Page 1615 – Must Read Alaska

Zero tolerance is needed; our workplaces need to be safe for women

Columns

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November 14, 2017

HARASSMENT IS UNACCEPTABLE

BY REP. MIKE CHENAULT

In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein revelation, it has been a painful time for all, especially for the many, many women harassed, abused and taken advantage of by a culture that has allowed and too often turned their heads to such injustices. For the women speaking out, I both applaud their courage and apologize for our society’s cultural and callous indifference to the challenges and abuse they have faced.

As a father who has raised four wonderful young women, I have always believed in the importance of gender equality, concerned about the opportunities that society would present them and the plights they would face from a less than perfect world. As a legislator, l supported many matters important to women and learned a lot about women’s issues and the inequalities they faced. I closely followed the Choose Respect campaigns and have wholeheartedly supported these efforts.

Yet nothing, absolutely nothing, has prepared me until now or made me understand the prevalence of sexual abuse and the dehumanizing behavior that women routinely face. In the wake of this scandal, I now see and understand the magnitude of this problem and how women have been taken advantage of, exploited and shamed with little if any consequence to the men taking these unwanted liberties.

Frankly, I am saddened and shocked that a country as enlightened and great as ours would tolerate and show such indifference to this cultural abhorrence.

As a father and a legislator, I had no idea of the extent or peril women regularly faced. I now understand that this issue is of epidemic proportion, that women have learned to live with. Society has too long tolerated this behavior. This is unacceptable and must change.

This isn’t just about rape and sexual harassment; rather, it is about holding ourselves to a higher standard toward a culture of respect. We have laws governing the most egregious acts such as rape and sexual harassment. We need to end not only the most egregious acts against women; but, also the insensitive and dehumanizing behavior they otherwise are sometimes forced to face as well.

Awareness is the first step to change. The many women speaking up on social media with the #MeToo campaign should be heralded for sharing their anguish and courage in speaking out.

These two simple words, #MeToo, cannot begin to describe the scars, emotional pain and torment that many of these women have faced. The names I see coming forward on Facebook are people we know – – our neighbors, relatives and friends – – and not just movie stars and Hollywood celebrities.

Hopefully, history will record this candor of courage and recognize it as a pivotal and important beginning point in a cultural shift that does not tolerate such unwanted advances and behavior that women have been routinely forced to live with. Let’s hope these dynamic women, like the suffragettes of 100 years before, will help lead change and make Alaska and America better.

As individuals and as a community, we need to come together, recognize that a woman’s body is not for the taking and show them the respect, dignity and courtesy they deserve. We must put an end to this cultural nightmare that our mothers, aunts, sisters, wives, daughters, friends and co-workers have suffered and been traumatized by.

Each of us, beginning now, needs to make a commitment to help insure that our communities, our work places and schools are safe for women.

Women need to know that we as individuals, communities and employers respect them and that we will not tolerate sexual harassment, dehumanizing and predatory behavior from anyone.

I will be sitting down with my colleagues in the legislature and explaining that we need to provide awareness and sensitivity training and that we should have a zero tolerance policy for such behavior. I hope employers across Alaska and America will follow suit. Each of us can play an important role and take responsibility to end the routine occurrences of this nightmare. Together, we can make a difference. Choosing respect is the answer.

Mike Chenault is the former House Speaker, and is a Republican representing District 29, Nikiski. He was first elected to the chamber in 2000 and has filed a letter of intent to run for governor.

Capitol crisis: 90 days for bad behavior

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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November 14, 2017

3

The Troubles have begun in Alaska — and are only going to get worse as the “Harvey Weinstein effect” reached the Capitol and a giant ball of blech is entangling the lives of current and former legislators, legislative aides, and lobbyists.

And it’s not even January. Women on the Left are motivated to shame men, especially men on the Right.

Anyone who has worked in the Legislature has seen all manner of boorish behavior, horseplay, bad-boy banter, and sexual advances over the years — on both sides of the aisle.

Several women staffers and former legislators tell Must Read Alaska that today’s behavior in Juneau is nothing compared to what it was like just a decade ago. “It would make your hair curl if I told you,” one confided.

And others wondered where the feminists were when President Bill Clinton came under fire for sexual misconduct, rape, and domestic violence. Back then, it was the leading feminists such as Gloria Steinem who discredited accusers and saved the Clinton presidency.

[Read The Atlantic Monthly: Bill Clinton: A reckoning?]

It’s not just Juneau. Many other state legislatures are melting down over the abuses of power.

Must Read Alaska predicts this is going to get ugly for a while. January will be awkward for a few in Juneau, and they do know who they are.

