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April Hackney, political creative force, dies

Suzanne Downing
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April Hackney, half of the political team Hackney & Hackney, died early this morning at Providence Hospital after a brief illness. News of her death moved quickly through political circles after a note was posted on Facebook by her husband, Art Hackney.

The Hackneys served as Alaska state chairs during former Republican President George W. Bush’s 2000 and 2004 presidential campaigns. In 2015, the Hackneys were selected to lead the Alaska campaign for Republican U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential bid. Their clients have included Congressman Don Young and many other political figures and aspiring candidates. The Hackneys also founded Alaskafirst.org and Alaska’s Future, which worked to oppose higher taxes on the oil and gas industry.

April was born in Sitka on Feb. 23, 1964, and was of Tlingit/Russian heritage. She moved to Anchorage in 1985 and joined Holden Hackney & Breeze, a political and advertising agency as administrative assistant and then production manager. In 1990, she and Art married and they formed the political consultancy Hackney & Hackney, which they built into one of Alaska’s most well-known corporate and political media companies.

She served as treasurer for the Alaska Federation of Republican Women, the Anchorage Republican Women’s Club and District 13 Republicans, and was selected as a Whip for the 2000 National Republican Convention in Philadelphia.
April was voted one of the “Top Forty Under 40” rising influential people for Alaska for 1999/2000. She loved to travel and made numerous trips to the African continent, Australia, Mexico, Costa Rica, and across Europe. She was also a talented artist, and a fashionable dresser who loved fun hats, new shoes, sun dresses and sparkles. Her smile lit up a room.
Must Read Alaska will update this story when service details become available.

Fed’s gasline decision timeline pushed to 2020

Suzanne Downing
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3
Fed’s gasline decision timeline pushed to 2020

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has published its timeline for completing the Alaska LNG project’s environmental review, and it’s later than Gov. Bill Walker had hoped for.

The December, 2019 deadline that FERC has set for the final environmental impact statement means certainty for investors will be pushed off until after March 8, 2020, to accommodate a 90-day public comment period. That’s nearly a year later than expected by project advocates.

Walker and Alaska Gasline Development Corp. President Keith Meyer had set mid-2019 for the timeframe for an investment decision for the massive project that is estimated to cost north of $43 billion. If built, it would bring North Slope natural gas to Nikiski for liquefaction and export to Asia.

AGDC is crafting a deal with the Chinese government that would give China the right to 75 percent of the natural gas, and China would also be largely financing the construction as well.

Governor Bill Walker said, “I thank FERC for approving a timeline for the Alaska LNG Project. This is a major step forward that establishes clarity and predictability in the federal permitting process, which is critical for investors. Keith Meyer’s team at the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation deserves immense credit for continuing to advance a project of this magnitude.”

AGDC will meet with FERC next week to iron out the wrinkles in the relationship between the two. FERC has asked for studies and documentations that AGDC has refused to complete, leading to a stern letter from the federal agency to the state agency in February.

Mat-Su taking big hit with ‘no-salmon-for-you’ surprise decision

Suzanne Downing
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3
Mat-Su taking big hit with ‘no-salmon-for-you’ surprise decision

ANOTHER WALKER ADMINISTRATION SLAM ON SOUTHCENTRAL ALASKANS

Weak king salmon runs in recent years led the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to drastically cut sport fishing in Southcentral Alaska, and limit some commercial king salmon fishing in upper Cook Inlet.

The emergency orders went out today and are in effect May 1 through July 13.

The measure is expected to take a toll on the summer economy of the Mat-Su, where sport fishing is a big draw both for guiding companies, which are small businesses, and for residents trying to put food on the table.

The measure comes just days after Gov. Bill Walker appointed a Kodiak commercial fishing representative to replace a sport fishing representative from Anchorage on the Alaska Board of Fisheries, another slap at Southcentral fishing enthusiasts and families trying to “eat local.”

