Make Alaska Great Again!
Plus, how visiting abroad has become a glitchy, government nightmare.
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SARAH LONGWELL writes: Make Alaska Great Again!
It may seem like an idea from a bygone era, but voters from small states still tend to care a lot about which candidate they feel will advocate for their stateās interests in Washington. Thatās because small statesāwith little industry and even less economic throw-weightāare especially dependent on the federal government. Texas and Ohio can choose senators based purely on macro-political trends. Voters in Maine and Alaska donāt have that luxury.
Collins believed that Mainers were more interested in keeping the pork coming than in registering disapproval about Brett Kavanaugh. And she was right: She got 51 percent of the vote.
Murkowski has to hope that Alaskans will care more about her ability to deliver for the state than they do impeachment.
On our weekend omnibus podcast, Tim Miller joins Charlie Sykes to vent about it all.
Peter Wehner joins the group, which includes Bill Kristol this week, to discuss the Whoopi Goldberg and other cancel controversies as well as Trump's acknowledgement of attempting a coup, and who's really abandoning democracy, Republicans or Democrats.
The Bulwark's newest writer, Will Saletan, joins JVL, Tim Miller, and Ben Parker to discuss Chuck Schumer, Omicron, China and the Olympics. If youāve never tuned into TNB, nowās your chance. We unlocked this episode for non-members.
SAM PEAK writes: Visiting Family Abroad Has Become a Glitchy Government Nightmare for Some Immigrants.
According to one work visa holder, Ashkhen Kazaryan, the U.S. embassy in Armenia told her that her fatherās death wasnāt an emergency because it was her choice to leave the United States to be with her family.
Kazaryan has lived in the United States for seven years, arriving on a student visa, then switching to a status for skilled guest workers. In 2020, she successfully adjusted her status again, this time to a worker with āextraordinary ability.ā Though she received new documents to work and stay in the country, the pandemic prevented her from traveling to the embassy and receiving the corresponding visa that allowed her to legally re-enter the United States. Then, her father unexpectedly died. āI was very well aware that I might not be able to come backāever,ā she said, recounting her decision to return home to mourn her fatherās passing.
After the funeral, Kazaryan attempted to get an appointment from ten different embassies. Though she is from Russia, it became common practice during the pandemic to seek appointments from third-country embassies if your home countryās was unavailable. The embassies had different responses to Kazaryanās request for an appointment. While some denied her because she wasnāt from the corresponding country, the U.S. embassy in Croatia took $200 from her before revoking her appointment for not being Croatian. The U.S. embassy in Kazakhstan also forced her to pay $200 before delivering the news that it had no slots available.
After finally receiving an appointment in Mexico, Kazaryan booked a flight. Because all available flights to Mexico were connected to Europe, she was forced to quarantine for two weeks due to the EU travel ban. Throughout her stay, she feared that the embassy would cancel the appointment. Thankfully, she successfully received her new visa and returned to the United States after three months. āI didnāt have time to grieve or process,ā she said. āI had to make sure that the seven years, a graduate degree, and the career Iāve built didnāt all disappear.ā
šØOVERTIME šØ
Happy Friday! Itās rainy here in Washington, and thankfully no snow for us. Though, apparently up in Cleveland, people are driving around snowmobiles, my sister reports.
Justice comes for Avenattiā¦ One of the most self-obsessed figures of the Trump era is found guilty. Will there be more? #basta.
The COVID orphansā¦ Over 200,000 American children are missing a parent because of COVID-19.
FOX gets the job numbersā¦ Turns out the job numbers werenāt as bad as ADP predicted.
The DeSantis-Thomas connectionā¦ What else will we find out?
Michael Flynn is still at warā¦ A #longread in The New York Times.
Politics and public healthā¦ How Missouriās far right kooks scared away a nominee to run the stateās health department. A very frustrating read.
Thatās it for me. Tech support questions? Email members@thebulwark.com. Questions for me? Respond to this message.
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