Mr. Begich Goes to Washington and Meets the Filibuster.
Lisa Murkowski used to be my favorite senator. Granted, that’s only because Ted Stevens was my other one. Even Ted Stevens used to be my favorite senator. Granted that’s only because the other one was Frank Murkowski. It was all a matter of perspective.
But those were the old days. Now, Frank Murkowski is relegated to the dust bin of political history after hoppng from DC to Alaska as governor. He got routed going for a second term by some Wasilla mayor who got tired of the job a couple years in and is now moving her mouth for Fox News and blogging on weekends. Ted Stevens is gone – voted out after seven felony convictions that were overturned only due to prosecutorial incompetence. And Lisa Murkowski put in place by her father when he left DC, has cast off any allegiance to moderation or integrity by becoming a pro-climate change, pro-pollution shill for big oil – the very thing that got her father voted out of office and replaced by whats-her-name. Ah, the tangled web of Alaskan politics
But now, I actually like my favorite senator. I no longer have to choose the less reprehensible Republican for the slot. Don’t get me wrong – there are many issues upon which we disagree, but that’s OK. He’s here to serve the state, which is a complicated and polarized blend of people. Especially in terms of resource development, Alaskan Democrats feel differently than Democrats in other parts of the country. I get that. So for right now, I’m going to tiptoe past outer continental shelf (OCS) drilling, and ANWR and beluga whales, and get right to the part of Senator Begich that I really like.
When he first came back from D.C. and spoke at the annual Jefferson Jackson dinner to a room full of Democrats, I knew I was hooked. It was like a friend had been sent to some far off exotic land, and instead of coming back a changed person, or dropping names and customs like everyone knew what he was talking about, he decided to teach. He came back and told us all what it was like for him, and how things actually worked. He didn’t assume we knew, and he brought along his constituents on a journey of discovery. He was a freshman senator learning the ropes and wanted us to learn too.
That’s why I particularly enjoyed this segment on KTVA Channel 11. Every week Matt Felling hosts “A View from the Hill” and talks with one of our senators about what’s going on in our nation’s capital. This week he addressed a variety of topics, but the one that interested me the most was the part of the discussion on Democratic majority, senatorial procedure and the filibuster.
On the loss of 60 Democratic votes in the senate:
The part that’s more frustrating is … it doesn’t matter if you have 59, 57, whatever it is – that we are somewhat held hostage by parliamentary procedure, the old games, the politics of Washington D.C., that are not helping us move forward, especially on helping American families and Alaskan families get the jobs they need, and the economy moving forward.
Last week, we had the agenda consumed by a simple appointment to the GSA (the General Services Administration) an office that’s basically the leasing agent for the federal government, but because of the parilamentary procedures that the minority did, it held up all action on the Senate floor for four or five days which means we’re not working on the jobs issue, or helping to build this economy. So I think in some ways – again 59, 57, whatever it is – we’ve got to work to move this economy forward. And I would hope that the minority would just give up on these parliamentary procedures and focus on helping American families – Alaskan families – build a better economy and create jobs.
Felling: I think when a lot of people hear the word “filibuster,” they go back to Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and they think about a Republican senator reading from the dictionary or the phone book, but that’s not the way it goes any longer. How exactly do they do it then?
Begich: It’s just kind of a parlor game, it’s a parlor trick and what they do is they claim a “cloture vote” which is a vote that requires 60 votes instead of a real filibuster where you actually have to sit on the floor and talk about why you’re doing this. You just go home! And they get 30 hours to do nothing and the senate really just stands in stall. If people turn on C-Span they’ll see people presiding and the room empty, because they just get to burn up 30 hours of time and that’s it. In days gone by you’d actually have to come down and debate the reason why you’re holding up the legislation that might be in front. But the reason they don’t do that now, especially the minority, is because they’d be embarrassed. Because all they’re doing is coming down and delaying for the sake of delaying and costing this economy, costing American jobs, costing Alaskan jobs. It’s really a shame. So I hope in a lot of ways we can get beyond that a lot of the freshmen on both Democrat and Republican are somewhat fed up with that process and want to move forward and doing the business that this country, that my state, sent me here to do.