[Read: Board of Fisheries appointment cuts out Anchorage anglers, dip-netters]

DETAILS OF THE CLOSURES

King salmon sport fishing in the Susitna River drainage and Little Susitna River drainageis being cut, as is king salmon commercial fishing in the Northern district of the Upper Cook Inlet. Catch-and-release king salmon fishing will be allowed on the Deshka River drainage and Yentna River drainage.

In the Little Susitna River drainage, anglers can keep king salmon caught only on Friday through Mondays.

Commercial king salmon setnetters will also face closures in northern part of upper Cook Inlet, which will close May 28, and June 4, 11, and 18.

Reps. Mark Neuman, Cathy Tilton, David Eastman, DeLena Johnson, George Rauscher, Colleen Sullivan-Leonard, and Sen. Mike Shower, as well as Sen. Shelley Hughes and Sen. David Wilson signed letters that they sent to ADF&G Commissioner Sam Cotten, requesting him to delay and reconsider what they consider to be a devastating decision.

WHY NOT ALTERNATIVES?

According to the website Fight4Fish.com, the Palmer ADF&G office had suggested alternative measures to those up the food chain in the commissioner’s office, including:

  • Closing the east side Parks Highway streams to king salmon fishing, including Talkeetna and Chulitna drainages. The Parks Highway streams would remain open to fishing for other species other than king salmon including the portions of the streams below the Parks Highway bridges.
  • Keeping the Deshka River open to king salmon fishing but with no bait, artificial single hook restrictions, and an adjusted annual limit of two king salmon. Run assessment and possible closure decision would be made later, on June 12.
  • Keeping the  Little Susitna River open seven days a week with normal regulations except an adjusted annual limit of two king salmon. Run assessment and possible closure decisions to be made in June.
  • Keeping Lake Creek on the Yentna River open to retention of king salmon four days a week with normal regulations except an adjusted annual limit of two king salmon. Run assessment and possible closure decisions to be made in June.

“The glaring question is then, why is their (Palmer ADF&G’s) carefully thought out proposal being overturned by the administration in Anchorage? What data does The Commissioner have that the area biologists and area managers do not?,” Fight4Fish’s website posted in response to the emergency order.

“This makes it very difficult not to think there is something else behind this radical decision to override the Palmer office proposal.”

Group forms ‘Alaskans for Hawkins’

Suzanne Downing
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0

A group based in Ketchikan has formed an independent political action committee to support businessman Scott Hawkins’ race for governor.

“Alaskans for Hawkins” filed as an “independent expenditure group” with the Alaska Public Offices Commission on Monday, two days after the close of the Alaska Republican Party State Convention.

 

“There is no doubt that Scott Hawkins’ performance at the State Republican Convention was anything short of a stunning breakthrough in the Republican Primary campaign for Governor of Alaska” said Trevor Shaw, founding Chair for Alaskans for Scott Hawkins.

“Scott was passionate and inspirational. His speech was genuine, hopeful, and honest,” Shaw said. “We are a grassroots organization, starting from the ground up, and we’re already receiving tremendous support from Alaskans,” Shaw said. “It’s because people are truly inspired and encouraged by Scott Hawkins’ solid record of shaking up the status quo and his promise to do the same in Juneau.”

Shaw is the co-chair and treasurer, and Dave Spokely of Ketchikan is co-chair. The PAC started with $10,000, Shaw said.

DUNLEAVY HAS PAC, TOO

Mike Dunleavy, another gubernatorial candidate, has a PAC dedicated to his race that started earlier this year with over $550,000 in pledged commitments and has been running ads on television, radio and in social media.

Political action committees operate separate from the actual campaigns and are not allowed to coordinate with the campaigns. They are protected political speech but must file reports with the Alaska Public Offices Commission.

