Ted's Excellent Adventure October 29, 2008

The world according to Ted has taken a strange twist this week. Guilty of seven felony counts! What a LONG strange trip it's been. Look...Ted has been a strong supporter of Alaskan interests since before it was a state. A friend of mine has a daughter that's currently on Ted's staff, and reports that the man is still one of the hardest working members of the Senate, putting in the kind of hours that wear her out. There has long been a love-hate relationship with Senator Stevens in this state. The bottom line with both Stevens and the recently retired senator and Governor Murkowski, as well as Congressman Young has been seniority. With a total of three representatives for the state in Washington..we have conceded the fact that their voices need to be loud.
Ted Stevens is the rare politician that actually has very little money. No family money to speak of. The house that was doubled in size was a modified A frame. A vacation home at best. All of Alaska feels bad about his situation. Not much anger, but a great deal of disappointment. It's almost as if Alaska feels we owed him more financial stability at his advanced age. We owed him the addition to his A frame cabin, the grill, the chair. He should have been able to afford these things after the years of service to the state. But not the way it went down....and particularly not with Bill Allen and Veco. Bill Allen is as crooked as a business man can get. He corrupted, and strong armed his company Veco into the biggest, and dirtiest, oil support company in Alaskan history. After an FBI investigation, and more than a few legislatures and lobbyist ending up in jail over the last couple of years, Veco's ownership of so many Alaskan politicians became painfully clear. With Ted, we may have hoped it to be much about nothing, but make no mistake....these were never "gifts" from an old friend. It was the pathetically low cost of owning a United States Senator. His re-election bid may turn out the biggest surprise of it all. I will not be shocked if he win's reelection. The thought of a democrat in Washington will be a hard pill to swallow for Alaskans. His democratic opponent was 1 point ahead before his conviction, and by all reason it shouldn't even be a contest now.....but stranger things have happened! At the very least the republicans can keep the seat from Beigich, and later when Ted looses the seat, a special election would almost assuredly elect Binkley, the republican who lost to Ted in the primary..
Republican, Democrat, Independent, Alaskan Independent, Green -Gray- and Purple party....no one will be rejoicing over the fall of an old Alaskan.