Six Questions for Alaska Congressional Candidates--#4 Earmarks

I submitted six questions to all of the Progressive candidates for the Alaska At-Large Congressional seat (running against Don Young) as well as the U.S. Senate seat (running against Ted Stevens). The ones who responded were Ethan Berkowitz, Diane Benson and Mark Begich. Here is the answer to question number four from AK-AL candidates Diane Benson and Ethan Berkowitz, running in the primary on August 26th. I'll post the last two before I leave for the Democratic Convention tomorrow night.

4) Earmarks: While the use of earmarks by Senator Stevens and Congressman Young has given Alaska a black eye throughout the rest of the country, that practice has also made them popular with many Alaskan businesses as well as individuals. Do you think it’s possible to juggle Alaska’s dependence on earmarked government projects without making some of those same mistakes and/or further damaging Alaska’s reputation? If so, how will you accomplish that?

DIANE BENSON

Earmarks are not the problem, the abuse of earmarks are the problem. Like the rest of America, Alaskan’s are not opposed to earmarks. Alaskan’s are opposed to earmarks spent on lobbyists and special interests rather than the people of Alaska.

When I’m elected to Congress I will propose two common sense solutions to greatly increase transparency. The first step involves transparency. If legislators believe the earmarks they put in bills are being ethically used then they should have no problem with the public knowing how much money they’re spending and where the money is going. It’s taxpayer money and taxpayers have a right to know. Second, rather than continuing the chaotic spending of billions of dollars in earmarks, I propose that Congress set aside a certain amount of the budget for direct congressional spending. By limiting earmark spending to a predetermined amount, and then dividing that amount per Senator or Congressperson, the American people would no longer need to worry about out of control pork barrel spending increasing the budget.

By proposing these two solutions, Alaskans can go from being regarded as the state known for “government waste” to the state that brought much needed reform to out of control government spending.

ETHAN BERKOWITZ

Alaska’s next member of congress has the challenge of restoring trust and transparency, of making sure that the public interest, not special interest is served. Against that backdrop, earmarks can serve a useful purpose. Take the Denali Commission, for example.

The federal bureaucracy sometimes fails to move quickly enough, or be flexible enough to respond to uniquely Alaskan conditions. Earmarks -- discretionary spending -- can correct those sort of problems. We just need to know who asked for them, that there is a clear process to examine them, and that they are not used to reward contributors and supporters.

Diane Benson's New Ads

"Breaking Barriers"



"Freedom"

It's official...she has the Harley vote!!!



"Integrity"

(I love this B&W silent movie-style ad with Tony Vito as the "Dick Dastardly" character!)



"Honor"

This one is heart-rending.

Six Questions for Alaska Congressional Candidates--#3 Campaign Finance: Taking money from lobbyists and PACs

I submitted six questions to all of the Progressive candidates for the Alaska At-Large Congressional seat (running against Don Young) as well as the U.S. Senate seat (running against Ted Stevens). The ones who responded were Ethan Berkowitz, Diane Benson and Mark Begich. Here is the answer to question number three from AK-AL candidates Diane Benson and Ethan Berkowitz, running in the primary on August 26th.

(P.S. I've had several people ask why I have not been including any commentary on these posts. I wanted to present these answers to you as I received them from the candidates and allow everyone to analyze and decide for themselves.)

3) Campaign Finance: Senator Barack Obama, as the new leader of the Party has told the DNC that they are no longer permitted to accept money from lobbyists or PACs. For his own campaign, this requirement has been so stringent he’s returned small, personal donations to anyone who identifies him/herself as a “lobbyist” of any kind. Will you be incorporating that directive into your own campaign and refusing money from these sources?

ETHAN BERKOWITZ

Time and again I stood up in Juneau for campaign finance reform. For limits from big money, against easing restrictions on lobbyists – for more accountability and more transparency in our political process, and for measures that defended the integrity of institutions against corruption.

Those are the principles I have imparted to my campaign.

It’s about more than PACs. I believe that working families, and not just the wealthy, should have a voice in the political process and am proud to accept the support of labor unions. I am honored to receive the support of members of Congress. I am grateful that supporters of groups like Planned Parenthood and the Human Rights Campaign have found a way to pool their resources and support my candidacy.

I will continue to speak out for public financing of campaigns. I will continue to oppose corporate participation in the political process, and I will continue to be a proven voice for ethical government.

DIANE BENSON

Let me be clear. Representatives of the people should not take money from lobbyists. It’s just that simple. I applaud Senator Obama and the DNC for taking such a bold stance on campaign finance reform. I believe that we as democrats, the party which represents the heart, the soul, and the voice of the average American, have an obligation to resist the temptation of special interests.

