Page 1704 – Must Read Alaska

Bright, shiny objects: Trump transition, parties, inaugural news, new taxes

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December 7, 2016

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MAKING THE ROUNDS: DC is an absolute beehive of activity this week. Spotted at the Alaska State Society’s Dec. 5 holiday party, was Trump Campaign’s Alaska Director Jerry Ward, flanked by Alaska Public Media’s Liz Ruskin and Sen. Dan Sullivan Senior Advisor Amanda Coyne, photographed above.

Also partying with fellow Alaskans were Kaleb Froehlich, Will Treadwell, Hannah Beckett, Parker Haymans, Ayla O’Scannell, Kathy Mayo (does it get more stylish?), Breg Bringhurst (rural adviser for Lisa Murkowski) with wife Charlene and their new baby, while normally reserved Sullivan staffer Liz Banicki could not get enough of that baby. Jack Ferguson (with fellow lobbyist and wife Veronica Slajer) was busy being the insider that he is. Everyone seemed to be holding a stuffed teddy bear, which were the party favors.

In DC this week is House Minority Leader Rep. Charisse Millett, outgoing Finance member Rep. Lynn Gattis, and House Minority Floor Leader Rep. Dan Saddler, there for the National Conference of State Legislatures. Sen. Bill Stolze attended and was also making the rounds of the Capitol, where he was seen at Sen. Dan Sullivan’s office on the 7th floor of the Hart Building.

Meanwhile, Millett, Saddler and Gattis were spotted having lunch with Sen. Dan Sullivan in the Senate Dining Room.

Others in DC include Sen. Lyman Hoffman and Rep. Geran Tarr .

Staffers Kim Skipper (Rep. Saddler) and Rex Shattuck (Rep. Mark Neuman) are attending NCSL, where they serve on key committees.

Could Sen. Stoltze be in line for a position with the Trump team, possibly something to do with Agriculture? It’s the speculation. He does, after all, love to push Mat-Su carrots wherever he goes.

Others making the rounds include Mat-Su Borough Manager John Lucy, who along with the Mat-Su Borough delegation was meeting with Sen. Sullivan and taking in the DC Christmas sights.

TRANSITION/INAUGURAL NEWS: The Alaska State Society has set Jan. 21 as the date for its inaugural ball joining with Montana, Washington, Oregon, and Colorado State Societies. “The Best of the West” Inaugural Ball will take place in the Old Ebbitt Grill Atrium, steps from the White House. It’s a non-partisan event with an open bar and heavy hors d’oeuvres. Cocktail or “Black Tie Lite” attire is encouraged. Tickets.

Jerry Ward, who is all of a sudden on the “Trump Everything A-list,” has been named Native American affairs liaison for the Trump Presidential Inaugural Committee. He’s got the inside track for a Trump permanent position, most likely with Native issues. He’ll meet with Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott on Friday.

Ward is on the 58th Presidential Inaugural Committee and is working on details for how Alaskans can get tickets to the various parties and parades. Stay tuned.

“I’m amazed. It’s exciting times,” Ward said. “Standing here at the window looking out over Washington, D.C. — it’s quite a ways from the convention in Fairbanks. I’ve never done anything like this before.”

Among events he is trying to get Trump to attend on Jan. 20 is an inaugural ball at the National Museum for American Indians, where a Native American-themed event will be honoring Native American veterans. He’s on that A-list, too.

SALES TAX FOR ANCHORAGE? Anchorage Assembly member Bill Evans on Tuesday introduced a four percent sales tax on goods and services, exempting things already taxed, such as cigarettes and hotel rooms, and exempting food, medicine, child care, legal, doctor education, utilities.

Evans says it will add $100 million to the city, offset by a greater property tax exemption. It’s also a defensive measure in case the state imposes a sales tax. The sales tax proposal has a cap of $200.

A public hearing on the tax will be held Dec. 20.

The alt-left news picks its next battle with Amy Demboski

Suzanne Downing

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December 7, 2016

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They were such a nice young couple. But in 2010, the FBI busted the two, who had been quietly living in King Salmon with one child and one one the way.

They had made their way to Anchorage with an assassination list when they were apprehended.

Agents arrested Paul and Nadia Rockwood for activities related to terrorism. Basically, they lied about a list they had given to someone — a list with more than a dozen names of people they considered enemies of Islam.

Paul Rockwood Jr. was a red-bearded weather forecaster from Virginia who now is serving time in federal prison, while Nadia, a pregnant, apple-cheeked Brit, was exiled to England to serve her sentence of probation.

The two had drafted a list of targets in the Lower 48 that were prime for terrorist attacks. They did this while in King Salmon, Alaska. No one in the small town of 440 people suspected a thing.

FAST FORWARD TO 2016: THE LEFT WANTS YOU TO SHUT UP

When Anchorage Assembly Member Amy Demboski asked a question on her radio talk show about whether a Muslim organization possibly in Alaska has terrorist ties, as is alleged by some credible sources, the alt-left media came loaded for bear.

