Kelly Tshibaka: 0:08
Welcome to Stand where we help make courage contagious. I’m your host, Kelly Tshibaka, former government watchdog and candidate for US Senate here in Alaska. I’m joined today by my best friend and co-host, Mr Niki Tshibaka. The crowd goes wild, hi Niki.
Niki Tshibaka: 0:24
Thank you, Mrs Kelly Tshibaka. The crowd goes wild, hi, Niki. Thank you, Mrs Kelly Tshibaka.
Kelly Tshibaka: 0:27
I’m so glad to have you today. We are talking to you from the last frontier, the great state of Alaska, and it is wonderful outside, because it’s always wonderful outside in Alaska. You can be sure to be one of our awesome standouts. Join us at our website, standshoworg. Find your favorite podcast platform. Join us on YouTube social media. Make sure to hit subscribe. Become one of our standouts. Catch all of our awesome, famous last episodes, like the one we had with Bill O’Reilly. But today we have a great interview for you.
Kelly Tshibaka: 1:00
Just like I ran for Senate in 2022, we have an awesome US House candidate for us today in 2024. It is our current lieutenant governor, Nancy Dahlstrom, running for House in Alaska against our incumbent Democrat. This is one of the toss-up seats this cycle in America. It is a seat that Republicans can easily take back to add to their very slim majority in a count of 435 House seats. Democrats are fighting for their lives for this seat because they know that there are a lot more Republicans in Alaska than Democrats. And, by the way, the entire West Coast has gone left West Coast, left coast. But there is one bright, red, shiny star up here in the north called Alaska, and they are fighting to turn us blue, and so this is a seat that we can take back, because after 49 years of this seat being red, it happened to go blue in 2022. So this is our chance to take it back.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 2:10
So today we’re going to jump into all those in and outs and talk to our Lieutenant Governor, Nancy Dahlstrom, about her plan to take back this seat and turn it red. Nancy Dahlstrom, welcome to STAND. Thank you so much, Niki and Kelly, it’s great to be here with you.
Kelly Tshibaka: 2:18
I’m really happy for this opportunity. We’re so excited to have you with us. We want to open up and just hear a little bit about your story. What’s your background?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 2:25
Oh boy, I have an interesting story. So first of all, I’m the oldest of six kids, so I’m always used to juggling and you know managing things and helping other people, so maybe some of that comes from that background. But you know, I came to Alaska with a girlfriend when I was 18. We came for a two week vacation and then I decided I’m going to stay the summer and she she decided the same thing and then both of us said you know what this is home? And we stayed here. We’ve been here. I’ve been here ever since. It’s been 40 years, 40 plus years. My friend was here until a few years ago when her husband passed away and she left state to be near family. But this is my chosen home and I’m happy to be here. I love Alaska.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 3:11
You know I have experience in private industry. I’ve worked in the utility industries. I have worked in retail. My dad had an insurance agency. I did a little bit of work there growing up. My dad had an insurance agency. I did a little bit of work there growing up. My dad also had a farm, in a very small farm that he raised bison on, and so I had some interesting experiences helping to do that, but it wasn’t a large herd like the Great Big National ones. There was only 25 animals. But they are beautiful creatures that I love, you know. I’m so glad that we still get to see them and all the other beauty in nature. But I’ve also worked in the Alaska state legislature.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 3:59
I have worked in several different administrations for Republican governors in other positions around the state. I ran for office again in 2018 and won, and the reason I ran and jumped back in was because I was so disgusted with what was happening in our state with crime, and basically we were saying criminals, you’ve got the right of way, do whatever you want to do Victims so sad, sorry, you’re a victim, but we don’t care. And the criminals just were getting away and I was sick of it. So I jumped back in. The governor knew what my stand was on public safety and we aligned on that, and so he actually asked me if I would, instead of being seated in that office, if I would be the commissioner of department of corrections, and I did agree to that and I served in that position and really enjoyed it, and I enjoyed it because of the great people that work in that department and you know, a prison is like a little mini city and you have everything healthcare, education, all types of things in there, but doing my job, loving it.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 5:06
And then the governor said, hey, would you be willing to be my running mate? And so I accepted that offer, that I was willing to step up and help him. And you know, we’ve been doing that for the last two years. And then here we are. I don’t like what’s happening in our country and I really don’t like it how it’s affecting our state, our great state of Alaska, and it’s time to jump in again and fight. We know that Biden is basically trying to shut our state down and, unfortunately, he’s had the help of our congresswoman who has been voting and going right along with him on these things. And so I’m I want to fight, I’m willing to go to DC and stand up for Alaska, and that’s why I decided to jump into this race.
