The Expel Eastman Edition

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[cs_content][cs_element_section _id=”1″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”2″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”3″ ][cs_element_text _id=”4″ ][cs_content_seo]At The Alaska Center, we believe a true Democracy is one in which everyone feels safe, respected, and able to participate in public discourse. We entrust our elected leaders to uphold these values, and be accountable to the principles of truth, justice, and equality. They should follow the Alaska Constitution, the fundamental governing document of the State of Alaska.
Oath Keeper Representative David Eastman has clearly violated these principles and duties of his office, and should be expelled from the State House. His organization, The Oath Keepers, took part in the seditious and deadly activities of January 6th, 2021 – a date none of us should ever forget as it is a milestone of domestic terrorism and an assault on our Democracy. Allowing a member of an organization involved in sedition to serve in the Legislature normalizes the member’s activities and that must not occur.
Article XII Section 4 of Alaska’s Constitution is clear:
No person who advocates, or who aids or belongs to any party or organization or association which advocates, the overthrow by force or violence of the government of the United States or of the State shall be qualified to hold any public office of trust or profit under this Constitution.”

The plain reading of our Constitution applies directly to Eastman: he has admitted to being a life member of an organization that sought to overthrow our democracy on January 6th. He was at the rally that led to the deadly violence in our nation’s capital. Allowing him to remain in the Legislature sends a message that violent and racist insurrections are “legitimate political discourse.”
In November of 2021 a large group of fellow West Point Alumni penned a letter to Eastman telling him to resign. Their message was clear:
“You were present in Washington, D.C. on January 6, protesting this fair and free election. You falsely blamed the day’s violence on “Antifa,” but it is clear the criminal acts were carried out by right-wing insurrectionists… What moved us to public comment was the revelation that you are a life member of one such insurrectionist group: the Oath Keepers, one of the largest far right anti-government groups in the United States. More than a dozen Oath Keepers have been charged with crimes for their role on January 6… You have stated that you “will always consider it a privilege” to belong to Oath Keepers. Membership in the Oath Keepers, or any other organization—left or right—calling for violence against our Constitutional system of government, is wildly at odds with the bedrock values of West Point, as well as with the legal oath you swore when you became a member of the Alaska Legislature.”

The message of the Alaska State House of Representatives should also be clear: Eastman is unfit by his actions, and by our state’s Constitution to continue to bear the honor and responsibility of Representative. The defense of Eastman by members of the House minority so far has been disturbing, especially after so many other racist and reprehensible offenses by him that led to his earlier censure. But if the House does not take action in this moment to denounce Eastman, they are being complicit in undermining our Democracy.  There will be a hearing on the Oath Keepers today in the House Military and Veterans Affairs Committee today at 1:00 p.m (tune in below). 

While a hearing is fine, we already know that The Oath Keeper organization is unambiguously dangerous to our American Democracy.  Oath Keeper David Eastman, who advocates for the violent overthrow of Democracy, is not fit to be a representative in this Democracy and must be expelled. Contact your legislator today and tell them that in Alaska our values include protecting Democracy.

The Alaska Center

\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][cs_element_section _id=”5″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”6″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”7″ ][cs_element_button _id=”8″ ][cs_content_seo]Tune In To The Hearing Here\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][cs_element_layout_column _id=”9″ ][cs_element_button _id=”10″ ][cs_content_seo]Contact Your State Legislator\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][/cs_content]

State of State Predictions

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The Governor’s State of The State Address is next week (7 p.m. on Tuesday, January 25). It is sure to contain grievances about the Federal Government, excitement about mineral resource development projects in Alaska, and a dash of “Election Integrity” talk. It will maybe/probably contain a few lines about renewable energy, fisheries, Alaska’s strategic economic and military location, and “greatest resource is the people of AK” platitudes, etc., to put a bow on it.

It is becoming clear through various releases of information that the Governor is actively lying about his role in the firing of the Permanent Fund E.D. and that the firing was political retribution as Ms. Rodell did not grant the Governor’s cherished overdraw of the Permanent Fund earnings reserve money – we expect that this will not be a part of the State of the State, and hey, it might cause the Gov. to not throw jabs during the speech at the Legislature on the issue of the big PFD never being approved by lawmakers.

