National Sierra Club has launched a campaign to ask President Obama to make the entire Arctic National Wildlife Refuge a National Monument, thus finally protecting the coastal plain. So far he has kept in place Bush's policies on the North Slope and Arctic Ocean and his speech called for off shore drilling, coal and Nuclear. Creating National Monuments to protect critical habitat would go a long way in redeeming himself from broken campaign promises to all the environmentalists who worked so hard to get him elected. Phyllis

Rep. Young wary of National Monument designations

FAIRBANKS — Rep. Don Young is among the members of the Western Caucus raising concerns about a leaked Department of the Interior report indicating the Obama administration is looking to designate 17 western sites as National Monuments.

Under the Antiquities Act, the president has the power to name such sites, which can halt development in them.

Alaska sites reportedly under consideration for national monument designation include Teshekpuk Lake on the North Slope and the entire Bristol Bay region, which is threatened by the proposed Pebble Mine project, according to the report.

“The arrogance of the administration is fully on display in yet another ploy to make Alaska the nation’s largest national park,” Young said in a statement.

Begich: Alaska

saving on Medicaid

It’s estimated the state of Alaska will save $10 million in scheduled Medicaid payments thanks to a prescription drug provision in the federal stimulus legislation.

The legislation, signed by President Obama, extends a higher federal matching rate for Medicaid. Sen. Mark Begich, a Democrat, praised the savings in a statement issued Friday.

“This is good news for Alaska at a time we’re seeing a growing Medicaid population and state officials are working to balance previous Medicaid shortfalls,” Begich said. “As the success of the economic recovery effort is being debated, this is yet another example of how it is having a positive impact in Alaska.”

Murkowski praises nuclear policy

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who has been critical of many of President Obama’s policies, praised the administration last week for offering a federal loan guarantee to to build two new nuclear power plants in Georgia.

The $8.3 billion loan guarantee allows Georgia Power, a subsidy of Southern Co. to build two advanced reactors which could bring 3,000 construction jobs to Georgia.

“We simply must expand our use of clean nuclear energy if we’re going to solve both the challenge of climate change and our growing demand for affordable electricity,” Murkowski said in a statement.

“I’m encouraged that this signals the administration is broadening its approach to energy policy.”