Dennis Zaki Blog - AlaskaReport

And so the Vic Kohring saga ends

I went out to the side of the road near the Eklutna exit along the Glenn Highway early this morning to see Vic Kohring off in a bizzare fashion. Kohring spent three hours waving goodbye to Alaskans from alongside the highway that he used to campaign from. As Vic waved to the morning commuters on a cool and blustery day, a lot of people honked, quite a few gave him the one finger salute, and one taunted him for over an hour via bullhorn with “Go to jail!” and “F*** you Vic!”

After surrendering himself to federal marshals around 10 am, Vic is now a federal prisoner locked up in a dingy cell in Anchorage. He’s now awaiting a trip down south for three and half long years at Taft prison in California.

Kohring was convicted in November of bribery, conspiracy and attempted extortion for his involvement with Bill Allen, the former owner of an oil services company that bribed several Alaska lawmakers including Senator Ted Stevens and his son. Kohring will have to serve at least three years of his sentence with good behaviour before he could be considered for early release.

Vic has delusions that he’ll be exonerated by an appeals court. No chance on that. They got him, it’s over. “I’m feeling confident,” Kohring claimed, “My legal prospects are very good.” No he wasn’t, and no they are not.

Vic was talking confident, but you could hear the doubt in his voice. I’ve interviewed Vic around 6 times in the past year, this was the first time he seemed beaten. I think he finally gets it.

Tidbit: Vic’s “Thanks Alaska” sign was made with an old campaign sign from Lyda Green. Oh, how the mighty have fallen!

Cover Blown…

I followed Don Young around today like stink on a monkey at the Labor/Union picnic in Anchorage. He was not too happy about it. Don eventually came up to me and said “Who are you working for?” I told I’m just a guy shooting pictures. A couple of chumps with him asked around to try to find out who I was. They didn’t.

Just before Don left, a friend of mine asked Don about the passing of the FISA bill that gives immunity to telecom companies so they won’t testify against President Bush.

In the video Donald says that trial lawyers are responsible for the FISA legislation.

Convicted “Corrupt Bastard Club” member Vic Kohring sent this statement Friday afternoon in an email to AlaskaReport. “Kohring plans to say “goodbye” to his friends, supporters and former constituents by doing his trademark highway sign waving along the Glenn Highway early Monday morning”

California Dreamin’

From AlaskaReport:

“Life is not good for me right now.”

Convicted Republican Vic Kohring will serve his 42-month federal prison sentence in California instead of Oregon as was recommended at sentencing earlier this month.

KTUU’s Bill McAllister rips convicted criminal Victor Kohring in his latest blog post.

Kohring says reporters are “bloodthirsty jackals” who “savaged me throughout my years in the Legislature.”

“They obviously picked up the pace when my office was raided by five armed FBI agents in 2006 and did their best to try and convict me before my trial even began, regardless of the truth.”

Well, now. Talking about venomous attitudes, Kohring issued a news release in 2002 in which he described state government employees uniformly — not by job classification, by agency or by any other sub-set, but uniformly — as “parasites Josef Stalin would be proud of.”

…As Kohring plays out his final act — with food stamps, a public defender and perhaps other government hand-outs — it’s all about him, and none of it is his fault.

Senator (for now) Ted Stevens loses it after Department of the Interior makes decision (without consulting him) to list polar bears as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act.

I am disappointed and disturbed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to weaken the Endangered Species Act by listing the polar bear as threatened despite the steady increase in the species’ population. Scientists have observed that there are now three times as many polar bears in the Arctic than there were in the 1970s.”

Never before has a species been listed as endangered or threatened while occupying its entire geographic range.”

This decision was made without any research demonstrating dangerously low population levels in polar bears, but rather on speculation regarding how ice levels will affect Arctic wildlife. Worse yet, today’s decision cannot and will not do anything to reverse sea ice decline.”

Instead, this action by the Fish and Wildlife Service sets a dangerous precedent with far-reaching social and economic ramifications. It opens the door for many other Arctic species to be listed, which would severely hamper Alaska’s ability to tap its vast natural resources. Reinterpreting the Endangered Species Act in this way is an unequivocal victory for extreme environmentalists who want to block all development in our state.”

The manipulation of the Endangered Species Act was highlighted by Kassie Siegel, the lawyer who wrote the legal petition for the Center for Biological Diversity. Ms. Siegel made no attempt to disguise her group’s intent when she said that the effort to list the polar bears was to ‘try to make the point that global warming is not some future threat’. This statement confirms that these fringe environmentalists are simply using the polar bears to advance their extreme agenda.”

This abuse of Endangered Species law will have a devastating impact on the entire nation through endless litigation and regulation. It will ultimately weaken the Act itself, which has been one of our nation’s most valuable tools for conserving wildlife.”

Alaskans must now stand together and fight attempts to exploit the public’s fear of climate change as a means to impose unreasonable burdens in our state. The future of Alaska will depend on it.”

One last hurrah before the feds visit…

Don’t forget this doozy from TPM Donald before you stock up the kitchen with illegal campaign contributions… again!

Thanks to Staufen for the tip.

Kohring’s lawyer said “He’s Andy Griffith, he really is.”

Prosecutor Joseph Bottini replied “I don’t remember any episode of that show where Andy Griffith took cash from anybody.”

Video shot by Kelly Walters for AlaskaReport.com

Copyright Dennis Zaki - AlaskaReport.com of course

Sorry about the delay but the Wi-Fi wasn’t working in the courthouse. Here’s a couple of quick hits.

Kohring had to hitchhike to court today. A friend loaned him a beater and it died near his home. Vic put out his thumb and a local Wasillian gave him a lift. Classic!

Quick quotes. Vic’s lawyer said “He’s Andy Griffith, he really is”

Prosecutor Joseph Bottini replied “I don’t remember any episode of that show where Andy Griffith took cash from anybody.”

Vic Kohring “I was a little naive, I’ll admit that.”

I forgot to ask Vic about his hair.