Alaska's 'Stevens money'

Michael Carey, writing at the Los Angeles Times notes the power of Sen. Ted Stevens and his impact on the Alaskan economy:

As a former chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee (and later the ranking minority member), Stevens has delivered hundreds of millions of dollars to his constituents, sometimes through agency appropriations, sometimes through the now-vilified earmarks. In Alaska, the presence of so-called Stevens money is as prevalent as the winter snow. Everywhere you look, Stevens has left his mark.

Stevens' ability to deliver -- and his invulnerability to electoral challenge because he could deliver -- transformed him from an elected official into something of a frontier fertility god -- worshiped, propitiated, feared. Stevens answered to no one.

In a moment I will never forget from that breakfast, Stevens caught the eye of a man he knew across the room and waved to him, just as any old friend or longtime acquaintance would. The man became rigid and obviously uncomfortable, perhaps thinking, "Oh my God, Ted Stevens waved at me, now what do I do?" He quickly recovered, however, and came over to talk to Stevens -- not because he had anything to say but perhaps because he feared Stevens' disapproval if he did not.

If Stevens was transformed by his extraordinary power in Washington, so were Alaskans -- from constituents to supplicants. This transformation not only distorted Alaska's political system, it distorted our economy.

Sounds like Stevens is a little to powerful, right?

Try this one on, substitute Robert Byrd for Ted Stevens and West Virginia for Alaska. Now you have the same story, only Robert Byrd didn't have his house searched by the Feds.