On the recordNovember 9, 2023
it is Thursday afternoon here on the Senate floor. It is one of my favorite times. We have some new pages, so they are going to, I think, at a certain point, consider some of this their favorite time on the Senate floor. It is when I get to come out on the floor and talk about the Alaskan of the Week--the Alaskan the Week. I have been doing this for several years now. I try to get down here most weeks. I don't make it every week. I have had a couple of weeks off. There is a lot going on here in the Senate, as many people know. But as we are heading into Veterans Day weekend, I am making sure that we reignite our ``Alaskan of the Week'' special for this weekend. There are so many special Alaskans working to make our State the best State in this country. Some Senators might disagree, but, hey, we are all proud of our States. I will tell you this, when it comes to veterans and patriotism, I am pretty sure my State tops the list of any State in the country. We have more veterans per capita than any State in America. Alaska Natives, a big part of our population, serve at higher rates in the military than any another ethnic group in the country. Patriotism, military service, it is in our DNA. I am getting on a plane here in about an hour with my wife Julie. We are heading home to celebrate Veterans Day. Just looking back over several years, a lot of my Alaskans of the Week were veterans--100 percent--so it is not surprising that this one is as well.…