Demboski is no stranger to controversy. During her run for Anchorage mayor, an accusation was made — not by her, mind you — that her Democratic opponent supported incest. Demboski was pushed by then-radio host Casey Reynolds to deny it, but in fact she had not made the charge in the first place.

Later, the tape was produced that revealed that now-Mayor Ethan Berkowitz had (jokingly) said he didn’t care one bit about who had sex with whom. Father-son, no problem, he jousted on the show he shared with his conservative co-host Bernadette Wilson.

But the calling out of Demboski for not distancing herself from that accusation was like a dog whistle to the Democrats. An election tempest ensued with the Left losing its collective head because Demboski would not condemn those making the accusation. As she said at the time, she had no knowledge of the incident. It was not enough.

This past week, Demboski riled the Left again.

screen-shot-2016-12-06-at-8-22-15-pm — *Greg “Shoaib” Jones shakes hands with the Rev. Jesse Jackson during the National Democratic Convention this summer. Jones was a delegate from Alaska and a Bernie Sanders supporter.*

She had had Democrat Greg ‘Shoaib’ Jones on her show recently. He is a member of the Muslim faith and he ran for Rep. Mark Neuman’s District 8 seat, losing badly to the incumbent in one of the most conservative areas of the state.

Demboski asked Jones about his ties to a group called Muslims of America, which is a legitimate line of questioning, considering that the group has had some controversy swirling around it — it used to go by another name: Jamaat ul-Fuqra.

And considering that Jones had said he was a member of the group.

While Muslims of America may or may not be made up of the same folks who identify with terrorism, it’s easy enough to find the links online that would lead a reporter to ask the same questions. A government-funded report on the link between white collar crime and terrorism uses Jamaat ul-Fuqra as a poster child. The Anti-Defamation League has its antenna up for the group, which it ties to Muslims of America.

Muslims of America’s leader, Pakistani Sheikh Muburak Gilani, was linked to the kidnap and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in 2002. Pearl was working on a story about Richard Reid, the “shoe bomber.” Gilani was interviewed extensively by authorities, but was cleared. CBS’ 60 Minutes has a report on the Gilani-Daniel Pearl connection.

Jones attended Tuesday’s meeting of the Anchorage Assembly and, at the invitation of Democrat Assemblyman Eric Croft, took after Demboski, saying her show spews hate.

She was undaunted: “They are saying I’m spewing hate speech, simply because I shared an article that was featured on Fox News nationally. This is a witch hunt. No wrong was committed until Alaska Commons lied and stoked a fake fire,” Demboski said.

THE OFFICIAL WORD IS…

Last year, FBI Director James Comey said the agency is investigating suspects linked to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in every state.

“We have investigations of people in various stages of radicalizing in all 50 states,” Comey told the National Association of Attorneys General, as reported by The Hill. He went on to explain that law enforcement is not likely to be the first to notice “someone acting in strange ways.”

The crush of political correctness in the liberal media has had a chilling affect on free speech. And yet the media has also not yet caught up with the fact that Americans are tired of having to edit themselves to fit an ever-changing standard of accepted speech. It’s why Donald Trump is the president-elect and more governors than ever are Republican.

As Demboski navigates the bullies who disagree with her and her line of questioning of those who seek public office, she’s also become subject of threats. Two weeks ago she received a disturbing text message that reminds her that the arena of public opinion can be filled with violent people.

Which is why she protects her First Amendment rights with the Second Amendment pistol at her waist.

Alaska’s electors face pressures to go rogue

Suzanne Downing

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December 7, 2016

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Alaska’s three Republican electors gather in Juneau on Dec. 19 to cast their official ballots for president. It’s an exercise that will happen on the same day across the nation in the 50 capitols plus the District of Columbia.

Sean Parnell, Carolyn Leman, and Jacqueline Tupou — Alaska’s electors for the Republican Party — pledged to vote for the person whom Alaskan voters chose (by a wide margin) on Nov. 8: Donald Trump. It’s winner takes all electors in Alaska.

Trump won 53 percent of the Alaska vote to Clinton’s 38 percent.

To compare, in 2012 Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan won 54 percent of the vote to Barack Obama/Joe Biden’s 40.81%. In 2008, McCain/Palin won 59.42% of Alaska’s vote to Obama/Biden’s 37.89%.

Alaskans can attend the 2016 Electoral College Ceremony at the State of Alaska Library Archives Museum Building in Juneau at 11 a.m., Dec. 19:

As in other parts of the country, Alaska’s electors are getting calls and letters, and have been since the election. Progressives who favor Hillary Clinton are begging them to vote for anyone but Trump. At least one caller promised that there was money for an elector’s legal defense, should he or she choose to defect from their duty.

A petition group boasts that it has 4.7 million signatures of people asking electors to change their votes in favor of Clinton.

The Trump campaign itself is calling electors to ensure they aren’t being bought off, threatened, or otherwise pressured. In other words, Trump is taking no chances that Alaska’s electors will go rogue, and his organization was contacting Alaska’s Republican electors earlier this week.

Just to say “thanks,” of course.

