Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media

Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media
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Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at lruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Liz here.

‘I can’t just be quiet right now’: Murkowski says Trump needs to resign

Sen. Lisa Murkowski says President Trump incited the violence at the Capitol and is too angry about losing the election to govern.
trump flags and american flags drape protestors at the Capitol

How Murkowski escaped mob violence at the Capitol

Alaska’s congressional delegation affirmed the Electoral College. They rejecting a campaign to keep President Trump in office despite his election loss.

Alaska’s congressional delegation takes heat from Trump fans as Electoral College count nears

Republicans split over whether the congressional delegation should try to block Biden's win

Pandemic relief bill is the biggest thing Congress has done to battle climate change in years

Advocates credit Sen. Murkowski. “It's certainly the largest clean energy and climate bill in a decade,” said one.
Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski speaking to the media

Murkowski says she’ll affirm Biden’s win; Sullivan is mum

Presidents Trump’s false claim that he won the 2020 election is dividing GOP senators.

Rep. Young issues call for unity before swearing in Pelosi as House speaker

"I will be honest: I do not like what I see," Young said. It's time we hold hands and talk to one another."

Senate heads toward veto override vote, with both Alaska senators on board

The Senate has begun deciding whether to defy President Trump. The veto puts Republicans in a tough spot.

Young joins Democrats to nix Trump’s veto of defense bill

The U.S. Senate is expected to join the House, turning the bill into law. Both Alaska senators say they'll vote to override the veto, too.
People standing in front of white capitol dome holding banners that say protect the Arctic.

Biden’s pick for Interior secretary is a passionate foe of drilling in Arctic Refuge

The New Mexico Democrat is a member of the Pueblo of Laguna tribe. If confirmed by the Senate, she would be the first Indigenous person to serve as a cabinet secretary.

Checks of $600 are likely, aid to states is not as Congress negotiates pandemic relief bill

"This is not just paper. This is hope," Sen. Lisa Murkowski says of coronavirus relief bill.

Trump administration may hire private ship to fill Arctic ‘icebreaker gap’ by year’s end

The White House is racing to lease an icebreaker. One candidate is the Aiviq, owned by a Republican mega-donor, and with a history in Alaska waters.

Russian intimidation of Bering Sea fishermen shows gap in Arctic investment, Sullivan says

It was a bad day at work for Bering Sea fishermen harassed by Russian military planes and warships, when the U.S. Coast Guard failed to warn the fleet of military exercises in the area last August

Moderates unite in U.S. Senate, beating path to Murkowski’s door

To succeed, any new COVID-19 relief measures face a gauntlet: threading the needle between a Democrat-led House and a Republican Senate. Eight Senate moderates, including Sen. Lisa Murkowski, have joined together to start tugging some strings. So far, the center is holding.

Federal court rejects approval for Hilcorp’s Liberty Project

A federal appeals court has sided with environmental groups and overturned approval for Hilcorp’s Liberty Project in the Beaufort Sea.
A man in a yellow vest looks at an earthen pillar on a hillside

U.S. House passes bill to reduce loss from landslides

The impetus was not the destructive slide in Haines this week, but a 2014 landslide in Wash. that killed 43 people.

Rep. Young joins Democrats to pass U.S. marijuana legalization bill

A bill to make cannabis legal nationwide passed the House, with help from Alaska's only congressman. The bill is unlikely to go further this year.
A man speaks at a podium

Alaska congressman is back after COVID illness, staff say

Congressman Don Young missed nine House votes in November after becoming sick with COVID-19.
A swampy flat area with rolling hills in the background

Army Corps denies permit for Alaska’s Pebble Mine

The Army Corps of Engineers has denied the Pebble Limited Partnership's permit application. The company says it's considering an appeal.

Alaska DEC has the power to veto Pebble Mine. Document suggests to mine foes DEC won’t use it.

A state agency has an opportunity to veto the Pebble Mine. But newly revealed meeting notes suggest a done deal.
A swampy flat area with rolling hills in the background

Alaska agency says it’s neutral on Pebble Mine. Internal documents tell a different story.

Text messages and meeting notes suggest DNR is working to help the mine get a federal permit