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Mr. Begich, It’s On! But Will Treadwell Be The Next Romney?

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photo credit: usdagov

By now, you have all probably heard that Lt. Governor Mead Treadwell announced on Friday that he is launching an exploratory committee to decide whether he should run for the United States Senate seat now held by former Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich. As I read the well-wishes on the Lt. Governor’s facebook page today urging him on, I was left with a couple of nagging questions. Is Treadwell the right man for the job? And more importantly, is he up to it?

To all the Republicans out there who think this is going to be easy, I have a few words of caution.

First, Mark Begich is, without doubt, the most savvy politician in the state. Second, the whole government-media-complex will work tirelessly to make sure their golden boy wins re-election. Third, he will have David Axelrod and the whole ‘Chicago Machine’ at his disposal. And last, but not least, his secret weapon: unlike most politicians, people actually like this guy.

Am I suggesting that the 2014 race for US Senate is already a done deal? Not at all. But I am saying that we shouldn’t run hastily into a marriage that isn’t a good fit, and that will not likely end with an oath.

There are no less than five other potential candidates out there who have yet to make their intentions known, and I have privileged information that suggests there may be a wild-card in the works that could take the whole political establishment by surprise.

As for the Romney analogy, there are a lot of similarities between the psychology of Alaska Republicans, and that of the RNC who wanted nothing more than to beat Barack Obama. The Alaska Republican Party has proudly displayed an ad on its webpage urging the defeat of Mark Begich in 2014 ever since he assumed the seat in the United States Senate once occupied by the late-Senator Ted Stevens.

And so, like the National Republicans, the effort is already underway in Alaska to ‘immaculate the One’ who would defeat Mark Begich. Conventional wisdom is that if we can just unite behind a candidate early in the process, there will magically be unity in Republican ranks. And we will sweep to victory . . . and live happily ever after.

Didn’t we just try this with Romney? Was it just me, or was he running for the nomination for the last four years? And am I the only one who just saw how that worked out?

But the larger view that Party luminaries and political pundits miss is that some of us actually care about policy. We don’t just want to vote against someone. We want to vote for something. We don’t want consensus; we want leadership.

Wasn’t that the lesson of the 2010 US Senate race here? Some of us aren’t content to join the coronation for a candidate that in many respects is very similar to Mark Begich. Like Ronald Reagan before us, we want bold colors, not pale pastels. Aren’t there already too many do-nothing senators in Washington who are inebriated on the wine of their own self-importance, and are happy just to be a part of the club?

Now I’m not suggesting that Mead Treadwell would be a do-nothing senator, though he did support one in 2010. He is an affable guy, a deal-maker, and has big ideas. But it is precisely the fact that he has such big ideas that I find troubling, because they are the wrong ideas.

I am speaking of Mead’s penchant for ideology. Yes, I know ‘he’s a pragmatist not an ideologue.’ However, the doctrine of man-made global warming is nothing if not an ideology. The dogged belief in the inherent benevolence of the United Nations is nothing if not an ideology. And the pragmatism of compromise itself can become the handmaiden of ideology when it becomes an end in itself.

We already have a ‘Republican’ in the United States Senate who only wishes to be named among the ‘cool kids.’ She hasn’t passed a stand-alone bill in her 10 long years in the United States Senate. What we don’t have, and what I don’t wish to have, is one who is effective at getting the wrong things done. So before I’ll be jumping on the bandwagon, I need some answers from Mr. Treadwell.

If elected to the United States Senate, will he continue to push for International Treaties that would strip us of our sovereign Right to self-governance? Will he join the push for carbon taxes, or cap and trade? What would he do right now about the impending ‘fiscal cliff?’ What is his plan to rein in federal spending? Will he vote to allow leftist judges through Senate confirmation like his friend Murkowski? Does he support the President’s ‘tax hikes for the rich?’ What about social conservative issues? The second amendment? Will he vote for amnesty for illegal aliens? Does he favor reforming the tax code? What does he intend to do about the looming insolvency of Medicare and Social Security? Does he support full repeal of Obamacare? Will he support auditing the Fed? . . .

These are the things conservatives want to know. Until we have answers, support should not be offered.

Yeah, Treadwell’s a rich moderate that can appeal to independents. Romney won those voters overwhelmingly. How’d that work out for us?

Yeah, Treadwell is the anointed candidate of the Republican establishment. So was Romney. How’d that work out for us?

Yeah, Treadwell is an experienced businessman and government manager. So was Romney. How’d that work out for us?