There is no constitutional mandate for electors to vote as they pledged, and there is no specific Alaska law that does clearly lays out the rules, either. It’s quite vague and relies on the honor system:

Alaska Statute 15.30.090 Duties of Electors states: After any vacancies have been filled, the electors shall proceed to cast their votes for the candidates for the office of President and Vice-President of the party that selected them as candidates for electors, or for the candidates for the office of President and Vice-President under AS 15.30.026 if the electors were named under AS 15.30.026, and shall perform the duties of electors as required by the constitution and laws of the United States. The director shall provide administrative services and the Department of Law shall provide legal services necessary for the electors to perform their duties.

That’s ambiguous wording. State law, it appears, leans on the U.S. Constitution, which is silent on the matter of an elector’s conscientious objection.

In fact, there appears to be no real consequence in Alaska law for what’s called a “faithless elector.” Would it be a Class A or B misdemeanor? The question has never been tested.

Alaska’s electors have always followed the will of the voters. The will of Alaskans has been with the Republican Party during every presidential election, save one. Only in 1964 did the Democrats’ electors have the opportunity to cast their ballots, and they did so for Lyndon B. Johnson, who had won Alaska and nearly every other state.

Alaska's electoral votes through since Statehood. — *Alaska’s electoral votes since Statehood.*

There are 538 electors across the United States, with 270 needed to win. Donald Trump won 306 of those votes.

Democrats who are making one last Hail Mary pass to change the outcome of the election only need to convince 37 Republican electors to give their votes to Hillary or someone else, like John Kasich.

The newly minted Hamilton Electors are not likely to find defectors from Alaska, however. As for Kasich, he caught wind that he was being dragged into the fray and today told the Republican electors to vote for Trump:

“I am not a candidate for president and ask that electors not vote for me when they gather later this month. Our country had an election and Donald Trump won,” Kasich wrote on Twitter.

However, at least one of the 538 have declared himself to be a faithless elector, and there may be five others mulling it over.

If the movement succeeds — and it’s unlikely to — the matter goes to the U.S. House of Representatives for a final decision. There’s no doubt the House would confirm Trump, thus rendering the electoral shenanigans meaningless.

More on the twists and intrigue of what happens if electors go rogue can be found at the Constitution Center blog.

How the bombing of Pearl Harbor shaped the Alaska Highway

The 907

Suzanne Downing

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December 6, 2016

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How the bombing of Pearl Harbor shaped the Alaska Highway

screen-shot-2016-12-02-at-3-50-16-pm — The USS Arizona under attack by Japanese on Dec. 7, 1941. (Photographer unknown, National Archives and Records Administration ID 195617.)

It is 75 years since the Dec. 7, 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Alaskans, many of whom are a transient lot by nature, don’t often reflect on what the surprise attack did for the development of our state. Call it a silver lining, if you will, because if not for the attack, there might be no road to Alaska.

The surprise bombing went on for 110 long minutes, with 353 Japanese fighter planes, launched from six aircraft carriers sinking four U.S. battleships and heavily damaging four others, along with a litter of other planes, ships and infrastructure. Some 2,403 Americans died that day and 1,178 others were wounded.

Pearl Harbor attack — In this photo taken by a pilot of a Japanese fighter plane as the attack on Pearl Harbor was underway, a torpedo had already hit the USS West Virginia on the far side of Ford Island, in the center of the photo, and other ships and planes are on fire. Note the Japanese script at the bottom of the photo, indicating it is an official government document.

The shock of having our own territory attacked brought the U.S. officially into World War II. We had already been quietly helping our allies in Europe, to be sure, but Pearl Harbor changed everything.

The very next day, Dec. 8, the US declared war on Japan. Decisions during wartime come quickly.

One such decision came two months later, when Congress approved the US Army’s plan to build a highway to Alaska through Canada, with the United States bearing the complete cost of the project. The Canadians were to take over the Canadian portion of the highway at the end of the war.

The project had languished for decades but gained urgency because of the growing aggressiveness of Japan. Already, the Imperial Japanese Army had occupied the islands of Attu and Kiska in the Aleutians. The Japanese had breached both Alaska and Hawaii.

On March 8, 1943, road construction began, and the entire route was essentially rough and ready for military use by Oct. 28, 1943. It was barely passable and has been a work in progress ever since.

It took nearly 16,000 soldiers and civilians to push through 1,700 miles of wilderness from Dawson Creek, British Columbia, to Big Delta, Alaska, where the pioneer road met the Richardson Highway, which itself was not much more than a trail for gold stampeders.

Seventy-five years later, it takes decades and thousands of permits to build roads in America. Alaskans rightfully complain that the federal government won’t allow an 11-mile one-ane gravel road from King Cove to the all-weather airport at Cold Bay. The King Cove City Council has been trying to get the road since 1976.

As a state, Alaska has not built a major new highway in half a century.

But during World War II, the U.S. and Canada built an international highway in eight months.

*A caterpillar tractor-grader building the Alaska Highway in 1942.*

The hardships of building the Alcan through the wilderness of Canada are almost unimaginable today. The men arrived in still-frozen territory and had to wait until the ground thawed just enough to get started.

