Sean Parnell concedes!

So last night Captain Zero conceded the election to Bill Walker, making Walker Alaska's new Governor.

This from Parnell's Facebook page:  

It has been an honor to serve as Governor of Alaska for more than five years. Sandy and I will always remain thankful and humble that we could work for you to create opportunities for every Alaskan. After Friday’s vote counting by the Division of Elections, it became clear that while a win for the Parnell-Sullivan ticket was numerically possible, it is highly improbable. Where Alaska’s swearing-in date this year for the governor-elect is December 1st and where some ballots still must be counted, I deemed it in Alaskans’ interest to begin coordinating transition activities now with the Walker-Mallott ticket in the event the vote count holds. 

I met this morning with Bill Walker to pledge an orderly transition. In line with this pledge, I offered office space for transition activities to the Walker-Mallott ticket as well as resources to accomplish the transition. We had what I believe to be a very productive discussion about how to work together for the benefit of Alaskans in this time of change in administration. 

It is my fervent hope that Alaska’s trajectory for economic growth and individual safety and opportunity will be maintained. From bringing the Alaska LNG Project further than ever before; to creating Alaska Performance Scholarships for our young people; to being on track for natural gas to Fairbanks by 2016; to a Cook Inlet gas and economic resurgence; to reforming Alaska’s oil tax system to bring more North Slope investment and job activity than we’ve seen in decades (and more state revenue at these lower oil prices); to resolving the Point Thomson dispute and gaining first production there by 2016; and to leading our state in fighting the epidemic of domestic violence, sexual abuse, and sex trafficking – we have achieved a great deal for our state. 

We respect the will of the voters, and offer Bill Walker, Byron Mallott and their families our sincere congratulations. Again, I want to thank our citizens for the honor of a lifetime.

Yeah, yeah, blah, blah, don't let the door hit you on the ass on your way out. 

I could NOT be happier to see this creepy little POS leave office, I only hope that Walker proves to be the Governor that Alaska needs right now and is not yet another socially conservative toady of the oil companies masquerading as a moderate in order to garner votes, who will now rip off his mask of reasonableness to reveal the slathering wolfish grin beneath.

(Well great now I have THAT image to get out of my head before bedtime.)

Alaska has a new Governor!

Sean Parnell out, Bill Walker in.

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:

Independent gubernatorial candidate Bill Walker maintained his lead after thousands of additional votes were counted Friday, leading the Associated Press to declare the race for Walker over Republican Gov. Sean Parnell. 

Walker, running with Democrat Byron Mallott on an independent ticket, held a narrow advantage for the entire race starting on election night Nov. 4. 

At the end of the counting on Friday, Walker led by 4,634 votes or 1.7 percent, with about 270,000 total votes counted. 

The ticket is expected to become the state's first non-party team to win a gubernatorial race. 

I have to admit that this is not nearly as satisfying for me as I hoped it would be. And that is for the simple reason that Sarah Palin also endorsed Walker in this race over her former Lt. Governor, Sean Parnell.

I cannot remember a time when Sarah Palin and I both wanted the same candidate to win an election, and not that one has done exactly that it fills me with concern.

No matter how you look at it Bill Walker is the superior choice to Sean Parnell. However is he a good choice for Alaska?

Walker is a strong supporter of public education, against the Pebble Mine, and for allowing the expansion of Medicaid.  He also advocated the increase in minimum wage and is by all accounts a much more reasonable person than Parnell ever was on anything.

Still, did Sarah Palin endorse him simply because she is the quintessential mean girl punishing her former friend after he dismantled her tax on oil companies? Or is Bill Walker her candidate of choice even if he had NOT been running against Parnell?

It was reported that Todd was sitting with Walker's family during a recent debate, so it certainly appears that they are chummy.

All of which makes me want to keep the celebratory champagne on ice until I get a better idea of exactly who we just elected to run our state.

In response to lawsuit the state of Alaska did a huge document dump concerning the Alaska National Guard scandal late yesterday. Can you say "redacted?"

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:  

An initial review of Alaska National Guard-related documents released by the state Friday in response to a media lawsuit shows the Parnell administration received more complaints about the guard than have so far been reported. 

But so many words and paragraphs among the 596 pages of emails and attached documents were redacted by state lawyers and the administration that the significance of some of the correspondence was difficult to discern.

The attorney general’s office made the document dump Friday afternoon in response to a court order in a public records lawsuit brought by Alaska Dispatch News and Alaska Public Media. The news organizations sued the state after records requests going back to May were denied or ignored by the governor’s office.

I have only had a little while to go through the e-mails and correspondence, but it is pretty clear that most of what could damage Sean Parnell has been redacted, much like those Sarah Palin e-mails from years ago.

However the one thing that is crystal clear is just how long this problem existed in the Alaska National Guard, and the fact that nothing was really ever done to stop it up until the media started to report on it.