As many of you know, I’ve been calling for campaign finance reform since I ran to retire Don Young in 2006. I’m proud to run a campaign financed by people and not by special interests. This is why I’ve never taken money from lobbyists or Industry PACs. The simple truth is these sources don’t hand out large piles of money without expecting something in return.

Clean government is THE defining issue in this election. Campaign finance reform is the best way of cleaning up government and is the primary difference between myself and my opponents. When our elderly are forced to choose between life sustaining food and life saving medicine, when telecom companies get off the hook for violating our civil liberties, or when Congress watches while families collapse under the weight of excruciatingly high gas prices; and yet refuses to act…we can bet it is because Representatives took money from big business lobbyists. Campaign finance isn’t just a matter of ethics. It’s a matter of making progress as a country. I hope that all voters will think long and hard between now and August 26th. Before the people of Alaska vote they need to ask themselves one simple question, “Do you want your Congressperson to represent you or lobbyists?”

Six Questions to Alaska Congressional Candidates #2--Solutions for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault

I submitted six questions to all of the Progressive candidates for the Alaska At-Large Congressional seat (running against Don Young) as well as the U.S. Senate seat (running against Ted Stevens). The ones who responded were Ethan Berkowitz, Diane Benson and Mark Begich. Here is the answer to question number two from AK-AL candidates Diane Benson and Ethan Berkowitz.

2) Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault: Do you have a plan to address and provide solutions to protect the mostly women and children affected by this chronic problem? Can you address solutions especially geared towards the Alaska Native Community considering the frighteningly high number of Native victims in proportion to their population?

DIANE BENSON

Having worked in the field of violence and recovery, I find several conditions evident for both the Native and non-Native communities:

1) There are not enough shelters in the state of Alaska for the protection of family members suffering in fear of and at the hands of violence.

2) Alcohol and drug abuse constitutes the major cause of violent crime committed in Alaska, yet we are sorely lacking in funds for alcohol and drug addiction treatment let alone for family support programs.

3) Education for women of every age about self-defense, protection, and resources is lacking.

4) First responders and police need more training and support to meet quicker and adequate response time and reporting requirements.

5) Community leaders and health care providers need to be adequately educated and trained in sexual assault prevention, mandatory reporting and reporters, safe homes, rape kit requirements, and victim testimony etc.

The Amnesty International report that alarmed many as to the level of sexual violence in Alaska was unfortunately only a fraction of the actual chronic levels of violence. Some who work in the field speculate that the rates of violence are as high as 90% in unreported cases. As Alaska’s Congressional Representative I would actively pursue ending this crisis in Alaska and therefore would:

1) Work with the Department of Justice and advocate for more funds directed to sexual assault and family violence prevention
.
2) Work with the state to increase rural police and VPSO programs, and appropriate training for these and other first responders.

3) Act on local recommendations for alternative/tribal court development, funding crisis centers, and act on school and other child safety plans.

4) Advocate for an increase in funds for justice for victims of crime.

5) Make reporting safer.

6) Work with the state to increase drug and alcohol recovery programs, and awareness – and support such federal bills as the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act.

7) Support a mandate to end sexual violence in Alaska.

8) Listen.

ETHAN BERKOWITZ

Too many lives, too many families have been shattered by domestic violence and sexual assault. I worked on too many cases with too many victims, and know that this violence casts a dark, dark shadow over Alaska. The statistics impersonally convey the extent of the problem.

I know the humanity from experience.

I remember the dignity of a young woman, raped repeatedly, under circumstances too horrific to recount here. I remember the strength of an abuse victim, so badly beaten, her face swollen, her arm broken, supported by two officers as she made her way to the witness stand to testify against her attacker.

Those experiences as a prosecutor, my work with the Criminal Justice Assessment Commission, and my time in the state legislature make it clear that any effort to reduce crime depends on implementing a comprehensive strategy linking prevention, policing, prosecuting, and prison. It depends on making sure that victims can have a voice, and that they receive the counseling and treatment needed. It means making sure that government provides adequate resources so we can break these cycles of violence.

Rural Alaska suffers disproportionately because it lacks so much. There is simply not enough law enforcement in the Bush – more than eighty villages don’t have even a VPSO. There is a lack of drug and alcohol treatment, and a lack of probation and parole officers to help offenders reintegrate into communities. Too many places in Alaska lack a complete justice system. And too many rural Alaskans fall easy prey to predators when they come to our larger cities because the support they should have, the deterrence that should exist, and the prevention measures that should be in place are simply lacking.

