In his sweeping executive order that undoes many of the 70 lockdowns of Alaska by the Biden Administration, President Donald Trump made specific mention of the Alaska natural gasline project, oil production in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, and the 1002 Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the road to King Cove, and the road to the Ambler State Mining District. He also revoked the “Roadless Rule” by the Biden Administration and removed hurdles preventing Alaska Native people from receiving the lands they are due.
Read the entire executive order at this link.
Some of the immediate reactions from Alaska’s elected leaders were sent Monday night to Must Read Alaska:
Gov. Mike Dunleavy: “Alaska is unleashed! On his first day in office, President Trump signed an executive order recognizing Alaska as a true energy warehouse, paving the way for unprecedented opportunities in resource development and energy independence.”
Sen. Dan Sullivan said, ““It is morning again in Alaska. With the stroke of a pen, President Trump has sent America and the world the unmistakable message that unleashing Alaska’s energy and resources will be a top priority of his administration, literally from day 1. The contrast with the Biden administration couldn’t be more stark. For four years, our state suffered under an unrelenting assault—70 executive orders and actions restricting Alaskans’ economic opportunities and lawful access to our lands. No state has endured this kind of sustained negative attention from a federal administration in recent memory. President Trump’s sweeping executive order, and the work we will do with his administration over the next four years, will put Alaskans back in the driver’s seat of our state’s destiny, advancing critical resource development projects and unleashing economic opportunities for the benefit of our hard-working families and the security of the entire nation. I want to thank President Trump for recognizing Alaska as the great strategic asset for our country that it is and for standing up for working Alaskans.”
Congressman Nick Begich III said, “Today, the failed policies of the Biden Administration are now but a page in the history books – one that will soon be forgotten. The golden age of America has begun. On day one, President Trump showed the American people they have a leader in the White House who will usher in a new era of economic renewal and energy dominance with an executive order aimed at unleashing American energy. Our work to support this vision has already begun: my team and I have been working with President Trump’s team over the previous months to prepare and execute a plan that will open the state of Alaska once again. Under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump, Alaska will be empowered to fully harness its vast energy and mineral resources, spearhead economic renewal, and solidify our position as an energy powerhouse. I am proud to stand with the Trump Administration in this critical effort to build a stronger, more prosperous Alaska for generations to come. The pathway to American prosperity begins in Alaska, and it begins today.”
Even Sen. Lisa Murkowski had words for Trump’s executive order: “President Trump is picking up right where he left off, reversing years of damaging decisions and prioritizing Alaska’s unrivaled opportunities for responsible energy and mineral development. The policies laid out in this Executive Order will improve our economy, our budget, and our quality of life while simultaneously making energy more affordable and enhancing national security. Alaska is the blue chip in the United States’ energy portfolio, and I thank President Trump for helping us capitalize on our resources.”
The U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources issued this statement: “The war on American energy is over. In a historic day one executive order, President Trump is reopening the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska – two areas indispensable in energy exploration. The road to American energy dominance runs through Alaska!”
Yet there were no statements issued on Monday by any of the mayors of Alaska about the unprecedented presidential executive order that will ultimately benefit their communities.
Anchorage Mayor Suzanne LaFrance was silent. There were no comments from Fairbanks North Star Borough Mayor Grier Hopkins or Juneau Mayor Beth Weldon. The local leaders appeared to have been caught off-guard.
The Alaska Democratic Party released no comments, and the Alaska House and Senate Democrat majority organizations, in which there are several Republicans who have jumped ship to join with Democrats running Alaska’s two legislative bodies, made no statements about the historic executive order.
The Republican minority in the Alaska Senate, however, applauded the progress for Alaska: “Congratulations to President Trump for assuming the office of President! The AK Senate Republicans look forward to working with the state and federal government in a new era of Alaskan resource development and prosperity #45 #47.”
Really good EO. Extensive. No overt mention of Pebble, though it could be implied. Overt mention of NPR-A, ANWR, offshore. leases, Ambler Road. Gonna be fodder for the greens and Judge Gleason for decades. Cheers –
Why would Mayor Lafrance care about anything more than cowtowing to the radical Anchorage assembly?
Go Trump!