It will take days, if not weeks to go through the entire document dump, and the Alaska Dispatch is asking or help from its readers, so if any of you have the time....

Remember we only have this weekend to find any smoking guns to use against Parnell before Tuesday's election. But hey, no pressure.

Republican women in Alaska have officially kicked Sarah Palin out of "Only Girlz Allowed" clubhouse.

Of course I disagree with all of that about Bill Walker, as well as any description of Sean Parnell as being competent, but the part about Palin's need to be seen with a winner is certainly spot on.

Which once again begs the question, just WHY has she still not endorsed her former AG Dan Sullivan?

(H/T to my friend Syrin.)

Mitt Romney and Ted Cruz flying to Alaska to stump for Dan Sullivan and Sean Parnell. Oh yeah, that should help.

Courtesy of the Washington Post:  

To help him deliver his closing argument to voters in one of the country's most contentious Senate races, Republican candidate Dan Sullivan is bringing a political odd couple to Alaska. 

Mitt Romney, the GOP's 2012 nominee and tacit head of the party's establishment, and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a tea party firebrand, are both jetting to the Last Frontier to boost Sullivan in the runup to Election Day. 

Sullivan, campaigning to unseat Sen. Mark Begich (D), will spend this Saturday and Sunday flying around the state with Cruz. The two will headline get-out-the-vote rallies in four of the state's main population areas -- Anchorage, the Mat-Su Valley, Fairbanks and the Kenai Peninsula -- according to a Sullivan campaign source who requested anonymity because the events have not yet been announced. 

Next Monday, on the eve of the election, Romney will hold a rally with Sullivan as well as Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell (R) in the Anchorage area, the source said. 

"Sniff sniff" is that desperation I smell?

I'm sorry but when you are being beaten up for relying on millions of dollars of out of state money to finance your campaign, and having advertisements made on your behalf featuring political heavyweights from the Bush administration, how in the hell does it help you to have the last failed GOP presidential candidate and the head nut from the GOP looney bin fly up to give you support?

Yes I realize that Mitt Romney won Alaska in the 2012 election, but I also know that since then he has become a pitiful shadow of his formal self, who was at that time a pitiful shadow of Ronald Reagen.

As for Ted Cruz, I think the only place in the state where he would be welcomed with open arms is in a thirty mile circumference around the home of a certain half term Governor who I am sure is getting ready to cook up that one moose chili recipe she knows in anticipation of his arrival.

Okay I'm sorry but Sarah Palin is DEFINITELY trying to sabotage the Bill Walker/Byron Mallott campaign.

I early made the case, in a somewhat tongue in cheek manner, that Palin had now realized that her endorsements were the kiss of death and THAT was why she was endorsing Bill Walker instead of her former Lt. Governor Sean Parnell.

Yes there are various reasons why she is no longer seeing eye to eye with Parnell, but to endorse his opponent is a rather huge step guaranteed to gin up controversy, and to ultimately help the Parnell campaign. (NOBODY dislikes this woman more than we do.)

However yesterday I think Palin removed any doubt, at least in my eyes, that she is working against Bill Walker and not for him.

Here is her Facebook post from yesterday: 

Alaska Wins With Independence; 

Stepping Aside for the Greater Good Our family is proud to support Bill Walker to lead Alaska! Bill Walker, Byron Mallott, and their families joined with ours and other Alaskans in Todd’s airplane hangar this week in a show of true Alaskan support, complete with a potlatch brimming with salmon, moose, and caribou hors d’oeuvres. Life-long Alaskans Bill and Byron have proven that they truly have our state’s heart and believe in putting Alaska first and ignoring status quo politics that get in the way of Alaska’s destiny. This is refreshing and productive, and Alaska wins when Team Walker wins! This unity ticket came about when winners of their respective primary races selflessly stepped aside for the sake of Alaska! This is rarely done in politics and proves that this strong independent ticket represents an Alaskan-sized heart, putting people over party machine politics and Alaskans over egos. (Now remember Walker is a former Republican, now running as an Independent. And Mallott is the Democrat who won his party's nomination. Neither one of these are the uber-conservative tea party types that Palin typically aligns herself with.)

Bill’s blue collar history and professional experience in practicing law fit perfectly with policies to move our state forward by developing our abundant natural resources. He and Byron are proven fiscal conservatives who know state government’s recent practice of deficit spending will halt development and make us dependent on a dysfunctional federal government. (While Walker/Mallot are in favor of protecting Alaska's sovereignty (All Alaskan politicians have to say that.) They are not anti-government types and have no problem working with the federal government. In fact once elected Walker intends to allow the Obamacare Medicaid expansion that Parnell adamantly fought against.)

