#Alaska House of Representatives

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Alaska State Rep. David Eastman (R), an Oath Keeper who attended the Stop the Steal rally on Jan. 6, sparked outrage on Monday when he asked whether there could be economic benefits to the deaths of abused children.

Eastman made the befuddling remarks during a State House Judiciary Committee hearing this week that focused on how adverse childhood experiences, like physical or sexual abuse, can negatively affect an individual throughout their life. During the hearing, a representative from the Alaska Children’s Trust delivered a policy briefing to legislators focused on the fact that fatal child abuse and neglect can cost the family and broader society over time an estimated $1.5 million in health care expenses and potential lifetime earnings.

When it was his turn for questioning Eastman used data from the policy brief to claim that the death of an abused child could be “cost savings” for the government.

“It can be argued, periodically, that it’s actually a cost savings because that child is not going to need any of those government services that they might otherwise be entitled to receive and need based on growing up in this type of environment,” he said.

“Can you say that again? Did you say, ‘a benefit for society?’” Trevor Storrs, president and CEO of the Alaska Children’s Trust asked in response to Eastman’s question.

“I’m not even sure how to answer that,” he said, adding the loss of a child is “unmeasurable” to a family.

It’s not the first time Eastman has come under fire for making outlandish and offensive remarks. And the state lawmaker’s very position in elected office has come under scrutiny. A former constituent filed a lawsuit after the Jan. 6 insurrection arguing that Eastman’s membership in the far right Oath Keepers group made him ineligible to hold office in Alaska. There were some indications that he might be booted from office back in September, but ultimately a Judge ruled in his favor, allowing him to keep his position in the state House.

State Rep. Cliff Groh (D) said he was “disturbed” by Eastman’s line of questioning, according to Anchorage Daily News. His Republican colleagues aren’t thrilled with the remarks either.

“I wished that he asked questions with a little bit more sensitivity to the listeners and how they’re perceived, and I can have that conversation,” Republican Rep. Sarah Vance, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, told the Daily News. “But he’s there on his own accord and only represents himself.”​​

Correction: This article initially misstated Eastman’s status with the Oath Keepers. He is a LIFETIME MEMBER. TPM regrets this error.

[thoughtportal]

Rep David Eastman

https://www.newsweek.com/alaska-republican-touts-benefits-children-being-abused-death-1782972

A legislature in Alaska caused outrage after questioning whether the death of child abuse victims could be "a cost savings," because it would mean they don't need "government services" later in life.

Republican David Eastman, who sits in the Alaska House of Representatives, made the comment on Monday during a House Judiciary Committee hearing.

The committee was meeting to discuss how children are impacted by physical or sexual abuse, as well as witnessing domestic violence within their family home.

Lawmakers were shown a study indicating each incident of fatal child abuse costs society $1.5 million, a figure reached by assessing the impact of trauma and the child's loss of earnings over a lifetime.

However, Eastman was unimpressed, and questioned whether fatal child abuse could be economically beneficial to wider society, an argument he claimed to have heard.

Eastman said: "It can be argued, periodically, that it's actually a cost savings because that child is not going to need any of those government services that they might otherwise be entitled to receive and need based on growing up in this type of environment."

The remark horrified Trevor Storrs, president of the Alaska Children's Trust (ACT), who hit back describing the loss of a child as "unmeasurable."

Newsweek subscription offers >

Democratic Representative Cliff Groh, who used to work as a prosecutor covering child abuse allegations, said he was "disturbed" by Easterman's comment.

Representative Sarah Vance, the Republican who claims the House Judiciary Committee, said Easterman, who doesn't serve on any committees, had been at the hearing "at my invitation."

According to the Anchorage Daily News, she added: "I wished that he asked questions with a little bit more sensitivity to the listeners and how they're perceived, and I can have that conversation.

"But he's there on his own accord and only represents himself."

Vance later suggested Eastman had been trying to make an argument against abortion, which some consider to be "child abuse."