Rachel Maddow had a great discussion on just this topic, and how the filibuster as it is being used now by the Republicans is grinding the gears of our nation to a halt, and what the Democrats might do about it. Remember the “nuclear option?”
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
My favorite senator is back in the state for the weekend. I got to catch up with him in his Anchorage office on Friday. He talked about his plans for the visit home, and chuckled at the “interesting snow removal techniques” employed in our nation’s capital, which included lots of salt and waiting for the weather to warm up!
Mark Begich in his Anchorage office
The focus of the senate right now is on jobs, and they will be looking at various components of a jobs bill which will include small business lending, energy efficiency, infrastructure development, and getting more cops, firefighters, teachers and youth working.
He gave a quick update on the stimulus bill (the one that our other senator voted against) and said about soon about 60% of that money will start moving forward to help Alaskans. A big hospital project in Nome is part of that. Also there will be about $100 million designated to bring broadband internet service to Western Alaska in more than 100 villages. It will not only employ people to set it up, but it will have long-term impact. There will now be capacity for connections that can be used for medical care and in hospitals, tele-education, and commerce. Businesses will benefit, and it will no longer take an hour and a half to submit forms online. (So, rural Alaska, remember who voted for that stimulus money)
The senator tells us there is lots of momentum around energy and an energy bill. The bill will have multiple components including renewable energy projects to create what Begich described as a “holistic view of energy.” He was pleased that the president mentioned OCS drilling, and that there are positive steps being taken in that direction. The president mentioned OCS drilling again when he did a recent “pop in” at a press conference.
The senator as a member of the Armed Services Committee is very involved and committed to veteran’s issues which was clear as he spoke. He mentioned the fact that one in ten Alaskans is a veteran, a higher per capita concentration than any other state in the nation. Alaska also presents certain unique challenges to veterans particularly those who live in very rural locations. Access to healthcare in remote areas will rely more and more on telemedicine which will be helped by the broadband capabilities that are on the way.
The senator is working with Indian Health Services to try to develop a strong partnership to facilitate better delivery of essential services for Alaska’s vets.
One of the first things the Obama administration did was increase the amount of money going to veterans, the largest increase ever. Recently a quarter million veterans who were never in the system have been added. There are still 1.6 million who are not.
If you are a veteran or know any, Senator Begich wants to hear from you and understand your concerns and needs. Hearings are coming up and your input is wanted.
He’ll be heading to Fairbanks and Kotzebue before returning to D.C. to tackle the snow and the obstructionists, and try to get work done on jobs, energy, education, veterans issues and health care. We wish him luck, and look forward to more reports from inside the beltway.
good on the senator for all his good work and right- on representation of alaskans
51 is still a majority in a Senate of 100. Time for the Democrats to get off their butts and get some stuff done. Time to fix what gw and d*ckless cheney broke.
Did any of you see this ad on facebook if you have an account?
http://www.dccc.org/page/s/palinfbad
In just a moment I’m going to go back and watch the videos…but first I’m going to post my comment because here in the OTHER rural Alaska we don’t have broadband either. “Rural Alaska” seems to have become everything north and west of Anchorage, but rural Alaska also includes Southeast Alaska. Just needed to say that for the Mudflats record before I spend 1/2 an hour waiting for a few minutes of “thank goodness we have a Senator that we can really like” to load.
I heart Mark.
Wonderful writing mudflats. Thanks for informative blog!!! Cheers it is snowing!!!
I hope Begich delivers.
Problem child i hope he delivers also.
I think he is a decent man but i hope he understands that he has his senate because he ran as a Democrat, he didn’t run as a Bluedog and he owes his allegiance to his President and to the folks who voted for him and not to the racists entrenched in the republican party who have vowed to bring down the wonderful, intelligent and efficient man we elected.
It’s must be nice to finally have at least one senator you can be proud of. The names of my two senators keep showing up on the voted “no” lists. Perhaps I should give them a call and ask them what they have accomplished lately.