People will lose careers and reputations will be diminished. Marriages may be ruined. Some allegations may be true, while others may be half-true, false, savage, and politically motivated. Especially politically motivated.

Once the pin comes out of a grenade like this, shrapnel goes where it goes.

But as they say, “It’s an ill wind that doesn’t also blow some good.” Already some who are in peril have noticeably cleaned up their acts, and Must Read Alaska says this with authority.

What’s the latest? Retribution comes from the women’s locker room in the online tell-all writings and drawings of male genitalia with the faces of legislators and aides drawn on them.

It’s the work of a former legislative aide, Dani Bickford, on one of her social media sites. Bickford worked for various legislators, most recently Sen. Shelley Hughes of Palmer.

Now, she’s on a tear.

In her “pathological.wire” blog, Bickford names names (all Republican), but she avoids other names (Democrats). It is selective, and it is accusatory and it has been read by many in the Capitol by now.

Warning: Her social media postings are not safe for work, for kids, or to be viewed in front of your parents. There are lots of unverified allegations in this tell all. (We link this only for the brave of heart who wish to see the source material for themselves.)

What’s next? Don’t believe everything you read or hear. It’s good to be skeptical, especially in politics. And even more especially in an election year. But do expect some men to be making public apologies soon, as the “Harvey Weinstein effect” plays out in unpredictable ways.

Empty chair syndrome: House antics continue

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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November 14, 2017

6

SPEAKER EDGMON LEFT TOWN; KITO AND PARISH IN CHARGE

House Speaker Bryce Edgmon says the Alaska House Majority will hold technical sessions all week, until the end of the Special Session, allowing members to collect per diem through Nov. 21.

Technical sessions mean they gavel in, gavel out, and collect per diem. Ka-ching.

The Juneau delegation of Rep. Sam Kito III and Justin Parish will be the presiding officers, forcing the Senate to also hold technical sessions. The Senate adjourned sine die on Friday, but House Democrats have said they won’t go, even though Majority Leader Chris Tuck took off for Hawaii last Thursday and most members of the Democrat-led majority left town for the weekend. What fiscal crisis?

House Speaker Bryce Edgmon is trying to force the Senate to come back. He hopes by keeping the session alive, the Senate will address a poison pill his majority put into SB 54, the criminal justice reform bill. Constitutional questions were raised by the Legislature’s lead lawyer, Doug Gardner, after the bill passed both bodies. If the Senate was forced into conference committee on that bill, the House would try to force passage of Gov. Bill Walker’s income tax.

Senate President Pete Kelly was unmoved by the House’s antics, calling it a waste of state resources.

CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTIONS WERE RAISED OVER SB 91 — BUT GOVERNOR SIGNED IT

The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska has said it will sue over SB 54, because it may make presumptive sentence ranges the same for some Class C and Class B felonies. They cite this as a constitutional problem, although it has not been tested.

Anchorage talk show host and Anchorage Assembly member Amy Demboski calls that laughable and politically motivated. “It’s funny how no one cried about the constitutional problems in SB 91 as it relates to separation of powers. But when it benefits the criminals, they say it’s unconstitutional.”

Demboski is referring to a letter from the Department of Law to Gov. Bill Walker on June 17, 2016, in which the department stated that SB 91 had constitutional challenges:

“No other state in the country has a similar provision of law that adjusts the value threshold of property crimes for inflation. Criminal justice stakeholders will need to implement this change to avoid constitutional issues and provide adequate notice of the conduct that is prohibited. Larson v. State, 564 P.2d 365 (Alaska 1977). Without a clear way to determine what the thresholds actually are at any given time, a court may find that the law does not provide adequate notice of how a given form of conduct actually violates the law.”

The 2016 letter from the Law Department raised other constitutional questions about SB 91:

“Having the judicial branch adjust the property crime thresholds also may raise two separation of powers issues. First, the power to create and define criminal acts is vested in the legislature. The legislature retains the authority to delegate regulatory authority in appropriate circumstances. However, that delegation must be given to the executive branch.”

The Law Department said that having the Judicial Council perform adjustments to the inflation calculation is problematic because it is not part of the executive branch, but is an independent body. Other constitutional questions were raised.

But the ACLU of Alaska was silent on that, she noted during her Monday show on KVNT.

Demboski said the Legislature has some explaining to do: “This is what I am struck by: How can they vote for a bill, then three days later claim it is constitutionally flawed? That demonstrates either they didn’t know what they were doing when they passed it, or they knew it was unconstitutional and passed it anyway, which would demonstrate incompetence; neither of which gives Alaskans much confidence in their elected officials.”

