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National: Senators slam BP over pipeline troubles By RICHARD MAUER - BP's failure to maintain and test key North Slope pipelines has shattered its claim of a "gold standard" of environmental stewardship and has jeopardized efforts to open sensitive areas to drilling in Alaska and elsewhere, several pro-development Republican senators said Tuesday.

Republicans and Democrats alike took turns pounding on BP officials at a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing. The panel was called to investigate two pipeline leaks this year from corroded transit lines that span the Prudhoe Bay oilfield.

Among the senators to question BP officials on Tuesday were top congressional advocates and opponents of opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, a two-decade battle that came closest to passage last year. The last two votes taken on Senate budget bills authorizing drilling passed 51-49. But New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici, the committee's Republican chairman, said BP's conduct might have cost advocates their slight edge.

"ANWR might go backwards with this kind of event," Domenici said.

After last week's explosive hearings before an investigative panel of the House Energy and Commerce Committee - in which BP's former top corrosion official in Alaska claimed his Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination and refused to testify - there seemed to be little new factual information for the senators to uncover in their two-hour hearing. Instead, they referred to the discoveries by House of Representatives investigators for fodder to criticize BP and analyze the likely political fallout. - More...
Wednesday - September 13, 2006

National: House may name lawmakers who are behind pork - The Republican-led House of Representatives will vote this week on two measures that could help reveal who's behind billions of dollars in pork-barrel spending each year.

That could help Republicans appeal to fiscally conservative voters who are frustrated by Congress's runaway spending and threatening to stay home from the polls in November.

Taxpayer-watchdog groups praise the sentiment behind House Majority Leader John Boehner's decision to schedule these votes, but he's being squeezed between lawmakers who are reluctant to cede power and critics who say the legislation doesn't respond forcefully enough to a spate of congressional corruption scandals.

The first measure, approved by the Senate and slated for final House approval on Wednesday, would create a centralized, online search engine for government contracts, making it easier for the public to track who's receiving government dollars and how the money is being spent. - More...
Wednesday - September 13, 2006

Alaska: Benson Questions Why Young Didn't Question Oil Industry During His Committee Hearing - Democrate Diane Benson who would like the seat held by Congressman Don Young, the At-Large Representative for the state of Alaska, is plenty upset with Young and is questioning why Young left his committee's meeting which was investigating the BP's pipeline failure and corrosion issue. Rep. Young is the Chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Today, starting at 11:00 am, the committee was holding an investigation hearing on the BP oil spill, shutdown and maintenance issues.

Just as his opportunity to ask probing questions to Steve Marshall, President of BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc.; Don Young left his meeting and allowed a fellow republican to chair the committee said Benson.

Benson said with the failure of BP to monitor its pipeline, the shut down of the Prudhoe Bay production and its effect on Alaska's economic future has made national news and is at the top of Alaska's priority list and this event and the investigation of who, how and why this host of incidents came about should be at the very top of the list of the only representative that Alaska has in the House of Representatives.

Representative Young continuously reminds the Alaskan people how important his seniority in the Congress is to Alaskans said Benson. Unfortunately, the time when Alaskans needed him most to represent the people of Alaska and the State itself, he is absent she said. - More...
Wednesday - September 13, 2006

Ketchikan: FCC Investigates Ketchikan Radio Stations - Local radio stations KTKN/KGTW are being investigated by the Federal Communications Commission and the State of Alaska District Attorney's office for using the word "raffle" in a promotional announcement to assist the Alaska Diabetes Association for a fund raiser called Pennock Challenge.

The investigation was initiated after an individual filed a letter of complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Federal law prohibits broadcasting any advertisement for a lottery or any information concerning a lottery. Simply defined, a lottery is as any game, contest, or promotion that contains the elements of a prize.

Alaska state law also prohibits radio stations from broadcasting lotteries or lottery results within the state, no matter how good or worthy the cause.

According to a news release from KTKN and KGTW, their intent was to help the Diabetes Association raise funds for continued research to find a cure for the dreaded disease.