The Last Frontier’s destiny as the nation’s leader in energy development, which will lead to Alaskan independence while helping secure our union, can only be fulfilled with decisive leadership that puts our residents first. The ability to move us forward by empowering a thriving private sector takes unifying action. Too many long-awaited projects and challenges – like the National Guard scandal – are made worse because of indecisive leadership, and that’s debilitating. We can’t afford to put development on the back burner while other states and nations surpass our opportunities, and we can’t sweep ethics problems under the table. (Okay now using the National Guard scandal against Parnell is perfectly reasonable for Walker, but it freaking started under the Palin administration. SHE was the one to first turn a blind eye. As a matter of fact there is a new political ad featuring Parnell's wife that makes that case.)

Unfortunately, in desperation to halt Team Walker’s momentum, lies are running rampant. Sadly, one such lie is about their faith. Don’t believe the million dollar Outside money ads perpetuating misrepresentations; just ask the guys themselves where they stand. For example, on the issue of respecting a culture of life, a pro-family group is grossly misrepresenting Bill’s position. He is unapologetically pro-life. Groups, individuals, and incumbent politicians telling you otherwise are untruthful, and that says everything about their character. Shame on people who know better and are in positions to counter lies but turn a blind eye instead. This kind of politics of personal destruction is why our country is hurting; adding to the pain are attempts here in Alaska to destroy a good man. Participants in this do not deserve your support. (Bringing up the fact that Walker is pro-life is NOT going to do him any favors with the Democrats and Independents he needs to win this election, and that is why it is not mentioned on his site. By bringing this up now all Palin is doing is making those who are firmly on Walker's side reevaluate their decision. And it will certainly NOT bring one Parnell voter over to Walker's side and she knows it!)

I’m proud of the ethics reform my administration ushered in, and I know Bill and Byron will re-start and build on that with an independent spirit beholden only to the people of Alaska, not to any political party. Nothing’s been handed to these guys. They’ve worked alongside us all over the state in true Alaskan spirit and know the value of a good job. They want that for every Alaskan family! So our diverse family, enjoying years of connections with both candidates, take a stand for Bill and Byron’s unity team. It’s time to get our state back on track to fiscal discipline so we can grow with the surplus Alaska had enjoyed under my administration. (See? She is essentially saying that Walker and Mallott will continue the work started by HER administration. She might as well have hired a contract killer and put a hit out on them instead. Same result.)

Please support Walker/Mallott on November 4th. Alaska First! It’s time. 

- Sarah Palin 

And there you have it.

There is NO way that Palin does not know what this will do to Bill Walker and his campaign.

By the way if she is so gung-ho about giving out endorsements in Alaska, then where is Dan Sullivan's?

No, she knows exactly what she is doing.

Withering under public scrutiny over the Alaska National Guard scandal, Sean Parnell decides it's time to hide behind his wife's skirt.

Today Sandy Parnell, Sean's very private wife, has decided to come out of the shadows to protect her incredibly disappointing husband.

Here is a portion courtesy of Alaska Dispatch: 

We’re all deeply concerned about the revelations of wrong-doing coming from the guard -- for the victims, for the men and women of the rank-and-file, and for our state. The terrible actions of a few, with the failure we’ve seen within the guard’s top ranks, are unforgivable. Our guard members and their families do incredible work on behalf of Alaskans, and they deserve better. 

I was with my husband, Sean, when he got the call in February with concrete information that called the Alaska guard command into question. Sean immediately called the National Guard Bureau’s Office of Complex Investigations (OCI). 

Sean was very frustrated, but I saw grim determination, too. The report he received on the phone that day was in sharp contrast to what he was being told by guard leadership, and my husband was committed to getting to the bottom of this. 

I am thankful that the bureau’s OCI responded so quickly and so professionally when my husband called for this independent, outside investigation. The insinuation by some that Sean would not take action is wrong. That is not who my husband is, and that’s not what I have seen him do. He took action, immediately, every time. When he got the facts, he acted. With every specific allegation of assault, he followed up personally.

Sadly that does not line up with what we have been told about Parnell's response to this crisis.

Earlier this month the Dispatch reported that: 

The record shows that Parnell took nearly his entire four-year term to remove officials at the top of the guard and its related civilian department. 

Parnell, officially the guard’s civilian commander, has acknowledged receiving complaints about deeply entrenched problems within guard leadership starting in 2010, but he said they lacked specifics. 

The problems didn’t go away. More than three years later, on Feb. 28, Parnell called for help from the Pentagon. 

Nor does it line up with statements made by  State Senator Fred Dyson who said the following:“I three times went to Sean and said: "You need to get on top of this and do something,’ and his response was, ‘I’ve done everything asked of me and every charge that has been brought has been referred to law enforcement. What more should I do?’ I said, ‘You need to be in charge of this and there’s more stuff, including an atmosphere that allows this stuff to go forward.”

No as much as Sandy Parnell might want to rescue her husband from his lack of leadership and inability to protect the soldiers under his command, this is a crisis of his own creation.