Alabama is no Alaska

Columns

Suzanne Downing

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November 14, 2017

5

By MATT FELLING
ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

I was there, man.

As a CBS News reporter in Anchorage covering Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s historic write-in election in 2010, I saw the variables at play and what strategies and tactics one must deploy to thread that needle.

As you may recall, Murkowski was defeated in the primary by the insurgent Tea Party-backed Joe Miller as that movement continued its ascent, and was forced to launch a write-in Republican bid that ran down the middle and pulled enough support from centrist, establishment voters to retain her seat. (Full disclosure: I served as Murkowski’s communications director from 2011-2015.)

But before the stories get written and the pundits ruminate about the how and who of a write-in campaign, here’s a spoiler alert from a former reporter who spent hours with each of the candidates along the campaign trail and had them or their teams on speed dial: Alabama ain’t Alaska. Luther Strange (the incumbent and most cited potential write-in) is no Lisa Murkowski, when it comes to time in the U.S. Senate and established value there. Democratic candidate Doug Jones is no Scott McAdams, the Alaska candidate from 2010.

That said, Roy Moore is in a league of his own compared to Joe Miller in terms of behavior drawing negative headlines, but he has decades of successfully sharing his message statewide and deep ties that aren’t going to evaporate.

First off, Roy Moore, who beat incumbent Luther Strange in the Republican primary run-off in September, has a much larger brand identity and reputation in the Yellowhammer State than Joe Miller, who narrowly nipped Murkowski by 2,000 votes (less than 2 percent of the primary vote), did in Alaska in 2010.

Moore’s previous electoral wins and statewide renown run far deeper than Miller’s fervent base then did. (For a hint of how ingrained Roy Moore is in Alabama’s culture and political scene, read my friend Joshua Green’s Atlantic profile of Moore in 2005.) Roy Moore’s negatives are abundantly clear right now to the nation, but his positives and track record in Alabama have created thousands of rock-ribbed supporters who are willing to stick with him.

Joe Miller was a flashpoint candidate with little statewide identity, but had a new, visceral message that resonated at that moment in time.

Secondly, Doug Jones is a true contender in this race with a list of accomplishments that even George Will begrudgingly acknowledges. Where Scott McAdams was a very small town mayor with a nascent network within the state, he had no built-in brand to tap into for the rest of Alaskans. But Doug Jones has been in the Alabama legal and political firmament for two decades – having been tapped as district attorney by Bill Clinton in 1997 – so his name recognition and resume are leaps and bounds ahead.

Oh, and he is either running neck-and-neck or has actually slid ahead of Roy Moore in recent days in state polling, 46-42.

Lastly, there’s the issue of the write-in candidate him or herself. When I talked with “Morning Joe” in the days after the surprising Alaska primary, Joe Scarborough cited poll numbers showing how Lisa Murkowski was far and away the most popular elected official in Alaska.

She had served Alaskans pragmatically and in a workmanlike fashion for years. But due to primary turnout motivation, a pall cast over the entire state in the weeks following the passing of Sen. Ted Stevens and several other factors, Murkowski’s support wasn’t borne out in the ballot booth. But it was there to be tapped into once the write-in decision was made.

So the math is truly difficult for a write-in candidate in any state; the Alaska 2010 race can be a case study but not a playbook. Though it required a tireless effort from her team, Murkowski ran against two vulnerable candidates – Miller with a pockmarked political history, McAdams with little of a track record to run on – and she was able to reach 40 percent on Nov. 2, 2010. Miller reached 35 percent and McAdams reached 24 percent.

That breakdown is the key distinction here in comparing Alabama 2017 and Alaska 2010. Let’s start by playing backwards from the core 100 percent number of voters. By the most conservative modeling, Doug Jones would likely range around 40-42 percent or so – likely a lot higher.

So the universe of support we are working with for the other candidates to scrap over is down to 60 percent … or less. Presuming that Roy Moore – even with his recent controversies, he has decades of relationships and a truly pugnacious style – would at worst be cut in half from his current level to 21 percent – which would leave 39 percent to a write-in candidate’s best scenario.

If Republicans are serious about launching a write-in campaign in Alabama, it’s a challenge along the lines of asking the Mercer Bears to beat the Crimson Tide this weekend. They will need to put their heads together and recruit a willing, singular talent with name recognition and accomplishments (and ideally an easy-to-spell name) to make an unprecedented push for the next four weeks – and even then hope for lightning in a bottle.

