Anchorage Daily News

Latest poll puts Begich ahead by 9 points. Rasmussen Reports on Monday provided its latest numbers showing the Democratic challenger for Sen. Ted Stevens' seat is polling at 50 percent to 41 percent, and when "leaners" are included, the numbers are 52-44.

One in five Alaskan Republicans (20%) now throw their support behind Begich. The challenger earns 84% support from Democrats in Alaska, while Stevens is backed by 72% of his own party. Among unaffiliated voters, Begich leads by a 2-to-1 margin. The candidates are relatively even among men, but Begich has a 22-point advantage among women.

Begich is viewed favorably by 63% of voters in Alaska, up from 56% last month. Thirty-four percent have an unfavorable view of the Democrat. Stevens is viewed favorably by 50%, which has not changed over the past month. Nearly the same percentage (48%) hold an unfavorable view of the senator.

Any incumbent who polls below 50% is considered potentially vulnerable, and that label certainly applies to Stevens.

Talking Points Memo, reporting on the results, said simply, "In short, Republicans could be on track to lose this seat unless something drastic happens." Salon.com predicts a big November ahead for Democrats. The site offers this report as a podcast.

Begich has popped up in Internet interviews from Netroots Nation in Austin, Texas, and here is another, from Grist magazine's Muckraker blog. It's a 10-minute interview on energy issues in which Begich confesses to moving from a Tahoe SUV that got 9 miles per gallon to a Highlander hybrid that gets 22-23 miles per gallon. He also says Anchorage is a city where you can catch salmon three blocks from local hotels, then tromp over to the PAC for a musical, never feeling out of place in your hip waders.

Finally, Rasmussen has a game on its site allowing campaign followers to play stock market with the upcoming national elections. Traders "buy and sell" candidates, issues and news futures. ... The market is structured to harness the competitive passions of our community in a way that meaningfully defines the Conventional Wisdom and becomes a reliable leading indicator of upcoming events." Nods to Kodiak Konfidential for the game tip.

***

Wiley Post's 1933 around-the-world flight remembered today. The Oklahoman commemorates his arrival at Floyd Bennett Field in New York on this day 75 years ago, when Post landed in front of 50,000 fans after flying the last leg of a 15,400-mile trek. The trip lasted seven days, 18 hours and 50 minutes, beating the previous record by 21 hours. Post came from Oklahoma, and they're still proud of him there.

Alaskans are especially aware that the famous aviator died two years later in a Barrow plane crash.

***

TransCanada vote scheduled for the House today. Various Alaska and Canadian media offer a drum roll to today's vote:

> Alaska Politics blog lays out the schedule for HB 3001

> Fairbanks Daily News-Miner defines the three amendments that went nowhere

> APRN's version, in which those dumped amendments were labeled a "death knell"

> The Associated Press asks if a successful license will lead to cooperation from big oil

> The Calgary Herald quoted legislators saying the vote could be close

***

Southeast's king salmon fleet sees numbers right on target. Phew! Finally, salmon returns seem to be stabilizing, at least in Southeast, according to KFSK. A fisheries biologist did note that low water temperatures are slowing the return of fish and even causing early-returning silvers to swim by without eating.

That's relatively good news for Alaska, if you weigh it against the harsh news for salmon elsewhere on the West Coast. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports that scientists want Northwest fishermen to step up their catch of shad, smallmouth bass and walleye in the Columbia and Snake rivers because they're eating far too many of the juvenile salmon return.

Meanwhile, a judge in California says the way the state manages its water is a big threat to salmon and steelhead there, reports the Los Angeles Times. And perhaps the saddest story of all comes from Toronto's Globe and Mail, which reports on the excitement created when one lone salmon made it back to British Columbia's Coquitlam River, the first in 100 years. Stories like that put Alaska salmon in perspective.

***

Three dead humpbacks turn up in Cook Inlet. KBBI reports that if possible, necropsies will be performed on the three marine mammals if they beach in accessible spots.

The North Gulf Oceanic Society attributes the death to killer whales, but the Alaska SeaLife Center did not confirm the cause of death yet. Scientists were able to photograph back flukes and retrieve tissue samples from two of the whales. One was sighted near Pearl Island, another offshore of Chugiak Island, and a third near Flat Island.

Meanwhile, KTOO in Juneau reports that a whale tangled in a fishing net has been spotted in Icy Strait. Rangers and entanglement experts from Glacier Bay National Park are searching for the humpback.

***

Ballistic missile test involving Kodiak called successful. Regular news reports about defense missile testing aren't all that common. Marketwatch.com reports that a "discriminatory warhead," launched south over the Pacific from Kodiak Island June 18, was successfully tracked by radar aboard the USS Milius in the North Pacific, in Juneau and in Yuba City, Calif.

"The United States for the first time successfully integrated and validated four diverse tracking and discriminatory sensor radars against a three-stage, long-range ballistic missile dispersing countermeasures and decoys over the Pacific Ocean."

***

GCI lays fiber-optic cable in Southeast. KFSK and the Cable Directory report that mariners might spot the GCI barge as it lays the cable to replace satellite and microwave repeater relays serving Petersburg, Ketchikan, Wrangell and Angoon. The cable will lie directly on the ocean floor in most places, but will be buried in a few locations. Service should kick off in November.

***

Interior Alaska moves closer to a coal-to-liquid fuel plant at Eielson. The Energy Summit that brought federal, state, local and military officials together to focus on providing more and cheap energy wrapped up in Fairbanks. Eielson Air Force Base is a potential partner in the plant, and that could help keep the base open, says Sen. Ted Stevens.

KUAC quotes a military spokesman at the meeting saying the Air Force spent $6 billion on jet fuel last year, $12.5 million of that at Eielson. He said the military is certifying its aircraft for the kind of synthetic fuels that the plant would produce.

The defense budget includes $10 million toward developing a regional coal-to-liquids plant at Eielson, Stevens said. The plant could cost as much as $2 billion.

"The last three administrations have all had a BRAC (base closure) process; this next administration surely will have one. One of the key problems for us will be that each of these bases in Alaska are high cost because of the energy crisis. If we can get (the plant) going ... that will have a lot to do with quieting down cries for some type of elimination of one or more of our base," he said.

***

Other headlines of interest to Alaskans:

> Silverado Gold Mine stock jumps on Alaska drilling results (Stockhouse.com)

> Three wind turbines will start up in Hooper Bay this August (NAWindpower.com)

> Fairbanks home sales remain steady (KUAC)

> Dipnetting reaches its peak on the Kenai (KBBI)

> Complainant details Kopp's harassing behavior (KTUU)

> 7 percent residential rate hike considered for 2009 (Fairbanks Daily News Miner)

> June border crossings into Alaska down 10-12 percent (KTUU)

> Unique bakery caters to dogs (KTVA)

ADVERTISEMENT