LaFrance is not kowtowing to the Assembly she is working hand in hand with them to destroy Anchorage. The Progressives will not stop until the Muni is completed destroyed and more like the failed West Coast. I for one relish the day I can finally retire and get out of the cesspool that is Los Anchorage. EAGLEXT NOW
I bet LaFrance was so upset upon Trump’s inauguration, she punched out one of her homeless putative “clients”. Being dead drunk, as most of them always are, the homeless guy never even noticed.
The so called leaders are first trying to figure out a way to get rich from this.
Once they have a way to launder and steal money then we will get the crumbs.
President Trump dispatched Bidens Green Energy mandates to the trash heap where they belong.
DJT represents ALL AMERICANS
He needs our prayers and undivided support
It is once again OK to say GOD, Prayers and Pray in public
WOW Lisa Did someone force you into writing something good about Trump? Never seen it before, Are you scared? As for the Democraps and other Rino’s WE ARE TAKING ALASKA BACK If you don’t like it Please leave!
Suzanne is a ditz and Hopkins whose entire town functions off of oil gas mining and military should wake up. How can our 2 biggest cities be such screw ups.??
This is not only historic but magnificent!!
Dang! I had to read it twice. Then once more. Lisa said something positive about something that Trump did? I need to print this out, frame it and hang it on the wall. She still needs to be Cheneyed.
Your article highlights an important fact about our local leaders, they are in office to advance their own personal agendas. They have little interest in serving the people they were elected to represent.
LaFrance is busy coming up with new tax laws on Gambling. That is why she is all in with the largest land owner in the Anchorage, Ekultna Inc.
Drilling, mining, road building. That’s why we elected the greatest president ever 😘
Not surprising there is no immediate reaction to President Trump’s pronouncement. Once a Democrat, always a Democrat. In color and odor, the unmitigated transformation of the “Old” Democrat party,
Gov. Hammond, Representative Oral Freemen, come to my immediate mind as “Fair” party members.
There are none such as these currently, so saying, the same relationships have disappeared from congressional Democrats.
The Democrat Party has all but become a socialist, near if not, communist in content and political actions . So it is a breath of wonderful fresh air with the election of President Trump and Alaska would do well to move as quickly as Trump, to capitalize on the moment.
Cheers-Johnson
I’m just so happy to see two-face Murkowski has turned her cheek once again. Now we’re going to enjoy the cooperative Republican masquerade for a little bit.
When are the idiot liberal voters in this state going to hold her accountable for actively participating in the last 4 years of economic prison she helped install here in her state?
She never pays a political penalty for undermining us. Never!
Lafrance is still on cloud nine celebrating Eklutna tribe’s gaming casino to even have a clue what Trump has in store for Alaska.
The entire assembly is so engulfed in their “successful” homeless empire they have built and so proud of it they are busy engineering more tax shams and casino income to pay for it.
Welcome back the days of the mafia owned gambling world that turned Vegas into the armpit of drugs prostitution and homeless street people scanning the sidewalks for casino coins leaching off of intoxicated gamblers who have pissed away their social security checks. PFD checks will be comped with a free massage to work out any loose change.
If Lisa Murkowski was so opposed to those restrictive Biden policies, why did she vote for him?
Let’s get TAPS maxed out to it’s 2million barrels a day capacity, and never look back.
Let’s also get the massive regulatory burden of building new domestic refineries slashed, so we can get new refineries built for the first time in decades and get gas down to a $1 a gallon at the pump.
Where was Murkowski’s statements about “…years of damaging decisions …” during the previous Presidential Administration? I do not recall much from her.
A brief Adam Smith lesson for the MRAK readers. There is a big demand for natural gas overseas. When demand is higher than supply the price goes up. Adding more LNG export terminals will increase gas prices here as Biden constrained demand by not permitting new LNG export terminals. The producers have a 4 year backlog with their drilling equipment, so supply will not increase much. Voters for Trump also voted for increasing their heating bills
Interestingly, nothing mentioned by this administration pertaining to the proposed Pebble Mine project. Odd, as it had the ok to gain the mining permit until the bureaucrats harnessing America’s mining growths put a stop to It. Pebble’s, Along with the Resolution mine and of course the Mine in Minnesota —- all three would dramatically change America’s crisis in the short term.
Type a comment at 8:30 am still in Moderation at 3:15 pm PATHETIC
I have been working in Juneau at the Capitol, but I’m on it now. – sd