Comments (15)

Bass Reeves wrote on October 17, 2007 4:08 PM:

My question is: what was the Alaska AG doing about the corruption BEFORE the Feds got their hands on it? Maybe the Alaska AG should be investigated too...

pk wrote on October 17, 2007 4:11 PM:

I don't know if I'd settle for the Justice Department's request... it's not like they've shown themselves to be exactly unbiased when it comes to republican corruption at the highest levels...

Anonymous wrote on October 17, 2007 4:11 PM:

My guess is that the Alaska AG is a proud alum of Regent University and a loyal Bushie.

Joe Monster wrote on October 17, 2007 4:31 PM:

Wow, I'm with the Feds on this one. Alaska has about as much credibility at this point as Texas.

Ed*ard Teller wrote on October 17, 2007 4:44 PM:

The Alaska Attorney General came into office in December, 2006, less than a year ago. In August, 2006, the FBI and DOJ began the ongoing set of searches, indictments and trials of top GOP and oil support industry figures here. So, when General Colberg took office, the Fed investigations were very much ongoing.

Colberg's criminal division people sent observers to the Tom Anderson and Pete Kott trials to determine what evidence that state laws might have been broken would come up in testimony and evidence. It is the pursuit of further matters involving that evidence that the DOJ appears to be attenuating here.

Most aspects of this corruption trial stem from illegal lobbying activities done during a special legislative session which determined the current oil extraction fee charged to big oil here. Governor Palin was elected in spite of the huge efforts of big oil to derail the most successful GOP insurgance currently happening in the USA. When AG Colberg was selected, all the big oil media hacks criticized the governor for having selected an AG with no oil industry and little criminal law experience.

Having been a colleague of the current AG at the local college for years, and having worked with him on local governance issues in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, I can assure the anonymous commenter above that General Colberg's determination to pursue these corruption cases will be thorough. This is his office's first big test.

judyo wrote on October 17, 2007 5:48 PM:

And, you'd believe the feds on this? I sure wouldn't.

Ed*ard Teller wrote on October 17, 2007 5:56 PM:

Judyo,

I'm having a hard time digesting how the Alaska investigations and many other DOJ investigations around the country are being pursued. To call the pace "slow" is to give the Feds too much credit. I'm fairly confident that more Alaska legislators, former legislators and other figures will be indicted fairly soon.

Robin Boerner wrote on October 17, 2007 6:54 PM:

Sarah Palin's schtik of "I am the true honest politician" aside, I have not had any cooperation from her office on righting any of the corruption that is more prevalent then freezing temperatures up here.

She did promise at the Republican picknick the summer she was running to help a disabled veteran in Alaska John Mitchell all she could if elected. After election she suffered a bout of forgetfullness on this promise as does most politicians.

It is race to see who can be the most sleazy, dirty, digusting, honorless scum, the feds or the state political gangs. Simply bad cop vs. good cop.

Since Friday I have been trying to find out if Patriot Act Nelson Cohen is going to be allowed to keep warming his chair in the US Attorney's office. Since he hasn't been confirmed by the US Senate and as per the Democrat Nominations Clerk hasn't had his name submitted by Bush, it is now up the the federal court whether he should stay as US Attorney until nominated and confirmed.

I just got off the phone with one federal court clerk extradornaire, Natalie Day. All she knew was that she could only answer questions in writing. And, that as far as she was told Nelson Cohen isn't a Patriot Act US Attorney. She wasn't interested in what the law said (is was above her pay grade), and couldn't say who told her he was the real US Attorney as per the updated Patriot Act. Or, even that the law had changed. Don't feel bad Natalie, a half dozen others before you were equally incompetent drones as well.

If the old law is followed, Chief Judge John Sedwick will get to decide (or has decided in secret since Friday was the D Day for Patriot Act US Attorney's). Keep in mind that Judge Sedwick is a Republican Loyalist. A Bush senior appointee who decided he didn't have to remove himself in his neighbor Bill Allen's trial. Even after the Alaska Ear pointed out the more then casual relationship of the Sedwick to those either under indictment or witnesses in his courtroom.

Same Judge Sedwick who thought nothing of screwing a 100% disabled veteran (see the link at my name) by dismissing John Mitchell's case by allowing the Patriot Act US Attorney by submit fraudulent documents and not allowing Mr. Mitchell's attorney equal access to the same documents.

John Mitchell has the distinction of being made 100% disabled twice by the US Army...once is uniform and once as a disabled veteran that went back to work in the Command Center at Ft Richardson as a civilian.

