Walker/Mallot: that's the ticket

Fusion: the union of different things by, or as if by, melting or blending.

There you have it — the democratic strategy for the governors race in Alaska.

It seems the best path to the Alaska governor’s mansion for the Democratic Party is to remove the democrat from the gubernatorial the race and form a “fusion” ticket. Democratic candidate Byron Mallott has chosen to bow out of the 3-way governors contest and instead run as the lieutenant governor on a Walker/Mallott ticket. Bill Walker, the Independent in the race, was chosen to lead the ticket because he polled better and would draw more of the independents and undecideds than Mallott.

As a long-suffering Democrat in a blindingly red state like Alaska, you might think I'm a little upset, but nothing could be further from the truth. Walker, the one-time moderate Republican turned Independent, and Mallott have chosen to put aside differences, join forces, and try to accomplish something meaningful. In the “my way or the less-taxes-more-potholes, highway” atmosphere ushered in by the Tea Party, this idea of working for all your constituents and not just the few that pass a political litmus test is a truly radical concept.

This isn't to say that the incumbent Republican in the race, Governor Parnell, isn’t interested in a little fusion of his own. Names like BP, Exxon and Pebble Partnership come to mind. The recent $2 billion taken from the people of Alaska and given to big oil with no strings attached is pretty good example of political fusion. Challenges to the Violence Against Women Act, the Katie John subsistence suit, and the EPA's protection of fisheries in the Pebble Mine watershed are also indicative of Parnell's political allegiances. In fact it appears that since he's been in office, Governor Parnell has been fusing his brains out.

I mention this to illustrate that the Parnell administration is capable of working with its constituents, too. It's just that the constituents in this case are multinational corporations and not the people of the state.

Walker, the fire breathing, wild-eyed cooperator in the race, has a long political history in the state. He was the mayor of Valdez, has been on numerous energy councils and is a lifetime member of the NRA. He is a Sunday school teacher, a YMCA basketball and soccer coach and was part of a humanitarian medical outreach to Guyana. You know, wild-eyed cooperator stuff. He's a moderate that never let ideology trump common sense. He's what is known as a “Wally Hickel republican”.

Walker laments the loss of our “you drill or we will” approach to dealing with oil companies doing business in the state. He's long been an advocate of a large-diameter gas line to ship Alaska's gas to Asian markets and address the growing energy crisis in the state.

He understands that large corporations are reluctant to develop a resource (Alaska natural gas) that would put them in competition with themselves and their existing fields already online. To quote the fire-breather himself: “It is time Alaska has a governor who understands what is needed to truly engage with the world gas markets and finally build the large-volume gas line to tidewater on Alaska’s terms. As we enter yet another pre-election study under Governor Parnell’s SB 138, we continue to put the decision of Alaska’s future in the boardrooms of Alaska’s biggest competitors for Alaska’s gas line.”

I realize this sounds like a campaign ad for the Walker/Mallott ticket, but it's hard to look at the facts and not sound like that ad. We have a political environment that encourages gridlock and contention. The motivated few who show up for off-year elections and primaries are calling the tune for the rest of us. This, in turn, leads to ideological rancor that makes cooperation all but impossible.

We also have a governor that exploits the anti-tax, anti-compromise, anti-government mood that has grown out of our political dysfunction. He does this to achieve the same ends as when he lobbied for ConocoPhillips. Or when he worked for law firm Patton Boggs who represented Exxon in its dealings with Alaska. It seems abundantly clear that Parnell has chosen to caucus with big oil rather than the citizens who elected him. A citizenry that, incidentally, owns the oil and gas being pumped by ConocoPhillips, Exxon, etc.

The Walker/Mallott team may be more conservative than I am. They may be more open to oil and gas development than I am. They are certainly more representative of the prevailing attitude in the state than I am, and that is what government and politics is supposed to be about. We are a conglomeration of differing ideas and attitudes and so cooperation and compromise are essential to accurately represent all ofthe people. This ticket comprising a centrist Independent and mainstream Democrat represents a real hope for a return to rational governance.