Speaking with the Anchorage Daily News via text message, Eastman said: "I was pleased to hear ACT advocating against child abuse, but a child's value comes not from future productivity, but from the fact that every child is made in the image of God."

Newsweek has contacted Eastman to ask if he stands by his original remarks.

Eastman, a former soldier, was reelected to the Alaska House of Representatives in November 2022.

A lawsuit was filed attempting unsuccessfully to bar Eastman from office due to his membership of the Oath Keepers, a right-wing paramilitary group.

A number of Oath Keepers have been convicted over their role in the storming of Congress on January 6 2021, it a bid to stop the 2020 presidential election result being certified.

Eastman was present in Washington, D.C. that day but there is no indication he took part in the disturbances, which he condemned. He later promoted a discredited conspiracy theory, suggesting the violence could have been committed by left-wing movement Antifa.

[whatareyoureallyafraidof]

Republicans are currently in the “find out” phase.

[sonic-wildfire]

ALASKA FLIPPED. I REPEAT, ALASKA FLIPPED.

[somethingusefulfromflorida]

Mary Peltola, a Democrat, just beat Sarah Palin in Alaska. Holy shit.

[tomorrowusa]

In what is probably the last special election to fill a vacancy in the 117th Congress, Democrats flipped a US House seat in Alaska. Yes, IN ALASKA. No Democrat has won the lone House seat from Alaska in half a century.

Democrat Mary Peltola will represent Alaska's lone U.S. House seat, after winning a special election that was determined by a ranked-choice voting tabulation on Wednesday. She will become the the first Alaska Native in Congress.

In the final round of the count, Peltola, a former state lawmaker, edged Sarah Palin, a former Alaska governor and the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, by 3 percentage points, 51.5% to 48.5%.

This continues the trend of House elections since the GOP US Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision which protected abortion rights nationally. Democrats overperformed in all six elections from +6 to +18 percent.

FiveThirtyEight reports:

Impressively, Peltola managed to prevail despite Alaska being a fairly red state. According to FiveThirtyEight’s partisan lean metric,1 Alaska is 15 percentage points redder than the nation as a whole. That means going by the results in the final round, Peltola’s 3-point victory2 was an 18-point overperformance for Democrats. By contrast, last week, Democrat Pat Ryan won New York’s 19th District, an R+4 seat, by 2 points — just a 6-point overperformance.

Alaska uses a ranked choice system of voting. So it remains to be seen if Ms. Peltola can repeat her performance in November for the full two year term. However Democrats are now in more favorable territory than they were in the spring.

A significant percentage of voters want to punish Republicans for their extremist anti-abortion stance which caused the Supreme Court to be packed with hacks who are eager to criminalize abortion. Voters understand that Democrats have promised legislation to make abortion legal in all 50 states if they fully control the 118th Congress after the midterms.

These recent overperformances in elections by Democrats are driven by higher than anticipated voter turnout. Make sure you’re registered. Don’t be shy about letting others know that they need to vote in this election and to make voting a must in every election.

Be A Voter - Vote Save America  

[generallemarc]

No jokes. We are better than the left because we are not hypocrites-when we say something is bad, we mean it is always bad, and mocking the deaths of innocents is always bad. If you're like me and believe in purgatory, pray for his soul. If not, pray for Representative Peltola and her family.

[scurvgirl]

I haven’t seen this on my dash so here it is. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill codifying same-sex marriage and it is now going to the Senate where there really is an actual chance of it passing. Sure, there are assholes who won’t support it, but there are Republican senators willing to support it and we need their support to get this passed. If you live in a state with a Republican senator, please call the senate office telling them that as a constituent, you support same-sex marriage and the Respect for Marriage Act.

The following senators are reported to be undecided, if one of these senators is yours, CALL!!!

