David Eastman (politician)

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David Eastman
David Eastman (politician).jpg
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
Born
David Clark Eastman[1]

(1981-06-11) June 11, 1981 (age 40)[2]
Redwood City, California
Political partyRepublican
Residence(s)Wasilla, Alaska

David Clark Eastman (born June 1, 1981) is a Republican member of the Alaska House of Representatives, serving the 10th district. He has served since January 17, 2017.

Early life and education[]

Eastman was born in Redwood City, California[2] and grew up in Orange County.[3] He was both homeschooled[4] and attended private school before attending West Point.[5] He became interested in politics early and at 15, was the youngest delegate at the 1996 Republican National Convention to which he stated "they liked my essay about how awesome Bob Dole was."[citation needed]

After graduating West Point, Eastman joined the United States Army where he was part of the military police, moving to Alaska in 2003.[5] He left active duty in 2009,[5] and was accepted for a Summit Oxford fellowship, studying in England for a semester.[citation needed]

Political career[]

Eastman was selected in April 2012 by Republicans in House District 13 as their first choice to fill the Alaska state House Seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Carl Gatto. He was selected as an Abraham Lincoln Fellow by the Claremont Institute.[6]

In 2020, he was removed from his position on the ethics committee after it was found that he violated the state ethics law in 2018 by disclosing confidential information.[7][8]

Political positions[]

Tea Party movement[]

Eastman was an activist for the Tea Party movement.[9]

Abortion[]

Eastman is against abortion in all forms. He 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.[10]

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."[11] He provided no evidence for these statements, but asserted, "a number of people have come to (his) office with stories, experiences."[12] The Alaska House of Representatives voted to censure Eastman because of his remarks.[13]

Hmong people[]

In April 2017, Eastman voted against a bill 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.[14]

Involvement with the Oath Keepers[]

In late September 2021, following a hack of the group's internal data, it was revealed that Eastman's name was among the some 38,000 people whose names appear on a membership roster of the Oath Keepers; a far-right militia organization.[15] Records show that Eastman is a lifetime member of the Oath Keepers, as reported by BuzzFeed News and other organizations.[16][17] As a consequence of his membership, on January 31, 2022, five members of the seven-member Committees on Committees, two Republicans, two Democrats and an Independent, all members of the House majority coalition, voted to remove Eastman from his membership on some committees.[18]

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine[]

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Eastman was the sole vote in the Alaska House of Representatives against a non-binding resolution to supply military aid to Ukraine.[19]

2021 storming of the United States Capitol[]

Further information: Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election

Following Donald Trump's loss in the 2020 United States presidential election, Eastman posted on his website that, "The election process that has been observed thus far by the American people has been abused to such a degree that, in my view, it can no longer be called an election. To call what the American people have observed 'an election', under the United States Constitution, would be fundamentally dishonest."[20]

Eastman traveled to Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021, to protest the Electoral College vote count which confirmed Joe Biden's victory, and to see Trump speak at the "Stop the Steal" rally. He spoke to Alaska Pulic Radio as he walked from the rally to the Capitol and was photographed a few hundred feet from the Capitol building. He later described the storming of the Capitol building as "pretty terrible."[21] The next day he promoted false claims that the attack on the Capitol was the work of antifa.[22] These claims were debunked by multiple sources.[23]

On November 11, 2021, sixty-nine local and other graduates of West Point, New York wrote a letter published in Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, Eastman's local paper, to demand that he resign from the legislature since, though he had stressed his military credentials and training at the United States Military Academy, he had dishonored the ideals of The Long Gray Line, that is, those who had matriculated at the USMA.[5]

Reviewing efforts to contest 2020 presidential election results[]

In June 2021, Eastman traveled to Arizona to observe the 2021 Maricopa County presidential ballot audit ordered by the Arizona state senate.[24]

References[]

  1. ^ "Representative David Eastman". Alaska House Republicans. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "David Eastman, Jr.'s Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  3. ^ "Representative David Eastman". Alaska State Legislature. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  4. ^ "Youngest sons joins three brothers in Eagle Scout rank". Orange County Register. June 14, 2008. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d Palsha, Rebecca (November 23, 2021). "West Point graduates call on Rep. David Eastman to resign from office". KTUU-TV. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  6. ^ "Republicans nominate 3 to fill Gatto's seat". Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. April 24, 2012. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  7. ^ "Ethics panel finds Alaska Rep. David Eastman violated ethics law". KTUU-TV. Associated Press. July 19, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  8. ^ Bohrer, Becky (March 8, 2020). "Alaska House temporarily strips Eastman of committee roles". KTUU-TV. Associated Press. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  9. ^ Hallow, Ralph Z. (July 19, 2010). "Palin tests her political clout with long-shot pick in Alaska". The Washington Times. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  10. ^ Raines, Liz (April 27, 2017). "Eastman calls for reprimand after LeDoux blocks committee debate". KTVA. Archived from the original on April 28, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  11. ^ "Alaska lawmaker mum amid apology demand for abortion remarks". WILK-FM. Associated Press. May 8, 2017. Archived from the original on May 9, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  12. ^ Baird, Austin (May 3, 2017). "State lawmaker says Alaska women get abortions for travel vouchers, offers no proof". KTUU-TV. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  13. ^ Willingham, AJ (May 11, 2017). "Alaska rep censured for implying some women get abortions for free travel". CNN.
  14. ^ Raines, Liz (May 10, 2017). "Wasilla representative casts lone no vote on bill honoring Alaska's Hmong veterans". KTVA. Archived from the original on April 28, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
  15. ^ Arnsdorf, Isaac (October 20, 2021). "Oath Keepers in the State House: How a Militia Movement Took Root in the Republican Mainstream". ProPublica. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  16. ^ Hohenstatt, Ben (October 20, 2021). "Data leak shows state rep is member of far-right organization". Peninsula Clarion. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  17. ^ Brooks, James (October 20, 2021). "Leaked list shows Alaska state Rep. David Eastman is a 'lifetime member' of a leading Capitol-riot group". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  18. ^ Brooks, James (January 31, 2022). "Alaska House coalition will seek to remove Rep. David Eastman from legislative committees over his Oath Keepers membership". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  19. ^ "Alaska lawmakers back call to supply military aid to Ukraine". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Associated Press. March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  20. ^ Rockey, Tim (January 13, 2021). "Wasilla Rep Eastman part of Electoral College protest on the Capitol". Anchorage Press.
  21. ^ Dil, Cuneyt (January 6, 2021). "West Virginia delegate records himself storming U.S. Capitol". AP News. Associated Press. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  22. ^ Theriault Boots, Michelle (January 8, 2021). "Wasilla lawmaker who attended D.C. Trump rally pushes debunked theory Antifa was responsible for storming US Capitol". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  23. ^ "Fact check: Men who stormed Capitol identified by Reuters are not undercover Antifa as posts claim". Reuters. January 9, 2021.
  24. ^ Shuham, Matt (June 8, 2021). "Alaska Legislator Who Was In DC On Jan. 6 Gets Tour Of Arizona Audit". Talking Points Memo. Retrieved June 9, 2021.

External links[]

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