Six Questions to Alaska Congressional Candidates

I submitted six questions to all of the Progressive candidates for the Alaska At-Large Congressional seat (running against Don Young) as well as the U.S. Senate seat (running against Ted Stevens). The ones who responded were Ethan Berkowitz, Diane Benson and Mark Begich. For the next six days, I will present the answers to each of those questions from AK-AL candidates Diane Benson and Ethan Berkowitz first, before the Alaska Primaries.

Energy Policy: What short-term solutions do you offer towards immediate emergency gas-price relief…especially for places like Rural Alaska, Fairbanks and Juneau? What long-term solutions do you see in Alaska’s/the country’s energy future and what steps will you take to get there?

Ethan Berkowitz

A friend told me yesterday that his gas bill for a commute from the Mat-Su to Anchorage will be more than $500 a month. Every time I go to the grocery store, the cost of food goes up and up. Fairbanks has declared an energy emergency. Juneau saw prices increase five-fold when an avalanche took out its power polls. Kenai has shutdown Agrium and its good-paying jobs because they couldn’t afford to run it on Cook Inlet gas any longer. And in rural Alaska – prices will soar when the next fuel barges arrive; heating oil keeps setting record prices, in too many villages the cost for electricity pushes closer to a dollar per kilowatt hour. This is all happening as oil goes past $140 a barrel and the state is awash in a budget surplus.

The goal for energy policy is energy security and energy independence – to make sure that energy bills don’t break the budgets for Alaska families and Alaska businesses, and that high prices don’t strangle choices and opportunities.

Short-term solutions include a combination of structural changes to prices, conservation, and local energy production. In addition, we must continue funding and improve the state Power Cost Equalization (PCE) program.

Structural changes include state coordination of bulk fuel purchases, so that communities are guaranteed the lowest possible price for energy. It also includes payment of utility infrastructure debt, so that consumers won’t pay have to include interest payments as part of their fuel bills – when the state paid off the remaining $2 million on Cordova’s hydro project, it took a load off Cordova’s fuel bills.

Conservation can have an immediate impact. Juneau responded to its price jumps by cutting back on consumption, and was able to scale back power use considerably. The state put $300 million towards a weatherization program that will improve the thermal efficiency of homes across Alaska, reducing energy costs. There are a lot of options for conservation – for example, work at the Cold Climate Housing Research Center shows that we can build or retrofit structures to make them much more efficient.

Local energy production offers both short and intermediate term answer to energy costs. Every time we import a dollar’s worth of diesel, we export a dollar and export a job. It’s time to innovate, to be bold, to invest in transformative technology so that we’re never held hostage to global energy markets again. We all hope to bring North Slope gas on line (or from other sources, including Nenana Basin or Cook Inlet), or oil from new fields. We also have considerable sustainable, renewable energy sources. We could put wind power in the eighty villages that have a good resource for approximately $150 million. Cook Inlet has the largest tides in the United States, and Alaska has 90 percent of the country’s tidal potential. There are in-river hydro opportunities all around. Geothermal energy, whether small scale like Chena Hot Springs, or large scale, such as Mt. Spurr, makes great sense – the country of Iceland gets 95 percent of its power from geothermal sources. 160 communities could make use of biomass – in some areas we’re already converting wood to energy, capturing methane gas at the downs, and turning fish waste to a diesel equivalent. And, occasionally (not often enough this summer!), solar power is part of the energy mix of solutions.

Price relief assistance can come in many forms. Emergency business loans and tax breaks for investment in conservation and energy production can change the economics of family and business decisions. Energy assistance, such as Gov. Palin has proposed can help stressed family budgets as the state bridges to longer term energy solutions.

Longer-term solutions build on these initiatives. Energy is at the core of my campaign for Congress. I have long made it a focus – I was the first lawmaker in Juneau to propose a statewide energy plan. I led the way in promoting renewable energy resources (and in the private sector set up an alternative energy company), and I believe that developing the right resources offers full spectrum solutions to many of the issues that confront America. Doing energy right means lower cost utility bills and jobs. It means taking the responsible course on climate change, and it helps free American foreign policy from its dangerous addiction to foreign oil. It means energy security and energy independence.

Diane Benson

Everyday I talk to Alaskans who are frightened by the prospect of paying thousands of dollars in heating costs; families who pay more to heat their homes than they pay to live in them. And workers who pray that they have enough gas in their cars to make to and from work. This energy crisis is spiraling out of control and the people of Alaska need help today, not tomorrow. In fact, they needed help yesterday.