Richard Burr, North Carolina

Roy Blunt, Missouri

Mike Braun, Indiana

Joni Ernst, Iowa

Cynthia Lummis, Wyoming

Rand Paul, Kentucky

Mitch McConnell?, Kentucky (yeah, I’m shocked the evil undead gizzard demon is in the undecided category as well but...might as well pressure the fucker)

Mitt Romney, Utah 

Mike Rounds, South Dakota (specifically Mr. Rounds is quoted as acknowledging difference between a religious marriage and a legal one, go ahead and specify that you support granting couples the legal rights and protections that are given with a legal marriage)

Rick Scott, Florida 

Dan Sullivan, Alaska (notably, Mr. Sullivan is quoted to recognize and respect the existing Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage! Pressure this man!!)

John Thune, South Dakota

Patt Toomey, Pennsylvania

Tommy Tuberville, Alabama

Todd Young, Indiana

This information was gathered from CNN on 7/21/22.

For clarification: Same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states right now based on the 2015 Supreme Court ruling. But, with the court standing as it is and with Roe being taken down, codifying same-sex marriage in law would mean that the Supreme Court would have a much, MUCH harder time stripping away the right. This is important. Marriage as a legal binding is critical to allowing spouses to visit each other in the hospital, make medical decisions, share assets, adopt and form families, and more. We need TEN Republicans to support the bill, so far there are FIVE likely supporters - we need AT LEAST FIVE MORE.

Please reblog this!!!

[reportwire]

Alaska special election results: Mary Peltola beats Sarah Palin to win House of Representatives seat

Alaska special election results: Mary Peltola beats Sarah Palin to win House of Representatives seat

2022-09-01 04:46:10 JUNEAU, Alaska — Democrat Mary Peltola won the special election for Alaska’s only U.S. House seat on Wednesday, besting a field that included Republican Sarah Palin, who was seeking a political comeback in the state where she was once governor. Peltola, who is Yup’ik and turned 49 on Wednesday, will become the first Alaska Native to serve in the House and the first woman to…

[queenvlion]

MARY PELTOLA BECOMES THE 1st DEMOCRAT TO WIN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SINCE 1972. #ElectionsMatter 🗳

[batboyblog]

Things Biden and the Democrats did, this week #15

April 19-26 2024

President Biden appeared along side Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senators Ed Markey and Bernie Sanders to announce major climate action. Biden announced a program, Solar For All, 7 billion dollars aimed at supporting low income house holds install solar power in their homes. The program will support 900,000 households across the country getting solar. Lower the average energy bill for a family by $400 a month and avoid more than 30 million metric tons of carbon pollution over the next 25 years. The boost in solar installation will help create 200,000 new jobs across the country. The President also announced the launch of the Climate Conservation Crops. modeled on FDR's Civilian Civilian Conservation Corps and JFK's Peace Corps, Biden's Climate Conservation Crops will be a program where young people can connect with climate projects across the country and be paid to help protect the planet. The Corps will be 20,000 strong, with 2,000 openings listed right now on their webpage across 36 states DC and Puerto Rico.

The Department of Labor finalized a new rule on overtime. Currently employers are only required to pay overtime to workers making under $35,568. Under the new ruling that will be raised to workers making $43,888, and in January 2025 raised again to workers making $58,656 and under. This will bring overtime pay to 4 million more workers and transfer $1.5 billion from the pockets of companies to workers. It also fixes to raise the level with inflation every 3 years starting in 2027.

The EPA announced a $1 billion dollar program to help replace heavily duty vehicles with clean energy versions. There are currently 3 million class 6 and 7 vehicles, school buses, box trucks dump trucks, street sweepers, delivery trucks, bucket trucks, and utility trucks, in use. 70% of the funds will go to replacing School Buses with Clean energy buses and the remaining 30% will go to replacing Vocational Vehicles like dump trucks and street sweepers. Heavy Duty vehicles on top of green house cases release harmful nitrogen oxide and fine particulate matter and replacing them will not only combat climate change but improve public health.

The Department of Interior took actions to protect 13 million acres of Alaska wild land is protected and to secure the livelihood of Alaska Native peoples who rely on this land. The Administration refused oil and mining rights on the vast areas of Alaska land as well as a 210 miles road through the northern wildernesses. This area represents valuable habitat for caribou and endangered polar bears, as well as millions of migrating birds.

