How will you work to help ease the impacts of inflation on Alaskans?
U.S. Senator
Kelly Tshibaka
Republican candidate for U.S. Senator
The federal government must stop runaway spending, which pumps too much money into the economy too quickly, devaluing the dollar and driving prices for goods and services higher. We must recommit to increasing the domestic production of energy and unleash Alaska’s energy industries to produce more. We must cut government costs and reduce taxes. Finally, we must reduce excessive regulation of businesses and entrepreneurs so they can help grow our economy.
Lisa Murkowski
Republican candidate for U.S. Senator
There are steps we can take to reduce inflation, and some things we should not do. We should not increase taxes and raise spending, as some in Congress are proposing. We should focus on supply chains and increasing the domestic supply of a wide range of resources — from energy to minerals, which form the basis for almost every product in modern society. Alaska is uniquely positioned to help, but we need the government to partner with us, not push us out of the way. We can produce more oil to ease pain at the pump. We can build a gasline, to add more than 3 BCF of natural gas to world markets each day. We can produce graphite, cobalt and additional minerals to restrain commodity prices and avoid shortfalls. We can do all this without compromising environmental standards and continuing to reduce emissions. We need to be careful to only increase federal spending where truly needed, such as investment in legacy infrastructure. We also need to review the Federal Reserve’s policies to understand their impacts and ensure they do not contribute further to the inflationary pressure.
Patricia Chesbro
Democratic candidate for U.S. Senator
Alaska is very reliant on transportation for our many needs. Emphasizing self-reliant food sources is vital. Local farmers, fishermen and food processors can stabilize food security. We can begin to build small industry to supply our needs rather than rely on those outside our state. Until we find better ways to transport our necessary products to and from Alaska, we will be at a disadvantage. I will search out ways to improve supply chain that will benefit instead of tax Alaska.