Yeah, Treadwell is a decent man who believes in a fair fight. So was Romney. How’d that work out for us?

The bottom line is not that Mead Treadwell is a bad man that you should not support. It is rather that he is a man we still don’t have answers from, and who still hasn’t been vetted.

He may well be the candidate that emerges who will unite the party, and defeat Mark Begich. But we don’t know that yet.

I am a firm believer in the inherent wisdom and goodness of the people to make better choices than the politicos. It is up to us, not the Washington insiders, or the Juneau elites. So let the process work itself out. Get involved. Ask the questions. And for God’s sake, don’t settle for Mitt Romney.

Matt Johnson is a freelance writer, consultant, and political activist who resides in Chugiak, AK

Alaska Plunging Full Speed Ahead Toward Internationalism (With the Help of its Political Establishment)

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As we’ve reported over the last several months, almost the entirety of Alaska’s political establishment, including Governor Parnell, Lieutenant Governor Mead Treadwell, Senators Murkowski and Begich, and virtually the entirety of the state legislature, support adoption of the Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST). This internationalist scheme to extend UN jurisdiction over two thirds of the earth’s surface should make any Constitution-loving Alaskan’s blood boil. To make matters worse, the political leadership attempts to justify LOST with the pathetic excuse that it would be “good for Alaska business.”

We’ll break down that Benedict Arnold-like excuse for selling sovereignty down the UN drain in a future article. But for now, it’s time to focus on another imminent threat to our national integrity: the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

This treaty, criticized by Restoring Liberty in earlier posts here and here, also has support among Alaska’s political class. In fact, it is openly supported by Alaska Governor Parnell’s Council on Disabilities and Special Education:

Most Alaskans should be scratching their heads over this new effort to subjugate Alaska to the whimsical dictates of the United Nations.

Here’s what’s wrong with the treaty. In an article entitled “Back Door Globalism,” Senators DeMint and Inhofe criticize the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities warning that it “calls for government agents to supersede the authority of parents of disabled children and even covers abortion.”

ParentalRights.org further explains that the treaty “poses a serious threat to the right of parents with disabled children to make decisions on behalf of those children regarding their education, medical care, and other areas of life. By introducing the “best interest of the child” principle as a government obligation (Article 7.2), the CRPD places bureaucrats in the position to make the ultimate decisions regarding each child.”

Homeschool advocate HSLDA also sees real danger in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, claiming that it is a backdoor means of requiring compliance with the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, a treaty that “enshrines abortion rights, homosexual rights, and demands the complete disarmament of all people.”

HSLDA also suggests that the treaty will mandate national spending priorities, require US funding for poorer countries’ disability programs, and require all persons to have handicap accessible residences. Also cited are infringement on autonomy of homeschooling by requiring government-directed disability programs to be administered, banning of corporal punishment, and other government-mandated intrusions into the family and home.

From the perspective of a states rights advocate, the treaty is very threatening. All American law on disabilities will be required to conform to the dictates and standards of the United Nations treaty. Obviously, this is a terrible infringement on a state’s right to legislate in this area. Under the Constitution, the federal government has no enumerated power giving it such authority. But now, under the treaty, the United States will be under one international standard – enforced by the federal government – further displacing state sovereignty.

In short, no Constitution-honoring political leader should offer even tacit support to this treaty. They must be held accountable.

Alaska’s Governor & Delegation, Party to Empowering Tyrants & Terrorists

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Do we want to redistribute America’s wealth to State sponsors of terrorism while hamstringing our defenses? Passing the Law of the Sea Treaty would do just that, enabling the United Nations to further raid America’s treasury, rob her sovereignty, and further empower the despots of the UN.

Here’s a question for the two Senators from Alaska: why would you be a party to empowering the tyrants and terrorists of the United Nations? Why would Alaska’s Governor Sean Parnell and Lt Governor Mead Treadwell also favor passing this treaty?

Our state’s leadership supports a treaty that would be catastrophic for America.

There have been three UN conventions on the Law of the Sea (LOST), the first in 1956, the second in 1960 (both held in Geneva, Switzerland), and the third in New York, 1973. The third convention finally concluded in 1982. The international treaty became enforceable in November, 1994, one year after the sixtieth state, Guyana, ratified the treaty. 162 countries have ratified LOST.

In its current form, the Law of the Sea consists of 17 parts, containing 320 articles and 9 annexes, governing ocean space, boundaries, environmental control, marine research, economic and commercial activities, transfer of technology and royalties, and the settlement of disputes relating to ocean matters.