Cpl. Refines Sims Jr., left, and Pvt. Alfred Jalufkamet of the US Army Corps of Engineers meet in the middle as they complete construction of the Alaska Highway in 1942. — Cpl. Refines Sims Jr. and Pvt. Alfred Jalufkamet of the US Army Corps of Engineers meet in the middle to celebrate the completion of the Alaska Highway in 1942, the biggest North American project since the building of the Panama Canal.

Then came the rivers of mud and ice that swamped the equipment, the floods, the forest fires, the mosquitoes and the exhausting pace of work. None of the hardship is visible today to the traveler who takes on what is one of the greatest road trips in the world — the Alcan Highway, and feels quite victorious when reaching the historic milepost at Mile 1520 in Fairbanks.

This project from hell in 1942 was the road to the future. A National Geographic documentary on the construction of the Alcan tells the story with footage that reminds the viewer how, once upon a war, Americans believed they could do just about anything.

Which Republican is vying for Alaska Governor’s Office

Suzanne Downing

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December 5, 2016

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With the 2016 election behind us, and the Anchorage municipal election dead ahead, politicos in Alaska are looking around for the conservative who will be at the top of the Republican ticket in less than 24 months.

Who will run for governor as a Republican and how crowded will be the field? Here are the names that knowledgeable observers are dropping at this early stage:

Robert Gillam: The race will begin shortly, with multi-millionaire Robert Gillam expected to throw his hat in the ring the first week of January by putting together a “kitchen cabinet” that will meet on a weekly basis. He’s also said to be working on a publicity campaign to stop Gov. Walker’s proposed state income tax. If he doesn’t get a post as Secretary of Interior, watch for him to commit $3-5 million (rounding error) to fund a race for governor.

Strengths: Virtually unlimited financial resources, positioning him well to “buy” the primary election in what is likely to be a crowded field. Potential to be a Trump-like candidate, with his personal wealth and propensity for blunt talk. Could position himself as a true outsider.
Weaknesses: No direct political or government experience. Has not run for office before. Potential to be a Trump-like candidate, which would be a problem only if things go badly for The Donald.

Mike Dunleavy: Sen. Mike Dunleavy (R-Mat-Su & Copper River valleys) is said to be working on legislation to stop Gov. Walker from raiding the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend in the future. He is a bold firebrand conservative, both socially and economically. His tall stature and rugged good looks don’t hurt, either.

Strengths: Solid conservative credentials. Would use the Perm Fund Dividend as a populist issue. Administrative experience, strong in education.
Weaknesses: Needs statewide name recognition. Will need broad electoral appeal.

Charlie Huggins: Retiring Sen. Charlie Huggins, of District D, has military background (retired colonel) as well as excellent relationships in the Legislature. Once president of the Senate, he’s leaving office, which could give him the distance he needs from the problem that the 30th Legislature will face in closing the fiscal gap.

Strengths: Strong personal charm, gentlemanly demeanor, truly a nice guy. Military street cred. Strong likability factor.
Weaknesses: Needs statewide name recognition. Can he raise the money.

Anna MacKinnon: Sen. Anna MacKinnon, co-chair of Senate Finance, has the experience to be governor, and the good relationships across party lines, but whether that’s the direction she wants to go is the big question for her. She could suffer politically during this legislative season because, during tough fiscal times, she’ll be making some unpopular decisions.

Strengths: Has been an excellent state senator. Thoughtful. Articulate. Experienced. Hard working.
Weaknesses: Statewide name recognition. May be tied to the Alaska Legislature’s history of overspending.

John Binkley: Former legislator (House, Senate) from Fairbanks, John Binkley is a riverboat captain who is in the tourism business and has an easy laugh every time someone asks him if he’ll throw his name in the hat for governor. He’s done that, he says. It’s not likely, but people ask.

Strengths: Interior base, which is an important battleground region in statewide elections. Business experience and leadership. Great network and therefore good fundraising capacity. Friendly, likeable demeanor. Legislative experience.
Weaknesses: Does not seem to want the office.

Pete Kelly: Sen. Pete Kelly of Fairbanks has considered it but he’s got a huge battle to get through with the fiscal crisis. He can’t throw his name in the ring if in June that crisis is as bad as it was this year in June, meaning he’s got a tough route to the governorship.

Strengths: Interior base, which is an important battleground region in statewide elections. Thoughtful and strategic. Likeable. Strong conservative street cred.
Weaknesses: He’s got to fix the fiscal crisis. That is going to be a challenge.

Don Young: Rep. Don Young could run for governor, and sometimes jokes that he will. But this week he said he’s running for his House seat in 2018. He’ll be 85. Some say if he ran, everyone should simply get out of the way.

Strengths: Statewide name recognition – no one has more. Excellent campaigner. Amazing statewide campaign machinery. It’s his for the taking.
Weaknesses: Does not seem to want the office. Congressman Young looks quite happy in his current office, now 43 years in.

Lisa Murkowski: Some have floated Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s name as a possibility. But that would open up her Senate seat in two years, and Alaska has a powerhouse Washington team that few want to see split up. She has fought too hard to get where she is.

Tuckerman Babcock: Chairman of the Alaska Republican Party, Babcock wrangles all the disparate elements of a party that has a lot of contentious factions. If he can keep that group straight, he could have a shot. But can he avoid the “friendly fire”from the right?