Niki Tshibaka: 5:59
Well, you’ve been standing up for Alaska for a long time and, it sounds like, in a number of different capacities, both in the executive branch and in the legislative branch, so you’ve got a lot of the kind of experience that would be very helpful to bring to DC, both as a legislator and as an executive. Can you talk about some of the other positions you held with other governors, in addition to the most recent one you had before becoming lieutenant governor, which was the commissioner of the Department of Corrections?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 6:33
Sure. So I worked in Department of Commerce and was executive director of Serve Alaska and what they do is they work with AmeriCorps members who go around the state and do wonderful projects nationwide. There’s an AmeriCorps program and again, they do lots of volunteer work. They do get paid for a lot of the work that they do but they’re doing everything from grandparent programs to helping kids to helping build trails, to helping teach people literacy. They do all kinds of fantastic work.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 7:08
I worked in Department of Labor as the executive director of AWIB, which is the Alaska Workforce Investment Board, and that’s a 25-member governor-appointed board representing all industry in the state. Education and everything’s represented in that, and the goal with that group was to bring people together, help promote the governor’s plan and good economic plans and policies for the state of Alaska. And again, you know I love that because there’s so many people. There’s one thing people that know me know my favorite thing is working with people. There’s one thing people that know me know my favorite thing is working with people, and I like talking and working with people all across the spectrum and just having the opportunities to help and to learn from them all.
Kelly Tshibaka: 7:56
Nancy, what sorry.
Niki Tshibaka: 7:57
Go for it.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 7:58
I was just curious what makes you the best qualified to hold this position over our current incumbent. Well, I believe that my votes in fact, I know that my votes would be a lot different than the current incumbent. I served with Representative Peltola in the Alaska legislature and she’s a nice, wonderful lady. I like her, but our votes are very different. Nice, wonderful lady, I like her, but our votes are very different and that’s why I’m running is I disagree with the votes.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 8:30
I will always stand up for the military. I will always stand up, you know, for our state, and I will stand up to unleash the resources in our state that are now currently bound up, and so not only are we not able to produce, which is affecting our economy, so there’s a trickle-down effect with that it affects our families. People can’t spend the same, they can’t enjoy the same things, but we’ve also had an outward migration in our state for 11 years, and when the economy is going down the tubes, people they have to leave to find, you know, good opportunities, um. So those types of things are things that have been okay and she’s voted with. I absolutely disagree with um. I have far more extensive experience um than she does in, you know, with the positions that I’ve held around the state. I’ve chaired major committees in the legislature as a member of the House majority. You have those opportunities. I’ve served in leadership positions.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 9:37
I was the rules chair in the Alaska legislature, in the majority and the rules chair. You know I don’t really like to brag about myself. It’s easier to brag and build up other people. But the rules chair is important because that’s the position that determines what legislation goes to the floor. You know it can be voted on, it can be passed out of the committee unanimously, and if the rules chair doesn’t schedule it to the floor, it’s not going to be heard, it’s not going to be going to be voted on, and so that’s a position that’s critical. Also, it’s critical that that person is able to to work with everybody because you know, even though you’re working with your majority, you’re representing all Alaskans when you serve in the legislature and it’s important to be able to do that. And those are areas that I succeeded in and I think you know that’s some experience that she hasn’t had.
Niki Tshibaka: 10:36
Right. You know, one of the other things that I can say that I’ve appreciated about your leadership, nancy, is the advocacy that you’ve done in the area of fighting human sex trafficking in Alaska and fighting against sexual violence and standing up for those voices that are often unheard in that area, and so we have about 30 seconds Anything that you want to say on that before we head into our break.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 11:05
Thanks for bringing that up. I will always defend the vulnerable and those that cannot defend themselves. We have a moral responsibility as Americans to do that.
Niki Tshibaka: 11:19
And I will always do that.
Kelly Tshibaka: 11:21
Wonderful Kelly any thoughts before we transition to the next. Well, I’m excited that we recently heard you have an endorsement from President Trump. I get to serve as the Alaska State Chair for Trump’s campaign, so how about, on the other side of the break, we pick up telling a story about your Trump endorsement and talk about our path to victory in November and how Republicans can pick up this seat. I think it’ll be really great to talk about that. You’re on stand with Kelly and Niki Tshibaka. This is where we stand for freedom, truth and government by the people.