And having your wife come out to defend you and claim you were doing your job, how pathetic is that?

No wonder even Sarah Palin has endorsed his opponent.

I think Sarah Palin has come to realize that her endorsement is the kiss of death. Or less likely, she and I are supporting the same candidate.

Courtesy of ADN:

Former Gov. Sarah Palin has endorsed gubernatorial candidate Bill Walker. 

The endorsement came at a reception hosted by Palin Tuesday night in which she told about 100 guests that she supports Walker and his running mate, Byron Mallott, because she trusts them to responsibly develop Alaska’s resources for the maximum benefit of the state’s residents, said a release from the Walker-Mallott campaign. 

"Last night my family, along with Byron and Toni Mallott, and our campaign staff attended a reception hosted by Todd and Sarah Palin at their lakeside property in Wasilla,” said Walker in a press release sent Wednesday.

Okay seriously what in the hell is Walker doing associating with this poisonous family?

I'M supporting Bill Walker. Sarah Palin and I can;t be for the same guy, that is one of the signs of the Apocalypse!

This has to be some kind of sabotage.

I mean are we to believe that Palin would publicly come out in support of the guy running against her former Lt. Governor, and the guy she chose to replace her after she quit to avoid prosecution? 

Unless it's because she knows that by doing so she will sabotage the Walker candidacy and help Parnell to win again.

THAT'S got to be it!

Oooh she's a tricky one.

But hey, do you know what Parnell could do to demonstrate his anger at her betrayal? He could start releasing some of those redacted state e-mails of hers, un-redacted, and perhaps supplement them with some juicy behind the scenes information that we have not yet been made aware of.

I mean I'm still voting for Walker, but it would go along way toward persuading me to stop putting pins in my "Captain Zero" voodoo doll.

As if Alaskans needed another reason to vote Sean Parnell out of office.

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:  

The future of the health care program that covers some of Alaska’s poorest residents hinges largely on who voters elect governor in November. 

Republican Gov. Sean Parnell refused to extend Medicaid last year under the Affordable Care Act, what he called Obamacare. In a recent interview with Alaska Dispatch News, Parnell said expansion is “overly costly” and would put “an even greater burden on an already unsustainable system," though he said he is open to other means of Medicaid reform. 

Parnell's independent challenger, Bill Walker, said that if elected governor he would immediately accept Medicaid expansion, extending health care coverage to Alaskans who earn up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level, or about $19,800 for a single adult. But Walker, an attorney and former mayor of Valdez, said that once federal funding for the expansion dips below 100 percent -- it is set to decrease to 95 percent in 2017 -- the state will have to re-examine its decision. 

“If it helps Alaskans, then we should do it,” Walker said in an interview Wednesday with ADN. 

Even once it dips below 100% there is no way this is still not a great deal for Alaskans, and I seriously doubt that anybody could take it away once Alaskans started to receive this benefit. But hey I understand politics in Alaska, and know that Walker has to say things like this for the benefit of the mouth breathers.

As it says further down in the article this Medicaid expansion would affect between 10,000 to 41,000 Alaskans, including your favorite Alaska blogger.

So to sum up Sean Parnell did not do his job to protect personnel in the Alaska National Guard despite the fact that he was being asked to do so for essentially his entire term in office.

Governor Parnell also attempted to stand in the way of progress by challenging the findings of a US District Court judge that the same sex ban in Alaska was unconstitutional.  Even though similar attempts in other states had ultimately failed.

And now we know that the only thing standing between tens of  thousands of Alaskans receiving much needed healthcare is Sean Parnell.

What more do we need Alaskans? What more do we need?

Gay marriage is back on the menu boys! (And of course girls.)

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:  

A stay temporarily halting same-sex marriages in Alaska expired Friday, technically making it legal for couples to seek marriage licenses in the state, while the U.S. Supreme Court denied a further stay sought by the state. 

Just one minute after the 9th Circuit stay was dissolved, in a one-line response, U.S. Supreme Court denied a request for a further stay from the state of Alaska. 

But while marriages can go forward immediately, with state offices closed Friday in observance of Alaska Day, marriages will not resume until Monday morning.

I tweeted this to my daughter yesterday the minute that I got the news. 

It made her day.

However I want to make damn sure that the voters of this state remember that it was Sean Parnell, currently running for reelection, who caused this delay in the first place, and kept people long denied this right, the opportunity to get married this week.

And please, vote accordingly.

Alaska National Guard scandal breaks nationally. About damn time!

Image courtesy of the Anchorage Press

So late yesterday I started to receive links from all of you to stories about the AK National Guard scandals.

I have no idea if this is the result of my request for all of you to spread it far and wide or not, and it really doesn't matter. All that matters is that now it is starting to get coverage in news outlets NOT centered inside of Alaska. And that is very good news indeed.

