David Eastman (politician)

David Eastman is a Republican member of the Alaska House of Representatives, serving the 10th district. He has served since January 17, 2017. He was elected to office on November 8, 2016, with 73.98% of the vote.[1]

David Eastman
Eastman in 2018
Member of the Alaska House of Representatives
from the 10th district
Assumed office
January 17, 2017 (2017-January-17)
Preceded byWes Keller
Personal details
BornRedwood City, California
Political partyRepublican
ResidenceWasilla, Alaska
OccupationFirefighter/EMT
Websitehttp://www.daveeastman.org/

Named 2010 Alaska State Volunteer of the Year by First Lady Sandy Parnell (First Lady's Volunteer Awards; Juneau, AK) primarily for volunteer work with children and families.[2]

Selected in April 2012 by Republicans in House District 13 as their first choice to fill the House Seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Carl Gatto (R-Palmer). Selected as one of 15 aspiring conservative policy leaders nationally in 2010-2011 to join Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell in being named an Abraham Lincoln Fellow by the Claremont Institute for Statesmanship and Political Philosophy.[3]

He was removed from his position on the ethics committee after it was found that he violated ethics law.[4] He denied the allegations.

Political positions

David Eastman, at 15, was the youngest delegate at the RNC in 1996 because “they liked my essay about how awesome Bob Dole was,”[5] Eastman was a Tea Party activist[6] and is considered very right-wing. He ran to the right of a very conservative candidate in his 2016 election as member of the Alaska House of Representatives.

President Trump

Eastman is an ardent Trump supporter, and was actively involved very early in the Trump candidacy.[7]

Abortion

Eastman is against abortion in all forms.

He once tried to add a right-to-life amendment to a non-controversial resolution in 2017 that designated April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and filed a complaint when the committee wouldn't consider his amendment.[8]

Accusations of White Nationalism and Racism

In April 2017, Rep. David Eastman (R-Wasilla) voted against a bill in Alaska to honor Hmong veterans and the more than 100,000 Hmong people who died in the Vietnam War supporting the United States. He also voted against a bill honoring black soldiers who worked on the Alaska Highway. He has also opposed the recognition of Black History Month.[9]

In May 2017, Eastman was involved in a controversy regarding his remarks suggesting that native Alaskan women in villages try to get pregnant on purpose to get a "free trip to the city" for abortion. He claims there are too many 'incentives' to get an abortion and said, "We have folks who try to get pregnant in this state so that they can get a free trip to the city, and we have folks who want to carry their baby past the point of being able to have an abortion in this state so that they can have a free trip to Seattle."[10] He provided no evidence for these statements, but asserted, "a number of people have come to (his) office with stories, experiences."[11]

The Alaska House of Representatives voted to censure Eastman because of his remarks.[12]

Suspension from Republican Caucus membership

Eastman was suspended from the Republican caucus in March 2020, but the public was not informed why this had been the case.[13]

References
  1. "GEMS ELECTION RESULTS". www.elections.alaska.gov. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
  2. "First Lady Announces Volunteers of the Year Awards - Alaska Business Monthly - April 2010 - Anchorage, AK". www.akbizmag.com. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  3. Frontiersman.com. "Republicans nominate 3 to fill Gatto's seat". Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  4. Press, Associated. "Ethics panel finds Alaska Rep. David Eastman violated ethics law". www.ktuu.com. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  5. Dowling, Suzzane. "Meet David Eastman". Must Read Alaska. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
  6. http://www.washingtontimes.com, The Washington Times. "Palin tests her political clout with long-shot pick in Alaska". The Washington Times. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  7. Reynolds, Casey (December 12, 2016). "What Really Happened At This Weekend's AK GOP Meeting". The Midnight Sun. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  8. "Eastman calls for reprimand after LeDoux blocks committee debate". www.ktva.com. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  9. "Wasilla representative casts lone no vote on bill honoring Alaska's Hmong veterans". www.ktva.com. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  10. "Alaska lawmaker mum amid apology demand for abortion remarks". WILK-FM. May 8, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  11. State lawmaker says Alaska women get abortions for travel vouchers, offers no proof, by Austin Baird, at KTUU; published May 3, 2017; retrieved May 17, 2019
  12. http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/11/politics/alaska-censure-david-eastman-abortion-trnd/
  13. Alaska House temporarily strips Eastman of committee roles, KTUU, Becky Bohrer (AP), March 8, 2020. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
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