One day after Alaska Rep. Mary Peltola acted against energy development on the North Slope, Peltola skipped out on a House Resources Committee budget hearing featuring Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, who is responsible for executing so much of the Biden Administration war on Alaska.
Although she made a brief appearance, Peltola asked no questions of Haaland, and slipped out shortly after arriving. It appears that most of the Democrats on the committee staged a coordinated walk out, Peltola among them.
Over in the Senate, there was a similar hearing with Haaland. There, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who endorsed Peltola in 2022, criticized Haaland and President Joe Biden for locking up Alaska.
“Our environmental record is second to none. We’ll put it up against anyone out there. But now it’s effectively being held against us because Interior’s decisions are punishing us for decades of responsible development,” Murkowski said. “The Department needs to follow the law. They need to follow the law, they need to consult with all Alaska Natives – all Alaska Natives – and frankly, I think clean house at the BLM.”
“This administration is sanctioning Alaska. Sanctioning Alaska, while you’re boosting foreign resources, and you don’t pay attention. You overlook the pollution, the human rights abuses, the regimes that it enables, from Russia to Iran,” Murkowski continued. “The administration has effectively reduced Alaska to nothing more than a debit card to pay off national environmental groups in an election year. I know that’s tough, but we can’t look at it any other way.”
On Tuesday, Rep. Peltola refused to support Alaska in the Alaska’s Right to Produce Act, voting simply “present,” after sending a note to all the Democrats in the House telling them to vote no.
Then, during the House Resources Committee hearing that featured Haaland, Peltola vanished when the criticism of Haaland intensified. She had not made a single comment on the record to hold Haaland and Biden accountable.
Instead, it was Arkansas Rep. Bruce Westerman, the committee’s chairman, who defended Alaska and let Haaland know how damaging the Administration policies are to the 49th state:
“America is in jeopardy, and we need to take immediate action. Congress holds the power of the purse, and we will not just rubber stamp an administration that completely disregards oversight authorities and the communities most impacted by their decisions. The Biden administration continues to recklessly spend American tax dollars with historically devastating results in communities across the country. Despite its claims to the contrary, at every turn, this administration is ignoring local voices and silencing community input in pursuit of a radical environmental agenda,” Westerman said.
“Just this past month DOI threatened the entire western way of life by finalizing an anti-multiple-use rule, locked up a massive reserve of domestic energy in Alaska with blatant disregard for indigenous voices and dealt a crushing blow to American mineral production,” Westerman continued.
“Every community is now a border community, as we have seen illegal drug cartels target Indian lands, threatening their members with violence. The permitting logjam threatens infrastructure projects nationwide, and the regulatory headaches are made worse and worse by each rulemaking handed down by D.C. bureaucrats. Today is another critical step forward in our continued commitment to hold these bureaucrats accountable and put a stop to Biden’s unchecked spending spree,” Westerman said.
Congressional candidate Nick Begich took notice.
“Yesterday, Peltola would only vote ‘present’ on a bill critical for Alaskan jobs and national energy security. After embarrassing our state by waffling on the Alaska’s Right to Produce Act, she couldn’t even be present in the House Resources Committee to stand up for Alaska against Sec. Haaland. Alaska is voiceless as long as Peltola is our representative,” said Begich. “What good does it do Alaska to have Peltola in office when she is not showing up for the meetings? She talks about how important itis that she is on Resources, but she’s not even there.”
Watch the House hearing that Peltola skipped out on at this link:
