And I've been telling all my friends about it. They're on the app. Get in on what everyone's talking about and get the new and improved free iHeartRadio app today. iHeartRadio. Mike Porcaro. Behind the mic of your 50,000 watt blowtorch. News Radio 650, KENI. Participate. I want to thank my cousin, Rich Lee. He is truly a talented guy and just one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. And it's nice to have people in your family you like.
He's just one of those people who just has so much talent. There's a lot of talent in my family. I didn't get any of it. Oh, that's being modest, Mike. Well, you should see some of the talented people in my family. They're really world class. I'm just grateful and thankful. Well, you're all part of our family. And speaking of thankful, I've got to give a shout-out. I've got to give a shout-out. Now, you're a foodie. Yeah.
I don't know if you've ever been to Ray's Place on Spenard Road. Oh, absolutely. Yeah, right in the corner there. You know, I'm getting nothing for this other than the fact that I just wanted to tell everybody just how good this food is. And a lot of folks go there. It's very popular. And my favorite...
Over there is the Vietnamese halibut. I mean, this is like... I haven't tried that. Perfect. It is perfect. Your Vietnamese halibut, it's got like a little bit of a breading on it with lots of different spices. And it's got a little kick to it. You know, great rice and wonderful veggies. And they're just nice people over there. And they listen to the show. And so I just wanted to say over to the nice people at Gray's, you've got a great place.
I love your food, and keep up the good work. Yeah, they're fried rice. If you don't go for that, what is that Vietnamese halibut? Because I'm going to have to try that now. They're fried rice. Oh, very good. No, that's a good place to eat. It's right on the corner of Spenard Road there, and kind of like Fireweed kind of can run into it. Kitty Corner, Fireweed, and Spenard, yeah. Yeah, really nice restaurant. All right, it is 409-522.
The Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District says they are going to take steps to ensure the safety of students and staff in case actually when I think it's going to happen, there was an eruption of Mount Spur. Now, if you want to know about what's going on, we did an interview with Matt Haney. from the Volcano Observatory, and this was, what was it, Tuesday, I think? Yep.
And that is on a special podcast. So if you go to the podcast and you see that it's labeled, so you can download just that if you want to. We suggest you listen to the entire show because you'll be missing so much. With Matt, we talk about the volcano and what you should do and what its threat level is. It's a two of five right now. So it's yellow.
and the next step is orange, and then red, which means, okay, who knows. Now, it doesn't necessarily mean if the thing erupts that we're going to get covered with ash, as we did in 1992, and if those of you were up here at the time, you remember. We had about a quarter of an inch of ash covering everything. And that stuff is very corrosive. You've got to be really careful. Wash everything off.
Don't rub anything because it's going to scratch it. You don't want to breathe any of that stuff in, so you should have some sort of N95 mask or some sort of mask that's going to protect you. from all of that junk in the air and You should also you maybe even invest in some safety goggles or something too because you don't want any of that in your eyes
And don't drive if you don't have to, and you need air filters, get spare air filters. What were you saying? You were using a pair of pantyhose? A pantyhose nylon? I'm not going to ask where you got it. Yeah, pantyhose or nylons, either one works. Like I said, yeah, get them wrapped around your air filter and back in. Now, you want to make sure you don't put them too tight or too...
thick around it that it won't let your air filter box close because you need that seal, but you want them wrapped on there a couple of times and not stretched out, and they give you an extra barrier of protection so that your filter doesn't clog as quickly. Right. But it could cause lots of disruption, certainly in air travel. The airport was closed, I believe Matt Teldes, for 20 hours during that eruption in 1992. And since we are one of the largest air cargo hubs in the world...
That's not good. And we Alaskans obviously depend on air transportation for just about anything. You want to get out of this place or go anywhere, you have to fly. Now, we've got roads and everything and that's great, but if you want to go to Seattle or you want to go to Western Alaska or up on the North Slope, you're going to need to fly. And if it's not safe to fly because of the ash clouds, you're not going to. So you sit and you wait.
as much as we did in 1992. So I don't know what's going to happen with that thing, but the Mat-Su School District has a plan. They have sent out a letter. to parents, telling parents what's going to happen, what they're doing. Of course, everything depends on the time of day, the size of the eruption, the weather patterns, and all of that. But good for them. They're preparing.
for this and they want to make sure the kids are safe and everybody else is safe. So they've got an emergency plan in place. The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District also says they're going to meet with folks next week. week for a Q&A session to ensure that everyone understands their plan. Anchorage says they're going to release something tomorrow. Good.
I think it's good to be prepared for this thing because it could certainly cause disruptions, and you don't want to see anybody hurt. You don't want to see anybody get sick. And good for the school districts. So we'll wait for ours tomorrow. But Matt Sue is already on the ball. Kenai seems like they're on the ball. And we're going to have our plan released tomorrow. So it says.
according to Alaska's news source. All right, it is 414-522-0650. That's our number, and you can call us if you want, and we'd love to talk to you. Stay with us. Call Mike. Call Crash. Call 907-522-0650. Looking at your Alaska total traffic cameras on this Thursday afternoon. Steady traffic around the Anchorage Bowl. No major stoppages out there. A couple of minor slowdowns. Looks like Providence Drive's got a slowdown. All right, 418, some really good news. There's a breaking story.
The Taiwan state-owned gas and oil company CPC has signed a letter of intent to invest in the Alaska LNG project. Joining us now is Tim Fitzpatrick. who is the head guy over there in terms of information and news and what have you. Tim, first of all, thank you for coming on. And tell me what the heck's going on. This sounds like good news.
Mike, always a pleasure. Thanks for having me on. It is an exciting time for the project. It's got incredible momentum. There's just been a lot of pieces that have fallen into place. In the last three months or so, we're finalizing our project development agreements with a private company called Glenfarn, which is an international energy company. They've got a couple other...
LNG projects under development in the Gulf Coast. President Trump has obviously been a very full-throated and vocal advocate for the project. He had some comments the week of his election about the project. targeted Alaska LNG in one of his day one executive orders. He referenced the project in his State of the Union speech, and that is very rarefied.