I’d love to wave a magic wand and tell the voters who read this, I can pass a bill and solve all their problems. But the truth is, by the time that any of us running on the federal level take office in January 2009, the people of Alaska will be months into the harsh winter. The only real short term solutions lie in the hands of the state legislature. Luckily, the State seems to be on the right track. With a state surplus in the billions, it only makes sense to provide a refund of some sort to help families make it through the winter. Other short-term solutions have been proposed that involve managing assistance through fuel distributors thereby helping those in the most danger.

But the bigger question often lost in our conversations about energy is “what we will do about next winter?” Long term solutions are the key to solving Alaska’s energy crisis once and for all. We must take advantage of the wealth of resources that currently exist in this state. Whether it’s the ocean crashing on to the beach, the sun shining or the wind blowing there are a plethora of opportunities for developing renewable energy.

Once I’m elected I will call on Congress to extend the Production Tax Credit for the next 10 years sin order to promote development in our renewable resources. Furthermore, I will increase tax incentives for individual homeowners to make their homes more energy efficient. And most importantly I will fight to ensure that Alaskans are the primary benefactors from Alaska’s oil and gas resources rather than major corporations.

Diane Benson "says what she means and means what she says"--especially when it comes to our veterans

Diane Benson (second from the right) plus her team and Vietnam Veteran Mo Bailey

Late in July, Writing Raven and I had a fundraiser at Phil Munger's house for our trip to Denver...and Democratic Candidate for the Alaska At-Large Congressional seat, Diane Benson was kind enough to show up and donate. It was then that I asked her the question that had been bugging me for months. "Did I meet you about 14-15 years ago?"

The answer was "Yes."

I was heavily involved in Blues music in both performing and the tech side. She was continuing her history of fighting for the rights of those who need protection. In this case, it was her fellow Alaska Native actors who were being exploited by the entertainment industry. We discussed that many people don't realize how much discrimination occurs in all aspects of the performing arts nor do they understand how hard it is on women in non-traditional roles.

Diane Benson is about as non-traditional as it gets. I've had incidents where I've told a few of many colorful experiences living and working for 25 years in Alaska...pretty typical stuff for most Alaska women...and folks have thought that I was making it up.

Diane's life makes mine sound uneventful, as recounted in a much-coveted article by The Nation:

Benson's strength and determination stems at least in part from her background. She "grew up in logging camps, boarding schools, foster homes and even on boat houses," according to Indian Country Today. At times she was homeless. She worked her way through college as a Teamster truck driver and was one of the first women tractor-trailer drivers on the Alaska Pipeline – she often was the only woman on the jobsite. Benson said that was a tough job to get.

"I could prove that I could do the job and the union stood up for me," she said. "And they stood up for me time and time again, and I will never forget that."

Educated in Alaska, she earned her Bachelors Degree, a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and is now working on her Masters in Public Policy. She also attended the American Film Institute in Los Angeles and co-produced a PBS documentary about Alaska Civil Rights. She ran sprint-races as a dogsledder and – along with her son –had 32 dogs at one time. But it wasn't until 2005 when her son, Spc. Latseen Benson, was injured by a road-side bomb in Iraq and was a double amputee that she turned to politics. She spent three-and-a-half months with him and his fellow-soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Those experiences have made her an outspoken advocate of Veterans and their issues.

Benson was surprised that in a recent debate she was the only candidate to repeatedly bring up veterans issues – one of the other candidates brought it up maybe once, if that. With 80,000 veterans in the state, responding to their issues is a key part of her platform.

It was from Walter Reed, her third trip back since her son's stay, that Diane held a press event today.

Diane Benson had a lot of praise for the caregivers at Walter Reed and the many improvements--especially the addition of the new Military Advanced Training Center, which "greatly improves the services to the wounded."

She also had a great deal of praise for The Washington Post's continuing coverage of Veterans as well as conditions at Walter Reed, which got the ball rolling.

However, Diane's primary message was that of holding the government responsible to care for the Veterans who have served their country so valiantly:

"I am embarrassed by the fact that our government is using the same techniques to deny benefits to veterans that insurance companies use to deny care to sick patients" said Benson. "There are nearly 400,000 veterans waiting for their claims to be processed. That's outrageous. The President and Congress should fix the system and make veteran health care a priority."

Benson mentioned the 1.8 uninsured Veterans in this country as well as the 290,000 Homeless Veterans. "We can't just rely upon the Good Samaritans of America to take care of our Veterans," she stated.