Matthew Felling is a senior director of public affairs and crisis communications at Burson-Marsteller. For over a decade, Felling’s insights and analysis were honed through reporting, commentary and media criticism inside Washington, D.C. – as well as working as a journalist covering the politics, priorities and personalities of Alaska. Between these professional phases, he worked as strategic communications director and senior adviser for Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), aligning her messaging with political dynamics. This analysis appeared first in U.S. News and World Report. He can be reached at [email protected].

Quote of the Day: NFL commissioner has ‘work to do’

The Social

Suzanne Downing

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November 14, 2017

0

“It is nearly unheard of to have a commissioner of a national sports league be this divisive. Asking for $50 million dollars at a time when his approval is less than 50 percent among self-identified hard core fans is pretty striking. The data shows the league clearly has a lot of work to do to rebuild its relationship with the country and its most loyal fans.”

– Mark Penn, chairman of The Harris Poll, discussing how a majority of voters disapprove of how NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has handled player protests during the national anthem, in his company’s recent poll.

According to data from The Harris Poll, 60 percent disapprove of Goodell’s handling of the matter of players “taking a knee” during the national anthem. Fifty-five percent say he has handled the issue in a way that made both sides unhappy.

Matt Shuckerow heads over to Senate and Sullivan

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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November 13, 2017

0

The communication director for Congressman Don Young had an offer he could not refuse: To join Sen. Dan Sullivan’s staff as deputy communications director and spokesman.

While working for Young in a like capacity over the past four years, Shuckerow distinguished himself by creating friends wherever he went and treating the media with respect, even when the favor was not always returned by the media to his boss, who has been known to upset an politically correct apple cart or two.

Joining Young’s staff as press secretary later this month is Murphy McCollough, who currently serves as deputy press secretary for Rep. John Culberson (TX-07). McCollough is a graduate of Texas A&M University and is currently completing her master’s degree in strategic public relations at George Washington University.

Shuckerow, of Kodiak, was Sen Lisa Murkowski’s press secretary from 2012-2013, and worked in other capacities for Murkowski before that. One of his first jobs was as a deckhand in Prince William Sound from 2005-2009.

Sullivan’s most recent press secretary, Michael Soukup, of Anchorage, is taking a leave from politics and was last spotted wandering through the cathedrals of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic.

Election revisions cloaked in mystery

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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November 13, 2017

1

The Division of Elections quietly filed notice early this month that it plans regulatory changes for activities ranging from registering voters to collecting signatures on petitions.

Some rewrites and repeals are explained adequately and relate to expired dates, but others are obtuse.The intent of the notice appears to be to give the public the least amount of information possible. And finding them on line is subject to luck rather than logic.

THE CHANGES – HIGHLIGHTS

Regulation to be repealed:

– AAC 25.027(c) is proposed to be changed as follows: amend the regulation to remove the proof of residency documentation for those that submit registrations on behalf of a voter.

Current regulation reads:

(c) An applicant who requests registration or reregistration by mail from outside this state must provide identification or other documentation that supports the applicant’s claim to Alaska residency. If a form of identification required under (a) of this section is provided, the identification must include an Alaska residence address. Other forms of documentation include

(1) a military leave and earnings statement that identifies Alaska as the applicant’s state of legal residence;

(2) proof of employment in this state that indicates a date on which the applicant was employed; or

(3) proof of an Alaska student loan or college tuition showing Alaska as the state of residence.

Not explained is what the Division of Elections intends to replace it with.

Will no proof of residency be required? Does this mean paid out-of-state mercenaries can submit voter registrations without proof of residency? There is no explanation.

Regulation to be repealed:

– AAC 25.240(l) is proposed to be repealed. The intended effect of this repeal is to remove language that dictates which election is used for determining the number of required signatures is required for a petition to be filed.

The current regulation reads:

“For the purpose of circulating a petition, “preceding general election” means the last general election held before the date the application was filed.”

There’s no explanation give as to why this should be repealed or how it will be executed without such a date certain.

The proposed Alaska Administrative Code changes are normally found on the Division of Elections web site, but these were found among the general Online Public Notices instead.

FIND OUT MORE, IF YOU CAN

The public can request a summary of proposed changes by contacting brian.jackson@alaska.gov. But fair warning, the justification for the changes is not included in the summary.

The Division of Elections will accept comments by fax at 907-465-3203 and at [email protected]. Comments may also be submitted through the Alaska Online Public Notice Systemd. Comments must be received not later than 4 pm on Dec. 12, 2017.