Kelly Tshibaka: 11:51
On our break, make sure to hit us at stand. Showorg, hit, subscribe and figure out which of our past episodes looks most interesting to you. Become one of our standouts and make sure to stand by. We’ll pick up with Nancy Dahlstrom right. Welcome back to Stand with Kelly and Niki Tshibaka. We’re so excited to have with us Lieutenant Governor of Alaska, Nancy Dahlstrom, running for the House of Representatives in Alaska this cycle. Nancy, we want to talk about some of the major endorsements you have in this race, because you have picked up a lot of support in a short amount of time, most recently, one of the most coveted endorsements in the nation from our former president and some would say he’s still my president.
Niki Tshibaka: 12:41
And soon to be president.
Kelly Tshibaka: 12:44
Donald J Trump. Tell us a story about how you got President Trump’s endorsement.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 12:48
Wow. Well, thank you for bringing that up. I am thrilled to have that endorsement, just beyond thrilled about it. You know, President Trump is such a great fighter for the state of Alaska and one of the things I wanted to say for everybody that’s listening, you know the governor will tell you that any time he’s spoken with President Trump, the president has always said what can I do for Alaska? He didn’t wait to be asked, he said what can I do for Alaska? And I love that about him and I respect and admire that.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 13:25
He has made it a point to know so much about our state and what’s important. And I’m so happy that he weighed in on this race because he, like us, know what’s at stake here, not only in our state but in our country, and I believe that he feels the same way that I do, and I know you two do, and that our country. We are kind of at a crossroads and we have got to get our country back and it’s essential that we have President Trump back in the presidency. And he knows that I’m a fighter, he’s aware of my background, he knows what I have done, he knows some of the battles I’ve fought in the legislature. He knows I can stand strong when the winds are blowing very tough and strong and blowing the other trees down. He knows that I can stand strong and I’ve proven that. You know the conversations that he had with Speaker Johnson. Speaker Johnson was able to talk with him a lot about the conversations that we’ve had and the in-person meetings.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 14:32
Congressman Steve Scalise, who is a big lover of Alaska, has been a wonderful friend and supporter to me right from the get-go and I know that he talked to the president.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 14:44
Congresswoman Stefanik has been an incredible supporter and just given me many, many tips and been so supportive of this race and she also loves Alaska. They know the type of fighters that we need. I’ve been thrilled to have the endorsement of Congressman Emmer, who his tie to Alaska is that he went to college on a hockey scholarship in Fairbanks and so spent four years within our state and is also good friends with our Senator Dan Sullivan, and so he’s been here quite a few times, knows what’s important to us and will always defend Alaska. He’s been just incredible, but thankful for their endorsements, and Chairman Hudson, who’s the chair of the Congressional Leadership Fund, has been wonderful. Winning for Women, which is an organization that helps to get conservative women into office in DC have been very supportive and financially very helpful, so I’m grateful for all of those. The donations have been coming from. Lots of very good, strong, republican people who.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 15:55
I’m so impressed with what they say about Alaska to me in national security, how close we are to all these other nations and being, you know, so close airways and everything that we have, everything that another country would want in this, in this state. And we know full well the biggest regret Russia has ever had was selling us and they wish they could take us back. And of course, with that we say, hey, good luck, give it a try, but it’s not going to happen. Right, we’re not giving up Alaska, but we just have so many things going for us. And it’s why I think the support of so many in DC has been there, because they know the whole country benefits from our state.
Kelly Tshibaka: 16:56
Did you have a chance to talk to President Trump yourself yet?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 17:00
No, I have not talked to him personally yet.
Kelly Tshibaka: 17:02
Well, that’ll be an exciting day when you do. I agree with you that he has been so supportive of Alaska and I think it’s huge that he has jumped in and had an opinion about this race, because it puts this race on the map nationally and will bring a lot of attention to to having a decisive victory for Republicans. I think that that’s a big deal.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 17:26
I agree with you. Being on the map even more than we were is just critical, and we all know that it takes money to run a campaign.
Kelly Tshibaka: 17:36
That’s right.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 17:38
Nothing in this I’m going to call it industry of campaigning is free, nor is it inexpensive, and so I am always on the phone and asking people for donations and letting them know what I stand for so they know what their money is going to be supporting. But it’s just, it’s a part of the territory that comes with this.
Niki Tshibaka: 18:00
Yeah, absolutely. And speaking of the need for the help, the helpfulness of endorsements and, of course, the need for money and getting this, this race, more on the national forefront, what do you see as the path to victory for us in this particular race to unseat Mary Peltola and get back the seat that Don Young held for so long?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 18:26
Well, you know, in our state we have ranked choice voting. That was put into the law. It barely won and it was challenged in court and the court said, hey, this is the way it is, and so we’ve been living with that. So what I like to equate it to is a game. That’s the game we’re playing right now, and we have to play by the rules. And the rules with ranked choice voting are that people pick their first choice and then they rank.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 18:55
Now what Republicans need to remember is don’t rank any Democrats, rank the Republicans, and if we do that and if every, I want to earn people’s vote and I want people to vote for me and I’m happy to answer any questions or anything that they have for me, but I also want them to vote for the other Republican who’s running as number two. And I tell everyone if you are voting for the other Republican, great Vote for me, number two. That’s how we’re going to win this. That is how we’re going to have a Republican, a conservative Republican, in Congress and our state will be represented better and our country will be in better hands. So you know, moving forward, I am delivering that message everywhere I go and there’s no fighting and no fussing, because I’m running against Peltola and Biden and that’s where every dollar and every cent and every bit of energy that I have is going.
Niki Tshibaka: 19:59
And that’s. You know that. That that strikes me is as that, that’s the path. We have to rank the red how. There are still a certain margin of voters who are either skeptical of ranked choice voting or may refuse to vote because they don’t like ranked choice voting, or may refuse to vote because they don’t like ranked choice voting, or may refuse to or might say I don’t want to rank because I am just in principle against ranked choice voting, and you know that two or three percent of folks who might decide not to do that could make a difference. What’s your? What do you say to those folks? How do we convince them? Say you know what we understand to your point. Like you said, this is the system that we have, these are the cards that we’ve been dealt. We’ve got to work within the rules. How do we convince them to move forward and just rank the red Because, at the end of the day, gaining that seat back is what’s most important? How do we get them to move on that?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 20:53
So I have heard that comment from you, know a few people and and some people just feel like they’re almost doing something morally wrong, mark to mark too. I mean pretty much that’s what they’ve said to me. I try and explain it to them and it concerns me a lot. And it concerns me a lot, I’ll just keep. I’m going to keep on trying. We’re getting education out to folks. I know that Division of Elections is continuing to put education out in written form and there will be things coming out on the airways to try to help people.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 21:30
There’s only one reliable place to get information about where to vote and explaining ranked choice voting, and that is the Alaska Division of Elections and that’s being advertised statewide. So you know I refer people there all the time. If people say they’re only voting for one, I ask them to please reconsider and to please think about it. I make sure that they have all my contact information and know they can contact me with any additional questions. And then I say and if you’re only voting for one, please let it be me, because I will represent you the best. And here’s why Everybody has a different, you know, point, something that’s super important to them, and I try to explain to them where I stand on that so they know why it’s in their best interest. You know, to vote for me.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 22:21
You know I’m going to say the other Republican who is running has said they’re dropping out if they come in third, and before you even ask me, I’m going to tell you that I have not made that statement, nor am I going to make that statement. What I have said is let’s see how all the votes shake out on August 20th and if there’s ever any questions, then I will call Nick and I will call the party chair and let’s sit down and let’s talk about this and see what path do we have to move forward to have a Republican in Congress representing Alaska? That’s what this whole thing is about. This isn’t about me, this is about Alaska. This is the picture of the whole. This isn’t just about one person or a couple people, and so I am looking at this as the whole and the big picture and what’s best for Alaska.
Kelly Tshibaka: 23:10
Yeah, because we saw last time that obviously it doesn’t matter how much education we do, the voters last time split the vote and there’s so much drop off with the second place ranking that even though there are more Republicans and even though we elected a Republican governor and we would have elected a Republican president, we’ll elect a Republican president this time. If we are splitting between two candidates then who are really close, then the vote will go to the Democrat, and we saw that last time. So we’ve got to be strategic. We also saw in 2022 that we just had significant voter drop-off and it seems that the data around ranked choice is that every time you have an election, there’s more and more drop-offs. So I expect there will be a little bit more voters this time because it’s a presidential race, but it will be lower voter turnout than a normal presidential race, and so when we had 19,000 super voter Republicans who didn’t vote in 2022, one of the big challenges to our path to victory this year will be just motivating Republicans to vote.
Kelly Tshibaka: 24:07
We’re at a break, so stand by with us. You’re on. Stand with Kelly and Niki Tshibaka. Stand by, we’ll be right back.
Niki Tshibaka: 24:22
Welcome back everyone. You are on stand with Kelly and Niki Tshibaka, and we have the redoubtable Lieutenant Governor, Nancy Dahlstrom, on with us today talking about her race to become the next representative for Alaska in the House of Representatives in DC and to unseat our current incumbent, Mary Peltola. Nancy, we’d like to talk to you now and get into the meat of things, the issues, and get your sense of some of the bigger issues facing the nation and impacting Alaska, and we’d like to start off with the border crisis, because we know that you actually took the time to go down to the border and see for yourself what’s happening down there, and that’s an issue of great concern and interest for Alaskans. So can you talk to us about what happened down there, what you saw, what you experienced and what your position is on this migrant crisis? That?
Kelly Tshibaka: 25:22
we’re experiencing and I also think we should point out I don’t think either our representative nor our senior senator have done that yet.
Niki Tshibaka: 25:30
Yeah, they haven’t. I don’t think they’ve gone down to the border so have they.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 25:33
If they haven’t, they haven’t said anything. So you know, I’ll tell you what going there was an experience that I’ll never forget, and I’m glad I saw it with my own two eyes. It’s even worse than what you see on TV, you know, or on any of the news outlets, but I was there from midnight till about three thirty in the morning, and we were there with the Border Patrol agents, with the sheriff, with with a retired sheriff from the area, and then Dan Wolf who worked with President Trump, and we and some local farmers and other people were there. So we went. I was standing there by the wall, the beautiful, it’s beautiful, the wall that Trump had built 30 feet tall. The top of it, the top six feet, are smooth metal. So even if somebody can shimmy their way, you know, get up there it’s very hard to get over the very top of it. But even so, officers told me that it happens now and then. And then you see the part that Biden or, excuse me, that Obama built, and it’s about 10, 12 feet lower and it’s not as firm. And then you see the part that Biden built, and the officers refer to it as the chicken wire portion, and really that’s kind of how it is. It’s this more flimsy, almost like a backyard chain link type fence. You can go under it, you can go over it. It’s it’s insane. But we’re standing there and all of a sudden I could hear kids talking and I thought this is weird. There’s, it’s insane. But we’re standing there and all of a sudden I could hear kids talking and I thought this is where there’s no kids around. And then I can hear adults. And then all of a sudden, behind me, I see in the dark, I see these shadows walking behind me and step back and watch them go along. And then they came. They went to the end of the wall, watched them go along and then they came. They went to the end of the wall and they came around.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 27:23
There was about, there was between 80 to a hundred of them, men and women, some small children. I didn’t see any older people. There was more men than women and I’m going to say they were very healthy looking, one could say fighting age. And you know, I don’t know if they were families, you know, or who the children belong to. Really they were from seven different countries, just in this small group, and the majority of them didn’t speak English. The officers had to stand there, almost act like a social worker, keep them in line, hand them water, stood there and watched one of the men actually just go up to the officer and flip him off right in front of his face Just so disrespectful, even after he just entered our country.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 28:11
These people were put on vans, air-conditioned vans, driven to a warehouse-type place where they were given some paperwork and, I’m told, a sack lunch that was full, a very healthy, hearty lunch, I’m told. And then they were put on air conditioned buses and from there driven to a processing center. And so we went to the processing center and we saw them. Amazing how many people were on. Everybody had what looked like an iPhone, even the little kids, and there was a big, long charging station set up where they could charge and the kids were on their phones and laughing and playing. I heard people calling and talking and I don’t know what they were saying. I don’t speak Spanish so I didn’t understand any of it. But there was people asking them where do you want to go in the United States? And they would tell them and then it’s our, our obligation as a country then Thanks, president Biden, that we sent them to where they wanted to go was.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 29:14
I learned that there’s 85,000 children that have come across the border. They’re undocumented children. They didn’t have an adult sponsor or chaperone with them. They came and I said to the officers oh come on, how can this be? They said they have a note. They’ll have a note safety pin on the back of their shirt, up by their neckline, and it’ll say my name is such and such, or my grandma or my aunt or whatever it is. Here’s a is such and such, or my grandma or my aunt or whatever it is. Here’s a number call them. They will come and get me or put me on a bus and send me there. Our people have to send them there.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 29:52
We don’t know who these kids are, we don’t know where they’re going, we have no way to confirm, and yet we do know that in our country we have a huge problem with sexual trafficking, domestic traffic, you know, physical labor, all of these things. I mean, honestly, you and I know some of those kids aren’t even alive anymore. I mean, unfortunately they could be doing any number of things and we have no idea, and that just really made me sick to my stomach to think about it. But we’ve got 11 plus million people that are in this country. We don’t know where they are again, who they are, what they’re doing, and nobody in the Biden administration seems to be bothered by that at all, and I find it very unsettling myself. And yet we have states that are giving them, you know, programs, all kinds of free, medical free, all these different things.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 30:49
