Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media
Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at lruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Liz here.
Power lunch: US senators transfixed by Bear Cam
Even U.S. senators got in on the joy of Katmai Bear Cam this week, and that's not the only Alaska delight the senators sampled from afar. Listen now
What they mean when they say ‘immigration problem’
Lawmakers paint different pictures of what the immigration problem actually is and who the victims are. That's true even within Alaska's all-Republican delegation to Congress. Listen now
Alaska delegation mulls Trump order keeping children detained with parents
President Trump signed an order Wednesday to address the family separations at the southern border, but it raises new questions for Congress. Listen now
Alaska senators veer apart on family separations
A gulf has opened between Sens. Murkowski and Sullivan on how to end family separations at the border. She signed a letter asking the attorney general to stop it immediately. Sullivan says it'll take a new law. Listen now
EPA, Corps agree to new wetland mitigation guidelines
Two federal agencies have beefed up their guidelines for wetlands mitigation in Alaska. The announcement comes after a news outlet found only 26 percent of Alaska permittees were required to mitigate wetland damage. Listen now
Murkowski zeroes in on Trump admin to stop splitting families at border
“The time is now for the White House to end the cruel, tragic separations of families," Murkowski said in a written statement. If the administration doesn't act quickly, she said, Congress must. Sen. Dan Sullivan called the situation complicated and called for a bipartisan solution from Congress. Listen now
Supreme Court agrees to hear Alaska Hovercraft case again
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to rehear the case of an Alaska moose hunter whose use of a hovercraft in the Nation River got him in trouble with the National Park Service. Listen now
Murkowski, Young respond to Chinese tariff on American seafood imports
Alaska’s economy could suffer as a result of China’s 25 percent tariff on American seafood imports and that worries U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski. In a written statement, Murkowski urges President Donald Trump to reach a trade policy with China that protects the export market. Listen now
Murkowski concerned about Sessions border policy
Sen. Lisa Murkowski said Thursday she's troubled by the Trump administration's practice of removing children from their parents when a family is caught crossing the border without authorization. Listen now
Bill would shift 3% of state’s ANWR revenue to Native corporations
A bill pending in the U.S. House would reduce Alaska's share of revenues from oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and give that money to Alaska Native corporations. Listen now
Interior announces “Readiness Project” for ANWR
The U.S. Interior Department on Thursday announced its first construction projects to prepare for oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The department says it will spend $4 million on six projects, most of them in Kaktovik. Listen now
Sweeney nomination wins committee approval
Alaskan Tara Sweeney's nomination to be assistant Interior secretary for Indian Affairs cleared a U.S. Senate Committee today with no opposition - though there may still be one hang-up. Listen now
Murkowski irked at tariffs, and Trump team
President Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs aren't good for Alaska, Sen. Murkowski said. She's frustrated with the on-again/off-again policy announcements, and with EPA Administrator Pruitt. Listen now
This man hopes to bring the gavel down on ANWR drilling
If Democrats take control of the U.S. House, the fate of some of Alaska’s biggest resource priorities could rest with an Arizona congressman most Alaskans have never heard of. Listen now
Trump admin sets crosshairs on Park Service predator rule
The Trump administration is trying to erase another part of President Obama's environmental legacy in Alaska: It wants to roll back a National Park Service ban on several controversial methods of killing bears and wolves. Listen now
Young squeaks Roadless Rule exemption into agriculture bill
It took some doing, but Rep. Don Young squeezed the House for votes Thursday night and got an amendment into the Agriculture bill to exempt Alaska forests from the Roadless Rule. It was a feat that played out on the House floor like political cinema. Listen now
With Pruitt, Murkowski chides without charring
Sen. Murkowski did not ask confrontational questions of the embattled EPA administrator, but she did not leap to Pruitt's defense, either. Listen now
Senators urge Sweeney to be tough at Interior
Alaskan Tara MacLean Sweeney faced no resistance at a U.S. Senate confirmation hearing today on her nomination to be assistant Interior secretary for Indian Affairs. Listen now
Former state senator appointed interim Denali Commission head
Former state senator John Torgerson has been appointed to run the Denali Commission while a search is underway for the organization's next leader. Listen now
Offshore lease schedule for Beaufort draws flak
Democrats in Congress are sounding the alarm about the Interior Department's efforts to hold an offshore oil lease sale in the Beaufort Sea next year. Listen now