She also discussed the difficulty of receiving long-term care by severely injured Veterans, like her son, who is still using "temporary legs" because he has been unable to get the services to prepare him for his "permanent" ones.

Diane Benson also emphasized the importance of getting care to the Veterans for the "less visible" injuries like PTSD.

I had a discussion about PTSD and Veterans with Diane, which included a discussion about dealing with women veterans recovering from sexual assault and the VA's hesitancy to specifically target funds for their recovery.

"Anyone who knows anything about the trauma resulting from rape and sexual violence in general knows that it is a lifelong devastation to the spirit and the emotional well-being of that human being. PTSD comes from this as much as it comes from combat fatigue or being in war zones."

Diane Benson speaks with authority on this topic and has been an advocate for the protection of Alaska women and children; Alaska leads the rest of the country by an alarming margin in its rate of domestic violence and sexual assault. Benson has been one of the few candidates for ANY political office who is willing to discuss it much less propose solutions, so it is not a surprise that this advocacy extends to the women (and men) in the battlefield.

I have heard Diane Benson in previous discussions and at past appearances describe with great fondness her encounters with veterans, disabled and otherwise. She talked about one especially touching encounter where she told a meeting of veterans in Rural Alaska that she felt "at home" there and one veteran responded back, "because you are at home." In a rare moment, the retelling actually misted-up the former-union trucker as well as the crowd of Vietnam and Iraq-era veterans and supporters around her.

That kind of emotional response from an audience of veterans only happens in the presence of credibility. Diane shouldn't be at all surprised that the other Congressional candidates try not to bring those issues up.

Barbecue with Diane Benson, Veterans, bloggers and a bird

Picture: "The Benson Team" with Diane and Vietnam Veteran Mo Bailey

Let me "show my hand" at the outset...yes, I am a fan and supporter of Diane Benson. However, it's always been mostly from afar. Until Sunday, I had never introduced myself, asked her a direct question or spoken to her much other than in a stage manager capacity...and in an apologetic way...at the Gathering. But that's another story...

Friends of mine, Veteran Mike Stanton and his wife Betty had a private get-together Sunday so that some of their Veteran friends could meet Diane and get to talk to her. Luckily, I was invited too and brought along Writing Raven (Alaska Real) so she could meet Diane as well. I was also excited to see Phil Munger (Progressive Alaska) there, which explains the title Veterans, bloggers...and a bird. (I'm getting to the bird part.)

This is the first time I've heard Diane speak in an intimate setting. She's even better than she is in front of a large crowd, and that's saying something. She always grabs me when she speaks because she exudes a level of sincerity that's just not common among most politicians. The story she told is familiar to her supporters; she spoke of growing up in Alaska as a Native woman, driving trucks for the Union along the pipeline to raise her son and put herself through school, the tragedy of the near-fatal, life-altering injuries suffered by her son in Iraq and how that made her decision to run against Don Young in 2006. However, her telling is captivating and packed with raw emotion every time. I always get misty when she talks about her time at Walter Reed; I get angry when she recounts the fact that Don Young "couldn't drive 30 minutes" to visit her son and the other injured Alaskans there even though she asked him.

After her speech, she was even more impressive when dealing with questions from the guests. I'm going to save a discussion of the actual issues for a later post (we arranged an interview). However, it can be sait that this was not an "overly-friendly" crowd...meaning that a number of the Veterans were not identified as Benson supporters. They literally came so they could make up their minds and while polite, they asked some pretty tough, sometimes very loaded questions. There were several times I was boiling over but Diane answered everything calmly and respectfully. There was one time, when discussing Rural issues that I did see her eyes flash. One of the "undecideds" said later that she was easily tough enough to stand toe-to-toe with anyone in Congress.

So after we ate and when the conversation was lighter, Betty brought out "the bird"...their rescued Cockatoo. The bird instantly liked Diane, who clearly liked her back. She also ran to Mo who was NOT a bird fan and ran the other way. I wanted to see what her talons felt like (she was gentle) so I got her to get on my finger. She promptly climbed all the way up my arm and sat on my shoulder, making noises that activated my "the bird is gonna peck out my eye" phobia. (Damn you, Alfred Hitchcock!) I lived through it, but realized I've been burned too many times by dogs to ever trust any pet owner when they say "Oh, she'll NEVER bite!" I was on high-alert the whole time she was on me.

Anyway, I walked away from there a bigger fan of Diane than I was before. Later in the week, I'll talk more about the issues behind it.