Alaskans may submit written questions relevant to the change proposed by writing to Brian Jackson at [email protected]. The questions must be received at least 10 days before the end of the public comment period. The Division of Elections will aggregate its response to substantially similar questions and make the questions and responses available on the Alaska Online Public Notice System and agency website at a time not given.

Read and comment to the Division here.

ELECTIONS AD HOC WORK GROUP MEETS

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott’s Elections Work Group receive an overview of the election system on Nov. 14, 2017, 1-4 p.m. at Anchorage City Hall, 632 W. 6th Avenue, 1st floor. The call-in number is 1-800-315-6338 Code: 35351#

Contact Josie Bahnke at 907.465.4611 or email: [email protected] for more information.

The agenda for the meeting is posted here.

None of this information is readily available at the Division’s web site.

We went looking for the transparency promised by the Walker Administration and didn’t find it at the Division of Elections.

Up next in Congress: Tax reform takes center stage

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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November 13, 2017

0

WILL HAVE IMPACTS ON ALASKA HOMEOWNERS

The House Ways and Means Committee is finishing its work on tax reform, and the Senate is busy with its own version, both bills should be ready for a vote before the end of the year, and then conference committee.

Both bills are likely to preserve the mortgage interest deduction, at least for properties valued up to $500,000.

In Alaska, that’s a whole lot of houses. And the deduction now taken for municipal taxes are still in play, which means homeowners in Anchorage might not be able to deduct the $2,000 to $7,000 per year that they typically pay the Muni.

Both House and Senate bills have a child tax credit increase ranging from $1,000 to $1,600 per dependent child.

Both increase the standard deduction for single people who earn under $12,000. Those who file jointly and earn under $24,000 would not pay income tax.

At present the two bills diverge in areas that matter to Alaskans:

The House bill eliminates the deduction for medical costs, while the Senate version keeps it. For those who buy Obamacare, that House version is a double whammy, since their out-of-pocket costs run in the many thousands of dollars.

The House version has an adoption credit and a deduction for moving expenses for military members.

It also changes rules governing 501(c)(3) nonprofits, so religious organizations such as churches can endorse political candidates without losing their IRS tax-exempt status. This should make everyone pause, because churches can be anything anymore.

In the Senate version, the top individual tax rate would be 38.6 percent, while in the House version, it tops out at 39.6 percent, a difference that can surely be worked out in conference.

The Senate leaves energy tax subsidies untouched, which means oil drillers can take deductions for drilling costs for things like materials and maintenance.

The Senate version also has a production tax credit for renewable energy and it’s worth billions of dollars. Over in the House, the credits are reduced by more than one third and there are other time-factor limitations.

The Senate bill has a $7,500 tax credit for electric-vehicles.

WHAT’S NEXT: On Monday, Nov. 13, the Senate Finance Committee will take up the bill and the amendment process will continue.

Optimism as Resource Development Council meets

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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November 12, 2017

0

BY ELWOOD BREHMER
ALASKA JOURNAL OF COMMERCE

There is plenty for the players of Alaska’s extraction industries to be positive about and that should translate into a cheery Resource Development Council for Alaska conference.

The annual gathering for some of the state’s largest industries will be held Nov. 15-16 at the Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center in Downtown Anchorage.

RDC for Alaska Executive Director Marleanna Hall said some of the good vibes are being sent all the way from Washington, D.C.

Last year’s conference convened shortly after President Donald Trump was elected and while there was anticipation about what a Trump White House would mean for Alaska businesses, no one knew quite what to expect.

“There’s some optimism out there and a lot of it is coming from the changes in the energy outlook for America; it’s coming from opportunities to revise and revamp federal regulatory processes and a lot of it is coming from the top down,” Hall said.

“It’s good to see that because instead of spending a lot of our energy pushing back against new bureaucracy we’re making changes to streamline processes that are in place already.”

Additionally, the Department of Natural Resources revealed a couple weeks ago that it expects North Slope oil production to continue to rise over the coming year; oil prices have jumped back to more than $60 per barrel of late and Congress, led by the Alaska delegation, appears as close as ever to opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration.

The conference will close with a message from the leaders of Stand for Alaska, the political action group formed to oppose a ballot initiative aimed at strengthening state permitting requirements for salmon habitat they believe could prohibit projects both large and small in the state.

Zero tolerance is needed; our workplaces need to be safe for women

Capitol crisis: 90 days for bad behavior

Empty chair syndrome: House antics continue

Alabama is no Alaska

Matt Shuckerow heads over to Senate and Sullivan

Election revisions cloaked in mystery

Up next in Congress: Tax reform takes center stage

Optimism as Resource Development Council meets

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