The Department of Transportation announced finalized rules requiring airlines to give automatic cash refunds for canceled flights and other inconvenience. The refunds will be automatic meaning passengers will not have apply for them, prompt the airlines are required to refund a credit card purchase in 7 days, and require repayment in full and in kind, airlines can not substitute travel vouchers for cash. The DOT also announced new rules to protect airline travelers from junk fees, airlines and ticket agents must now clearly tell travelers upfront about all fees so no one is surprised by a hidden fee.

The EPA announced finalized rules on emissions standards for fuel burning power plants. The new rules include a tightening of Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, requiring a 70% reduction in mercury. It also had rules protecting ground water, new rules will require coal powered plants to remove 660 million pounds per year of pollutants discharged through wastewater, and for the first time federally regulates the dumping of coal ash, requiring safe dump sites that will not leak into ground water. Finalized rules require coal fired and new natural gas-fired power plants to capture up to 90% of their carbon pollution

Security of Transportation Pete Buttigieg attended the ground breaking of a new high speed rail project to connect Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The Biden Administration announced 3 billion to support the project 5 months ago. At 218 of all electric green rail the project promises to be the fastest way to get from LA to Las Vegas. Planned to open in 2028 just in time for the LA Olympics it is the first of many planned high speed rail projects. The Biden Administration has promised $66 billion for high speed rail and the largest single investment in Amtrak ever.

The FCC announced a new rule restoring Net Neutrality. Net Neutrality requires internet service pervaders to treat all websites equally and not slow certain ones now or speed others. In 2015 under Obama the FCC passed a rule requiring Net Neutrality. However in 2017, the FCC spread headed by Trump appointed Chair Ajit Pai repealed the rules. A patchwork of Democratic controlled states, lead by California passed state level laws requiring Net Neutrality forcing ISPs to de facto keep it in place. Late last year President Biden got the opportunity to replace Pai on the FCC, giving the FCC a 3 to 2 Democratic majority which voted this week to return to the Obama era rules and protect Net Neutrality nationwide.

The FTC passed finalized regulations to ban noncompete agreements in nearly all cases. These agreements, which cover 18% of American workers, about 30 million people, prohibit workers from joining or creating competing companies for a certain period of time. The FTC estimates that workers will earn an average of $524 dollars a year more and up to 8,500 new businesses will be created each year. The new rule will still allow noncompete for senior executives who make up less than 1% of the work force. Like with the FCC, two out of the 3 FTC commissioners who voted for the new rules are Biden appointees.

The Departments of Health and Human Services and Interior have announced a joint, $1 billion project to connect tribal communities to safe drinking water. Roughly half of Tribal households lack access to clean drinking water or adequate sanitation.

At the White House The Biden Administration announced plans to protect, restore and reconnect 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of rivers and streams. This effort will include state, local and tribal government as well as private efforts along with the federal government to protect and restore the nations freshwater environments.

The Department of Health and Human Services announced a new rule boosting privacy protection for abortions. Republicans in states like Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma and Idaho have tried to make it a crime to leave the state to seek an abortion in a state where it is legal. The new federal rule would make it illegal for health information to be shared in these cases

Vice-President Harris announced a new rule requiring staffing standards at Nursing Homes across the country. The new rules will require registered nurses on duty 24 hours, seven days a week. This represents the first time the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have required specific numbers of nurses and aides in Nursing Homes that get Medicare and Medicaid funding.

The Biden Administration Announced a $6 billion deal with tech giant Micron to bring high tech manufacturing to New York. The deal is expected to see Micron invest $100 billion in Syracuse New York area as well as build a factory in Boise, Idaho. The deal will create 70,000 new jobs. It is part of the Biden Administration's effort to bring high tech chip manufacturing to America.