In past administrations, the main obstacles to US Senate ratification have been the provisions in Part XI, articles 133 through 191 of LOST defining the area subject to international jurisdiction, and part VI, article 82, describing royalty distribution. All disputes would be resolved at an international tribunal headquartered in Hamburg, Germany.

The US Senate has never ratified the treaty. The Obama administration recently revived it and, although the Senate didn’t actually vote on it, LOST supporters were only one vote short of the 67 needed to ratify it (in the US, treaty ratification requires a two-thirds vote in the Senate and the President’s signature). LOST is sometimes called the ‘Zombie treaty’ because it keeps resurfacing after being rejected by the US Senate.

From my perspective, one of the biggest problems with the treaty is its re-distributive policies. America’s generosity has always been superior to that of any other country. Americans have freely given untold sums of aid to those in need. But now the US is supposed to sign a treaty mandating that Americans must give more, potentially sending trillions of dollars to ‘less developed’ countries, some of whom are known state sponsors of terrorism!

Resource exploration and development in effect becomes distribution of wealth to an ‘international authority.’ Of course, the resource extraction itself can only be done after receiving permission from that ‘authority’ to do so. Beyond our Continental shelf or ‘exclusive economic zone’, a percentage of revenue from resource production such as oil, would be distributed to the UN.

Resource development thus becomes the fuel for global power, a power that will further raid America’s wealth, redistributing it as well as the LOST resource revenues, to our enemies across the world.

I am also very concerned that ratifying LOST would greatly degrade America’s defense capability. The security of our allies throughout the world would be compromised. Access to ocean or maritime areas presently used and protected by the US Navy could be lost as sovereignty is lost to the UN. At risk is peace and liberty for many countries. America must not submit to the power of despots within the United Nations.

As noted above, not only does Governor Parnell and Lieutenant Governor Mead Treadwell strongly favor LOST, both of our US Senators do as well. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., is pushing for ratification of the treaty, with a vote planned for the lame-duck session after the November elections. Alaska’s two Senators have said they’ll vote for it.

When you analyze treaties such as the ‘Law of the Sea’, the ‘UN arms treaty’, or proposals and policies found in things like the UN’s ‘Agenda 21’, or Coastal zone management, you find a common thread binding them together: internationalism. Either our elected representatives are ignorant, corrupted by special interests that gain from the new regimes, or they are globalists. More likely, they’re a bit of each.

State of Alaska Ignores Voter Fraud…Again: Illegal Alien Cop Skates on 41 Felonies

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Alaska No IDRecords from the Alaska Division of Elections reveal that a former Anchorage Police Officer convicted on federal charges for false claims of citizenship and passport fraud has voted repeatedly in federal, state, and local elections in Alaska dating back to 1991. Raphael Mora-Lopez – a.k.a. Raphael A. Espinoza – voted most recently in 2010, casting ballots in the local municipal elections as well as both primary and general state-wide elections. In all he voted no less than 41 times over a 20-year period.

Though the State pressed charges relating to $27,000 fraudulently obtained by Mora-Lopez from Alaska’s Permanent Fund Dividend payouts, he was sentenced to only 24 months in jail with all 24 months suspended. State prosecutors subsequently declined to press charges on at least 41 counts of voter misconduct in the first degree, a class C felony in the State of Alaska.

This new information raises grave concerns about elections integrity in Alaska, and about the level of seriousness among State officials with respect to voter fraud. One might view the State’s inaction as an oversight had the Associated Press not reported the fact as early as June 2011, ostensibly citing federal court records. But given that the Alaska Division of Elections has since purged Mora-Lopez from the voter rolls, it is certain that State officials were not in the dark.

The fact that State prosecutors would turn a blind eye to such an egregious case not only casts doubt upon the integrity of the Department of Law, but makes a mockery of Alaska’s election laws.

In 2010, US Senate candidate Joe Miller raised similar concerns only to have them summarily dismissed by State officials. The fact that the charges against Raphael Mora-Lopez in April 2011 came on the heels of the State’s internal investigation of the 2010 general election in which the State denied having a problem with illegal felon voters may account for the State’s reticence to raise the profile of this case by pressing charges.

However, such a scenario offers little comfort for concerned citizens. For if the State would sweep 41 felonies under the rug to protect a local police officer, or perhaps just to save face, what might it cover up to protect a United States Senator?

 

Photo credit:  Joe Miller, All Rights Reserved