“Racist Dentist” is New GOP Vice Chair

Posted by Jeanne Devon on Sunday, June 2, 2013 · 12 Comments

The Alaska Republican Party has been trying desperately to get its house in order while undergoing a civil war. And they’ve been doing just about as well as you might expect. The latest brilliant strategy move was voting in the man known as the “racist dentist” to hold the #2 spot in the Republican Party of Alaska.

A coup of sorts took place when long time party chair Randy Ruedrich retired. The Ron Paul/Tea Party crowd overtook the convention and installed newcomer Russ Millette as Chair. The old guard panicked and rerouted the treasure chest to a Republican group in Juneau. Then Millette was ousted for “not raising enough money.” So, Vice Chair Debbie Brown of the same ilk took over. Then she was ousted for “not raising enough money.” The Ron Paul wing of the party was furious.

Peter Goldberg, the fourth Chair in a year and a half, was installed, and so was a new Vice Chair. You might remember his name – Dr. David Eichler. If that’s not ringing a bell, let me refresh your memory.

Governor Sean Parnell had proposed Eichler’s appointment to the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC) back in April of 2012. He was one of four names submitted by the Alaska Republican Party. Eichler, a dentist from North Pole, had been the head of the Alaska Dental Society back in 2006, and while in that role had let loose with the following screed about the dental problems of Alaska Natives.

“Any culture that allows such disease will soon disappear and rightfully so,” he wrote. He also urged the end of federal assistance to America’s indigenous peoples, saying that doing so would “allow their integration into American society as dignified citizens.”

Reread that.

So, after declaring that the state of their teeth would lead to the “rightful” disappearance of the entirety of Alaska Native culture, he urged the end of federal funding to improve the situation so the heathens would be forced to become “dignified citizens” (i.e. move to town and get ‘civilized’).

Native organizations and non-racists were up in arms. Groups including the powerful Alaska Federation of Natives, Sealaska Corporation, and the Bristol Bay Native Corporation were enraged, and opposed his appointment. Letters swamped the legislature which was prepared to drill the dentist about his incendiary comments before installing him. Native legislators, too, were seeing red.

“The APOC oversees the fairness and integrity of the public voting process,” wrote Jason Metrokin, president and chief executive of the Bristol Bay Native Corp., in a letter to Parnell that was copied to legislators. “Dr. Eichler’s past comments in reference to rural dental health were insensitive and uneducated. We are concerned that his biases about Native people will carry over into his policy decisions, thereby undermining public and certainly Native people’s confidence in the impartiality of APOC practices and decision making.”

There was so much controversy about the “Racist Dentist” that Eichler withdrew his nomination after a phone call initiated by the Governor’s office.

But despite the fact that Dr. Eichler was too much of an insensitive racist to get on to the APOC board, the Alaska Republican Party still has the love, and now he is the number two guy in the state party. There was no pesky “vetting” by legislators, and they were determined to put this guy in a position of authority somewhere, somehow. So, he got voted in. Because apparently “ignorant and insensitive” plays well with that crowd. Way to go, Republican Party of Alaska. Nicely done.

“The Alaska Republican Party should remove David Eichler as a party Vice-Chairman immediately. Alaska has no place for the racist view expressed by Eichler that Alaska Native cultures will ‘soon disappear and rightfully so,’” said Mike Wenstrup, Chairman of the Alaska Democratic Party.

So, if Alaska Native groups had any doubt about the sentiments of Republican party leadership in the state, they can put those to bed. Most Alaska Natives already vote Democratic, but this should help clean up the stragglers.

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