In 2014, Gov. Bill Walker had political action committees form to support his and Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott’s race against Gov. Sean Parnell. While groups with an anti-Parnell flavor, Alaskans Against Parnell, spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to oppose Parnell, Walker-Mallott One spent hundreds of thousands in support of the indie-Democrat ticket that had formed up during the Labor Day weekend in 2014.

The 2018 cycle may be even more spendy for independent expenditure groups, but most of the big money won’t show up until after the August primary.

Also running in the primary at this point are Rep. Mike Chenault, who is a longtime House member from Kenai, and Michael Sheldon of Petersburg.

Anchorage Prop 1 twist: Should women’s shelter be forced to accept biological men?

Suzanne Downing
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Anchorage Prop 1 twist: Should women’s shelter be forced to accept biological men?

IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT BATHROOMS ANYMORE

This week, ballots are in the mail to Anchorage voters, and among the questions they’ll be asked is Prop. 1: Whether Anchorage should roll back aspects of its “equal access to bathrooms and locker rooms” statute that currently allows biological men to use women’s facilities, where women and girls are typically found in a state of undress or partial undress. The following story is an update to an earlier story broken by Must Read Alaska about the statute being used to demand entry to a women’s shelter by a transgendered man.)

On March 15, the Anchorage Equal Rights Commission may take up a complaint made by a transgendered individual who attempted to gain entry into a women’s shelter, where women sleep on the floor, elbow to elbow.

The man, who is possibly living as a woman (although that is unclear in court records), was denied entry and filed the complaint with the commission within days of being denied shelter for the night.

By the time it meets, the commission will already be in receipt of a letter from the Downtown Hope Center, which operates both the Downtown Soup Kitchen during the day, and a shelter for abused, homeless women at night.

The charity has asked the commission to cancel the hearing. In any event, the charity has no intention of showing up.

HOPE CENTER RESPONDS

Through the charity’s lawyer, the Downtown Hope Center says the commission simply has no authority over the allegation of discrimination by Samantha/Timothy Paul Coyle against the Hope Center. Coyle said that his equal rights were violated in late January, when he was turned away twice by the shelter.

“”Hope Center did not violate AMC 5.20.050 with respect to Coyle,” the charity responded to the complaint. Hope Center is not a public accommodation within the meaning of AMC 5.20.010 and AMC 5.20.050, the organization wrote.

“Second, Hope Center did not discriminate against Coyle on the basis of gender identity. Hope Center has permitted Coyle to receive food service and lavatory and shower access in the past without incident. However, on two occasions Coyle, who has a criminal record involving violence and the use of a deadly weapon, was turned away by Hope Center.

“Coyle was turned away initially because he presented himself to Hope Center under the influence of alcohol after having been ejected and banned from the Brother Francis Shelter for fighting and being under the influence of alcohol.

“Next, Coyle was turned away when he returned the following day at a time when Hope Center was not open for receiving homeless individuals for shelter. On neither occasion was Coyle turned away because of his gender identity.

“Third, Hope Center has First Amendment rights to religious liberty and association that permit it to operate exclusively so as to provide charitable shelter to abused and battered women, and to exclude biological males from its abused and battered women’s shelter.”

[Read: Transgender files complaint against women’s shelter]

The letter from Hope Center to the commission went on to state the mission of Hope Center, and its history and operation.

“Hope Center is a religiously affiliated, private non-profit IRS § 501(c)(3) organization that provides (1) food and showers to homeless individuals in the downtown Anchorage, Alaska, area; and (2) shelter to homeless abused and battered women in the downtown Anchorage, Alaska, area. In addition to providing charitable food and shelter to homeless individuals, Hope Center maintains and operates a church on its property.”

The organization explained to the commission that it originally operated just a soup kitchen, but then expanded to help the local Brother Francis Shelter, which is operated by Catholic Social Services. Brother Francis was running out of room for homeless people, so Hope enter agreed to open a shelter just for abused and battered women, mainly to deal with the overflow at Brother Francis.

