Dennis Zaki Blog - AlaskaReport

The governors office sent this release out before the presser:

Governor Sarah Palin today joined Senator Ted Stevens in publicly discussing energy initiatives currently under way on the state and federal levels to alleviate the financial burden on Alaskans and provide for immediate and long-term relief.

“The Senator and I are working closely together in addressing the needs of our current energy crisis,” said Governor Sarah Palin. “We wholeheartedly support the Senator’s four-pronged approach that relies on domestic energy development coupled with alternative energy development, conservation, and legislation that protects Alaskans from anti-development litigation and protects all Americans from the impact of unchecked market speculation.”

Over the course of the last few months, the Governor has unveiled a multi-phase statewide energy plan that puts Alaskans first and mirrors the Senator’s efforts on the national level. The Governor’s plan includes a statewide energy coordinator and contains three major components: immediate short-term relief through energy rebates and state gas tax suspension; intermediate steps, which include the development of reliable energy alternatives as well as a possible bullet line for transporting North Slope natural gas to Southcentral; and then the long-term plan, which includes the overland gas pipeline to the Lower 48 that maximizes jobs for Alaskans, gas for Alaskans, and revenue for Alaskans.

“This synergistic relationship with the state and federal governments working hand-in-hand during this delicate time is welcomed and necessary, and the Senator and I look forward to combining our efforts to help Alaskans work through this energy crisis,” the Governor said. “Additionally, Alaska has always played an important role in providing reliable domestic energy to the Lower 48, and we will continue to be a part of the nation’s energy solution as they look to us for assistance.”

After Ted laid out his energy plan, I pitched a question that I have been dying to get an answer to from both of them. I asked Ted and Sarah about a federal study that showed that even if Alaska’s ANWR is opened, gas prices would only drop 2 cents - and it would take 15 years for that to happen. Ted snapped and said NY Senator Chuck Schumer was to blame for the “stupid” study and that it wasn’t true.

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”

While Don Young and Ted Stevens await their arrests for bribery and corruption, a new poll shows they’ll have plenty of time to think about it after Alaska’s August primaries.

From the Fairbanks News-Miner:

The survey found 51 percent of those responding would vote for (Mark) Begich in November’s general election, compared to 44 percent who said they would back Stevens.

Some 58 percent of responders said they felt very or somewhat positive toward Begich, while only 16 percent had a negative opinion of the 45-year-old Democratic mayor. Eleven percent of those responding didn’t know of Begich.

Stevens’ bid to win a seventh full term in the Senate has been overshadowed by an ongoing corruption investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.

THE FIX IS IN !!! Call the FBI !!!

Look who skipped out on the AGIA forums in Anchorage this week. These 9 Corrupt Bastard Club suspects made it to Lyda Green’s fundraiser Wednesday night - but couldn’t make it to the discussions on Alaska’s largest project ever.

Maybe they’ve already fixed the vote so they know there’s no reason to show.

All 9 of these legislators are already on our unofficial list of future prison inductees. Coincidence? Let’s hope the FBI is still recording phone calls! MBK are you listening ???

UPDATED
From Ray Metcalfe
Veco’s Dirty Dozen
10/21/2007

The following twelve legislators all have four things in common:

1. Every one of them has taken more than $10,000 from Veco.
2. When Veco owner Bill Allen asked to be relieved of his requirement to register as a lobbyist, they crafted and passed legislation ending Bill Allen’s requirement to register.
3. When presented with hundreds of pages of evidence of Veco’s bribery, each of them refused to respond.
4. When asked to admit or deny under oath whether or not had taken advantage of the illegal polling, services that Veco’s Vice President Rick Smith admitted having provided to over 100 of their favored candidates, every one of the still seated legislators below refused comment.

1. Mike Chenault, $32,000
2. Ralph Samuels, $10,250
3. Mike Hawker, $21,350
4. Lesil McGuire, $17,550
5. Lyda Green, $18,000
6. Kevin Meyer, $23,350
7. John Cowdery, $45,200
8. Con Bunde, $18,650
9. John Coghill Jr, $10,480
10. Carl Gatto, $12,000
11. Fred Dyson, $21,700
12. Gary Stevens, $14,275

Six of the nine pictured have taken VECO cash over $10,000.

Another coincidence I’m sure.

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.

Photo courtesy Dan Carpenter/KTUU-TV

Ted Stevens loses it, again

The Democratic Party has hired a tail for all of Ted’s media appearances. They are hoping to catch a “Macaca” moment.

Rough transcript:

KTUU’s lovely Rebecca Palsha: So today the Democratic Party sent out a release asking you to disclose on the Ted Stevens fund.

STEVENS: [Unintelligible] this stuff has come out of the Democratic Senator from Washington, they’ve got about 10 people working here now…[Unintelligible]…This stuff is coming out of Washington.. [Unintelligible] I can’t answer them every five minutes

I’m not involved in the foundation at all. The foundation takes over after I am dead.

I…I… don’t. But this is dirty politics in its [unintelligible].

This is Charles Schumer in New York, the Democratic senate chairman, the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee throwing stuff at me. You must have better things to do than ask me, I mean, literally, seven different cameramen today.

Look they are asking me about a foundation that is a matter of public record. I don’t know, I’ve never gone into the public records, I don’t have anything to do with it. They know that.

Gorgeous Palsha: Are you surprised at how…

STEVENS: They’re dirty. They’re dirty dirty, New York politics is what they are trying to do.
The campaign hasn’t even started yet, and he’s not my opponent yet. And I tell you he’s…
That man standing right there [turns and points at Democratic videographer] is working with them. He’s working with them, his name’s Drew, he’s been following me now for how many days? [Turns and asks Democratic videographer]

They’ve promised to spend five million dollars to defeat me, and this is part of it. I don’t have anyone hired to do something like that. I have other opponents right now, primary opponents. I’m going to pay attention to them, and I advise you to do the same thing.

I beat the Dem’s to it last August

Two weeks after this video, Stevens lied to KTUU’s Bill McAllister and told him that he never heard a derogatory comment aimed at him (aside from reporters and editors at the Anchorage Daily News) while in Alaska that month on congressional recess

From Cliff Schecter’s blog:

“Like Senator McCain, Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) Thinks Al Qaeda Is In Iran”

We expect Al Qaeda to come out some time today with a new manifesto where they ought to be using weapons of mass destruction against the United States. That means that they’re realizing they can’t win in Iraq. I think they’re going to change their way of doing business. And I think we have to be on the alert. These people are all over the world. Al Qaeda’s not just in Iraq. They’re in Iran. They’re in the Philippines. Sen Inouye and I went down to [indistinguishable]. They’re over in Indonesia. They’re all over. - Ted Stevens

Ok Ted. Can we got over this one more time. There are Sunnis (Al Qaeda) and Shiites (Iran). They are at war in Iraq, as well as much of the rest of the Middle East and Far East. Think Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. I know it probably helps you to imagine Christianity and white people.

FBI agent Mary Beth Kepner paid a social visit to the Alaska Democrats Convention Sunday. She claimed said she was there to see John Dean give the Keynote address.

I said to her “I can see why you’d be at the Republican Convention, but why here?” She claimed said, while raising both arms, “I’m an independant” and she was just here to arrest Steve to see Dean.

Steve Aufrecht from the ‘What Do I Know’ blog was interrogated spoke to her for a few minutes about something juicy. Don’t know what about, but she didn’t arrest him this time.