Real estate to be able to get a shout out for an individual project or an individual infrastructure initiative like Alaska LNG and the State of the Union speech really shows. how he's prioritized this project, and he's identified it as a national priority because of its North Pacific strategic benefits. And we are now seeing market momentum. helping push the project along. So there's a group led by Governor Dunleavy that's on a 12-day...
Trade mission over to Asia with stops in Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, and Japan. And the letter of intent that you referenced... is a very good sign for the project it's a letter of intent to not only purchase lng from the project but also directly invest into the project and it's not a binding agreement yet but it's a step on the path towards commercial success. These agreements come together in several steps. It's almost like selling a house where...
You get an offer, then you go under contract, and then you go to close. These are big, complex deals. They're multi-step deals, but we're on the path, and things are going very well for the project, and we're pretty excited right now. Well, I think you should be. We kind of had something like this, although this is different because you're dealing not with a communist country.
You're dealing with Taiwan, which is different than mainland China. But what would be your estimation of the difference between this and what former Governor Walker did? There's some very strong similarities, but from the business side, there's also some very strong differences. And the project design has... stood the test of time since it was initiated by the North Slope producers back in 2014. This project's only about 11 years old, but it oftentimes...
gets wrapped up in the drama of previous project efforts. So this is a relatively new effort. The permitting process alone was a multi-year effort. But the deal that Governor Walker had struck... was also, during the Trump administration, his first administration. But that was a primarily Chinese-driven deal for a large chunk of debt in the project for off-take. for China and Chinese-controlled interests. The current business...
Model for the project is led by the company Glenform that I mentioned earlier. They're a U.S. company. They've got great international energy chops. And Glenn Farnes is really going to be playing the role of quarterback once these project development agreements are finalized. And they'll put the different players on the field to...
build the pipeline, to build the LNG plant, to do the Arctic carbon capture plant on the North Slope. And the letter of intent that we signed today in Taiwan is an example of... how the project will be financed. We go to market, we sign long-term sales and purchase agreements to purchase LNG from the project, and then we take that as a demonstrable revenue stream and go get...
financing for the project from common financing sources, whether it be banks or pension funds. I mean, these are blue chip name brand sources of financing. And that's really the big difference where the source of the funding is going to come from. for the current version of the project versus the previous effort that was led by Governor Walker. That is a huge difference in terms of the Chinese Communist Bank or blue-chip companies that deal with finance. It's a big, big difference.
This is a big step one. Now, you mentioned that the governor was on his way to some other countries in Asia. We're looking at Japan and Thailand and Korea, South Korea. So do you anticipate a kind of a consortium of buyers over there? I think over time that's what you're going to see, but I do want to caution against getting...
ahead of ourselves with expectations here. Really, the purpose of the trade visit to Asia is for Governor Dunleavy to advocate personally for the project at a very high level, but it's also to introduce Glenn Farn as the incoming project development lead, their projects in the Gulf Coast are focused a little bit more towards Europe, whereas Alaska LNG is a very Pacific Asia-focused project. So our team at AGDC has...
deep commercial expertise and deep ties with our Asian industry and policy leaders in the energy field. So we're going over there to do some introductions for Glenn Farn, and it's also to explain. the latest in the project's economic and competitive strategic advantages. So this is really more of a step along the path trip for the project.
This is not the finish line yet for the commercial agreements that are going to underpin the financing. But we need to get our agreement done with Glenn Farn first, and then we can really turn with the United Front towards finalizing commercial agreements. So we're not quite there yet. The letter of intent that we signed in Taiwan is a very nice bonus for the trip, but it's not the purpose of the trip itself. Got you. Well, with all of this happening, and then President Trump...
who I think has been our number one cheerleader on this thing, without question. Yeah, no question. I have a feeling that we're looking at some really exciting times ahead, Tim, and we certainly hope that you keep us posted on this and let us know if there's anything we can do to be helpful.
Well, it's a big project. You know how President Trump likes big things. So he's our number one cheerleader. We appreciate your interest in the project and following along. Like, call us any time you want an update. We're always happy to talk. All right, Tim Fitzpatrick, thank you, sir, and get back to work. Thank you. All right, take care. All right, 426, good news.
It's nice to have something positive, a nice positive first step, and I think this is good for Alaska, and I think this is something that... And I've been up here a long time, and we've been talking about this ever since I've been up here. right after we built the gas pipe, the oil pipeline. But even before that, when I first got up here, people were talking about a gas line and an oil line, et cetera, and it was nothing. And we got the oil line, and everybody said, oh, the gas line's next.
Well, yeah, we've been waiting. And maybe, maybe with this first step here, we may have... turned a bit of a corner, so to speak. Well, anyway, good news, and I want to thank Tim Fitzpatrick from the Alaska LNG Alaska Gas Line Development Corporation for taking some time with us to talk about it. We'll be right back. All right, 434-522-0650. Well, a lot of energy news today. The Trump administration is going to open ANWR and NPRA to oil and gas leases.
President Trump announced his administration's intention to, as he said in his inaugural, drill baby drill in Alaska. Meanwhile, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said today about 80%, roughly 20.3 million acres of land in the NPRA in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The entire coastal plain will be open for oil and gas leasing. Burgum said the development of Alaska's largely untapped resources is a pathway to prosperity for all Americans.
Again, going back to President Trump and an executive order specifically geared to Alaska. Big difference is he's trying to help us. The other guy was trying to shut us down. He says, Interior is committed to recognizing the central role the state of Alaska plays in meeting our nation's energy needs while providing tremendous economic opportunity for Alaskans.
Trump's executive order directed agency heads to rescind, revoke, and revise policies or regulations on the administration that said that it would hinder fossil fuel development and production of Alaska. resources on federal and state lands. The news today will provide more investment opportunities, more jobs, and better future for Alaskans, said Governor Dunleavy. We look forward to our continued work with President Trump.
and his continued administration to move Alaska forward, and our country forward. Meanwhile... According to Alaska News Source, the Alaska Director for the Center for Biological Diversity, Cooper Freeman, equated the administration's decision to allowing the destruction of Alaska's lands and increasing pollution risk in favor of corporate profits. This is what he said. The damage will be severe and long-lasting. Yeah, Cooper, just the way it is with the pipeline. How'd that work out?
Trump wants to dig, burn, and jump his way across Alaska's finest wildlife refuges and national parks, giving away our public lands to put more money in the pockets of billionaires, Alaska's most precious resources. are in vast expanses of wild lands and habitat for wildlife like caribou and polar bears, and we'll keep fighting hard to protect those beautiful places. Well, what do you think the pipeline runs, Coop? Runs right through Alaska. Been through the entire state, Coop. Have you?
Been up across the entire north slope of Alaska? Have you? Seen all of this stuff? Have you? Been here over 55 years? Have you? Don't think so. Not even close. Don't know where you come from don't know even if you live here don't know how long you've lived here But for you to make a statement like that Is ludicrous The pipeline has been a success. You spill a cup of oil, for goodness sakes, up on the North Slope, and you've got 100 pounds of forms to fill out. You've got booms. You've got...
Things that suck up the oil. I mean, it's, you know, the whole idea of the oil companies, they're here to make sure the oil gets delivered. Right? That's how they make their money. Not by spilling it, but by selling it. And when they sell it, we get something out of it. When they develop it, we get something out of it. And they haven't destroyed Alaska as far as I can tell.
So these statements that are made by these biological diversity people, and believe me, I'm on the same page in terms of not wanting to see our beautiful land spoiled. I live here. You live here. We all live here. We want to see our land as pristine as humanly possible. But, by the same token, we have resources. We have human beings living here that need jobs. We need to make progress. I thought you people were progressive, but you want to make progress?
I think the oil companies have done a really, really good job in doing what they do in the cleanest and most efficient way possible. Go to Russia. Go to some of these other... oil provinces around the world, and then you tell me who does it better. All right.
I just had to get that one out. And I just want to say, Mike, they're freaking out and having all these tantrums. They remind me a lot of the Chicken Little, you know, the sky is falling. Yeah, the sky is falling. We've got all this land and they're going to destroy it. They need to drop some of these guys, kind of like do a Survivor Island thing, but take a bunch of these Libs and Eco guys and drop them in the muskeg and the bush, literally 150, 200 miles from anybody.
and let them see what wild Alaska really is. You look at the pipeline, that's 800 miles through Alaska. What are you talking about? We've already done projects like that. I haven't, but the oil companies have. and the engineers have, we've already shown that this can be done and it can be done safely and without harming the environment.
So, you know, I guess I just don't understand this. They don't have anything concrete. They have no proof of what they're saying. This is just what they feel. And that... is pretty much the way this particular group of people live. Well it's like global warming. No real proof. I mean, there are some things that lead to it. And when you were talking about how they react on the North Slope when any oil is spilled, if anybody remembers Monsters, Inc., it's like a 2319.
You know, if oil spills, everybody reacts, jumps. There is no question, no qualm, and then the paperwork starts. Yeah, I mean, I've been all over that place. And they do a great job up there. And then also, you know... A major native corporation is up there as well, and they're a part of things, and they don't want to see their land, their area spoiled.
You know, they've been up there for thousands of years. They know what's going on. And things work out. You know, there's a great partnership up there. So, you know, this nonsense about it's going to ruin things and kill Alaska. You know, spend a little time and open your eyes and walk around and see things and talk to people. And then you might change your mind, although I doubt it. All right, let's go to, is it Mike? Let's go to Mike.
Hey, Mike. Yeah, I guess my thoughts on all this is it's interesting because, you know, you've got these various nonprofit, you know, NGOs and so on. Where are they getting the money to do this stuff? A lot of that money is coming from our pockets and getting recycled through the federal governments, through the state's governments, through the local governments, and then going to these guys to fight us.
to keep our energy costs low. The key to Alaska, the key to the United States, is cheap energy. And if we have... cheap energy, you know, Katie, bar the door. We can get so much done with not just the present, but the future for our kids and our grandkids. Absolutely. And one of the things with the cheap energy is if we can electrify everything cheaply, that's going to really make a huge difference.
And that was one of the things that Governor Hickel was talking about forever. He wanted to get cheap electricity to the entire state. And this could do it. Yeah, well, you know, Beluga, when it started out, was a penny a kilowatt hour, you know. And Susitna, if we had gotten Susitna, you remember Susitna, don't you? I remember that. I remember the Ford damn pool.
Yeah. I mean, if we had gotten to Sitna done, a lot of these issues would be behind us and we would be just smoking. But, you know, somebody like this gentleman who's with whatever, It's biological diversity. I don't even know what that means. You know, maybe invite this guy on and talk to him. And, you know, maybe we can ask him where is his source of funding coming from? You know, is it coming from hardworking Alaskans and Americans donating because, you know, he's got a worthy cause?
Or is it, you know, somebody who's kind of providing money for them to, you know, interrupt and create, you know, nothing short of mayhem in our lives? Well, it would be good. We'll see if we can find him. Also, it would be good if he actually went up to the slope, talked to the people there. And the oil companies are happy to, you know. give people a tour or instruct what they're doing. They're not hiding anything. And I think the pipeline's been a smashing success. It's worked.
It's what we are living on. I mean, it's the product of the times. But, you know, when you look at this gentleman and you do have that opportunity, I suspect he will just shine you on because... Most of these guys just don't have the... the moxie to sit down and have an intelligent conversation. Rather, you know, his goal is to kind of rattle everybody with sensationalism. You know, the world will be destroyed.
And not only that, we'll have polar bears mating with king salmon. You can't believe what kind of creatures that'll create. Yes, exactly. All right, thank you, Mike. I appreciate your call. All right, 522-0650. Let's take our break. We'll come back. Back to the Mike Porcaro Show with Crash on NewsRadio 650. Looking at your Alaska total traffic camera. Now, back to the Mike Porcaro Show with Crash on NewsRadio 650. KENI.
Well, welcome back. It is 448, 40 degrees in Anchorage, Palmer, Homer, Calkeetna. 42 in Soldotna. 34 in Fairbanks. Minus 2 up in Prudhoe Bay. 47 in New York and Seattle. 62 in Akaroa, New Zealand. 56 in Pensacola, Florida. 55 in Tifton, Georgia. our good buddy Crash is hanging out these days in Tokyo. It's 48 degrees and won't he be surprised when he gets home? There's snow back on his yard.
Maybe it'll just stay there. Maybe we should put more snow. Now that's an idea. You know, we could do that to him. Woody, you're on. Go ahead. Hey, hey. Yeah, go ahead. Yeah. So I was just listening to the last caller, like I told the screener. People like the gentleman, I know it was a very nice way to describe him, the gentleman. People like that, they don't want to have a conversation. They don't want...
to sit down and be taken on a tour. Oh, I didn't know that. Maybe I'm going to change my mind now that I'm more educated. They don't want... to do that. They want to yell and scream their little list that they've been handed to read on a megaphone. They want to stand up with Chuck Schumer. They want to stand up there and raise your hands.
and repeat the same old lies about destruction and pushing grannies off the cliff. They don't want to have these conversations. And so I think, you know, like I was saying, For a long time it's been, we're going to call you names, we're going to demagogue you, we're going to say you're a racist, we're going to say you hate the environment.
And we've been so scared of that that we remain silent. We were the silent majority, silent majority. Well, I think this last election showed us that it's time that the silent majority is more vocal. And you're seeing more of that, like I said, in my life. I'm far more vocal now than I used to be. I've shrunk in my circle of people that I allow in my audience. And so I think the key is we have to be willing to be just as loud and call people out.
on this nonsense, because again, it's not a winning message. What we're seeing today out of Capitol Hill at the state level, it's the same tired messaging. And I think we probably have to be the ones that say that's enough and be very loud, be very vocal. Oh, I agree. And I guess that the idea is we don't want to be a part of your lies. And that's it. And that's what they are.
They are lies. They're trying to push us in directions we don't want to go. And they're trying to bully us. And it's time to just say, no, we're done with it. And I agree with you 100%. It's over, guys. It is, and it's even, you know, like good old Lisa was out there, you know, just came out not too long ago. I think today actually was, oh, there's so many of us and my colleagues were so scared.
of what they're going to call us, and they're so scared of the administration for standing up against them. You know, it's time for them to go. It's time for people who don't align with what our values are to go. You know, I've been joking around with my friends here locally on the peninsula that, you know, hey, it's time to put the cow out to pasture. You know, it's time to put the K-O-W, Murkowski, out to pasture because...
You know, every year, it's the same messaging out of her. Oh, I'm going to 535 for her, and then she goes to town. goes and gets invited to all the parties and forgets about Alaska. And there's people who've lived here far longer than me and my wife have, but we've really come to appreciate the genuine...
desire that I think Alaskans have to be different, to live this frontier life and to a certain degree to lead, to lead from the frontier. And I think we have a huge opportunity in this state with energy. policy taking a stand about what we will do what we won't do that there would be many in the country even though you know we may be the largest state you know you're talking you know less than a million people you know just in certain areas
I think there would be an opportunity for Alaska to really take a stand and lead where other states would be willing to follow. I agree. We are, and I've said this, we are the crown jewel. And when I did an interview with President Trump back in 2022 when he was up here... He echoed the same thing. I mean, he knows how important Alaska is, and I think he's proven that. He has really backed us to the hilt.
And he gets it. And I think maybe now many in Congress are getting it, and many in the country are starting to get it, that Alaska is really a vital part of America. And if we can do what we do up here... then everybody wins. And aside from the natural resources, look at the people resources. That's something that, again, I didn't appreciate it until I moved here. I grew up in Texas.
It wasn't until I moved here that I started to realize that the resource, the type of people where one person has the impact of a hundred in many ways by the work ethic, lifestyle choices, the way we raise kids. The way we build our homes and overcome challenges, I think it's a huge opportunity. I think so, too. Woody, I appreciate your call. Thanks very much.
Take care. Thank you. All right. 522-0650. I mean, you know, just think of the people resources. There's no other place in the world that would have somebody like Crash. Right? Oh, absolutely. You know, what can I say? Crash will get it done. You know he will. What can I say? I don't know. All right, 522-0650 is our phone number. I don't know if I'm going to have time to really get into this.
on this side of the break or not. But there's a story that broke in Must Read Alaska. Umbridge Taken is the headline after Murkowski speaks to reporters about Musk. a Republican colleague pushes back. Now, Senator Murkowski apparently doesn't like Musk. I'm getting the impression. I never heard her say she doesn't like him, but... Her statements make me think she doesn't like him. She said that Republicans are afraid of Musk and his Department of Government efficiency. Meanwhile, Senator Lee...
Mike Lee of Utah chimed back and said, I don't know a single Republican senator who feels that way, not even one. And he wrote this on X. So, I mean, maybe he and Senator Murkowski need to sit down and, you know, have a cocoa or something and chat with each other.
Because she seems to think that everybody's afraid of Musk. And I'm getting the impression that she's kind of helping to lead the charge. And we've got a couple of stories about... what's going on for Mr. Musk and his Tesla business, and it's not very good as to how people are reacting to it, the left especially, the left. which apparently doesn't understand the difference between protest and violence. They think they're the same thing. But they love calling everybody fascist.
and stormtroopers and white supremacists and Nazis, and you pick a name, they'll call you that. We'll be right back. We will drill, baby, drill. You need a knee surgery. Mike Porcaro, behind the mic of your 50,000-watt blowtorch. News Radio 650, KENI. Live from Anchorage, it's your news and information blowtorch. conversation on
here in Anchorage, and in Palmer, and in Holmer, and in Talkeet, in a 42, and Soldatin, a 34, and Fairbanks, and minus two. That's right, minus two up in Prudhoe Bay. While joining us now is one of our favorite people. and she works really hard for her constituents and for the rest of us in Alaska, Senator Shelley Hughes. Shelley, how are you? Hey, you're one of my favorite people, too, and we don't connect often enough, so thank you for having me.
Well, happy to do it. You've been a busy, busy senator. And I wanted to kind of, you know, give you an opportunity to let people know what's going on, specifically with the agriculture thing. And then you also have a bill that was heard today, and I wanted you to kind of tell me. us a little bit about that, too. Yeah, in fact, I just walked out of Labor and Commerce, or no, I'm sorry, Senate State Affairs, presenting that bill, that Senate Bill 107 on the Sunset Commission.
And it's actually, I'm calling it a consistent and reasonable doge with teeth. Okay. Yeah. So, and it does, it's an independent. panel, the Sunset Commission, of people with business, budget, efficiency, operations expertise who review audits and make recommendations on both performance and the budget side for cost savings and efficiencies. And they put it in a bill. They'd be required to put it in a bill, draft it in a bill.
And that bill would go to the legislature. Here's the teeth. The legislature must take the bill up about the agency, what they're doing. They're reviewing state agencies on a rotating basis. And so that... The recommendations are in a bill, and then the legislature must take that bill up or that particular agency, Sunset, thus the name Sunset Commission.
And there are similar approaches in a number of other states. And when we are at the point where we have what is being said a half a billion dollar deficit, and taxes are being proposed, I think the first item of business is we need to make sure, Mike, that our state agencies are operating efficiently and cost-effectively. The public, you know, when you start looking at taxes, the public wants to know, are we doing the best we can? And we could be saving money. There is duplication.
There are offices that maybe have six or seven people that, if they have the proper technology, only need four people. Those kind of things. We have things that were put in place back in the 80s. Maybe it doesn't make sense anymore. Texas, we actually had them come on as invited testimony. He was very gracious because it was 8 in the evening in Texas, and he stayed at the office to chime in.
And their review process this year, they found $147 million in savings. And over time, it's been over a billion dollars in savings. So there's real potential here to help rein in our spending and make sure that the public is getting the best bang for the public dollar, for that tax dollar, best bang for the buck. I would agree. I think that's a great idea. How had that been perceived by your colleagues?
Well, you know, I presented it a couple years ago, and there was a little buzz in the building on both sides of the aisles, majority and minority, because it is, when you're putting together a long-term fiscal plan, that's something you have to keep a check. You've got to get your spending under control, and you've got to keep it under control. And this wouldn't be anything drastic where we'd come along and cut $500 million in the first year or anything. It would be over time, right?
And so it wouldn't cause great chaos and disruption, but it would get and keep our spending under control. And it's being viewed as an important piece of... a fiscal plan of putting our fiscal house in order. So I'm a minority member, as you know, so whether they will move it through this time, but my closing remarks to the committee was, I know I'm in the minority. But we all know this needs to happen, so I ask that you move this bill through the committee process. So we'll see what happens.
Well, hopefully they will see the merits of it, because it has merits, and if we can save money, you know... Good for us. And as Everett Dirksen, the great senator from Illinois once said, a million here, a million there, pretty soon you're talking about real money. Yeah. That's kind of what we're doing. Essentially, there might even be a division or a group that may need more support or more help to do a better job.
Yeah, and I actually pointed that out. If we're not meeting, you know, this is about improving the delivery of essential services to the public, too. So you're right. It could mean... Instead of consolidating or eliminating, it might mean enhancing an agency because they don't have what they need. So, yeah, I think there's interest. We'll see what happens with it.
I do think it's a good idea. And one of the other things, some of the other states, I was trying to pull up the list, and I can't find it, but the other states, I think there's about 10. There are some blue states that are doing it. So I think that made... Some of the Democrats in the majority maybe piqued their interest a bit. So it's just not something that conservatives have used, but it's been used in a wide variety of states. So we'll see what happens.
Well, good luck with it. Let us know if we can help. The other thing I wanted to talk to you about is unfortunately the legislature yesterday did not let the governor have the... department of agriculture for the state and it was a close i mean it just just basically passed through i mean they they killed his executive order But it's a good idea. I think a lot of people maybe don't quite understand how important this is. We had the governor on maybe about a month ago, and he talked about it.
And we're talking food security, and I know, Shelley, this is something you have been just championing. If that port closes, we're in trouble. Yeah, you are right. You are right. And, you know, we experienced that during COVID. We saw the shelves empty in short order in a couple weeks. What a lot of people don't know is, see, I think it was summer of 2023, there was the threat of a...
strike at the port of Seattle. And I was watching that closely because that would have put us in a bad way. And there's really two aspects to a Department of Ag. It's food security in the event of a supply chain disruption. But it is also, Mike, an opportunity to diversify our economy and grow a sector of an industry in our private sector. And here's just as an...
Just a little hint at the possibility and the potential. Scandinavia is on the same latitude we are on the globe. So similar climate, you know, right about where we are. We have a little bit that's southerly compared to Scandinavia. They are exporting $10 billion a year in ag products. We're exporting virtually nothing.
And we're importing about $3 billion worth of food products into our state. So you can see, if you want to, you know, to grow your economy, it means bringing in new dollars from outside of our borders. So the export piece is really important. And that's where a department is...
you know, comes into play. Are you at a commercial break? Because I could finish after the commercial. Yeah, let's do that. And I was going to, I'll mention when we come back that I had a great chat some years ago with Icelandic President Gremson. about this very subject. So I'll share that with you as well. Let's do this. Let's take a break. Senator Shelley Hughes is my guest and we'll be right back. Call Mike and crash now. Be a part of the show on News Radio 650 KENI.
Looking at your Alaska total traffic cameras on this Thursday evening. Steady traffic now all around Anchorage Bowl. Quite a few little slowdowns out there. Looks like Minnesota drive. Our warm weather pattern remains with us. We'll see daily highs topping out in the lower 40s while afternoon conditions continue to. remain fairly dry across the region. For Alaska's weather source, I'm meteorologist Aaron Morrison.
Welcome back. My guest is Senator Shelley Hughes from the Valley. And we were talking about food security. We were talking about agriculture, the Department of Agriculture, which did not get through.
unfortunately. But Shelly, I talked to President Grimson from Iceland some years ago and we talked about the fact that what iceland is doing they've got great geothermal energy and he was up here specifically to talk about geothermal and he said alaska's got all sorts of geothermal possibilities but they built big greenhouses And they were actually exporting vegetables and flowers, too. And he said, you know, we grow everything we need.
And that I think is a tremendous opportunity and we could be doing, you're exactly right, we could be doing the same thing. Yes, and I understand. I think they did a lot of hydro early on and the geothermal. And at one point, maybe it's still the case, they were the main supplier of tomatoes of all things to Europe.
And, you know, coming from Iceland, you just scratch your head. So there's definitely potential. And it was unfortunate that the executive order was shot down. It was a slim margin of two votes. And dare I say that I think petty politics had something to do with it. And Senator Schauer probably said it best on the floor. He said he was going to say the quiet thing out loud. which was people in the room just did not want to give this governor a win on this. Now, they have said, and they have...
bills in the House and Senate that they proposed to establish the Department of Ag. So no one actually spoke against the Department of Ag. They were speaking against the process, which was really, really silly because we had... The governor had a two-year task force, and then we as a legislature established in law a two-year task force, which I chaired.
So there was a lot of boots on the ground, people, ag producers weighing in and testifying, four years of analysis, and both task force came up with a number one recommendation. establishing the department because and I like to put it like this why do we have a Department of Transportation it is because
Mike, you can't go out and build a section of road, and then your neighbor goes out and builds a section of road, and then the neighbor after that builds a section of road. It doesn't make sense. So certain things an individual cannot do. And this idea for Department of Ag, it was not birthed by bureaucrats. It was a request of private sector farmers and ranchers, the ag producers themselves.
because they've hit barriers that they cannot fix on an individual basis. One of those is opening markets. Even the grocery stores within the state, they're struggling with getting in there, let alone the markets we need to open up in Asia. which would allow us to get to the multibillion-dollar export amount that I mentioned that Scandinavia is enjoying. So, number one, you need a department to help open up the markets.
We have a lot of issues with being able to get land and get some of the lands reclassified. That's been a problem. And so that's a thing an individual farmer cannot take care of him or herself. Research. Research, doing it, getting the word about what works and doesn't work.
Individual farmers cannot do that themselves, and they cannot rely on the massive ag research coming out of states like North Carolina and Indiana. It does not work for our climate and our season, our long days of sunlight in the summer. And another thing a farmer or rancher cannot solve individually are some of the transportation barriers and logistics. We need to be able to have a coordination of some of that.
so they can pool together and perhaps put things on a rail car, for instance, where you have several farmers going together. You need someone that can help. coordinate that, and also it can push maybe the transportation infrastructure that is needed. And the governor's proposal, just for all of those who are fiscal conservatives like I am, it was cost neutral.
It was taking the existing division and taking that word division, deleting it, and putting the word department. So the division of ag would become the department of ag, and it would essentially have the same staff. And you say, well... Why can't the division do everything you're talking about, all those things you just listed? Well, Mike, they can't do it because they don't have a cabinet-level seat. We need a seat at the table for this governor and future governors.
so that these kind of things can be elevated and be a priority. Our DNR commissioner, he said on the record, he's a big ag supporter, but he does not have the capacity. He has to focus on oil. gas, mining, those things related to revenue. He's focused on the subsurface natural resources, those things that produce revenue for us. He's dealing with multi-million dollar, multi-billion dollar companies.
The Department of Ag would be for natural resources above the ground surface and would be dealing with small businesses, farmers, Alaskans who own our ag producers. So it's a very different focus.
Absolutely. Well, maybe there's still hope for it, and I'm glad you brought up the fact that there are several bills still kind of in the hopper, and maybe... maybe we can still get this done, this session, because this could be really a great thing for Alaska and certainly a great thing for our farmers and for our ranchers, too.
It could, too. And, you know, the exciting thing, there's so many young people interested. We're at a time right now where people want really healthful foods, high nutrition. By day four after you harvest something, Mike, it only has half. It only has 50% of the nutritional value. There's a growing market for things that are grown in pure, unadulterated soils, pristine environments.
We have that here. We have more farmable acres than any other state in the country. There's tremendous potential. Our season is actually lengthening a tiny bit on each end. Our soils are warming, so as permafrost thaws, you're going to have wonderfully rich soils. So there's a real opportunity.
I think we need to hold all the legislatures accountable. Like I said, no one on the floor in the debate yesterday said they were opposed to the department. So those that would not support the executive order that want to do it through a bill... We need to hold them to do that. And those of us who were supportive of the executive order, we definitely will also support the bill to move it through. So growing season is upon us, and it would be a great...
thing for us to get done this session. We'll see what happens. All right. Well, let me know how we can help. Shelly, I'm always there. Thank you, Mike, and thanks for having me on your show. All right. Thank you, and have fun down there. Okay, happy spring. Today's first day of spring. Yes, thank you. Bye-bye. All right, take care. 528, we'll be back. This is NewsRadio 650, KENI, Anchorage. News Radio 650 KENI, your pipeline to the world.
Alright, it is 5.32 and 35 seconds. And we are back. And, you know, I'm still hopeful that we get a Department of Agriculture. And I know there are people out there that go, well, what do we need another department for? It's revenue neutral here. I mean, it's not going to cost you any more money, at least. That was what the governor said in his executive order. But there are bills, according to Senator Hughes, that are still out there to create a department. So it does make sense.
And to me, strictly from food security, it's vital. And after talking, you know, to the folks in Iceland... They're kind of like we are in the sense they're on about the same latitude. They're a little further north than Anchorage. But same climate, basically, everything else. And they're isolated.
You know, they're on an island. They're not connected to anything. So boat or plane is the only way you're going to get there. And Senator Hughes mentioned they were the largest supplier of tomatoes in Europe. And they understand what they had to do, and they did it. And we could be doing the same thing. And I believe she said, Darrell, that Alaska has more farmable land than any state in the Union. The soil up in the Matanuska Valley is unbelievable. It's rich. It's pristine.