Hope Center now takes into its shelter both an overflow of abused and battered women from Brother Francis, as well as some abused and battered women who appear at Hope Center directly. Hope Center has the ability to provide shelter to as many as 50 abused and battered women a night.

“Following dinner, abused and battered women who have signed up and who qualify—e.g., no one is allowed to stay if they are inebriated or high or if they present a safety threat to others—are permitted to stay for the night, based upon space availability and priority of sign-up time. Those who stay for the night are given mats, along with a bag of blankets and a sheet so that they can sleep on the floor in the one large open room. Showers and laundry are also provided to those who have signed up and qualified to stay the night, and breakfast is provided in the morning to those who stayed the previous night.”

The organization does not house biological men because “this would traumatize and present unreasonable safety risks for the abused and battered women who are admitted for overnight shelter. Many of the abused and battered women who stay at the Hope Center have come out of or have been referred by the AWAIC Shelter because they have experienced domestic or other forms of violence and abuse. Also, many of the women who the Hope Center shelters have escaped the horrendous conditions of sexual exploitation and human trafficking. It would be wholly irresponsible and potentially dangerous for Hope Center to house biological males in its shelter overnight with the population of abused and battered women who stay at the shelter.”

Further, the organization has no security detail to protect women other than the door that keeps harmful people out.

“Because of the building’s open design and high ceiling, it is not possible for Hope Center to segregate a portion of the shelter for biological males,” the organization wrote.

“In any event, housing biological males in close proximity to abused and battered women, some of whom have escaped from human trafficking, would be cruel, possibly negligent, and virtually criminal. Also, Hope Center would be opening itself up to substantial civil liability if a biological male were to harm, rape, or, God forbid, kill one of the abused or battered women in the shelter.

The letter included a request that the hearing be cancelled and the complaint dismissed.

Finally the charity threw down the gauntlet, closing with this statement:

“Hope Center will not be attending the March 15, 2018, fact-finding conference. In the event that AERC determines to proceed with this matter, Hope Center intends to file a Motion to Dismiss on the basis that Hope Center is not a public accommodation.”

It’s a case that has the makings of a lawsuit that could go all the way to the Supreme Court.

Board of Fisheries appointment cuts out Anchorage anglers, dip-netters

Suzanne Downing
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4
Board of Fisheries appointment cuts out Anchorage anglers, dip-netters

Friday night, without an announcement, Gov. Bill Walker nominated a commercial fisherman from Kodiak to replace a sport fishing representative from Anchorage on the Board of Fisheries. The governor quietly slipped his nominee’s name to the House and Senate leadership after business hours.

If the nomination of Duncan Fields is confirmed by the Legislature, there will be no Board of Fisheries representative from Anchorage.

But the appointment of Fields has another purpose, besides being an unwelcome assault against dip-netters and anglers of Alaska, particularly Southcentral. The appointment would keep Fields from running against Rep. Louise Stutes, a Kodiak Republican who has fallen out of favor with Alaska Republicans and who joined the Democratic-run House majority.

Either way, the governor has put Fields in a lose-lose position, because if he keeps his name in for consideration and is denied confirmation, he’ll have gone through a reputation-bruising battle that will damage his chances of unseating Stutes in August.

By the same token, it’s a win-win for the governor: He can poke a stick in the eye of gubernatorial candidate Mike Dunleavy, who has the support of one of the biggest sport fishing advocates in Alaska, Bob Penney.

If Fields wins confirmation, Gov. Walker then takes him out of circulation as a candidate and preserves that Kodiak seat for someone who is in Walker’s camp: Stutes. It’s an easy choice for Walker.

SPORTS FISHERS ARE LIVID

The sports fishing community is up in arms. There was no public announcement that the governor is changing the board balance from being weighted evenly between sports and commercial, with one seat for subsistence to what would be a clearly commercial fisheries board, with four seats.