First there is one of my favorite news outlets Raw Story:  

A top commander for the Alaska National Guard was recommended for “other than honorable” discharge earlier this year following an investigation that found he allowed recruiters to sexually assault and harass women. 

Lt. Col. Joseph Lawendowski failed to act on multiple complaints of serious misconduct, including rape, against four noncommissioned officers under his command, according to an Army investigation.

The article links directly to the Anchorage Press, who I absolutely believe should be getting the lion's share of the credit for their incredible coverage of this scandal.

Next up there is RT.com:

 Several leaked documents show that the Alaska National Guard's leadership supported a culture of sexual assault, theft and smuggling. The released reports coincide with the state's contentious gubernatorial election. 

The May 3 Army Regulation 15-6 (AR) report obtained by The Anchorage Press alleges that Lt. Col. Joseph Lawendowski, who joined the Alaska National Guard (ANG) in 2003, promoted steroid use by recruiters, used government vehicles for strip club outings, and possibly used government-issued credit cards for improper purchases when he led the command from 2008-2009. He also created a workplace environment where three male officers – Jarret Carson, John Nieves and Shannon Tallent – repeatedly violated regulations by having consensual sex with women while working.

Once again, as you can see, the Anchorage Press is credited with much of the reporting.

And finally we have Wonkette:  

Wonkette would like to give a hearty welcome to Lt. Col. Joseph R. Lawendowski, our daily (hourly?) “He seems nice” contestant. 

Lt. Col. Lawendowski is a rough tough military man and the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Training of the Alaska National Guard. Please note the use of present tense there, which is rather surprising, given that military investigators submitted a confidential report (an “AR 15-6” in military terms, not to be mistaken for the similarly named semiautomatic rifle) back in March and leaked to the Anchorage Press. 

The Press says Lawendowski was found “directly responsible for empowering Alaska guard recruiters to sexually assault and harass female soldiers, recruits and civilians.” The report recommended that he be given an “other than honorable” discharge for his role in allowing some seriously bizarre misbehavior by recruiters when he served as commander of the Alaska Army National Guard Recruiting and Retention Battalion (RRB) from November 2007 to May 2012. Also, too, the growing scandal could very well spill over into the 2014 Alaska governor’s race, since there are questions about Gov. Sean Parnell’s knowledge of the mess — the usual what did he know and when did he know it stuff. 

Gotta love Wonkette!

You probably could not help but notice that, while also giving credit to the Anchorage Press, Wonkette drew a line right back to Governor Parnell as well.

The other articles made that connection too, as of course they all should.

I actually watched quite a bit of cable news yesterday hoping this would get some coverage but so far I have not seen any.

We NEED to help make this a story that simply cannot be ignored.

I think once they get their hands on it, the national media will have a hard time letting it go.

And that is not only good for Alaskans, but that is good for everybody.

Sean Parnell puts the brakes on Alaska same sex marriage. Good political move there Captain Zero.

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a temporary stay halting same-sex marriage in Alaska Wednesday, a day after a lower court denied a similar request. 

The two-page order granted a temporary stay in Sunday's Hamby v. Parnell ruling until 11 a.m. Alaska time Friday, giving the state an opportunity to seek a stay from the U.S. Supreme Court. 

The state said it would seek the higher court stay and enforce the stay at the 9th Circuit. Department of Law Spokeswoman Cori Mills said in an email “the state cannot issue any marriage licenses until the stay is lifted.” 

“The state will be filing a request for a stay with the U.S. Supreme Court, as suggested by the Ninth Circuit in its order granting a temporary stay,” she wrote. 

Wednesday's decision marks another day of a legal back and forth in the ruling. Sunday U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Burgess found Alaska's same-sex marriage ban to be unconstitutional. He denied a stay for the order Tuesday. The state quickly appealed for a decision at the 9th Circuit.

Here's the thing.

Alaska IS going to have same sex marriage. That is a certainty.

All Parnell is doing is delaying the inevitable, and absolutely losing the support of any reasonable Alaskan who is not some Bible thumping fundamentalist asshole.

Parnell was already slightly behind Bill Walker in polls back in September, but once you combine this decision with the ongoing Alaska National Guard scandal, it looks as if Parnell is a drowning man reflexively putting rocks in his pockets.

All I can do at this time is cheer him on, "Go Sean, go!"

You idiot!

Former National Guard member says that he blew the whistle on the scandals seven years ago but nobody would listen.

Sarah Palin with Alaska National Guard troops during her time as Governor.

Courtesy of KTUU:

A former Alaska National Guard member said he blew the whistle to his chain of command more than seven years before the federal Department of Defense's Office of Complex Investigations issued a report in September detailing allegations of sexual assault, abuse of power and cover-ups. 