Strengths: Formidable political skills. Great statewide network. Ties all up and down the Railbelt region.
Weaknesses: Needs statewide name recognition. May draw fire from Joe Miller faction.

Dan Sullivan (Mayor): Former Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan is always mentioned and has indicated his interest. The unions might have something to say about it, but the mayor surely knows how to cut a budget.

Strengths: Statewide name recognition. Outstanding family pedigree. Strong street cred managing budgets and controlling costs. Sizable political machine in Anchorage. Fundraising abilities. Experience running in a statewide race.
Weaknesses: Intense union opposition. Anchorage roots, which is not always helpful statewide.

Loren Leman: Former Lt. Gov. Loren Leman — conservative, thoughtful, and experienced — has been thinking about it for years. Is this his time? His and Carolyn’s youngest daughter tragically died in a climbing accident one year ago this week. The healing process is never a straight line. Only Leman can know when he’s ready.

Strengths: Experienced both as a senator and lieutenant governor. Managed budgets through lean times in Alaska. Strong support in faith-based community, hardworking, fiscal hawk. Alaska Native.
Weaknesses: A long time has passed since he was in office and Alaska is a transient state. Name recognition and political brand will need to be re-established with a new era of voters. Can he raise the money?

Bill Walker: Current “Nonpartisan” Gov. Bill Walker is said to have brought in a political consultant to see if he could run on the Republican side, and the consultant came back with the verdict: No.

Strengths, weaknesses: Look for Walker to run again as an (ahem) “nonpartisan” as he obviously relishes being governor.

MISSING: SOMEONE FROM THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY

Both John Binkley and Dan Sullivan have strong business credentials, but they are considered part of the political class, not outsiders. Robert Gillam is a political outsider, but he’s closely aligned himself with Donald Trump, and that’s a relationship that could help or hurt, depending on how The Donald does as president.

Where is the business community and who might emerge as a person with the courage to lead during the toughest fiscal situation since the late 1980s? Who has the business credibility, grasp of the issues, potential for broad electoral appeal, and the political savvy to put together a strong campaign?

Some mention the name Brad Keithley, but he’s not likely to pass the opposition research test. As a career attorney, his profession can hurt him.

Others say Joe Beedle (Northrim Bank president), but Joe has landed the job of a lifetime. He has not shown political ambitions, preferring to move the needle in lower key ways.

John Sturgeon has almost folk hero status in Alaska after battling the Park Service all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. He’d have to re-register as a Republican, but he does have broad appeal because of his David-and-Goliath taking on of the federal government.

The hunt is on, and the suggestion box is open. Send your thoughts to [email protected].

How Mitch McConnell saved the Supreme Court

The 907

Suzanne Downing

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December 5, 2016

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WASHINGTON, DC – Conservative Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan had some kind words to say about GOP “establishment guy” and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Sullivan, sitting in his office with a loosened tie after a morning of committee hearings, pointed out that one of the least understood stories outside of the Beltway is about how McConnell was able to block a President Obama nomination to the US Supreme Court for the rest of his presidency.

When conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died on Feb.13, 2016, it was not only shocking (there was no autopsy after he died at a remote lodge), few believed that Republicans could stand together for nearly a full year and block a nomination for his replacement. It was an election year, after all. Standing together is not always what Republicans do.

They did. And McConnell deserves the credit.

It was a gamble, to be sure, because neither the majority leader nor anyone else could be certain that Hillary Clinton would not be the one choosing the next Supreme Court justice. If she was, it would have likely been a lot worse than the name advanced by President Obama.

A month after Scalia’s death, Obama nominated Merrick Garland, who was the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

But McConnell early on said he would not meet with Garland, and that set the tone and pace for the rest of the Senate Majority. Many followed suit. The Huffington Post types went nuts, saying the Senate was defying the U.S. Constitution.

But there’s the rub: The Constitution does not give a timeframe for when a nominee must be voted on, Sullivan explained.

Obama, in nominating Garland, reminded senators of his constitutional duty to nominate a new justice and scolded them about their corresponding constitutional duty to “do their job” and hold a vote on that nominee.

“I’m amused when I hear people who claim to be strict interpreters of the Constitution suddenly reading into it a whole series of provisions that are not there,” Obama said. “The Constitution is pretty clear about what is supposed to happen now.”

But the Constitution is perfectly silent on the ASAP part of the process. McConnell, well aware that the stakes were high, knew his Constitution.

Sullivan pointed out that Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution says the President “shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law.”

Nowhere does the Constitution start the clock on such advice and consent, Sullivan said. And, of course, that process only refers to an up and down vote on the nominee. It’s not a rubber-stamp, nor was it intended to be.

In fact, Article I, Section 5 states: “Each House may determine the rules of its proceedings.” Senators, when asked, said they were considering Garland, reading all of his opinions, doing research on him, and they’d continue researching him for a good long time. Maybe until Jan. 20, 2017.