The Department of Education finalized the most comprehensive federal protections for Trans and other Queer students in the nation's history. The rules also overturn Trump era rules on how colleges should handle sexual assault and harassment.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

House Democrats launch probe of Trump’s dinner with oil executives | The Washington Post

House Democrats are launching an investigation into Donald Trump’s meeting with oil executives last month at his Mar-a-Lago Club, where the former president asked the executives to steer $1 billion to his 2024 campaign and promised to reverse dozens of President Biden’s environmental policies.

The probe comes after The Washington Post on Thursday first reported the fundraising dinner, where Trump said that giving $1 billion would be a “deal” because of the taxation and regulation the oil companies would avoid thanks to him, according to people with knowledge of the meeting, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe a private conversation.

In letters sent Monday evening, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee asked nine oil executives to provide detailed information on their companies’ participation in the meeting. The Democrats voiced concern that Trump’s request at the dinner may have been a quid pro quo and may have violated campaign finance laws, although experts say his conduct probably did not cross the threshold of being illegal.

Lawmakers sent the letters to the CEOs of Cheniere Energy, Chesapeake Energy, Chevron, Continental Resources, EQT Corporation, ExxonMobil, Occidental Petroleum and Venture Global. They also fired off a missive to the head of the American Petroleum Institute, the oil industry’s top lobbying arm in Washington.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (Md.), the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, asked the executives to provide the names and titles of any company representatives who attended the Mar-a-Lago dinner, copies of any materials shared with the attendees, a description of any policy proposals discussed at the event, and a list of any contributions to the Trump campaign made during or after the event.

Raskin also asked the executives to provide a copy of any draft executive orders or policy paperwork that their companies have prepared for Trump or his campaign. Politico reported that oil industry lawyers and lobbyists have drawn up executive orders for Trump to sign in a possible second term, including directives aimed at boosting natural gas exports and offshore oil drilling.

Asked about the letter, Andrea Woods, a spokeswoman for the American Petroleum Institute, said in an email that the group “meets with policymakers and candidates from across the political spectrum on topics important to our industry that range from strengthening energy security to addressing persistent U.S. inflation.”

A Venture Global spokeswoman said of the meeting with Trump: “Venture Global regularly engages with government officials — both past and present — on a bipartisan basis and this meeting was no different. We would welcome a similar conversation with President Biden at any time.”

A spokesman for Cheniere Energy declined to comment on the letter. Spokespeople for the other oil companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Democrats on the Oversight Committee lack certain investigative powers because Republicans control the House. If the oil companies decline to turn over the information, Democrats will not be able to subpoena the firms, stymying their investigation.

Yet Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), a vocal climate advocate who chairs the Senate Budget Committee, which wields subpoena power, has voiced interest in launching his own probe.

Trump’s comments at the dinner are “practically an invitation to ask questions about Big Oil’s political corruption and manipulation,” Whitehouse said in an emailed statement.

“Fossil fuel malfeasance will cost Americans trillions in climate damages, and the Budget Committee is looking at how to ensure the industry cannot simply buy off politicians in order to saddle taxpayers with the bill,” he added.

At the Mar-a-Lago meeting, Trump promised to immediately end the Biden administration’s freeze on permits for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports in a second term, according to people who attended. He also pledged to start auctioning off more leases for oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and to reverse restrictions on drilling in the Alaskan Arctic.

Experts said Trump’s remarks at the dinner probably didn’t violate campaign finance laws as currently interpreted by the Federal Election Commission and the Supreme Court. They said a violation would need to involve a clear quid pro quo in which Trump promised to take a specific policy action in exchange for a specific campaign contribution.

“This alone is probably not enough to indicate the existence of a quid pro quo,” said Dan Weiner, director of elections and government at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University’s law school.

Trump “was doing what candidates often do, which is saying, ‘Please give me money, and I will do the things that I know you want,’” Weiner added. “The brazenness is still quite astonishing, and it certainly flies in the face of the spirit of the law, if not the letter.”

Former Obama White House ethics adviser Norm Eisen, a Trump critic and prominent supporter of the four criminal cases against him, agreed.

“I’m not saying it’s a violation of the law,” said Eisen, who served as special counsel to the House’s first impeachment of Trump. “But it raises serious questions, and it’s a reminder of why we have those laws on the books.”