The vegetables that we grow up there, I don't grow them personally, but I'm going to say we because I'm Alaskan. The Alaskan vegetables from our farmers are unbelievable. I'll put them against anybody. And I think they're the best. I think they're the best in the world. And, you know, you look at the huge cabbages and zucchinis and everything. You know, we grow...
stuff over here at the Ponderosa. You know, we love fresh, fresh, fresh, fresh. It's best. One of the things I've noticed growing up here all my life is... A lot of the things that my brain would say should be done by, quote, a Department of Agriculture have done by UAF's Cooperative Extension Service. You know, we had the little, we used to call it in Palmer, the Kremlin building in there that had all the co-op. guys in it and that's where you went to find out about
agriculture, you know, or you went out off a trunk road to the big building out there and the farms out there. But yeah, like I said, if you needed to know something, you went to the Kremlin. And growing up, I always thought it was a state agency. And then later in life, oh, no, that's actually University of Fairbanks. banks' corporate extension stuff. So it would only make sense to me to kind of like mush all those together. Yeah, and essentially the other part of this is the markets.
marketing the produce that we make here. I mean, it's a business. And, you know, we talk about our fish. And we should be marketing those and selling those worldwide at a premium because it is the best. And the same thing with our vegetables. Well, our potatoes, our seed potatoes are shipped worldwide because we're one of the few places that are almost, what is it, parasite-free? Not parasite. That's not the word I'm looking for. But there's some of the cleanest.
potatoes to ship places that don't have bad things in them when you grow them and bring them to the soil. It's a good idea. It really is. You have to look beyond the fact that it's another part of government. There's nothing wrong with government if it is actually going to provide you a service. That's why you have government. Do we have too much government? Yes, we do. But sometimes you need some. All right, let's go to Eric. Hi, Eric. Hey, Mike. How are you doing? I'm good.
You know, I guess I'm from farm country in the Midwest. I'd be very proud to say that my relatives were colonists up here, but they weren't, although it's the same area. Farming is part of my blood. But one thing that really irritates me is how the state handles farming up here. And it is a hard place to grow crops. A lot of the valley is super rich soil, but most of it's getting...
turned into subdivisions for, you know, housing now. And I've seen it the last 15 years I've lived out here. But one thing that really bothers me, I just learned recently, is the largest free-range organic cattle ranch. excuse me, is on the Aleutian chain. It has a carrying capacity of 10,000 head. It's right now carrying about 8,000, and it's owned by Canada. They ship them over to Canada live, slaughter them there.
and then they go to the Pacific West Coast. But it has a USDA slaughterhouse on the island. And then I come to find out last week the school district, Anchorage School District, solicited a bid for beef. And the guy that won it, I'm not going to say his name, but I did some research, and he's pumping in 10,000 pounds of beef to the school district from Australia. So, like, what am I missing here?
No, you're not missing anything. And spoken like a true Midwesterner, Eric, I'll tell you that. Having spent some time in Illinois, soybean country. But, yeah, no, you're absolutely right. If we're going to do this, then why don't we support local businesses or at least American businesses? Right, but when I found out the largest free-range organic cattle herd in the northern hemisphere is in Unamak Island, Alaska, south of Dutch Harbor, I did some research. It's been interesting.
About five years ago, it was worth $14 million. They're trying to sell it for it. Now it's down to about $11 million. But a perfect opportunity for the Department of Corrections to send the long-term criminals down there and herd cattle. with horses and helicopters or however they do it, and kick that beef back into the Alaska market. I mean, even if it was 7,500 heads a year, that's a significant amount of beef that this state could use that can be grown right here, and we choose not to.
Well, I think it's time for maybe a radio guy will make a call to the governor's office or something. And I think Senator Hughes is still listening. I think that's a great idea. We need to start doing stuff for ourselves. Yeah, we do. And it's going to get worse, Mike. You know that. I'm just trying to help your listeners become aware because I'm just becoming aware of some of this stuff. And it's not right. We can do better.
Well, we can, and, you know, it's like the best farmer in the world is the American farmer. I mean, it's just that thing. And I just, you know, I'm with you 100%. It breaks my heart when I think that you've got all these men and women and kids that are working real hard on their land, and all of a sudden we're... Our school district gets beef from Australia? What the heck are we doing? It's crazy. Absolutely crazy. But low bidder wins, right? Yeah, right.
Thanks, Eric. Thanks, Mike. Appreciate it. All right, it's 540-522-0650. That is the telephone number. A big day for the Alaska economy, according to Must Read Alaska, using wartime powers under the Defense Production Act, President Trump. has done an executive order aiming to bolster domestic mineral production to improve national and economic security by reducing reliance on foreign mineral supplies.
His order intends to boost domestic output of such minerals as cobalt and copper, reducing reliance on imports of intentions from, as the president would say, China. More great news is coming out of the White House, wrote Governor Don Levy in response to the news. Alaska stands ready to lead the way in revitalizing America's mineral supply chain. We look forward to working with the administration to accelerate
determining, unleash investment, and make the United States the global leader in critical mineral production. All right, let's take a quick break, and we'll come right back. The Mike Porcaro Show with Crash on News Radio 650 KENI. Agriculture is through all of this, especially here in Alaska. Years ago, the great Paul Harvey did a... A little bit of the rest of the story. And it's called, So God Made a Farmer. And there's no way in the world that anybody could do.
What Paul Harvey did. And so I think you need to hear this. Go ahead, Daryl. And on the eighth day. God looked down on his planned paradise and said, I need a caretaker. So God made a farmer. God said I need somebody willing to get up before dawn, milk cows, work all day in the fields, milk cows again, eat supper, then go to town and stay past midnight at a meeting of the school board. So God made a farmer. I need somebody with arms strong enough to wrestle a calf in your gentle...
enough to deliver his own grandchild. Somebody to call hogs, tame cantankerous machinery, come home hungry, have to wait lunch until his wife's done feeding visiting ladies, then tell the ladies to be sure and come back real soon and mean it. So God made a farmer. God said I need somebody willing to sit up all night with a newborn colt and watch it die and dry his eyes and say maybe next year.