We went to the local hospital there in Yuma and talked with the CEO at the hospital and some of the workers in the emergency room and they said they’d been working for months and months straight without a day off. They have all these people that will come in. The emergency room is full, they’re lined up outside. They can’t even get everybody taken care of. I mean, it’s just a constant line. And then local people will come in with something. They can’t even be seen because these illegal folks are there and they’re getting care. You know the food banks are being hit hard. They’re handing out food like crazy to all these illegal people and again, united States residents that might need some temporary assistance aren’t able to get any. And then you know, I never thought about this, but in Alaska food security is a big deal because everything comes to us either through the air or by barge, and I didn’t know that the Yuma area produces 90% of the fresh produce and lettuce that our country has.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 31:53
When these illegals come across and they lay down in their fields or walk through the fields or do anything that disturbs them, mean, even if a dog comes and urinates on the crops they have to destroy those crops and my first thought was, oh, you’re gonna till the ground and it’ll just act as a fertilizer. No, they have to actually pull everything up, uproot it, destroy it and then replant. And this is all at the expense of the farmers and you know they’ve said there’s no insurance for this kind of thing, so they’re losing millions and millions of dollars. You know, and these are the same people that go to bed at night and they put out water and snacks on their front porch, hoping that when the folks walk through their yards that maybe they’ll just grab that and keep on going, because many of them have woken up to an illegal person that they have no idea who it is sitting, you know, staring at them while they’re laying in bed. There’s been robberies, there’s been other horrendous things that have been happened. Sometimes people just say, hey, you know, food, food, food, water. They want food and water, and so they set all this stuff out, hoping to sleep through the night, and it doesn’t always happen that way. They can’t let their kids outside to play.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 33:20
Nothing is safe in those areas because there’s constant activity of illegal people going through and you know, in the other thing is drugs. Now, as a former commissioner of Department of Corrections, I know what a thorough pat down is and I watch these officers rub up and down their arm once and their leg once and say OK, and that’s all that they can do. That’s all they’ve been given the authority to do. We all know that drugs can be put in many areas in one’s body and also strapped to their body outside in many ways that you would not even notice underneath clothes. But these officers don’t have the opportunity to check that, and so all these drugs are coming in. And in Alaska we are being hit specifically by the fentanyl. Last year we have the unfortunate, the unfortunate fact that we had the number one fentanyl death increase in the entire United States per capita Number one. That is unacceptable.
Kelly Tshibaka: 34:19
And that’s been so. That’s directly tied to the border crisis in the south. So we have the thought that you know our border state is Canada essentially, but you’re absolutely right, Nancy, that our fentanyl crisis is directly tied to the Democrat border policy with the with Mexico and Latin America.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 34:39
Right, and people in the healthcare industry in Alaska are affected by it. I’ve been told that there are lots of people coming to deliver babies or going to ER seeking care. They have no identification, nothing, and they don’t seem to remember where they came from when they’re asked. And so, again, we pay for all of that and then we have to wait in line. It’s not OK.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 35:04
And our national security I’m talking to the choir, you know our national security is what’s online here. We’re ripe for something really bad to happen and we have got to get an end to this. If we don’t close our borders, we do not have national security. It’s a total, separate issue than immigration. We need to get the borders closed and then we’re going to figure out what we’re going to do with immigration, how we’re going to handle those 11 plus million people, and what we’re going to do. I do think we could make changes to our immigration policy. I do think we could shorten the time and maybe make it a little bit easier for folks, you know, with paperwork, but they have to go through the legal process to be here, and there’s nobody madder about it than those folks that have come here legally, that know, they know what’s happening and they know of the ill intent and everywhere I go I have people that came here legally tell me how upset they are about it. But we have a huge problem with our national security now.
Niki Tshibaka: 36:11
Yeah, yeah, and that’s national security and Americans being affected economically and in crime. It’s a real, real big issue and so glad that you are speaking forcefully and passionately about it, because it’s an issue of great concern across the country and, of course, here in Alaska as well. We’re up at a break and we are going to be back to talk more with Nancy about her run for Congress and the issues that she’s passionate about and what she is going to do for our state should she become the next congresswoman from Alaska. Stand by.