It’s not that uncommon. As legal observers might recall, Democrats blocked the nomination of Miguel Estrada to the DC Circuit Court for over two years because they didn’t like Estrada’s legal philosophy and because he was a President George W. Bush nominee. This is the same thing that the Republican-controlled Senate has returned in favor to President Obama.

Estrada finally had to withdraw his name and move on with his life.

And, as Sen. Sullivan pointed out, it was Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer in 2007 famously said the Senate “should not confirm a [GW Bush] Supreme Court nominee except in extraordinary circumstances.”

WHO MIGHT BE ON THE LIST

Meanwhile, Donald Trump back in September issued a list of potential nominees, including these:

Keith Blackwell is a justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia, appointed in 2012. He previously served on the Court of Appeals of Georgia. and was a Deputy Special Attorney General of the State of Georgia, an Assistant District Attorney in Cobb County, and a commercial litigator in private practice. Blackwell is a graduate of the University of Georgia School of Law.

Charles Canady is a justice of the Supreme Court of Florida since 2008. He was the court’s chief justice from 2010 to 2012. Justice Canady served on the Florida Second District Court of Appeal and as a member of the United States House of Representatives for four terms. Canady is a graduate of Yale Law School.

Neil Gorsuch is a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, appointed to the position in 2006. Judge Gorsuch previously served in the Justice Department as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General. Judge Gorsuch was a Marshall Scholar and received his law degree from Harvard. He clerked for Justices Byron White and Anthony Kennedy.

Mike Lee is the junior U.S. Senator from Utah who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee. He has previously served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Utah and as a Supreme Court Clerk for Justice Alito.

Edward Mansfield is a justice of the Iowa Supreme Court, appointed in 2011 and retained by voters in 2012. Justice Mansfield served as a judge of the Iowa Court of Appeals. He teaches law at Drake University. Mansfield is a graduate of Yale Law School.

Federico Moreno is a judge of the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida and a member of the Judicial Conference of the United States. He served as a state and county court judge in Florida. Moreno is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Law.

Margaret A. Ryan is a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces since 2006. Judge Ryan served in the Marine Corps through deployments in the Philippines and the Gulf War. She attended Notre Dame Law School and served as a JAG officer for four years. Ryan clerked for Judge J. Michael Luttig of the Fourth Circuit and Justice Clarence Thomas.

Amul Thapar is a judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, since his 2007 appointment when he became the first South Asian Article III judge. He has taught law students at the University of Cincinnati and Georgetown and served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Washington, D.C. and the Southern District of Ohio. Immediately prior to his judicial appointment, Judge Thapar was the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Judge Thapar received his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

Timothy Tymkovich is the chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, appointed in 2003. He served as Colorado Solicitor General and graduated from the University of Colorado College of Law.

Robert Young is the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Michigan, appointed in 1999, and became part of a majority of justices who embraced originalism and led what one scholar described as a “textualism revolution.” Justice Young was a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals and is a graduate of Harvard Law School.

The list so far includes:

1. Keith Blackwell

2. Charles Canady

3. Steven Colloton

4. Allison Eid

5. Neil Gorsuch

6. Raymond Gruender

7. Thomas Hardiman

8. Raymond Kethledge

9. Joan Larsen

10. Mike Lee

11. Thomas Lee

12. Edward Mansfield

13. Federico Moreno

14. William Pryor

15. Margaret A. Ryan

16. Amul Thapar

17. Timothy Tymkovich

18. David Stras

19. Diane Sykes

20. Don Willett

21. Robert Young

Meanwhile, Merrick Garland’s nomination is, according to several on The Hill, dead on arrival under President-elect Trump.

Federal permitting — a chance to reform

Suzanne Downing

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December 2, 2016

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Don Young is holding forth, as he does. He’s telling the story of an Alaska harbor master who wants to install a buoy in the harbor for safety. But the harbor master has to get separate permits from the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the EPA.

And then he has to get State permits from the Departments of Natural Resources and Fish and Game. He’s working on five permits for one small buoy.

“And it’s a buoy! It’s for safety!” Rep. Young exclaims, throwing up his hands at a bureaucracy that has become Kafkaesque.

Young has been beating on the permitting-abuse drum for decades. It’s a constant theme of his because Alaskans call his office nearly daily with the most outrageous tales of federal bureaucracies run amuck.

“It shouldn’t take calling your congressman to get relief from the federal bureaucracy, but that is often the route citizens end up having to take,” said Matt Shuckerow, press secretary to Young. “A call to an agency from a member of Congress — that’s something they don’t like to get.” But it’s also the type of call Young and his staff have to make on behalf of Alaskans on a regular basis to get things moving for people who are trying to accomplish the simplest of tasks.

THE PERMITTING ACT THAT SWALLOWED THE ECONOMY

The extravagant expansion of the federal permitting process has created an entire industry that for decades has gummed up the works of critical infrastructure projects and ground progress to a halt.

“The National Environmental Policy Act is the mother of all environmental laws,” said John MacKinnon, executive director of Associated General Contractors of Alaska. Take the Juneau Access Project, which started the NEPA process back in the early 1990s.