“This appointment will unbalance the Board and we strongly oppose the nomination,” said Kenai River Sportfishing Association Executive Director Ricky Gease. “Past governors have for years kept the Board balanced in regional representation and between commercial, sport, personal use and subsistence user groups. By stacking the Board with a majority voice of commercial fishing interests – and with no one from Anchorage – the governor is threatening Alaskans’ opportunity to harvest fish.”

When Walker was elected, Karl Johnstone was the chair of the Board of Fisheries, representing the sports fishing seat for Anchorage. The governor said he would not reappoint him, so Johnstone left on his own terms, and Walker appointed Roland Maw.

Maw became caught up in various scandals involving taking Permanent Fund Dividends while not actually residing in Alaska, and is still in court over those and related allegations.

[Read Craig Medred’s account, the story that was spiked by the Anchorage Daily News when Alice Rogoff was publisher, which led to Medred leaving the ADN.]

FIELDS FOR HOUSE

In 2016, Fields ran against Louise Stutes, after she had joined with the Democrats, and he took Kodiak by about 150 votes.

However, he had run without a party affiliation and had little name recognition in Cordova and other communities outside of Kodiak. This year, he was planning to run as a Republican to take on Stutes in the August primary. Being on the Board of Fisheries would end that plan, and Republicans would have to search for someone else to challenge Stutes.

Born in Kodiak, Fields has served as the president of the Kodiak Island Borough School District. He has a law degree from the University of Oregon, is married, and has six children.

He has served on many fisheries boards and councils:

  • Member, North Pacific Fisheries Management Council
  • Member, Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute Board
  • Member, Alaska Fisheries Marketing Board
  • Member, Advisory Panel, North Pacific Fishery Management Council
  • Walker-Mallott Climate Change Leadership Team

UH-OH: EMERGENCY ORDERS CLOSE FISHING AREAS

On Tuesday, the Department of Fish and Game closed commercial salmon fishing with set gillnets in all waters of the Northern District of Upper Cook Inlet for the 2018 directed king salmon fishery. The fishing dates affected by this closure are May 28, and June 4, 11, and 18.

The Division of Sport Fish also closed the entire Susitna River drainage to the harvest of king salmon. Sport fishing for king salmon will only be allowed in the Deshka River and Yentna River system. These drainages will be restricted to catch-and-release only for king salmon; no harvest will be allowed.

“The objective of these restrictions and closures is to achieve all Susitna River escapement goals by eliminating sport and commercial harvest of these stocks. Based on inseason information, fishing opportunity may be restored where and when possible while ensuring escapement goals are achieved,” the department explained in its emergency order.

 

Justin Parish, Sam Kito vote against Juneau Access

Suzanne Downing
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When the chips were down, Reps. Justin Parish and Sam Kito of Juneau voted against the Juneau Access Project, which would have brought hundreds of jobs and better ferry service for all of Southeast Alaska.
On the House floor on Monday, Reps. Lance Pruitt, Charisse Millett, Chris Birch, and Dan Saddler, of Anchorage, and Tammie Wilson of North Pole, spoke powerfully about the importance of building a long-awaited 48-mile road that would allow for a short ferry crossing to Haines. They advocated for access to the capital and the importance of building infrastructure in a part of the state where populations is dropping and ferry usage is down by one quarter.
The $570 million road project would be paid for with 90 percent federal funding, and the 10 percent matching funding from the state, which could be allocated in increments over the life of the several-year project.
The Walker Administration, in cooperation with Juneau Rep. Sam Kito, had transferred a major portion of the funds that had been designated for the projects to other communities around the state. But the funding could have been be transferred back to the Juneau Access Project in the supplemental budget.
More than half of Juneau residents favor the road, but many in Kito’s District 33, which is the most liberal district in the state, remain opposed to it. In the Mendenhall Valley, represented by Parish, more people favor the road.
Rep. Pruitt offered an amendment to the supplemental budget that would return some of that money to the Juneau Access Project. The amendment failed, 20-19, with both Juneau representatives — Parish and Kito — voting against the road. Had either one of them voted yes, the funding for the project funds would have been restored.