Excellent information, AKM. I know it’s from the Alaska point of view on a lot of it, but it’s nice to hear at least one senator say that there are some getting fed up with the stalling tactics being used.
And here’s the thing – the Dems have been yammering on about when they had 60 votes and now it’s 59. The problem is, one of those belongs to Lieberman, and he isn’t acting like an independent who even likes the Democrats. So, they really have never had a super majority. And they really need to boot him out of the caucus or at least take him off of those plum committees he is on. Take away his power and it might wake him up. Right now, he is getting to have it both ways and it’s not helping anyone.
They really need to force the issue that 51 is a majority and then they can get a lot of things done. The repubs, unless they suddenly find their conscience, aren’t ever going to vote for anything put forth by the Democrats. So give it up as a bad job and get the work done without them. But they have to put an end to the filabuster. In one year they have used it over 100 times which is more than twice as much as any other time in Senate history. Enough already.
I had to chuckle about Begich’s reaction to the snow removal in Washington DC. It just depends on where you are. In the Seattle area things come to a stand-still with even less snow because of all our very steep hills. And since we don’t get much snow very often, there are too many people who are a danger to everyone on the road when they drive. I never had trouble driving in snow in Kansas because it was flatter – not as flat as people think, but still. And the few big hills in Lawrence? It was easy enough to drive around them. Not so in the Puget Sound area.
We had enough snow last winter and I’m glad this year we are back to rain.
OT but just wanted to mention that Rachel Maddow will be on Meet the Press Sunday morning.
Thx for the heads up, BGal, and I totally agree with you, Bubbles. I hope Mark Begich can continue to be the leader we see in him; he has always seemed to me to have his heart in the right place ~ i.e., in Alaska and for Alaska.
buffalogal, great news, i may actually watch that.
4 Alaska Kelly Says:
February 13th, 2010 at 7:27 PM
In just a moment I’m going to go back and watch the videos…but first I’m going to post my comment because here in the OTHER rural Alaska we don’t have broadband either. “Rural Alaska” seems to have become everything north and west of Anchorage, but rural Alaska also includes Southeast Alaska
————————–
Yes, rural Alaska also includes us here in Southeast. Sometimes I think we are the Forgotten Alaska…
We will have to raise our voices up louder so our Senator hears us too…
problem child @ 7 and bubbles @ 8: I’m with you.
I’m glad veterans are getting some much-deserved attention in this administration, and military families, also, too. Watching and working for progress on education (libraries, physical and virtual), and improving relationships with First Nations, and renewable energy (solar!), and jobs…
Mr. Begich and Senators: Hope and Change is what we voted for and what we work for every day. We’ll do our part. Now You do Yours, please.
So where’s Girl Friend who just can’t stop talking about how bad politics as usual is. Where’s her op’ed on the misuse of a parliamentary trick like filibuster being used to stop the government functioning, or on voting against things that you are for just because it’s the other party that has the majority, or on holding up appointments for positions related to national safety, and health.
Where’s the maverick who likes bad mouthing politics as usual, party before country etc?
Probably color coordinating the decor for her two new houses.
Back to D.C. to work on “jobs, energy …… and health care.” A big part of jobs for Alaskans in the Western Alaska Coastal area is tied up in the CDQ millions of the Bering Sea Pollock Fishery. Mr. Begich will make many poor Alaskans happy and proud if he supports legislation to give the program back to the people. Corporate Claws Clamp-on with a request for a tax break is hooey and should be recognized as such by all ethical lawmakers.
Well, I’m not impressed, especially since he spent that weekend in Miami playing golf with lobbyists and other pandering Dem Senators. Mark needs to start paying more attention to Alaskans and less attention to worrying about re-election, raising campaign funds, or kissing up to the DINOs like Lieberman, Nelson, and Blanche Lincoln. He’s rapidly becoming part of the problem in Washington and not the solution.
We need a Nick Begich, and we aren’t getting one. Mark doesn’t even come close to measuring up to his father.
Time to stop pandering to the folks that will never support him, now or at electio time, and to start paying attention to the folks that will support him.