Can't hurt Bush Co's War Machine, Judge Sedwick can we? Afterall, that is no way to pay his daddy back now is it?

Hopefully the 9th circuit will see that John Mitchell finds justice. I am not holding my breath for anyone in Alaska, state or federal to do the right thing. Maybe the Public Integrity section saw the same thing?

Bob wrote on October 17, 2007 7:19 PM:

State investigators are a part of many federal task forces across the country. I read that letter to mean the feds think the state would leak information to the suspects. Unless they know this for sure, they would be better off inviting a few state investigators along so that state authorities can save some face. Otherwise the state might not be as disposed in the future to deliver them with ready-made cases that allow them to inflate their arrest and conviction statistics. It doesn't always pay to be as arrogant as your predecessors.

Stephen Taufen wrote on October 18, 2007 2:36 AM:

Former governor Frank Murkowski (among others) is hugely to blame for putting the current administration in this tough spot. The FBI inherited that 'who can you trust?' problem; and they see it clearly. Alaska is so full of cronies and wannabe servants that leaks are just one part of the dilemma. Until Ted Stevens rates a 5% idiot-only supporters poll level, and resigns, the dilemma remains overwhelming. Even then, change will be tough for the comfort zone pork recipients.

It was, however, a sincere effort for the State to get active, as well. Keep a vigilant watch, please.

Stephen - Groundswell Fisheries Movement

AKHarpboy wrote on October 18, 2007 3:29 AM:

This investigation started under a previous Governor, the ethically oblvious Frank (The Bank) Murkowski, who appointed his daughter to his Senate seat when he was elected. Gov. Palin ran as a Repug reform candidate against the corrupt Repug Party powerful, and one of the people she wants to investigate for illegally using polls provided by VECO is Murkowski.

One of the problems is that while Murky was Gov, his Repuke cronies who controlled the Alaska lege revised the campaign financing & ethics laws, shortening the statute of limitations for violations, increasing allowable "donation" limits, and loosening lobbying rules to accommodate folks like VECO's Bill Allen.

And over the years, the oil money greased Repuke majorities have underfunded and restricted the activities of the Alaska Public Offices Commission, which was created in the 70s by a voter initiative to enforce campaign financing and lobbying laws.

Rest assured that once the Feral Gummint trials are over, Palin and some of the Dems in the Alaska legislature won't let this rest.

By joining a coalition with some Repugs, the 9 Dems in the 20 member State Senate have wrested control from friends of Ben Stevens, Tubular Ted's corrupt son.

With a few more convictions, we should be able to get a Dem majority in both houses of the Lege for the first time since Big Awl came north and starting buying legislators.

Anonymous wrote on October 18, 2007 1:32 PM:

Palin talks a big game yet doesn't seem to grasp the action plan needed to fire all the cronnies running alaska

She just talks about it but is a poor executer- literally and figuratively

anon alaskan wrote on October 18, 2007 1:36 PM:

Stephen and Harpboy make very good observations.
I -- and a lot of other Alaskans -- strongly suspect that the previous administration was very deeply involved in the shenanigens, and that we'll see some indictments eventually of past administration officials. Probably not the previous AG, David Marquez, who does not seem to have been part of the corrupt oil-tax debacle, but maybe Murkowski's former chief of staff and Murky himself. Ethically oblivious is a very good description indeed.
But it's not fair to blame Talis Colberg and the Palin administration about any of this, or criticize them for their predecessor's actions. I didn't vote for Palin, I didn't know anything about Colberg before she appointed him (Alaska AGs are appointed, not elected, if you didn't know), so I'm not making a knee-jerk defense here. Myself, I'm a critic of some Palin policies and positions (on non-oil issues, like wolf control. And why hasn't she put the Habitat Division back in Fish and Game?). But there's every indication that Palin and her appointees are intent on doing the right thing when it comes to cleaning up Alaska.

another alaskan wrote on October 18, 2007 4:58 PM:

APOC has never had the temerity to prosecute any significant case of public corruption - why would it start now? The legislature has never missed a trick to keep APOC toothless and gutless. That's the way government has always been run in Alaska. I'm sure Gov Sarah is all too happy to pass off this mess to the Feds. Regardless, we'll never see Frank the Bank face the music for all his corruption.

jeffgee wrote on November 12, 2007 10:49 AM:

And the Bridge to Nowhere has been relocated to Anchorage. Old pork never dies. It's merely reincarnated.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0615/p02s01-uspo.html