"What I found out is we were paying for products more than once," Blaylock said. "We only had one product for advertising, and yet we were paying for it more than twice. The money was going somewhere it didn't need to go to." 

Blaylock said in 2007, he alerted Catherine Jorgensen, who was then the Guard's deputy chief of staff and personnel, and Gen. Tom Katkus, before he was promoted to adjutant general, that he was suspicious of soldiers using money from the recruiting and retention account. 

After raising concerns to his chain of command, Blaylock said he was reassigned to another unit. 

He also began hearing from fellow Guardsmen and Guardswomen about other problems. 

"When the first sexual assault victims started talking to me, it wasn't like they were just coming forward, saying they had been raped," Blaylock said. "It wasn't like they said, 'Hey, sir, I've been raped.' They were just talking. They wanted to talk and tell someone about it. They would tell me bits and pieces, but never quite get to the point. When I finally went back and there were four of them one right after the other, I confronted them, just asked them: 'Were you raped?' They said yes. And I said, 'Was it by someone in the National Guard?' (They said) 'Yes.'" 

"Many of them told me they had tried to talk to law enforcement in the past and nothing had happened," said Blaylock.

It is incredible that not only were they ignored by the National Guard, but that even other law enforcement in Alaska failed to take them seriously or move to protect them.

Blaylock said that he tried to repeatedly to get somebody in his chain of command to take him seriously but that it failed him, and that he was not taken seriously until he stepped outside that chain of command and reported his concerns to Department of Defense National Guard Bureau.

This is how he claims he was treated by his superiors:

"I was labeled a crackpot by General Katkus," Blaylock said. "Essentially, anything I tried to bring forward after that was muddied because my name was attached to it. I had a lot of people who basically wouldn't talk to me, including in law enforcement."

Boy that certainly sounds familiar. 

Well now this is absolutely being noticed in the national media, and I have to say that this does not look good for a certain Alaska Governor.

Alaska Dispatch sues Governor Parnell to force release of records concerning National Guard scandal.

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:  

Alaska Dispatch News sued Gov. Sean Parnell on Wednesday, asking a judge to force the governor’s office to release public records related to the ongoing scandal within the Alaska National Guard. 

The news organization, along with its co-plaintiff Alaska Public Media, claims the governor’s office has been wrongly denying public records requests that could help voters verify whether Parnell acted swiftly in dealing with numerous allegations about mishandled sexual assaults, harassment, fraud, favoritism and other misconduct, including abuse of power, within the guard over the past several years. 

The two media outlets made the decision to sue after public records requests by their reporters were met with long delays and ultimately rejected by Randal Ruaro, the policy director and special counsel in the governor’s office, in broad-sweeping denial letters. 

ADN and Alaska Public Media are asking a judge for an expedited hearing on the matter, given the Nov. 4 election is less than a month away.

Well good for them!

I am glad that some Alaska news agencies are finally standing up to politicians and doing their jobs.

I think we all have a feeling that Parnell is covering something up and if the Dispatch is successful here it may have a significant impact on not only the Governor's race this November, but other elections in the state as well.

The Alaska Dispatch is not alone in wanting to know more about the National Guard scandal. In fact the Anchorage Press, which has a much smaller operating budget was able to dig up some interesting dirt on the Deputy Chief of Staff, pornographic websites, and ties to the Iron Dog.  (Did I just hear Todd Palin shift uncomfortably in his chair?)

Now see this is why bloggers sometimes get frustrated. We simply do not have the resources to sue administrations and powerful organizations for documentation, or spend hours a day following leads, and therefore can only rely on our networking abilities and reputations to help persuade sources to disclose important information to us.

But damn, if I had deep pockets and an attorney on retainer? Whoa Nelly!

Alaska Dispatch calls out Governor Parnell for waiting his entire first term to do anything about sexual assault allegations at the National Guard.

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch:  

As the Alaska National Guard sexual misconduct and leadership scandal evolves into a major issue in his re-election bid, Gov. Sean Parnell is confronting two key questions: When did he learn about problems in the guard, and did he respond effectively? 

The record shows that Parnell took nearly his entire four-year term to remove officials at the top of the guard and its related civilian department. 

Parnell, officially the guard’s civilian commander, has acknowledged receiving complaints about deeply entrenched problems within guard leadership starting in 2010, but he said they lacked specifics. 

The problems didn’t go away. More than three years later, on Feb. 28, Parnell called for help from the Pentagon. 

Parnell’s plea to the federal government was answered by Gen. Frank Grass, chief of the National Guard Bureau, who sent a team of investigators to Alaska. They delivered a scathing report into leadership failures in the guard that created a toxic climate in which sexual assaults, sexual harassment, misuse of guard money and equipment, and outright fraud persisted for years.

The report by General Grass was released at the beginning of last month, at a time when Parnell was attempting to run for reelection literally forcing him to respond. Which he sort of did by firing two entire people, Major General Thomas Katkus and deputy commissioner McHugh Pierre.

