Except for voting for Gov. Hickel who though a Republican, Mr. Republican in Alaska, ran in ’90 on the AIP ticket. What else I do depends on who asks me and what I’m asked to do. It will be interesting to see if the Miller Campaign acknowledges the existence of Southeast and Rural Alaska, Palin barely did, and it shows in that district map that the ADN has and which I linked in a couple of places. Other than Anchorage proper, Miller carried all the places accessible by road and Murkowski carried all the places accessible only by air or water.

As to Republican luminaries in Alaska coming out for him, some will dutifully do that, but here is where the price of the Palin association gets paid. Don Young I’m sure remembers Palin and her pals backing Parnell’s run against him last time. There are lots of legislators and former legislators who could help Miller, but a lot of them wouldn’t give Palin air if she were in a jug. There’s something about somebody carrying their political career on telling the whole Country that you’re corrupt and that she’s the one that cleaned up Alaska. Parnell barely got a majority in the Republican Primary and has his own problems if Bill Walker does a union financed write in campaign – and they have the money and organization to do it; won’t elect Walker, but might elect Jerkowitz.

Maybe they’ve done the math and have figured out how to win a statewide election without carrying any Southeast or Rural Alaska districts. Maybe all they were doing is appealing to the people they see and talk to every day in the Railbelt and roaded areas of the State. There are several fairly influential Republican legislators here in Southeast; Bert Stedman of Sitka is co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee. Sarah went out of her way to antagonize him and took a huge number of her line item cuts that she so liked to brag about out of his district specifically and Southeast generally. If I were Joe Miller, a call to Bert Stedman would be very high on my to-do list. Bert’s Senate district is also the home of the current Democrat nominee for US Senate. District 4, my district is a big district that votes; Murkowski carried it and as with the rest of Juneau, there is no love here for Sarah Palin. Cathy Munoz is the Republican Representative of District 4, and she ought to be right up there with Bert Stedman on Miller’s to-do list. Kyle Johansen (R-Ketchikan) might want to have a discussion of Sarah’s bragadocio about rejecting the money for the “bridge to nowhere” when in fact she took the money and just spent it elsewhere. You should see the beautiful new cloverleaf at the intersection of the Parks and Glenn that takes you to Wasilla. Ketchikan is the Murkowski family’s home town Memories, memories. There is going to be a lot of sympathy in Southeast to vote for McAdams, someone also from Southeast.

So, I think there will be dutiful support and most Alaskans, even the NPs, are not disposed to vote for a Democrat usually, but they have in the past if they were upset with the Republican (Begich over Stevens) or the Democrat had a resonant message and the ticket was split (Knowles over Campbell and Coghill). Were I advising Mr. Miller, I would advise him to get on the phone and be humble to a bunch of people that he needs more than they need him. There are a lot of Republican legislators in areas that Murkowski carried that can do things for Joe Miller. There’s not much he can do either to or for them.