Kelly Tshibaka: 36:58
Welcome back to Stand with Kelly and Niki Tshibaka. We’re so happy to have Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom with us to talk about the House race in Alaska. So, Nancy, I wanted to chat a little bit about the challenges with our current incumbent, Mary Peltola’s votes and how they don’t really align with what’s best for Alaska. One of the things I was concerned to see is Peltola voted this year to allow illegal immigrants, these millions of people who’ve come across the border illegally, to actually be included in the next census population count for America, which means that we would actually have redistricting across the US to allow more votes in states like New York or California that are offering sanctuary status to illegal immigrants, which would allow more votes in the US House for those states and would actually dilute the representation for Alaska. So we’re still only have like one vote, but there wouldn’t be 435 votes in Congress anymore. There could be like 500 representatives in Congress, so we would now be one of 500 instead of one of 435. What are your thoughts on that?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 38:10
Well, actually I was really, I was sad and I was angry and I was disappointed. You know, when I heard and learned about that vote, I can’t even believe they’re even talking about that. You know, in DC, United States citizens are who should be counted in our census and United States citizens are the ones that should be voting. In our country, unfortunately, there are some states that are even talking about, you know, allowing illegals to vote. Well, they live here, so we might as well let them vote. It’s like, wait a minute, they’re illegals, they need to go Again. I was really disappointed. You know, we’ll always have two senators, two per state, but, like you said, the number could go up.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 38:58
I mean, we could have way more than even 500 people in there, you know, voting First of all, what a crazy zoo that would be. But it’s just an illegal way to go about trying to create what they want to create, which is, you know, control. And it seems like, it just seems to me like some people are bent on destroying our country. I just don’t understand the thinking of tearing things down and tearing apart what so many have fought and literally died for in our country and our constitution that the founders wrote and I believe they were inspired by God when they were writing that and we have people trying to destroy that and it’s almost hard to put to put words at that. But you know I’m absolutely against Mary’s vote. I would have voted different on that, obviously.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 39:58
You know there was another vote just in the last six weeks that was really disturbing and should be to all Alaskans, and it was the vote I think the bill was called Produce Alaska and it was a bill that Peltola was one of the original sponsors on and it was about increasing the production in Alaska. And then, before the bill came to the floor, she sent an email out to all her Democrat colleagues saying, hey, I’ve learned some information that this is not, you know, good for Alaska or for the country. And so I’m asking all of you to vote no. And I know I kind of didn’t, I didn’t want to believe that she did that. And so the person that told me I said send it to me. And they did actually send me the tag, the email that she sent out. So I’ve seen it.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 40:46
But then, making things even worse, when she got to the floor, she voted present. I don’t think that that’s OK. You know, first she’s for it and she’s against it, and then she’s present. It’s like, if you’re against it, I guess, put your money where your mouth is and vote no. But I was really sad about that. I mean, this is her state and to care as much about it as she says she does, I would have thought she would put her vote with something that would have benefited all Alaskans in our country. So just it’s. That’s been just heartening. I’ve been really surprised by that.
Kelly Tshibaka: 41:25
Well, there’s a pattern that we’ve seen in her votes, right where she ran a campaign that she was a little bit of a different kind of Democrat because she was a pro-resource development Democrat and in that way I think she got a lot of votes and support from Republicans in 2022. But then you’re right that when she got to Congress, she has made a lot of flip-floppy votes. So she actually did this push against this bill you’re talking about, which was actually to push against all of Biden’s shutdown and restrictions on Alaska. He’s had more than 60 administrative actions and orders to shut down resource production in Alaska and this bill was actually brought by someone not in Alaska to push back on Biden. But then there’ve been other bills too, like she actually wrote a bill to support and champion preemptive vetoes by the federal government against resource production in Alaska.
Kelly Tshibaka: 42:25
So there’s now an effort by our representative to say it’s okay to not consider Alaska voices, to not consider Alaska data, to not consider the input of Alaska N natives in the region where you would be looking at Alaska resource development, and instead we’re just going to let a bunch of bureaucrats in the Beltway, 4,000 miles away make decisions that preemptively shut down Alaska resource development without any consideration of Alaskans and what we think, when we actually know best about what to do with Alaska resource development, whether that’s mining or fishing, or oil or gas or whatever.
Kelly Tshibaka: 43:04
I think that’s really scary when we start seeding the power and the knowledge and the voices of Alaskans to the people in DC. So she does a lot of this and she flip-flopped what she wanted to do on Donlin mine. She was for it, then she’s against it. She flip-flopped on her position on on the Ambler road and then she’s got these votes, like you say, where she votes present or she happens to step out and go to the bathroom. So there’s not really a record on where our pro resource development representative actually stands on resource development in Alaska.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 43:42
Right, you know, and the voting there. Only it isn’t just a few minutes. There’s plenty of time to go to the bathroom and come back.
