Dr. Doug Brinkley Stands Up To Don Young's Bullying

From the LA Times:

Famed biographer Doug Brinkley has written exhaustively on the history of Alaskan wilderness, but Alaskan Rep. Don Young was having none of it recently when it came to the issue of drilling for oil at the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The two men clashed bitterly last Friday as Brinkley, a professor at Rice University and the author most recently of “The Quiet World: Saving Alaska’s Wilderness Kingdom 1979-1960,” [sic] testified at a House Natural Resources Committee meeting regarding the effects of drilling in the refuge. Young interrupted Brinkley’s testimony, calling him “Dr. Rice” and saying his testimony was “garbage.”

“Dr. Brinkley. Rice is a university,” Brinkley shot back. “I know you went to Yuba College and you couldn't graduate.”

Young, getting visibly upset, retorted: “I'll call you anything I want to call you when you sit in that chair. You just be quiet.”

"You don't own me," Brinkley said. "I pay your salary.”

"Brinkley got the last word when he expressed his surprise to 'hear a congressman today say there’s nothing in his district. It’s boring. It’s flat. It’s not exciting. I don’t know a representative who doesn’t love their district. Every state in America’s landscape is beautiful if you love it. But some people love money more than their homeland or where they live, and I’m afraid that that’s why this fight has to keep coming up 50 years later, we’re still trying to tell people the Arctic refuge is real. It belongs to the American people.'”

The Washington Post has more detailed comment on the exchange and longer video from C-Span with more context.

Don Shelby, who says he's a friend of Brinkley's, talked to him about the incident.

Dr. Brinkley gets a little heated himself, but I think just sitting there while the Congressman calls you garbage, isn't the answer.  Bullies, especially those with power, get away with their tantrums because people don't stand up to them.  The Committee Chair tells Brinkley to act civilly, but he doesn't tell his colleague Don Young that.

I just learned about this today (thanks J), but Gryphen at Immoral Minority posted about it on Monday and the Fairbanks News Miner had it  Saturday.  And Mudflats discussed it Sunday with comments on the ANWR debate itself that got Young so aroused.

The Anchorage Daily News finally got something posted online today:

Rice University historian Douglas Brinkley says he has no regrets about his dust-up with Alaska Rep. Don Young Friday during a Capitol Hill hearing on oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. In a follow-up interview with KHOU in Houston, Texas, Brinkley accused Young of "bullying." Young, meanwhile, claimed Brinkley was just trying to boost sales of his recent book on the history of Alaska conservationism.

That's all they had to say.  So the newspaper in the biggest city in the state by far, put up just a little bit and focused on Brinkley's behavior rather than Young's. 

Though they included a video news report  from Houston, where he teaches at Rice University which includes comments from Dr. Brinkley:

It was only two weeks ago that Brent Scarpo was in Anchorage discussing bullying at many different venues. A key point he made is that bullying continues when bystanders allow bullies to bully.

People have criticized Joe Paterno and others who did not follow through when they knew about Coach Sandusky's abuse of the kids under his care. But how many of Don Young's colleagues interrupt his bullying of witnesses who have been invited to testify.

It's easy to criticize others' inaction, but it's much harder to act when the bully is someone with power in our own spheres of influence. The Alaska voters who reelect Don Young every two years are, to an extent, his enablers.

And let me just note, there is a difference between being passionate in your arguments and being abusive. Young is, and has frequently over the years, been abusive to people who disagree with him. This is not the kind of role model I want for the people and youth of Alaska. Don Young owes Dr. Brinkley an apology. And when he gives it, then Dr. Brinkley can accept it and apologize as well - not for standing up to him, but for getting personal (ie. bringing up Young's college record) rather than staying on topic.

Congressman Young, here's a link to the Good Samaritan Counseling Center in Anchorage. They have an anger management program that might be helpful.

And here's a link for an 8 hour Anger Management class in Washington DC.  It's only $65.  I'd be more than happy to pay what isn't covered by your Congressional health insurance.

