I'm Not Dead Yet

Ah, the perils of a lame duck hunting for ducks:

Gov. Frank Murkowski says he returned from a duck hunting trip to the surprising news that he was simply going to hand off two years' worth of natural gas pipeline negotiations to his successor.

Not true, he told The Associated Press on Friday.

Instead, his team will finish work on the contract for the $25 billion gas pipeline to Canada and only then will he decide whether to call a special session.

"I was kind of astounded that we left the impression that we were folding our tents and leaving it for the next administration," Murkowski said.

Ultimately, I think this is just for show. There's no way, given the current environment, that there will be a third session on the natural gas pipeline. The issues are just too toxic right now.

But perhaps Murkowski can make himself feel a little less duckish by going through the motions and "governing" all the way up until December. It'll be an interesting test of the common belief that Jim Clark is the puppet-master in the administration. If Clark says it's dead, it must be, right?

Not for Frank to go softly into the night.