Of course Parnell also tried to share the blame by stating that, Senators Mark Begich and Lisa Murkowski had not done anything about it either.

The difference being of course that it is NOT their fucking job. It is the job of the governor of the state to make sure that the National Guard was not misusing government resources or allowing female members to be sexually assaulted or raped.

The Dispatch then goes on to explain just now many people tried to get Parnell to get off his fat ass and do something, including three chaplains, a Colonel, two lieutenant colonels, retired Alaska Air Guard Brig. Gen. Gene Ramsey, and State Senator Fred Dyson, a fellow Republican.

Here is what Dyson had to say:

“I three times went to Sean and said, ‘You need to get on top of this and do something,’ and his response was, ‘I’ve done everything asked of me and every charge that has been brought has been referred to law enforcement. What more should I do?’ I said, ‘You need to be in charge of this and there’s more stuff, including an atmosphere that allows this stuff to go forward.’”

Dyson did not get involved until two years after Parnell had first been notified of the situation.

There were also two ADN stories in 2013, but still Parnell did nothing.

Finally when he could not longer ignore it, and there was a danger that it might negatively impact his bid for reelection, Parnell stumbles into action.

Here was how he explained the delay:  

In hindsight, Parnell said, he should’ve acted sooner, but believed he was being reasonable “under the circumstances.” 

“You check the traplines over there, you do what you think is reasonable at the time, and it turns out that we were wrong, and I was wrong to trust what I was hearing, ” Parnell said.

I have no fucking idea how a trapline analogy is supposed to work here, but I think a better one would be if you heard your frat brother raping a young woman and you closed his door so that the sounds of her screams and cries for help would not bother you.

And this is the guy who wants credit for starting a program to fight sexual assault in Alaska.

Sean Parnell requests resignation of civilian deputy commissioner for the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.

Sarah Palin with McHugh Pierre.

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch: McHugh Pierre, civilian deputy commissioner for the Alaska Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, has resigned at the request of Gov. Sean Parnell, according to a spokesperson for the governor. 

"The Office of the Governor requested his resignation this week," Parnell spokesperson Sharon Leighow said in an email Thursday evening. 

Pierre's departure comes as his close affiliation with Alaska National Guard commander Maj. Gen. Thomas Katkus is under intensified scrutiny. Katkus' was the first head to roll in the wake of Parnell's efforts to clean up a laundry list of command failures noted by outside investigators called in by Parnell to the get to the bottom of low morale, distrust and real and perceived wrongs within the Guard, including the alleged mishandling of sexual assaults and a feeling that assailants were protected instead of being dealt with.

It seems that Pierre may have been heavily involved in covering up some of the unseemly behavior at the Recruiting and Retention department of the National Guard, which included allegations of fraud, sexual assault, inappropriate relationships, and the misuse of government vehicles.

Interestingly enough the time period identified for many of these events is between 2008 and 2009. Hmm who was in charge of the state back then?

By the way Pierre was hand picked to be the spokesperson for the Republican party, Randy Ruedrich's old job, by none other than Sarah Palin herself.

Oh and he was also the guy who accidentally revealed that the McCain campaign did not send anybody up here to vet Palin until AFTER she was chosen as his VP candidate.

He also used to substitute for Eddi Burke on his old talk radio show once in a while.

Oh yeah Sarah Palin's fingerprints are all over this guy.

You know, figuratively speaking of course. We'll assume.

PPP has a new Alaska poll out. This one includes a question about the Throwdown at the Hoedown.

"Another PPP poll oh this oughtta be good."

As you know the PPP regularly conducts polls up here in the Great land and today they released their most recent one.

According to the poll Dan Sullivan leads Mark Begich by 43 to 41 percent for the Senate.

Bill Walker leads Sean Parnell by 42 to 41 percent in the Governor's race.

And passage of a new minimum wage in Alaska looks like a sure thing with 61% for it, and 33% apparently made up of business owners who don't want to pay their employees what they are worth.

Sarah Palin is still very disliked by most Alaskans as the poll shows that 54% want her to go away while 32%, who must not have seen her stupid reality show, think of her favorably.

However only 18% think she should make a run at the presidency with a whopping 75% not wanting her anywhere near the White House.

And then PPP asked a new question, this one about the now famous drunken brawl.

And this was the response: 

Finally 30% of voters in the state think the Palins instigated the recent brawl they were involved in to 18% who think it was the other parties involved, although 52% have no opinion.

Okay well I am not sure how it is possible that over 50% of people have not heard of the brawl, but to me that is the only thing that explain such a high number having no opinion.

Because if you know the Palins, you KNOW they instigated this thing.

However I will admit that I got my hair cut last week, and the lady doing it had never heard of the brawl, nor did any other person in the shop that day. So, perhaps the problem is that we still have not managed to spread this story far enough yet.