With the new Ranked Choice Voting law in place, the Governor is free to pick a suitable running mate and facing at least two known challenges from the far-right flank in his bid for Re-election. Dunleavy made the choice to dump Lt. Governor Kevin Meyer from the ticket despite his faithful dealings with this evolving fiasco of an administration. There is a slight, outside, chance that the Governor will say some nice things about the Lt. Governor, but we would not hold our breath. After all, the Lt. Gov has defended the 2020 election in Alaska, which the far-right know with great certainty was “stolen.”

State Medical officer Dr. Anne Zink, also ever faithful in her dealings with the Dunleavy Administration, is under attack by supporters of Dunleavy and his challenger, political nobody Rep. Chris Kurka who has the firing of Dr. Zink as part of his campaign platform. If the Governor wanted to appear that he has a backbone, he would go strong in defense of Dr. Zink in his speech. To date, his defense has been very muted and wimpy as her credibility is attacked and she is personally threatened.

While he is defending Alaskans from attack by other Alaskans (seemingly something a Governor should do), he might include in his speech an apology to the former Assistant Attorney General, Elizabeth Bakalar. She was targeted with toxic animus and threats of all varieties from far-right Dunleavy supporters after she took legal action against her illegal firing by Dunleavy. Bakalar won on most grounds in federal court this past week. The state will be on the hook for damages. The action by the administration was wrong and will cost the state. Now that the case is settled, it is time to clear the air and address the cost to the state and (former) state workers like Bakalar in the State of the State.

Federal spending on Infrastructure will cushion the reality of our state’s structural budget deficit. Federal COVID relief has and will continue to protect vulnerable Alaskans and help prop up the economy. We hope the Governor does not adopt a posture of holding his hand out while flipping the bird to the Feds with his other hand. However, this is likely, since this particular brand of complaint has been refined and reworked in speeches since statehood and before.

We anticipate that there will be few surprises and many missed opportunities in Tuesday night’s address. We remain open to the possibility of shock, reflection, reconciliation, and rejuvenation. Wouldn’t that be something?

Yours,
The Alaska Center Team

New Year, New Session 2022

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Happy New Year and new Legislative Session from The Alaska Center. We anticipate both opportunity and struggle in the year ahead, another year in the lifetime work of protecting and nurturing our Democracy and saving our home from the ravages of climate change.  

The 2022 legislative session will likely be consumed with election-year grandstanding antics. We already see some of this in the move by the Dunleavy Administration to remove the more or less moderate and politically seasoned Lt. Governor Kevin Meyer as a running mate – due in part to his honesty about the Division of Elections efforts in the 2021 elections and the fact that they are considered the most secure and legitimate in history.  

This runs counter to partisan lies about elections that exposed much of the Right to be in a feverish tilt toward authoritarianism. Though it likely was not the Lt. Governor’s decision to leave the ticket, it is good for his legacy that he will not be made to bow in fealty to the dangerous bullpucky of the new Right. The Governor will be introducing new election legislation soon, and we will be monitoring it closely for poison pills relating to voting rights and election subversion.  

As we recognized the one-year anniversary of the bloody insurrection of January 6, 2021, it is clear that we can never back down from the effort to halt legislation that would erode democratic norms. We all must work as if the future of the country depends on it to end the politics that ultimately seek to facilitate violence between Americans.   

The list of pre-filed legislation for the 2022 legislative session hit the streets today. You can peruse the full list here. A second pre-file release is scheduled for next Friday, January 14, ahead of the convening of the legislature on January 18. There is no special magic to a pre-filed bill though it gives the sponsor a chance to introduce and develop an argument for the idea and get it into the public sphere in the relative quiet before the start of the session.   

We look forward to communicating with you after the second pre-file regarding our analysis of those bills that The Alaska Center supports and opposes in the raft of the pre-files. Lawmakers and staff are headed to Juneau by land, sea, and air as we speak. We wish them safe passage and a healthy session.

Here is to the future.

The Alaska Center Team

PS: We are evolving our blog this year to include the Legislature and beyond. We will still be a resource for legislative updates but are inviting more voices in and will be providing more insights into the way we can all engage to defend our democracy, push for proactive climate policies and ensure Alaskans are at the decision-making table.