The Last Minute Sleaze Arrives - Don Young Flyer Lies About VECO Influence

[Jamglue, the site I've been using to host audio, has gotten rid of the embed code for some reason. The audio I have embedded below was the first one I did and I set it for play automatically. But now I can't turn that off. TO TURN OFF THE AUDIO, HIT THE YELLOW BUTTON TO THE LEFT OF FLOOREXCHANGE. ]

We forgot to check our mail yesterday, so I looked in our mailbox when I got home from poll watcher training tonight. In with the mail was this flyer (see below.) To suggest that Ethan Berkowitz is a VECO supporter is a totally outrageous and deceptive accusation. For the Don Young campaign to do is unbelievable. (The flyer says "Paid for by Alaskans for Clean Elections." Clearly this is NOT from the group that sponsored the clean election amendment in the primary. Only Don Young supporters would have an interest in something like this.)

1. VECO regularly hosted the pig roasts and raised tons of money for Don Young. At the three political trials last year, VECO President Bill Allen (whose picture is on the flyer) and VECO Vice President Rick Smith talked about the pig roasts, about golf tournaments, and other events where Don Young was the recipient of VECO largesse.

2. VECO doesn't exist. They were sold to CH2M Hill over a year ago. So VECO made no campaign contributions for this year's campaign. Checking the website link on the flyer, looking up contributors to Ethan Berkowitz, there is a $500 contribution from Bill Allen and one from Rick Smith for the year 2000. That is 8 years ago! Apparently that was their last contribution to Berkowitz. Since 2000, Don Young has received $116,000 from VECO!!!

(Click on picture to enlarge)

3. Ethan Berkowitz is the state representative who stood up on the floor of the House and protested that VECO officers were giving instructions to Republican legislators during the House debate in June 2006. You can hear that his comments at the link below. (Click on the Yellow button with the black arrow.)(First you hear Rep. Weyhrauch explaining why he was changing his vote. The Berkowitz comes on and argues forcefully against the VECO team telling legislators like Weyhrauch how to vote.)
[Nov. 5: I've cut the audio of Berkowitz because it is so annoying to have it come on automatically and Jamglue where it's hosted has messed with the embeds so I can't change it to NOT play automatically. You can still listen to it here.]

AARP Alaska Senate and House Debate 1

Tonight at UAA, Ted Stevens and Mark Begich debated videotronically and Don Young and Ethan Berkowitz debated live at the Wendy Williamson Auditorium. KTUU's John Tracy moderated.

I wish the rest of the country could see the debate. It wasn't great. But all the participants knew their subject matter in depth and debaters were civil to each other. The country would see that Alaskans DO NOT talk with a Beverly Hillbillies twang. They can address the questions they're asked knowledgeably.




The Stevens/Begich debate was a little peculiar since Stevens was in DC and so both candidates had been interviewed earlier and we watched that hour on a large screen. Both John Tracy (the moderator) and Mark Begich were in the Auditorium watching themselves on screen.

Stevens showed his age as he frequently stuttered getting the right word out. But his cognitive processes were intact. He knew exactly what he wanted to say, and while he stumbled getting the words out now and then, this is still a minor issue. He talks as though he's had three or four cups of coffee - fast and urgently. You have no doubt that he has a grasp of a lot of information and that you get in his way at your peril. Mark Begich matched him, but without the stutter, and without the coffee effect. He spoke calmly and much slower.




Don Young belied his reputation for malapropisms and spoke clearly, on topic, without rancor. He was clearly enjoying himself. Ethan Berkowitz had a moment of where he couldn't remember his next point early on and then he abandoned his notes and spoke passionately and knowledgeably the rest of the evening. He needs to loosen up a bit, though his wit came through a couple of times. At one point, when he paused, Tracy moved on to Don Young. Ethan said he wasn't finished. Tracy said,"Well, you paused so..." Ethan responded, "I paused...for effect" and the audience burst out laughing.


The topics I can recall (sorry, I wasn't taking notes) included the economic crisis, health care, earmarks, social security, energy, and whether the candidates endorsed Sarah Palin. The last was particularly significant because, Tracy pointed out in his questions, she hasn't endorsed fellow Republicans Young and Stevens. They both said they endorsed her, though in roundabout ways. The legal problems of the two Republican candidates were not raised.

There was a significant amount of agreement between both pairs of candidates - they all would open ANWR, and none would abandon getting earmarked projects for Alaska. Differnces were in things like who to blame the economic crisis on (the Republicans blamed Clinton for the bill that deregulated financial institutions, the Democrats blamed eight years of Bush.)