I need somebody who can shape an axe handle from a persimmon sprout, shoe a horse with a hunk of car tire, who can make harness out of hay wire feed sacks and shoe scraps. who planting time and harvest season will finish his 40-hour week by Tuesday noon, and then painting from tractor back put in another 72 hours. So God made a farmer. God had to have somebody.
Willing to ride the ruts at double speed to get the hay in ahead of the rain clouds and yet stop in midfield and race to help when he sees the first smoke from a neighbor's place. So God made a farmer. God said I need somebody strong enough to clear trees and heave bales, yet gentle enough to yeen lambs and wean pigs and tend to pink-combed pullets who will stop his mower for an hour to splint the broken leg of a meadowlark.
So God made a farmer. It had to be somebody who'd plow deep and straight and not cut corners. Somebody to seed, weed, feed, breed and rake and disc and plow and plant and tie the fleece and strain the milk and replenish the self-feeder and... Finish a hard week's work with a five-mile drive to church. Somebody who'd bail a family together with the soft, strong bonds of sharing. Who would laugh, and then sigh, and then reply.
with smiling eyes when his son says that he wants to spend his life doing what dad does so god made a farmer That's Paul Harvey. You can't do that any better. 522-0650, it's 548. Let's go to Jay, huh, Jay? Hi, Mike. My sister lived in Minnesota, and she always used to say, never talk bad about a farmer with your mouth full.
But that's not why I called. I was driving around traffic when you guys were talking about this gas line, and it just raises hair on my back. The last iteration of gas line... fine to TransCanada. This time, no arrangements have been made to give the people who apparently are supposed to own the resource collectively for a break on this gas. They're going to ship it all out to Japan and Taiwan, perhaps Australia, and we're going to wind up paying the same inflated RCA rate increases here.
This is disgusting. Why don't we have a break on our resources? I mean, we're supposed to own it. They're going to ship it all out? No, I don't believe they're going to ship it all out. I think they're going to do off-takes here and in Fairbanks so that we can all get gas. How about all along the highway, where it follows the highway? I went to Chicago to avoid the crowd and testified about tipping out in Glen Allen, in Paxson. And speaking of minerals...
that we need. Did you know that the Canadians for 10 years or more have had a copper claim of 80,000 acres west of Paxson? Did you know that? No, I did not know that, and I have a feeling that... Yeah, they're at a Nevada mining company doing business as from Calgary. Well... I think it's time to make some changes and do some things here for America. Yeah, they've squeezed us out of our permanent fund. Does that mean that people don't get any break on the resources they're supposed to own?
Well, I've been told that there will be offtakes for us along that pipeline. I would sure hope so. I hope we get a break on it in state, especially like no tariff. in state. You know, laws are here and there for people that don't comply. Well, let's see what happens. Well, I know you can't handle it all yourself, but... Thank you for what you do, Mike. I appreciate it, Jay. Thank you for the call. Bye-bye. All right, 551-522-0650.
The Department of Education, well, President Trump signed an executive order today that begins the reduction, and that's a key word here, not the elimination. Because only Congress can get rid of it. But it can be reduced by the chief executive, which is the president. So he is reducing the Department of Education and returning the authority over education to where it belongs, which is the states and local communities. The department was created by Carter.
And since the department has been created, education has not quite been the same in this country, and not in a good way. Governor Don Levy applauded the move. He said while the original intent of the U.S. Department of Education was noble, it failed in its primary mission to ensure that every child has access to a quality education.
Like all large centralized departments and programs, it pilfered tax dollars to support a large bureaucracy, which became increasingly inefficient. As it metathesized, the department took... billions of dollars out of state and local economies to create regulations and pay employees and the financial resources that it provides the states was a fraction of what was taken in.
What are the points? The Department of Education has not improved outcomes, this is according to the President, with reading and math scores near historic lows. Sound familiar? The department manages $1.6 trillion in student loan debt. with inefficient staff, or insufficient staff, I should say, function better suited to, guess what, financial institutions, banks. Let them handle it.
That's what they do. That's where the money came from anyway. They had to get the money from someplace. So let the banks handle it. They're pretty good at it. Making the Department of Education much smaller will allow states and local communities to take control of education and improve implementation. The Secretary of Education is being directed to take all necessary steps to facilitate the shrinkage of the department while ensuring uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits.
And the federal education funds must be allocated in compliance with federal law and administration policy. terminating any programs promoting illegal discrimination under the auspices of diversity, equity, and inclusion or gender ideology. Are you listening, Anchorage School District?
That means you. There's little doubt that there will probably be lawsuits from the National Education Association and others, but remember, this is not... a closure of the agency it is a reduction and the president I think is on very solid ground here They want to close it Congress will have to do that, but if they want to reduce it Trim it whatever you want to call it. He certainly can do that All right, it's 5.54. So, Darrell, what did you learn today in our vast program? Apparently not much.
Are you out there? Oh, there you go. Sorry. I've been sitting here talking to space, Mike. What I've learned today is that we have a huge cattle farm out in the... That should be supplying beef to the United States or to at least Alaska. It only makes sense of that. I'm going to be looking more into myself because I want to know more about this. I'd vaguely heard about it, but I thought it was a small herd, like a thousand. That's pretty big, apparently.
That's a Ponderosa-style herd, Mike. Yeah, that's at least the back 40. Exactly. So learned that, learned with Shelly Hughes about what was going on with the Sunset Clauses. I really, really like that idea. And your first caller of the day today, what was that gentleman's name? Tim. Tim Fitzpatrick. Him talking about the gas line with Taiwan. Again, good information. Well, we try.
We tried. And now we must say bye. So there you go. Bye. That simple. All right. We will see everybody tomorrow, same time, same place, last day of the week. This is the first day of spring, folks. Don't you feel excited? All right. See everybody tomorrow. Have a great evening. He's back. The O'Reilly Update with Bill O'Reilly. Only on NewsRadio 650 KENI. All-wheel drive Toyota Sienna wheelchair accessible vans. Arctic Mobility Solutions is Alaska's best source.