"We were most surprised to receive the investigation notice from the FCC," said Blake Messer, General Manager of KTKN and KGTW. "The Diabetes Association is such a worthwhile cause and you'd be right to ask what possible legitimate reason there could be to file a letter of complaint with the FCC against promotion of the Diabetes Association".- More...
Wednesday - September 13, 2006

Viewpoints Opinions/Letters White Cliff: A Community Project By Sara Lawson - Wednesday $50 Cruise Ship Tax By Joe Johnson - Wednesday Cruise Tax By Chris Elliott - Wednesday Voting NO on Whitecliff! By Robert D. Warner - Wednesday Candidate for City Council By Samuel Bergeron - Wednesday White Cliff / Baseball By Scott Klein - Wednesday Not A Critique & Primary Ballots By Charlotte Tanner - Wednesday Cruise Ship Tax By Vic and Judi Vreeland - Wednesday Not a critique By Craig Moen - Sunday No to White Cliff Project By G. J. Williams - Saturday Pride & Prejudice By Jennifer Brewer - Saturday Stop Schoencliff By John Beck - Saturday Admission to Alaska Tax By Doug Irish - Saturday Retort: Divisions By Don Hoff Jr. - Saturday Consolidation By Bill Thomas Sr. - Friday Goodbye Bowling By Neil Gray - Friday Where are we going? By Robert McRoberts - Friday Bully Breeds By Kelly Needham - Friday Ketchikan Chapter T&H Delegates By Robert A. Sanderson Jr. - Thursday Proposed subdivision will deny public access to Herring Cove By Joan Beraldi - Thursday More Viewpoints/ Letters Publish A Letter Political Cartoonists Political Cartoons Ketchikan City Police Report AK Troopers Daily Dispatch Arts This Week Today's Forecast Ketchikan Weather Data Current AK Weather Map Classifieds & Announcements September 2006 Click on the date to read the stories published on that day. S M T W T F S 27 28 29 30 31 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Front Page Archives

National: Put 12,000 troops on U.S.-Canada border, task force says By ALAN FREEMAN - A task force appointed by a Republican congressman from Georgia has recommended that at least 12,000 National Guard troops and additional agents be deployed on the U.S.-Canada border to halt what it fears is a growing flow of illegal immigrants.

"We're talking about tens of thousands of illegal immigrants a year coming from Canada," said John Stone, deputy chief of staff to Charlie Norwood - a House Republican who is active in the immigration-reform caucus, which is pushing for tough measures to stop illegal immigration, particularly from Mexico.

Stone and four retired military and Border Patrol officials named by Norwood have recommended the deployment of 8,000 National Guard soldiers to secure the border with Canada, including round-the-clock surveillance of 1,000 hard-surface roads crossing the border that are currently not patrolled.

In a 22-page report, the task force says that these unmanned roads "currently provide ... quick exit for intruders."

"Closure of these crossings would turn the time factor back in favor of U.S. and Canadian authorities."

It also recommends deploying 1,600 Coast Guard and other naval reserves and 400 patrol craft to secure coastal and inland waterways, plus 160 aircraft and 1,280 Air National Guard for increased air surveillance. It recommends adding 1,000 U.S. Border Patrol agents, plus a 25 percent boost in the number of customs personnel. - More...
Wednesday - September 13, 2006

National: 'No sinister intent' from knife found on plane - A knife found under the seat of a Pittsburgh flight to North Carolina on Sunday appears to be a tool used when carpeting was recently installed in the jet, law enforcement officials said.

Flight 1897 to Charlotte, N.C., was canceled after a passenger found the small knife under a seat Sunday evening.

"It may have inadvertently been left behind by workers installing carpet in that plane," Lt. Beth Hoover of the Allegheny County police said.

The pilot aborted the takeoff, and the 142 passengers and five crewmembers got off the plane while a security sweep was conducted. The passengers were taken to Charlotte on another plane later that night. - More...
Wednesday - September 13, 2006

National: A brief look at the standoff with North Korea By LAUREN SMITH - It has been two months since North Korea defied global warnings and launched seven ballistic missiles.

Since then, the communist country has remained quiet and unwilling to return to the six-party talks that would also include the United States, Russia, China, Japan and South Korea, aimed at ending Pyongyang's pursuit of nuclear weapons.

But recent reports from the region indicating that North Korea is ready to carry out more nuclear tests have the international community on edge. Japan has launched its third spy satellite to watch over North Korea as signs of preparation to test-fire missiles, or to set off a test nuclear explosion, continue to mount. The North Korea missile launches in July landed just short of Japan.

Even so, when President Bush meets with South Korea's leader in Washington on Thursday, the missile threat is not expected to play a central role in the talks. - More...
Wednesday - September 13, 2006