
He said that he’d offer three constitutional amendments for the Legislature’s consideration: No change in the way the Permanent Fund dividend is calculated without a vote of the people, no change in taxes without a vote of the people. The third constitutional amendment would relate to a spending limit and savings plan to keep politicians from spending “every penny we have.”
MEMORABLE QUOTES FROM THE SPEECH
“I’m Governor today because of the campaign promises I made to the people of Alaska on the issues most of us believe in. I’m here to do exactly what I promised to do. What I told Alaskans I would do.”
“We’re going to declare war on criminals. We’re going to get our spending in line with our revenue. We’re going to protect Alaskans’ PFDs. We’re going to grow our economy and put Alaskans to work. And we must restore public trust in government and elected officials.”
“…that together we can overcome anything; that together we will make our streets safe again; that together we will build a permanent fiscal plan; that together, we will protect the Permanent Fund dividend for generations to come. That together, we will restore the trust of the Alaska People in their government and their elected officials.”
“We are now preparing a budget that for the first time all Alaskans will be able to understand and trust. No more games, no more shuffling numbers. Just an honest, straightforward look at where we are.”
“In order to address the fiscal issues that have plagued our state for years, we need a permanent fiscal plan. A plan that will put our state on solid footing for decades to come.”
“Politicians often talk about policies and laws, but what Alaskans really care about, are jobs, opportunities and individual freedoms.”
“Alaska doesn’t have to be just a resource state. We have so much more to offer.”
“I promise you now, what I promised during the campaign. Things will be different, things will be very different. Together we are tasked with righting the wrongs that have broken the trust of the Alaskan people.”
“As for me, that in part means this: That all the special interests, all the political insiders, all those used to manipulating government and policy for their own benefit — this is just not your time.”
“Together we are tasked with righting the wrongs that have broken the trust of the Alaska People. And I’ll work with all my energy, dedication, and ability to do exactly what I promised you I would do.”
The complete speech is linked here:
Thank you Suzanne:
Great stuff always!
What a breath of fresh air! Finally, a governor who gets it. All Alaskans should watch the speech and then join together in telling their legislators to “right-size” our state government. More officers, less admin, fewer regulations, open for business.
http://alaskapolicyforum.org/2018/10/right-sizing-alaskas-state-government-workforce-part-ii/
Dunleavy for President
Amen! I retired after 30 years in HR admin, and I really support this governor’s ideas.
Even a fun-oriented roast of Walker can’t touch this performance. Dunleavy means business. He’s the governor we voted for and I believe he will deliver. Two thumbs…..way up!
Now all we have to do is keep the house and the senate from absconding with the PFD money. You know they want it. The multiplier effect doesn’t work as well when the movenrment spends our money. We don’t get to see the results as quickly. I can spend my money quicker and get it into circulation. I need a new heating system. One of the high efficiency ones that costs less to run. Sure would like to have my FULL PFD.
What is going to happen to those of us who have been in the state over 50 years, working more than 30 of them, received every PFD from day one and were robbed of some the last 3 years as everyone else has, if we have to leave the state?
Do we have the means to recoup the money taken from us if we have to move and cannot file for a PFD? If the repayment is passed and it is tied to the next 3 year’s PFDs, what happens to our part of that money that was legally ours to start with according to the Alaska constitution?
We can be certain of this, whatever else this budget will be, it won’t be “honest”.
Tell residents of rural Alaska that you are shutting down services from airports, trooper posts to schools, tell the Alaska General Contractors that you are going to start handing back Federal dollars for construction projects, the Universities to hand back Federal matching grant money, and that you won’t be plowing the roads and runways when necessary. That would be honest.
Cutting 10% to lose 100% is a fool’s game. We’ve maintained our roads on the Federal dime for over a decade, I guess that isn’t good enough. Time to start killing the golden geese. The greed and ignorance of this State sickens me.
Are you okay. You don’t make sense! Why are you so negative. You must be from the dark deep state side,LOL
The Governor has proposed a $1.6 billion dollar cut to the budget. If comments about that don’t make sense to you or are negative I suggest you do your own research and you might quickly realize that it’s the budget that will make no sense and is negative.
After Constitutionally required spending is eliminated (which include HHS and Education) the cut to the remaining government will be 42%. That goes way beyond “trimming the fat”. The Governor’s State of the State address pointed to Donna Arduin’s comment wherein she stated that she didn’t expect State Agencies to do “more with less but less with less”.
DOT M&O, as an example, is currently maintaining our roads with 90% Federal money and this allows them to purchase plows and keep operators employed for winter snow removal. Their budget has been cut to ribbons since the Knowles administration. Telling them to do less with less is going to get people killed. The Commisioner for DOT has stated that all cuts are on the board and that further cuts are job #1.
Because I understand this makes me “dark deep state”? Go talk to a plow truck driver for 5 minutes and you too can be part of this vast conspiracy.
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