[formlines]

Drifted Ashore House

Klatle-Bhi

from the website: Drifted Ashore House is the name of a Tlingit clan from Tongass, Alaska and speaks to Klatle-bhi’s family lineage. It was a Tlingit woman from this clan that married a Kwakiutl man, and was lineage to the Hunt family of the Kwakwaka’wakw Nation; the lineage of Klatle-bhi’s family. The panel is a representation of the long history he has to the Tlingit people, and this clan in particular, with the two faces on the panel meant to represent the male and female ancestors and balance of that line. 

"This my interpretation of a Tlingit House from Alaska that I come from. It’s a testament for many of us who have ties back to this sacred place. Through my Grandmother’s lineage, and many others. The strength and culture that is still being passed down through generations still exists, to this day." - Klatle-bhi

[darkwood-sleddog]

AVENUES FOR CONTACTING REGARDING THE NEW CDC DOG IMPORTATION RULING

The CDC recently released their newly revised rules applying to all dogs wishing to enter the United States. This includes stricter paperwork and veterinary record requirements within a certain timeframe, implantation of a specific type of microchip PRIOR to rabies vaccination and a hardline restriction on any dog younger than six months. You can view all the new requirements HERE.

It is my belief that several aspects of the new ruling require additional review and nuance that is not being taken, specifically the 6 month of age rule which in my opinion is over regulatory as dogs can be fully inoculated against rabies at four months of age.

The new ruling makes very little if any distinction of dogs coming from high risk rabies countries and dogs coming from no/low risk rabies countries. The reasoning outlined in the ruling is to "streamline" the process of importation by making the requirements the same across all areas of import. This is unreasonable to countries that have no rabies present as they pose no risk.

Additionally, these rules do not take into account the shared land borders between the United States, Canada and Mexico and treats Canada and Mexico like other foreign bodies which is unreasonable. People living in border areas often cross between the US and Canada/Mexico on a frequent basis. There is no fencing at the Canadian border and wildlife of any health status can cross freely on both the northern and southern border. There are also border towns and enclaves that have an increased frequency of border crossings for daily life that need to be taken into account in regards to the paperwork requirements.

And Finally, I take big issue with the fact the ruling and reasonings behind several of the restrictions addressing the concerns of hobbyist and ethical dog breeders regarding the restriction on age of import will put on genetic diversity of dog breeds. Many breeders would rather place a puppy in an equally good home in a country where the puppy can be home at the critical young age than hold on to a dog for months. This will also prevent sport dog, service dog, and working dog puppies from being properly socialized into their future roles. Not only does the CDC make no exception for service dogs, dogs of military families, or any dog in this instance, but they addressed hobbyist and preservation breeder's concerns by stating that the USDA already has rules limited dog imports to 6 months of age for commercial breeding. Note that commercial breeding and what requires a USDA license is very specifically outlined by the USDA which does make exceptions for hobbyist breeding. The CDC ruling talks about commercial and hobbyist breeding as the same thing, referring specifically to the USDA even though the USDA themselves make specific distinctions. The CDC ruling equates hobby breeding with commercial breeding directly, with no acknowledgment that even if they were the same the puppy can be and is often most often already purchased and legally owned by the client/new owner so breeder requirements would no longer be applicable.

There are many other individual concerns. These are just my top concerns.

What can you do?

HERE is a change.org petition by Jaye Foucher that outlines similar concerns that I share as well as ones more specific to sled dog teams traveling and those that frequently do business in Alaska.

CONTACT the CDC directly and voice any concerns you have.

Contact your REPRESENTATIVES and SENATORS, especially if you live in a border state. Phone OR email would be fine. I personally prefer email as it provides a written record of the communication. While the CDC is not full of elected officials, the Senate and House recently passed an Agriculture bill titled "The Healthy Dog Importation Act" where many of the new restrictions are echoed and reiterated on a legislative level.

