OPINION: Alaska’s path north to a better future

We live in Alaska for many reasons. We have communion with the land and the sea; we value the employment opportunities available to those who are ready, willing and able to work; we love the independent spirit of our state; we think for ourselves, but we support each other.

Unfortunately, the policies championed by the Biden-Harris administration and their allies in Congress have made it more difficult for us to live the Alaskan way of life we ​​value, leading many of our friends and family to leave the state have left what they love.

Alaska families are feeling the pinch and facing unwarranted financial hardship through no fault of their own. Instead, it has been a government that has conducted an economic experiment as old as civilization itself. Members of Congress have come to believe that they can finance an endless wish list by simply printing the funds needed to do so. Any high school economics student would know better, but we are now suffering from these failed economic policies coming out of Washington DC

Inflation’s backdoor tax has hurt ordinary, hardworking people across the country, but it is especially felt in Alaska communities.

Since day one, the Biden/Harris administration has put working families last with policies that stifle economic growth and put pressure on households, businesses and the workforce they employ. Small businesses in particular have borne the brunt of runaway inflation, as they are squeezed between a decline in their customers’ discretionary incomes and mounting wage pressure from workers who are also struggling to keep up.

As a business owner and investor in Alaska, I have seen firsthand what inflation has done to our Alaskans and families, and it is sad to see Alaska families making increasingly difficult decisions, whether that be making a second (or third) job, passing on an education, or denying themselves health care. This is not the Alaska we deserve and it is not our fault; it’s from Washington DC.

I started my career with a passion for creating new businesses. I was named the outstanding student for my major, entrepreneurship, at Baylor University. Through my work with early-stage startups over the past two decades, I have helped develop companies that have created hundreds, and in some cases thousands, of high-paying American jobs. My focus has always been on building businesses that strengthen the American economy, including here in Alaska.

Alaskans need a representative who understands the critical importance of a thriving private sector that is continually reinvigorated by entrepreneurship, who will support small businesses, and understands how the decisions they make on our behalf in DC are likely to impact us at home .

While Mary Peltola was busy critiquing my domestic and international business experience, I was building and investing in private sector companies in Alaska. Unlike my opponent, I am the only candidate in this race who has signed a paycheck for Alaskans.

Alaska’s future depends largely on common-sense policies and effective leadership at the federal level. Our state’s natural resources provide countless opportunities for new businesses in development, support services, value-added manufacturing and transportation, but these opportunities often prove impractical due to overly burdensome regulations, lack of labor availability and prohibitively high energy costs.

For Alaska, it is imperative to resist government overreach so that business owners can do what they do best: take care of workers, meet customer needs, and continue to drive the kind of economic growth that will improve our living standards improves.

Unfortunately, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and their allies in Congress have made it clear through 67 executive orders and actions targeting Alaska’s right to access and develop our resources: they want Alaska closed, to businesses and to the families who support those businesses.

Congresswoman Mary Peltola does not appear to have made a connection between the Democratic Party’s national agenda for Alaska and the impact that agenda has and will continue to have in our state if national Democrats were to control the U.S. House of Representatives in the next Congress.

That said, there is hope. House Republican leaders have committed to continuing to prioritize Alaska in the next Congress and there is great potential for Alaska to have a Senate willing to support the House of Representatives in this effort .

The path to a better future in Alaska is not complicated:

• Restore Alaska’s right to responsibly produce oil and gas, critical minerals and timber, and sustainably manage our fisheries.

• Invest in education that matches the workforce we need to support these industries and the services that support this “primary” workforce.

• Support policies that improve Alaska’s living standards by lowering the cost of living. For example, releasing unused federal lands for private ownership (less than 2% of Alaska is individually owned); expanding basic infrastructure, including new roads, ports and bridges; phasing out or requesting waivers for outdated legislation such as the Jones Act and the Passenger Vessel Services Act; and supporting efforts to increase the availability of cheaper, reliable energy throughout Alaska.

Alaska families and businesses should not have to bear the weight of failed leadership in Washington, DC. We need a wave of innovation and entrepreneurship in our state that comes as an outgrowth of sound policies. The government needs to get out of the way and get back to rebuilding Alaska.

Our state was meant for greatness, endowed with the most incredible natural resources in the world. Those who came before us understood that.

The world’s most incredible high-grade copper mine – Kennecott was the impossible project of its time. It was done in Alaska.

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline was the impossible project at the time. It was done in Alaska.

Will we be the generation that dropped the ball and allowed our state to close down for a braver time – to those with more initiative than us, or will we rediscover Alaska’s bold entrepreneurial spirit and forge something even greater? It’s up to us. Future generations are counting on this generation of Alaskans to deliver on our promise.

It is our job – our responsibility – to deliver on Alaska’s promise: North to the Future.

I’m running for Congress to help us do that, and I ask you to join me by voting on or before November 5.

Nick Begich is a businessman and candidate for the United States House of Representatives.

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