Into the Wild

At the time of the work, Stevens was at the peak of his political power, chairing the Senate Appropriations Committee in a Republican-controlled Senate and overseeing the allocation of billions of dollars of federal spending. Unlike other Alaska lawmakers snared by the VECO investigation, Stevens is not charged with taking bribes from Allen. But his indictment offers a possible explanation of why he allowed an oil company to remodel his abode.

Federal prosecutors claim the senator "received and accepted solicitations for multiple official actions." These actions included funding requests for international VECO projects and partnerships in such countries as Pakistan and Russia, requests for federal grants and contracts for VECO, and the senator's governmental sway to help the oil industry in its effort to construct a multibillion-dollar natural-gas pipeline in Alaska.

While Stevens argues he has done nothing wrong, there is no doubt that the charges have tarnished his reputation, particularly among a younger generation of Alaskans who have little idea of the role he played in developing their state. Whatever happens as the case moves forward, his imprint here has been enormous.

Alaska is celebrating its 50th anniversary of statehood this year, and it's been just over 40 years since wildcatters discovered the state's giant oil fields. Stevens was there from the start. In 1968, Alaska Gov. Wally Hickel, now 89 and a legend in his own right, appointed Stevens after the death of Alaska Sen. Bob Bartlett. "I appointed him not because he was a friend but because he was a survivor," Hickel says. "I wanted a young guy who could be back in Washington for the next 20 or 30 years so we could gain some seniority to get things done up here. And that's what he did for us."

To Alaskans, he was affectingly known as "Uncle Ted." His legacy is seen everywhere in Alaska, from runway lights in villages to military bases to fishing and maritime laws to the revamped Anchorage International Airport named in his honor.

In 2000, Stevens was named "Alaskan of the Century." And he's been cited by more than one historian as the most influential politician in all of Alaska history, besting William H. Seward, the U.S. secretary of State who spearheaded the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867. (Seward endured harsh criticism during the throes of the Alaska purchase, with some Americans viewing the Last Frontier as a remote wasteland not worth the $7 million price tag; they dubbed the deal "Seward's folly.")

"Seward may have gotten Alaska, but there was no person as involved and influential in what was to become of this place as Ted Stevens," says Don Mitchell, an Alaskan historian who detailed the early years of Stevens's career in two books. "He has been at the center of most of the major political events since Alaska's creation."

Stevens, who survived a plane crash that killed his first wife, Ann, and has since remarried to a lobbyist, was in a tough re-election race even before the investigation heated up. His likely opponent in the fall (assuming he beats back several fringe GOP challengers in the Aug. 26 primary) will be Democrat Mark Begich, the mayor of Anchorage. Begich is the son of Congressman Nick Begich, who died in a plane crash with U.S. House Majority Leader Hale Boggs in 1972. Begich led Stevens 50 percent to 41 percent, according to a Rasmussen poll released last week―a sounding taken before the indictment was issued. And he'll have to make the challenge without the benefit of the largesse that VECO and its employees usually contribute to his campaigns. The blend of oil and politics that helped Stevens refashion a wilderness in his image now threatens to leave a permanent stain.

© 2008