JUNEAU -- Gov. Bill Walker on Wednesday used his first State of the State address to put a positive, up-by-your-bootstraps spin on Alaska's tough fiscal predicament, though he offered Alaskans few concrete details on the steps he'll take to reach the goals outlined in his speech.
In a 40-minute address to members of the Legislature and to a statewide television and radio audience, Walker said he'd appoint a special investigator on Thursday to examine the Alaska National Guard scandal, and said he'd already taken steps to give tens of thousands of Alaskans health care coverage by expanding the Medicaid insurance program.
He promised -- twice -- to build a natural gas pipeline from the North Slope, and said he'd try to insulate the state's education system from cuts. He said he'd work to combat the state's high rates of rape, sexual assault, and domestic violence, and touted Alaska's fisheries and mining deposits.
But the particulars were limited, leaving some viewers anxious to see what Walker would say when he gives another speech on the state budget Thursday.
"I keep on liking his message, that we needed to be more cooperative and working together no matter what side you're on," said Victor Joseph, the president of the Tanana Chiefs Conference, an Interior tribal organization. But, he added: "I'm really wondering how this is going to tie into the State of the Budget address tomorrow night."
As legislators sipped coffee and scrawled on notepads, Walker, wearing a crisp white shirt and red tie under his jacket, urged more value-added manufacturing for Alaska, and said the state's resources, such as oil and natural gas, should be used here.
He also renewed calls for Alaskans to get low-cost energy, calling that the foundation of a strong economy, and said the state should reduce energy costs at state-owned and public buildings and boost energy efficiency.
He gave a nod to one local company, Juneau-based Alaskan Brewing, as an example of a value-added product that's produced with efficient technology. He didn't say how, exactly, those principles could be promoted around the state, but Polly Carr, the executive director of the Alaska Center for the Environment, still said she was "excited" to hear Walker discuss energy efficiency.
"Investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy are important to our state's fiscal future," she said. "And efficiency can save Alaskans money."
Walker also said he would fight Alaska's "epidemic" of sexual violence, and continued to support Medicaid expansion in Alaska, which he said would add 4,000 health care jobs to Alaska's economy.
That position drew praise from Kevin McGee, the first vice president of the NAACP's Anchorage branch, which has advocated for Medicaid expansion.
"It's a positive approach for what's ahead of us and what's ahead of him," McGee said of Walker's speech.
But one of Walker's Medicaid related statements -- that tens of thousands of Alaskans without insurance could be covered at no cost to the state -- drew skepticism from other quarters.
Jeremy Price, the state director for the conservative group Americans for Prosperity, said that promise was not true.
In fact, the expansion is fully paid for by the federal government through 2016. But then the federal contribution gradually drops to 90 percent by 2020, leaving the state with the remaining cost. The state would also have new administrative costs.
"The only issue that really gave me heartburn is when he said the state was not going to have to pay," Price said. "The truth is the Medicaid expansion is not free."
Price added, however, that he viewed the speech generally as "a positive perspective on Alaska's future."
As for legislative leaders, Senate President Kevin Meyer, R-Anchorage, also praised the "positive, upbeat" tone of Walker's address. And Meyer said he liked the governor's optimism for the construction of a natural gas pipeline to finally bring Alaska's huge gas reserves to markets.
"Of course, we've heard that from many governors now," Meyer said.
Democratic Sen. Berta Gardner, D-Anchorage, praised Walker's announcement about the Alaska National Guard investigator, as well his pledge to sign a measure to fight child sexual abuse known as Erin's Law, if it's passed by the Legislature. And she took a jab at former Gov. Sean Parnell's signature "Choose Respect" campaign.
"I like the teeth he's putting into 'Choose Respect,' if you will," Gardner said.
Sen. John Coghill, R-North Pole, said he'd liked to have heard more specifics, but acknowledged that Walker was a new governor attacking new issues.
"It was still short on nuts and bolts, in my view," he said.
And Coghill, the Senate's majority leader and one of its most conservative members, doubted whether Walker would be able to carry out his campaign promise of Medicaid expansion.
"I think he's going to find that's going to be a difficult thing to do," he said.
Influential House member Rep. Craig Johnson, R-Anchorage, praised Walker's support for exports by Alaskan Brewing and Mat-Su carrot growers, but then dismissed those industries.
"We won't fix our problems with beer and carrots," he said. "We need to make a plan, and I kept waiting for it," said Johnson, who is the chair of the Rules Committee in the Republican-led House majority.
But there's a reason Walker has been slow to reveal some of his policy details, said Jerry McBeath, a professor emeritus of political science at University of Alaska Fairbanks.
"It's the specific information that often divides, and broad, glittering generalities that are more useful in bringing people together," he said.
McBeath said that over the course of the Legislature's 90-day session -- Wednesday was only the second day -- Walker would have to make decisions reflecting specific judgments. And while McBeath added that Walker's speech was "attempting to duck" some of the unpopular ideas that could be necessary to balance the state's budget, like new taxes, he also pointed out that Walker had already acted decisively to suspend and review several big state construction projects.
Plus, there's another speech Thursday.
"He can wait," McBeath said. "Every time he makes specific decisions, he's going to alienate someone."