Well let's see if we can rectify that, shall we?

New report reveals that Alaska is number one in men killing women. Can't we ever be number one for something good?

Courtesy of Alaska Dispatch: 

Alaska has the nation's highest rate of men murdering women, more than double the U.S. average, according to a study released Monday by Violence Policy Center. 

The study said that 2.57 of every 100,000 women in the Last Frontier were murdered by men in 2012 -- more than double the national average of 1.16. That represents nine women murdered in Alaska under circumstances involving only one female victim and one male murderer. 

"One is too many," Gov. Sean Parnell said in response to the numbers. 

The study used data collected from the FBI's Supplementary Homicide Report. According to the data, the average age of women killed in Alaska in 2012 was 41. Four were shot -- none with a handgun, according to the study -- three were killed with knives "or other cutting instruments," and one was killed using blunt force. One was not accounted for in the study. 

All but one knew her killer, and many of the killers and victims were in intimate relationships. Half of the deaths followed an argument, the study said.

Sadly this is nothing new up here .

The men of this state have long represented a significant danger to the women of this state, especially during the dark days of winter when alcohol flows and cabin fever rears its ugly head.

The article goes on to discuss Parnell's "Choose Respect" campaign which aside from a couple of Palin-like photo-ops has been essentially a huge dud.

Parnell likes to talk about what the project is doing, but even with a fifteen million dollar grant from the US Justice Department he hasn't done dick.

And at least one of my Senators agrees with me: 

"The state needs to be more focused on this issue, not just have a bumper sticker campaign," Begich said during a phone call from Washington, D.C. He called the Choose Respect campaign a good conversation starter, but ultimately, he said, it's not doing enough to solve the problem, as Alaska also has high rates of domestic violence and sexual assault.

We need to do something comprehensive up here to protect our women, and handing out brochures and giving speeches is just not enough.

Not by a long shot.

So it's official. The Alaska Independent candidate and Democratic candidate have joined forces to defeat the scourge of Sean Parnell.

Former Democratic candidate Byron Mallott, with Bill Walker in the background.

Courtesy of The New York Times:

The race for governor of Alaska took a decided turn into the wild on Tuesday when the Democratic candidate, Byron Mallott, said he would withdraw and run instead for lieutenant governor alongside an independent candidate, Bill Walker. 

The decision means that for the first time since Alaskan statehood in 1959, no Democrat will be on the ballot for governor. 

Mr. Mallott said he became convinced, after days of soul-searching and analysis of the polling data, that reshuffling the deck was the only path to victory over Gov. Sean Parnell, a Republican who is seeking his second term. 

The unity ticket with Mr. Walker was announced in Anchorage on Tuesday afternoon after a weekend of negotiations between the campaigns, and hours before the deadline for changes to the November ballot. 

On Tuesday night, Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, a Republican, granted the emergency declaration of a ballot change requested by Mr. Walker and Mr. Mallott. But it is possible that the decision could be challenged.

Of course Parnell's spokesman  claimed that they were not troubled by this and quickly accused Walker of being a Democrat all along.

However I think Parnell IS worried about this, and I think he has good reason to be.

Alaska has been under the influence of the Palin for almost a decade now, and we desperately need to get somebody in control of the state who is not governing under the influence of the Wasilla Wendigo.

Alaska gubernatorial candidates may merge campaigns to ensure defeat of Sean Parnell. I give this idea the IM stamp of approval.

Courtesy of the Fairbanks Newsminer:  

Democrat Byron Mallott and independent candidate Bill Walker were in their second day of discussions Monday about whether they would run as a bipartisan or non-partisan ticket, Mallott spokeswoman Laury Scandling said in an email to The Associated Press. 

A formal statement was expected by noon Tuesday, said Scandling, who added that she plans to leave the campaign at the same time. 

Any changes to the ballot have to be made by Tuesday. 

The Alaska Dispatch News reports discussions would have Walker as the gubernatorial candidate and Mallott as lieutenant governor. 

The current lieutenant governor candidates for the campaigns would have to drop out. 

Polls have suggested for months that Republican Gov. Sean Parnell would win a three-way race against Mallott and Walker, but would face a more difficult challenge against a single candidate, especially Walker. 

Some Democrats and Republicans who oppose Parnell have been pushing Mallott and Walker to join forces. 

"I can say comfortably there's a common desire in both camps to not see the governor re-elected," said Tom Begich, a high-level Democratic party volunteer who has been promoting the merger.

I have to admit that I am kind of on the fence when it comes to Walker, after all he switched from Republican to Independent just for this race, however many of my progressive friends seem to think he is a good guy. And the unions up here seem to love him. 

However my bottom line is to vote for ANYBODY that might win and keep Parnell out of office.

It is WAY past time for Captain Zero to hit the bricks.