Alaska: Sean Parnell

From Sean Cockerham in Anchorage –

Fairbanks Rep. Jay Ramras says the governor’s in-state natural gas pipeline czar, Harry Noah, has resigned. But the governor’s office says it’s not so.

“Harry called me and said he resigned. Then (Gov. Sean Parnell’s legislative director) Jerry Gallagher called me and confirmed it as well,” Ramras told me in an email.

Parnell spokeswoman Sharon Leighow, however, said the governor’s office has not received a resignation letter and so considers him still in the job.

Leighow also said the governor has not asked for Noah to resign. Noah himself hasn’t returned my calls or an email about it.

Ramras today sent a letter (

NOME, Alaska (AP) — Neal Foster has been appointed to a state House seat to replace his late father, Rep. Richard Foster, who died last month.

Gov. Sean Parnell made the announcement in Nome on Tuesday.

Neal Foster, a Democrat, will serve District 39, an area which stretches from Hooper Bay to Nome.

The 37-year-old Foster is the owner of Foster Properties in Nome, and is a current member of the Nome City Council.

He must be confirmed by a simple majority of House Democrats.
The Alaska Democratic Party sent three names to Parnell as possible replacements for Richard Foster. The other two were Ralph "Weaver" Ivanoff of Unalakleet, a commercial fisherman and a tribal administrator, and Sam Towarak of Unalakleet, an educator in northwest Alaska.

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From Sean Cockerham in Anchorage –

Gov. Sean Parnell met with the press today in a wide ranging discussion in his downtown Anchorage office. Here are some excerpts.

On Sarah Palin:

I think I have a calmer existence here than Gov. Palin experienced. Being able to speak with two, four, six, eight, ten, 13 of you instead of having a crush of national reporters. It’s easier in that sense for me to actually get to the issues before the state... She doesn’t call and offer advice. We have communicated a number of times on just personal issues, just greetings. We became personally acquainted with each other and just inquire about our families and the like.

From Sean Cockerham in Anchorage --

The Wall Street Journal has a story up today on Sean Parnell. The hook, of course, is Sarah Palin. The headline on the piece reads "Palin Successor Focuses on Energy Agenda."

Here's a taste:

Mr. Parnell, a Republican who was one of Ms. Palin's allies and the state's former lieutenant governor, didn't care to discuss his predecessor in an interview late last month. The 46-year-old brushed aside questions regarding Ms. Palin, saying at one point, "I thought we were here to talk about what I'm doing."

Mr. Parnell has been focusing on how to rebuild Alaska's energy-dependent economy, which has been battered by falling oil prices, and jump-starting a proposed natural-gas pipeline project. While Alaska has only 700,000 residents, the governor's role is nationally significant because the state is home to some of the country's biggest deposits of mineral riches such as oil and gold.

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