Alaskans fondly call longtime Senator Ted Stevens their “Uncle Ted” for his ability to steer lots of federal money to his home state, but his conviction in a corruption case on Monday had many residents crying: “Throw the bum out.”
Dave Thibault, of Wasilla, said there was no doubt that the guilty verdict will affect his vote on Nov. 4.
“Oh, he is guilty and it is time we change the face of Alaska’s politician,” he said.
Thibault, an oil worker, said it is time someone new represent Alaska in the US capital.
Stevens has represented Alaska for 40 of its 49 years since statehood in 1959.
“Shame, shame. Go down with the rest of them, I guess,” Thibault said of Stevens, referring to the VECO Corp scandal that so far has resulted in corruption convictions for two state lawmakers. “He’s tainted now.”
A federal court jury in Washington, found Stevens guilty on all seven counts of lying on Senate disclosure forms to conceal US$250,000 in gifts and renovations on his home from VECO workers.
Two former VECO executives, Bill Allen and Rick Smith, have been convicted of bribing Alaska lawmakers and are assisting the government in the continuing investigation. Allen was the government’s star witness against Stevens.
Stevens said he would not resign from the Senate and was planning on being back in Alaska today to campaign for re-election.
Patti Higgins, chairwoman of the Alaska Democratic Party, said Stevens is moving in the wrong direction.
“Senator Stevens’ felony convictions are very serious and he should immediately resign from the Senate,” Higgins said, reading from a statement.
“Alaskans deserve better from their public officials, it’s time for us to elect an ethical and honest senator who will move this state forward,” she said.
‘GREAT’
Thea Nelson, who works for a nonprofit agency serving the disabled in Juneau, described the verdict as great and said it should not have taken this long.
Nelson said she never trusted Stevens, never voted for him and always figured he was “padding somebody’s pocket.”
“We need fresh blood in there, people who are really out for what’s best for Alaska and not the old boy club anymore,” Nelson said.
Not all Alaskans were ready, however, to turn their backs on Stevens.
Mike Hubbard, 52, of Wasilla said the jury got it wrong, at least in finding Stevens guilty on all seven counts.
Hubbard said he still plans to vote for Stevens because he does not think much of opponent Mark Begich, the Democratic mayor of Anchorage. Besides, he said, Stevens has worked with Alaska’s best interests in mind for decades.
If anything, what happened was that Allen took advantage of Stevens’ good nature and Stevens got caught up in something, Hubbard said.
GIFT-GIVING
Back in the 1980s, gift-giving was not unusual in his business, said Hubbard, who manages construction projects. It was not unusual to be offered fly-in fishing trips, hunting trips and other gifts.
That is gone now, Hubbard said.
“It was just a way of expressing gratitude,” he said. “Now it is considered buying influence.”
During his four decades in office, Stevens — the longest serving Republican in the history of the Senate — helped bring about US$3.4 billion in federal spending to Alaska.
And his name is everywhere: The Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport; Ted Stevens Marine Research Institute; Ted and Catherine Stevens Center for Science and Technology Education and the Stevens Family Chalet at the Hilltop Ski Area in Anchorage.
What do you do when Alaska’s most famous son is now the state’s most famous felon, and what do you do with those names?
Roger Wetherell, spokesman for the state’s Department of Transportation, said the airport was renamed in 2000.
“It’s highly doubtful that we would pull down the name moments after the verdict,” Wetherell said. “We would most likely have to look to the legislative process for renaming a public building.”
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was