Godspeed Uncle Ted

There are few politicians who can be considered true pioneers. Certainly George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and other founding fathers of our United States set the bar as our nation’s first political pioneers.

For Alaska, former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens was such a pioneer. A lawyer by trade, Stevens helped put Alaska on the national political map before the 49th state was the 49th state. He even caught the eye of President Eisenhower. His two terms in the state House of Representatives was just the training he needed when in 1968 then-Gov. Wally Hickel appointed Stevens to the U.S. Senate after the death of Sen. Bob Bartlett. That appointment kicked an unprecedented 40-year career that saw Stevens become the longest tenured Republican senator in history.

Stevens, 86, died Monday when the plane he was riding in crashed near Dillingham. He was nearly two years removed from losing his bid for re-election to Democrat Mark Begich, but for many Alaskans, he was more than a politician. He was “Uncle Ted.”

Whether you liked Stevens’ politics or opposed him (and there are few who successfully pulled off the latter), Stevens leaves a pioneer-like legacy for Alaska. Ted Stevens International Airport bears his name, a honor that’s usually bestowed posthumously. In the Mat-Su Valley, we have a constant reminder of the impact Stevens had as our representative in Washington, D.C.

The interchange of the Glenn and Parks highways is a crucial development for local transportation. Opened in 2004 thanks to Stevens, who garnered a special $50 million appropriation at a time when there was little hope the project would ever happen.

“That was a big deal,” said former borough mayor John Duffy. “That thing was completely stalled, and then Uncle Ted came through.”

The end of his career was marred by the prosecution and conviction for allegedly failing to report gifts from former VECO CEO Bill Allen. Days after his convection, he lost his final bid for re-election. Six months later, Stevens’ record was wiped clean by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, who found prosecutors engaged in misconduct during Stevens’ trial.

In a place where decades of statehood can still be tallied on the fingers of one hand, Stevens’ legacy is much more than a botched prosecution. As our state grew, so did Stevens as a U.S. senator, and his work will continue to make a difference for citizens for decades more. Along with pushing to make sure Alaska’s vast Bush areas were never forgotten, Stevens’ endowment to all includes legislation like the Amateur Sports Act, which created the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Stevens was also a primary player in passing the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act. Revenues from the resulting oil pipeline from the North Slope to Valdez is the foundation of Alaska’s economy, which also pays back every resident annually from the Permanent Fund Dividend.

Whether you agreed or opposed his politics, Ted Stevens got results for Alaska. That Stevens’ life should be taken so abruptly is a loss for not only his family, but for all Alaskans.

We will miss Uncle Ted.