“You have to select a ‘preferred alternative’ and if that alternative involves wetlands you need an Army Corps of Engineers permit. But the Corps says they have to look at ALL alternatives so they can choose the one that has the least damaging and still practical alternative. That means you have to start the process all over again,” MacKinnon said, bringing out a graphic he shows during presentations to illustrate the epidemic growth of permitting requirements:

It’s only gotten worse under the Obama Administration, with the environmental lobby having taken over the Department of Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Forest and Park Services.

Everything from buoys to bridges are now held up by the overzealous permitting regulations. NEPA, once a simple law that required environmental impact statements, has grown into thousands of pages of regulatory burden as a result of its ambiguously broad mandate.

NEPA’s requirement that projects complete environmental impact statements before taking major action has given nearly unlimited power to both the federal bureaucracy and environmental organizations, as illustrated by Juneau Access Project, now closing in on a quarter of a century of delays.

SULLIVAN TAKING UP THE CHALLENGE

screen-shot-2016-12-02-at-11-34-05-am — *U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan*

Rep. Young has a counterpart in the Senate who shares his concerns and is uniquely positioned in a committee to do something about it.

U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, who has advocated for the Juneau Access Project, is developing a bill that will unwind some of the major problems NEPA has created.

[READ: How to put building permits on fast track]

Sullivan has also been talking with President-elect Donald Trump about the need for federal permitting reform in order to jumpstart jobs and rebuild the nation’s aging infrastructure.

The draft of the bill will only be able to reflect what is the purview of the Subcommittee on Fisheries, Water, and Wildlife that he chairs in the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. His staff is delving deep into topics like wetlands mitigation, which has become costly and impractical in Alaska, with its more than 170 million acres of wetlands.

“When we wanted to build a middle school in Juneau, there were pockets in the forest that were the size of potholes, but they decided to call it a forested wetlands,” explained MacKinnon, who used to serve on the Juneau Assembly. “We need to dial down the mitigation on wetlands. It’s gone from costing $10,000 per acre on the North Slope to almost $50,000. It’s extortion.”

One way to lessen the burden of NEPA would be to put in place a set of categorical exclusions, but to do so without also creating another new layer of study requirements that would be open to abuse by the environmental lawsuit industry.

“Forty years ago, the biggest problem we had was trying to find the money to build something. Today our biggest obstacle is getting permission,” MacKinnon said.

With both Rep. Young and Sen. Sullivan committed to permitting reforms, and with a new pro-business president taking the oath of office, the rewrite of federal permitting laws and regulations is tantalizingly close.

Gillam could be moving up the list for Interior

The 907

Suzanne Downing

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November 29, 2016

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Alaska mega-investor Bob Gillam, who owns McKinley Capital Management, is in New York City today, and can probably be spotted at the Trump Tower elevator.

But over the past couple of days he has been in the nation’s capital visiting the Alaska congressional delegation and presumably others who would be key to an appointment in the Trump Administration. He’s been laying down some groundwork he’ll need in his bid to become Secretary of Interior.

“The question is, is he too much of an outsider to have a chance?” said Art Hackney, an Alaska political consultant. “Having an Alaskan in the job is attractive for us because of his strong interest is in fixing the Alaska economy.”

And Gillam surely doesn’t need the job to feather his own portfolio. His net worth is in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Vice President-elect Mike Pence is going to be key to the Interior appointment, and he’s known to be a good friend of Rep. Don Young, whom Gillam met privately with yesterday.

Gillam is also a close friend of William S. Morris III, who owns Morris Communications and is the Alaska newspaper publisher with the longest tenured ownership in the state (since 1969).

Gillam graduated from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1968, the same year as Donald Trump, and has spoken with Trump several times over the past year, according to people close to him.

Although Alaskans know him as an opponent of the Pebble Project mine, Gillam’s company is the majority owner of some of the largest placer mines in the world, and has stakes in as many as 30 mining companies.

He started McKinley Capital in 1990 with three employees and a penchant for quantitative, computer-analysis investment, using a model he calls Modern Portfolio Theory, which focuses on the next big growth stocks that are likely to explode, according to a mathematical model. He is unlike the typical Wharton graduate, in that he left the concrete jungle to return home to the state he loves, Alaska.

During the 2016 election cycle, Gillam gave $5,000 to Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan‘s PAC, True North PAC.

If Gillam doesn’t land the Interior post, count on him launching a bid for governor at the outset of 2017. He has all but announced his intent to run.

Former Lieutenant Governor Mead Treadwell landed in DC today – presumably to follow in Gillam’s footsteps for the position as Secretary of the Interior.

Bright, shiny objects

Suzanne Downing

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November 29, 2016

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NO BAG-LIMIT: There’s no love lost between Muldoon Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux and her former supporters. This sign appeared in front of the Legislative Information Offices in Anchorage last week and others were spotted around the city before the ground froze. No word on who is leading the charge, but Alaska Republican Party Chairman Tuckerman Babcock has targeted LeDoux for replacement.