[prismatic-bell]

TODAY IN “YOUR VOTE MATTERS”:

Alaska just elected its first Democratic House representative since 1973, and she’ll be the first-ever Alaskan indigenous native person to serve in Congress. (Mary Peltola is Yup’ik.)

Now. Ready for the kicker?

She won by about six thousand votes, out of over 177,000 cast. Or put another way, 51.5 to 48.5: three percentage points.

Your. Vote. Matters.

Talk to everyone you know.

[tomorrowusa]

Donate Smart. 💵 👩🏻‍🎓

Remember Amy McGrath? She’s a retired Marine fighter pilot who lives in Kentucky.

She ran for US Senate against Mitch McConnell in 2020. Because Democrats everywhere loathe Moscow Mitch, they donated a whopping $94 million to her campaign – even though her chances of defeating McConnell were slim. The word “fundraging” comes to mind.

The Losing Democrats Who Gobbled Up Money  

In the closing days before the November 2020 election, Amy McGrath, a retired Marine fighter pilot challenging the powerful Republican incumbent Senator Mitch McConnell in Kentucky, sent a series of email blasts to her followers. The race was “tightening,” one said, and she needed more money “to hit Mitch harder than ever before.” Another urgent-sounding appeal hinted that a cash crunch might be at hand: “After tonight, we’ll have to make some big choices about the budget.” Yet another warned, “[W]e simply can’t afford to scale back any of our programs in the final days of this election.”

There was little evidence the contest was tightening. McGrath’s internal polls late in the summer gave her campaign team at least a little hope, but by October that was no longer the case. As for money, she already had enough. In fact, she had raised more than enough—tens of millions of dollars more—than what was needed to run a robust campaign in the state of Kentucky. By Election Day, McGrath had brought in a record-obliterating $94 million—$63 million more than had ever been raised for a campaign in Kentucky. McConnell dramatically stepped up his fundraising this time around, but she still outpaced him by $27 million.

That money didn’t help much. McConnell still won convincingly.

Modern political campaigns like McGrath’s are multimillion-dollar pop-ups. The operatives involved in them raise the money, spend it, shut it all down after Election Day, and move on.

When flashy new political personalities burst upon the scene or if candidates are running against incumbents who, outside their states/districts, have high negatives, there is a tendency to treat such people as messiahs.

The problem with that is these long shot phenoms suck money away from candidates in other parts of the country who may be less flashy but who have a far better chance of winning.

There are Trump Republicans in the US House like Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz, and Lauren Boebert who are repulsive. But they are certain to get re-elected no matter how much money people throw at their opponents. If verifiable photos emerged of them having an orgy with Vladimir Putin, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several recent mass shooters, it would barely move the needle from Solid Republican to Likely Republican in their districts.

The people running against them and against similar Trumpsters in deep red districts are very nice, but donating to them won’t change things.

In a legislative body, power is in the hands of the majority. Awful people like Boebert and Gaetz are legislatively harmless as long as they remain in a minority.

On the other hand, there are Democrats in tight races where you can make an enormous difference. Keeping the number of House Democrats at 218 or above is the key to power. It’s not necessary for them to be charismatic or sexy.

Here are the 20 tightest US House races according to FiveThirtyEight’s Top 50 list as of early Wednesday.

Giving $5 to each of the Democrats above is a far better investment than dumping $100 on a single race in a way deep red district.

BTW, because of Alaska’s ranked choice system, no names are given in the listing above. But the incumbent Democrat is Mary Peltola, a native Alaskan who won an upset victory in a special election to fill a vacancy last summer.

If I have a personal favorite on that list, it’s Elaine Luria in VA-02. After redistricting in Virginia, Rep. Luria found herself in a district which is a Toss Up rather than Lean Democratic. If you’ve been watching the House January 6th Committee hearings then you’ve seen her at work. Rep. Luria is the committee member whose presentation exposed Sen. Josh Hawley running in fear from the terrorists he helped incite. 😅 Elaine Luria deserves a few bucks just for that. Though she’s an outstanding representative overall.