Alaska newspapers endorse Lisa
October 25, 2010
Three Alaska newspapers, including the state’s largest daily, have endorsed U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski.
The Juneau Empire, Alaska Newspapers Inc., which publishes numerous weeklies, and Alaska’s largest daily, The Anchorage Daily News, talk about the value of her seniority.
In a strongly worded editorial, the Anchorage Daily News said Murkowski has the character, experience and ability to work to solve problems and advance Alaska’s interests. It called her Democratic opponent Scott McAdams reasonable but inexperienced. It said tea party favorite Miller is “selling a mirage, in which people who think differently don’t exist or don’t matter.”
“Her Democratic opponent, Scott McAdams, is articulate and reasonable. He has grown in this campaign from electoral cannon fodder to credible candidate,” the Daily News wrote. “Alaskans will see more of him on the political stage, and that’s good. But this is not his time. A half-dozen years as a small-town school board member and mayor in a weak-mayor system is too thin a resume for the challenges of the U.S. Senate in 2010.”
The Empire wrote: “There is no question that Congress will have to wrestle with a burgeoning national deficit and a sluggish economic recovery. Now, at a time when Alaska is most vulnerable of having spending siphoned away, we need Murkowski’s seniority to fight for our interests.
“In a recent stopover by Sen. Mark Begich, he said stated since 2005, the senate has turned over 50 percent of its members. Should Joe Miller or Scott McAdams prevail in the election, Alaska will have the least senior delegation of all 50 states, with Begich’s two years and a newly elected freshman. Begich currently ranks 92nd out of 100 on the senate seniority list.”
‘Alaskans need someone who has a grasp of the large issues that will allow the state to advance without missing the fact that we need to move forward together – tiny villages and all,” Alaska Newspapers wrote. “Murkowski’s experience – and Alaskans’ experience with her leadership – shows she’s the right candidate for the job.”