Stand up for Your Cronies!

A Screeder writes in on Gov. Dorkowski's latest:

"This is just another indication that the governorship really is just about plunder for Frank Murkowski.

We have had a judicial appointment system that has worked in this state for over 35 years. Now he apparently wants to revise it so that he can appoint one of his cronies to a judgeship. To do so, he is apparently willing to make the argument that Alaska doesn't need the "most qualified" candidates for judgeships - we only need "qualified candidates." In other words, the best is too good for this state if it will interfere with Frank's "rewards" system.

I wonder if this is another signal of Frank's DC alienation from much of the rest of Alaska Republicans. Several of the judicial committee members are Republicans, but they apparently failed to see the urgent need to provide Frank with a wholly partisan slate of candidates.

Has anyone ever explained why Frank wanted to be governor? Was it simply to appoint his daughter and give her a head start in the race against Knowles? Will he really live in Alaska when he retires?"

Right on the money. Indeed, cronyism seems to be the only principle Gov. Dorkowski is willing to stand up to protect.

Now, for the record, Scott Nordstrand (the Dorkowski partisan to whom the Gov. wanted to gift a judgeship) is a nice guy, and an experienced attorney, and I was surprised that he didn't make the cut. This is nothing against him.

But he didn't make the cut, and that's the judicial council's call. Frank's already had plenty of input onto the JC - he's appointed members, he's bullied it by threatening to cut its funding, blah blah blah. His present fit of pique is just a childish show of disrespect for the public and for the existence of an effective, non-partisan process. Because nothing is non-partisan with a man like Dorkowski ...