Alaska’s Department of Transportation and Public Facilities calls for extending the road along Northern Lynn Canal from its current dead end at Echo Cove to Katzehin River, where a new ferry terminal would be built.

From there, smaller ferries that are under construction in Ketchikan would take vehicles and passengers to Haines and Skagway on short routes with up to eight trips a day. Ferries used in Northern Lynn Canal could be deployed to other communities, such as Sitka, Hoonah, and Petersburg.

Proponents of the road project believe that it is key to saving the ferry system. Right now, ferries are so old and they are missing more and more sailings due to repairs.

STRANDED TRAVELERS ACROSS SOUTHEAST

Earlier this month, six basketball teams were stranded in Sitka when one of the ferries suffered a breakdown, something that is now a common occurrence.

The M/V LeConte needed parts that needed to be flown in from Illinois but meanwhile Allen Marine, a private ferry company in Sitka, was able to fill in and get the students back to their home communities of Angoon, Kake, and Hoonah.

In April, some 400 students and parents from around Southeast were not going to be able to attend the regional music festival in Juneau in April because of ferry system breakdown, but the Alaska Marine Highway System has adjusted its schedule to ensure the students and chaperones can attend. But that means other communities will sacrifice their expected runs.

Proponents of the Juneau Access Project argue that by funding and building the road, the aging ferry system can be more efficiently used for other island communities that will never have road access.

Republican lawmakers in the House voted for greater access to Juneau, while all Democrats and Indie-Dem Daniel Ortiz of Ketchikan voting against it.

Monday’s floor vote was one of the clearest demonstrations yet of the divide between those who want to grow good-paying jobs and access to the Capital City, versus those who want Juneau to remain “just as it is.”

Or as the old joke goes, “a quaint little drinking town with a government problem.”

Escaped from halfway house, robs and assaults again

Suzanne Downing
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10
Escaped from halfway house, robs and assaults again

Charles Sadler, who has been on the lam since walking away from a halfway house in mid-February, was back in the assault and robbery business on Friday, according to police, who searched for him and arrested him after he brandished a weapon, struck a man, and stole his bike and his cell phone.

Sadler is 19 years old. Last year, he was arrested for armed robbery after following a man into his garage and firing shots while attempting to rob the man.

On Friday, he was said to be on the 400 block of Turpin Street in East Anchorage, where he was meeting someone who was trying to sell a cell phone through Craigslist.

The victim had received a text from someone he thought was a buyer, and arrived by bicycle at the agreed upon address. As he reached into his pocket to retrieve the phone, he was struck on the face by a man identified as Sadler, who also pulled a gun on him during the assault.

The victim’s glasses were broken, and as he ran off to call for help, Sadler allegedly stole the bike and fled. Police searched the area and found Sadler on the 300 block of Donna Drive. He was identified as the perpetrator and a gun was found nearby.

Sadler is charged with Robbery I, Assault III, Assault IV, Misconduct Involving a Weapon III, Theft III, and Criminal Mischief V.  He also had an outstanding felony warrant for Escape.

Read our original story about Sadler’s arrest in October for armed robbery in the Fairview neighborhood, his assignment to the Cordova Center halfway house, and his escape.

SB 91 Poster Child: Charles Sadler

Sara Rasmussen: No better reason, no better time

Suzanne Downing
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8

By SARA RASMUSSEN
CANDIDATE HOUSE DISTRICT 22

She’s just a mom. And pregnant – how could she ever be successful legislator? Her hormones must be going crazy. Look at her, with that blonde hair – she looks like a pageant w**re. She’s just a stupid little girl.

Those words, spoken about me since I stepped out to run for office, are written on sticky notes, attached to my bathroom mirror. Every morning, they motivate me to press on and remind me that nothing worth doing is easy.