Kelly Tshibaka: 43:50
That’s right.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 43:51
You know that’s kind of a good one, but I’ve been disappointed by that and the changes. I mean, and I’m going to, for the record, I’ll tell everybody I am supportive of Ambler Road and you know, as far as our mining, our entire country needs our mines to be open and we in Alaska have proven that we can do a lot of things and we still have respect for the land and we honor the cultural values and different things in our state while we continue to grow and produce our resources. The country needs our resources and you know, give minds the opportunity to at least go through the process of permitting. You know, when Biden comes along and says, nope, nope, we’re going to just shut this down, no, you can’t even try. Give them, just like all businesses, if you want to do this, give them the opportunity to get a permit or a license. If there’s something not right, give them the opportunity to fix it, make it correct, and you know we’ll just continue through the process. But just saying you know, will we really know that is not the American way and it’s it’s certainly not in in America’s best interest.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 45:05
But you know, even you know on the bill that she voted present on, I will tell you, thank goodness for Representative Stauber from Minnesota, because on the Resources Committee Mary didn’t even stand up and defend our state in that committee. It took Representative Stauber to, you know, to stand up and speak for Alaska and defend us and what we needed. And you know I took the opportunity to write to him and also to call him and thank him so much for standing up and asking him to continue doing that until I can get there. You know to be helpful, but we it was sad and it was maddening at the same time.
Kelly Tshibaka: 45:47
Absolutely Well. Speaking of sad and maddening, Niki pointed out to me before we did our interview that it is sad and maddening that the same people huge donors across the US that are supporting the anti-Semitic protests on campuses and across the world, are some of the largest donors supporting Mary Peltola’s campaign, and we haven’t heard a peep out of her condemning the anti-Semitic sentiment and treatment of Jews across our country and across the world.
Niki Tshibaka: 46:19
Yeah, no, that is another point of concern, Nancy. We’re coming up on the end of the show here, but we want to give you some time to address the voters here in Alaska and potential donors down in the lower 48. In these last two minutes that we have, what’s your message to the voters and to potential donors?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 46:42
Well, thank you, you know. I want to start by saying and following on what you just said, kelly. I stand with Israel and I always will stand with Israel. I have spoken publicly about it, I have written about it. I stand with Israel and what happened on October 7th was horrendous. Israel has every right to defend themselves against Hamas and I am angered that President Biden is being so wishy-washy about it, the situation and what he is doing.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 47:14
But I’m running to defeat Mary Peltola and to return a conservative Republican to the United States Congress to represent us. Don Young did a fantastic job doing that for 49, almost 50 years and I am going back to continue fighting so many of the fights that he started. I’m confident that I’m going to win this race. I have the backing of many prominent that he started. I’m confident that I’m going to win this race. I have the backing of many prominent Alaskans. I’m grateful that Governor Dunleavy has endorsed me. I’m also grateful that Ann Young, the widow of Don Young, has endorsed me and has said that I’m the one person that she knows Don would have approved to take this seat. I’m grateful for the help that I’m the one person that she knows Don would have approved to take this seat. I’m grateful for the help that I’ve received from the good conservatives in Congress who know how important Alaska is and they know the damage that’s been done to our state, but to all of America, by Joe Biden.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 48:14
We’re kind of in shambles right now. Our economy is in shambles, our border is wide open, the fentanyl that we’ve talked about is out of control, people are dying right and left and young children are being. They’re trying to bully them into thinking that it’s okay to identify as whatever they want to identify as, and they’re putting these crazy ideas into their head about sexuality and different things, and it’s not okay. That is not okay and I will always stand up against those things. Those are our adversaries and they’ve been emboldened by what Biden and his friends have been doing and allowing in our country.
Nancy Dahlstrom: 49:00
But it’s got to stop and I’m one of the people that’s going to fight it and we’re going to turn this around. What’s been happening is not OK. We need to get back to what we know is right and treating Americans the way we know we should. We should treat each other and act, and also letting people know and reinforcing that we are the greatest country on the face of this earth and we remember our allies. We stand with our allies, we remember them. America is the greatest country.
Niki Tshibaka: 49:37
All right.
Kelly Tshibaka: 49:38
Nancy, where can people donate to your campaign?
Nancy Dahlstrom: 49:41
Oh, I would love it if people would donate to me. They can reach me at nancyforalaskacom. They can also send me emails through that site to nancyforalaskacom.
Kelly Tshibaka: 49:53
Thank you so much, Nancy. That wraps it up for us at Stand. You’ve been with Kelly Niki Tshibaka and we’ve had Nancy Dahlstrom on our show talking about the US house race in Alaska. Can’t wait to see you for another exciting episode for Stand. Next time we’re at standshoworg and this has been a time when we’ve made courage contagious. We’ll see you next time.