PREDICTIONS: With a razor-thin majority, the new Democrat-dominated House leadership team should double down on their flu shots. They won’t be able to take any days off during the 30th Alaska Legislative session. These are folks who are quite used to taking time off, having served in the minority for so long, and their attendance records suck. Now that they chair committees, no more long bike rides for Matt Claman, District 21, who chairs Judiciary. Neal Foster of Nome will have to be careful not to be gone during his Finance committee meetings during the Iditarod.

Word has it that Rep. LeDoux wants to hire three staffers for her Rules office. But Rep. Craig Johnson only had two last year, after deciding that he needed to lead by example and trim costs. We’ve been told that LeDoux longtime staffer Lisa Vaught and Lesil McGuire staffer Amy Saltzman will be working for LeDoux. And one other person, if LeDoux can swing it.

As for other staffers for the new majority, some conservative staff members will move over but we hear there is a scramble to find qualified people, which means the House committees will be run by inexperienced lawmakers with inexperienced staff members. What can possibly go wrong?

CONNIE GODWIN, 90, PASSES INTO HISTORY: Connie Godwin, who spent more than 20 years as the press secretary to Sen. Ted Stevens, died Nov. 15 at a nursing center in Chestertown, Md. at age 90. According to the Washington Post, she was a newspaper reporter and editor for The Anchorage Times.

After moving to Chestertown in 1980, she became a part-time press secretary to Stevens and eventually held the job full time, staying in Washington during the week.

AGDC MISSES DEADLINE: Not to speak ill of the dead, but the transfer of the AK-LNG project to state control is not going well. Alaska Gasline Development Corp. President Keith Meyer told the board this month that the agency blew past the deadline for a signed agreement. But not to worry: “I would say that all things are moving well. I don’t detect anything that’s going to stop the process,” he added, saying the state will still control the project by the year’s end.

MEANWHILE, IN CHINA: The charmingly named Methane Julia Louise is heading for Ningbo, China’s eastern coast, with a load of shale natural gas, liquefied at Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass terminal. U.S. shipments are breaking records — Nine LNG tankers have departed or are scheduled to leave Sabine Pass in November, the most for any month since exports began.

STELLENBOSCH HISTORY REPEATS: From one of our Juneau correspondents, a reminder that Stellenbosch, a part of the Cape Colony, was a 19^th Century outpost for officers who had failed in the Kaffir Wars.

When you say you’re “Stellenbosching” someone, it means you are demoting them to an unimportant post, due to their incompetence.

Gov. Bill Walker has created all manner of positions to slide his cronies into them and pay them when they have failed at their last post. He did so for former Attorney General Craig Richards, who crashed spectacularly this year. And he’s done so for former Chief of Staff Jim Whitaker, who was “demoted up” to work on special projects.

Walker is writing letters to enlist municipalities and their lobbyists in pushing for an income tax, but between the gazillions he has spent on people like Rigdon Boykin, Radoslav Shipkoff and a host of other special friends, can anyone really say Walker is running a tight ship that is worthy of our tax dollars?

Rudyard Kipling gets credit for creating the verb “stellenbosch,” when he wrote in the Daily Express, on June 16, 1900, “After all, what does it matter old man? You’re bound to be Stellenbosched in three days.” (Yes, there will be a quiz.)

GILLAM FOR DOI? FOR GOVERNOR? The question was put to Bob Gillam last week: Are you running for governor? “If we do, we’ll win,” he said, cornered within earshot of Must Read Alaska. Now the news is he is angling for the Secretary of the Interior post, which might make a good gubernatorial launchpad.

RISE OF FAKE NEWS? Oh really? Here we’ve been complaining about the liberal media bias for years, but all of a sudden an outbreak of “fake news” is “news”? Do go on…

OLD MEDIA IS THE NEW FAKE NEWS: Political reporters are demanding that Donald Trump cite the source for everything he says. His latest tweet about illegals voting? They want proof and they want it now. Play the game of “spot the bias” in this NY Times top story.

THAT TIME THEY LAUGHED AT TRUMP OVER VOTE-RIGGING CLAIMS: But that’s him. Not them. A recount is under way in Wisconsin.

“This was a hack-riddled election,” said Green Party member Jill Stein (the media did not say “with no evidence.”) Recounts could take place also in Pennsylvania and Michigan. The margins make it unlikely that the costly move will end up giving Clinton a win in all three states, which would be needed for the overall presidential election result to change.

Hillary Clinton has signaled she is on-board for a recount. Of course she is. Play your second round of “spot the bias.”

Bright, shiny objects: Trump transition, parties, inaugural news, new taxes

The alt-left news picks its next battle with Amy Demboski

FAST FORWARD TO 2016: THE LEFT WANTS YOU TO SHUT UP

THE OFFICIAL WORD IS…

Alaska’s electors face pressures to go rogue

How the bombing of Pearl Harbor shaped the Alaska Highway

Which Republican is vying for Alaska Governor’s Office

MISSING: SOMEONE FROM THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY

How Mitch McConnell saved the Supreme Court

WHO MIGHT BE ON THE LIST

Federal permitting — a chance to reform

THE PERMITTING ACT THAT SWALLOWED THE ECONOMY

SULLIVAN TAKING UP THE CHALLENGE

Gillam could be moving up the list for Interior

Bright, shiny objects

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