She’s a Republican and I won’t vote for her. (Kind of closed-minded, but predictable.)

She’s too young. (Not as true as I might like to think, but I get it.)

She’s conservative and I’m not. (A fair reason not to give me your vote.)

She’s a mom. Seriously?

My name is Sara Rasmussen. I’m a residential real estate appraiser, a lifelong resident of my district, a wife, an entrepreneur, and I also just happen to be mother of a sweet little boy with a little girl on the way. When my husband and I made the decision that I would run for public office, I knew that the path would be riddled with obstacles and difficulties.

To newcomers, the financial and time commitments to a campaign create barriers to entry that are high and unforgiving; this reality all too often keeps many good men and women from running for office at all.

I expect, given the current nature of our country’s politics, to have a door or two slammed in my face. But, I have to admit that I find it alarming — at a time when politicians from across our state and our nation stand accused of sexual harassment and assault, extramarital affairs, and corruption – that any person would dismiss my candidacy simply because I’m a mother of small children.

I mean really, what better reason could I possibly have to run for office?

Moms possess an amazing ability to solve complex problems. They’re among the best negotiators in the world (have you ever tried to convince a toddler to do something?) and they’re naturally inclined to protect everyone around them. Moms are observant, dedicated, and passionate – the qualities that just about everyone, of every political affiliation, wants in their elected officials.

Being a mom shouldn’t be seen as a handicap to accomplishing great things in society.

Anchorage’s Kikkan Randall just won a GOLD medal for team USA, and she’s a mother of a toddler.

Marie Curie, who won a Nobel Prize and whose work led to the development of the X-ray scanner, did so as a single mom of two daughters.

Kathy Headlee, a mother of seven, started Mothers Without Borders to help orphaned children around the world.

I could go on and on. Moms are a cornerstone of a healthy society, and we can’t continue to force them out of the public square.

I can’t stomach any more news stories about people being shot on our streets or kids hit by stolen cars. My heart still aches for families of Alaskans who have been made twice a victim; first, by the crime itself, and then, by the injustice of watching the perpetrator walk away without penalty because of a bad bill called SB 91.

I can’t stand by while the leaders of our state take away the PFD bit by bit, stealing away parents’ opportunity to invest in their child’s college education, and then threatening new taxes in the very next sentence.

I won’t sit quietly while the budget deficit continues to grow and grow, forcing ordinary, hardworking people to bear the weight of a government that is addicted to spending money.

These aren’t abstract problems. They’re right in front of our faces and we can’t ignore them any longer.

We need new, strong, and independent leaders to break the cycle of bad government, and I want to earn your trust as one of those leaders.

I don’t want to talk bad about my opponents – I know them both and they’re nice people. But they’ve also both already had a shot to solve problems in Juneau, and honestly, I don’t think either of them have earned another term by their actions. It’s nothing personal, but I feel less safe today than I did before they were elected, and judging by the messages I’ve received so far in my campaign, I’m not the only one who feels that way.

Being a legislator and a mother isn’t going to be easy – I know that. But I’m willing to make whatever adjustments necessary to give my neighbors, my family, and my friends a representative in government who has their best interests at heart. I am so fortunate to have an amazing and supportive husband to serve alongside me on behalf of our community, and our family is so excited for the opportunity to go to Juneau together to fight for all Alaskans!

Chances are, you may catch me waddling down your street in the coming weeks, before my daughter’s birth.  I’ll be back out as quickly as I can after she’s born, as I’m committed to getting out there and learning what issues matter to you.  I’d love the chance to meet you and your family.

I’m only going to make one campaign promise this year, and I hope it’s a strong start on the journey to earn your vote: I will fight with everything I have, as only a mom can, for my children and for yours.

And if that commitment makes me a “stupid little girl” – well, I’m okay with that.

Sara Rasmussen is a candidate for State Representative in District 22 (Sand Lake, Anchorage). You can learn more about her and her campaign at SaraForHouse.com.

 

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