Sen. Dan Sullivan spent much of Thursday on the phone with different Alaska groups in various industries — construction, mortgage, and banking, for example.
But none of the calls was as surprising as his call with members of the Alaska chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business.
During the call, while Sullivan was describing some of the details in the federal relief package working its way to the president’s desk, who should call Sen. Sullivan but President Trump himself. Sullivan was going to take that incoming call.
Sullivan excused himself from the call with NFIB for a moment, but then came back to the telephonic meeting and put the president on the speaker.
Donald Trump spent three or four minutes addressing the participants in the meeting, which was coordinated by the NFIB Alaska State Director Thor Stacey.
One participant noted that Trump was “engaged, enthusiastic, and energetic.”
Trump spoke about the importance of the oil fields in Alaska and his determination to open up the road between King Cove and Cold Bay, so the people of King Cove can access an all-weather airport for times of crisis. He also mentioned that his dad and grandfather were both small business owners, and that his grandfather had come north to the Yukon-Alaska Gold Rush, reinforcing his ties to Alaska.
In Alaska, NFIB has about 1,400 members, and has about 300,000 members nationwide.
Trump told business owners to hold fast, and what they need, the federal government is ready to get to them. Here’s a clip of the audio:
