Extended Interview: Sen. Dan Sullivan 

0:00Margaret Brennan:During our trip to Alaska last week for the Trump-Putin summit, we talked with Alaska Republican Senator Dan Sullivan about the strategic military importance of Alaska. So if there's no ceasefire Friday, Republican leader in the Senate is going to put that sanctions bill to a vote finally? Well, look, I don't know what the Republican leader, John Thune, is going to do. Would you like him to? I'm an original co-sponsor of that sanctions bill. I think what we've been doing right now, Lindsey Graham's been leading the charge, doing a great job, which is coordinating with the White House. But the president has already threatened sanctions against India.

0:35I think soon they should be threatening sanctions against China. They're a huge secondary buyer as well.

0:41Margaret Brennan:Even as those negotiations over a trade deal are ongoing, do you think the president would do that? Look, I think with regard to buying oil and propping up the Putin war machine, the answer is yes. But we are trying to coordinate, and I think we're doing a good job with Leader Thune and Lindsey Graham on that sanctions bill, which has over 80 co-sponsors. And look, there might be a time when the White House needs that. There's, as you know, ongoing litigation over the tariffs and having Congress pass legislation with regard to the tariffs makes that much more stronger from a legal perspective.

1:16But I think continuing to coordinate with the White House and when and how to do that with our leadership at this moment is the right approach.

1:23Margaret Brennan:So the president has also spoken about the opportunities that might exist from a business perspective with Russia. The Telegraph was reporting offering Putin a chance to invest in the natural resources off of Alaska's coast in the Bering Strait. Are you comfortable with that? Well, look, we have plenty of American investors and our allies who want to invest in Alaska's natural resources. We're having a boom here. We don't need Russian investments. We don't need Russian money. They're a competitor of ours when it comes to energy and natural resources and critical minerals. So I doubt that's on the table.

2:05And I would not support that.

2:09Margaret Brennan:Your colleague. By the way, just on that point, though, a contrast, you might remember last time I was on your show, we talked about the Biden administration. I want to talk about this. With this great state of ours shutting us down. Right. I mean, that was 70 executive orders to shut down exclusively focused on Alaska, shut down our resource development economy. As I mentioned, when I was on your show last year, you know, our own federal government, the Biden administration sanctioned my state more than they sanctioned Iran. What we're seeing with President Trump and his administration is a complete 180 on that.

2:46Unleashing Alaska's resource potential has been a huge focus of the president since day one. He literally issued an executive order on day one. So, you know, we're getting a lot of support from this administration, great support on our economy and jobs and resource development. It's a breath of fresh air relative to the Biden administration. And I think we're going to see continued focus on that from this White House.

3:08Margaret Brennan:You've been pushing the Trump administration to invest in a project here. The state has a lot of fossil fuels, a lot of natural resources. The project's from the north slope of Alaska, and it would bring natural gas, perhaps even to Asia, to Japan. Correct. President Trump announced it as a joint venture, but the FT is reporting no Asian partners have made an equity investment or entered supply contracts. Yeah. What's the reality check? Where is this particular project? So this is the big Alaska LNG project that we've been working on for many, many years. It is a hugely strategic project. We have more natural gas on the North Slope than probably anywhere in the whole world.

3:48We've been working on a pipeline and an LNG facility right around here to ship that out. Alaska was the first place to ship LNG anywhere. We started exporting LNG to Japan in the late 1960s. So right now, the Trump administration, the president and his cabinet have been pushing this project in their trade negotiation agreements. We've gotten great support from them. But it's not a done deal. It's not a done deal yet because we are, on the private sector side, we're working on what's called the feed work, the front end engineering and design. That's going to be done in a few months. And that's when we're going to go to these countries and go to the companies in Korea, in Japan, in Taiwan, all very interested and say, hey, here are the offtake agreements we want you to sign.

4:36The president and his team have been working closely with the private sector on this. So we're making more progress on this, Margaret, than we've ever made before. This can be great for Alaskans, great for our military here. But as you mentioned, this is great for our Asian allies, the Koreans, the Japanese, some of whom are still getting Russian oil and gas. The Taiwanese are all very interested. I've been over these countries a number of times to press this project. But we've made more progress on this project with the Trump administration than we ever have. So I'm very bullish on this. And by the way, this will be a game changer, hugely strategic for our allies, for our military, for Alaskans.

5:18Estimates, this would create about 20 ,000 jobs. This is a game changer strategically. And I'm really appreciative the president spends so much time pressing this project. And we've made good progress.

5:32Margaret Brennan:So you mentioned how furious you were with the Biden administration for the executive actions. they said they were taken to protect natural resources. They said land conservation was necessary and the indigenous population here really wanted it. You called it a lie. I did call it a lie. It was a lie. And you said it was national security suicide. Trump has already reversed this. But are you at all concerned that there are short-term benefits to your state financially, but longer-term, real damage to the environment here? No. Now, look, Alaska has an incredible record of being able to develop our resources and protect the environment.

6:13You walk around here, you see what a pristine, beautiful environment we have here. We love that more than the Biden administration, EPA or President Biden himself did. We love that part of our state. But we know we need jobs. We need natural resource development so we can do both. And here's the thing. I did call the president Biden out for lying because the entire north slope of Alaska, the Inupiat community across the board was against what the Biden administration did, which was lock up the entire National Petroleum Reserve of Alaska, which was set aside by Congress to develop our resources.

6:49And then he had the audacity to say, hey, I did this on behalf of the native people. That was not true at all. It was outrage. President Trump has reversed all that. The one big beautiful bill, when we talk about the energy component of that legislation, it's almost all unleashing Alaska. So we're really excited right now, but we have a great record of being able to do both. Develop natural resources and protect the environment here, and that's what the people of Alaska want. So for activists or for those concerned about the damage here, you say they just don't know what they're talking about?

7:26Well, I say a couple things. A, we have the highest standards on the environment and a place in the world. I used to be the commissioner of natural resources and energy. In charge of that, there's no place on the planet that has higher standards on protecting the environment than us. And if we need American energy, why would we go, like the Biden administration did, begging from Iran, Venezuela, places that have no environmental standards, when you can get it from America, from American workers, with the highest environmental standards, any place on the planet. And secondly, and this is something I really try to emphasize, I emphasize it was Secretary Kennedy when he was in town here a couple of weeks ago.

8:07You know, when you have resource development, particularly in our rural communities, you see life expectancies increasing. On the north slope of Alaska, when we started developing our resources, where most of the resources are, you had Inupia native populations that had very low life expectancies. In 25 years, they increase their life expectancy by almost 13, 14, 15 years more than any other place in the country during that period because they got good jobs, because they got hospitals, because they got clinics, because they got flushing toilets and running water. So when we're talking about resource development, it's not just the economy and jobs.

8:49It's people living longer in my state, and that's as important as it gets.

8:55Margaret Brennan:So I want to ask you a little bit more about national security and then talk a little bit more local if we could. So in this region, the Arctic is of supreme concern from a national security perspective. The ice is melting. Majority of scientists attribute that to global warming, but the end result is there's a potential for an Arctic area for trade routes also tapping into the natural resources there. How does the United States gain an edge in dominating that? Well, look, it's a great question. It's really important. You're mentioning trade routes that are opening up. We've already talked about natural resources, which are huge up in the Arctic.

9:37And what we need to do is recognize that we're an Arctic nation. We're an Arctic nation because of Alaska. And look, this has not always been a priority of previous administrations. When I first got to the Senate. I remember holding up the Obama administration Arctic strategy with the Secretary of Defense, slamming it down on the dice, saying, Mr. Secretary, this is a joke. We have a huge national interest in the Arctic that we need to protect. It's not some parochial issue for Alaska's senator. This is about national security up here.

10:11Margaret Brennan:I remember back then, they were trying for more ice cutters, ice breakers, and all of that. Well, it's finally starting to happen. What we're doing up here, we're rebuilding our military. The one big, beautiful bill certainly does it. As I mentioned, you know, Alaska exudes military might. We're the cornerstone of missile defense, and we're going to be the cornerstone of the president's Golden Dome initiative. We are the hub of air combat power. You're seeing them flying over here. We have over 100 fifth generation fighters based in Alaska. We have a brand new U.S. Army Airborne Division up here.

10:44So we are building out our military, which is great, but also building out our Arctic capabilities. Just three days ago, we commissioned finally an icebreaker in Juneau, Alaska. I saw that. It's going to be home ported in Alaska. Can you imagine that, Margaret? Putting an icebreaker where the ice is? Makes sense. But it's never happened until last Sunday. President Trump and his team have been a huge proponent of this. And again, in the one big beautiful bill, one of the untold stories of that bill.

11:14Margaret Brennan:$9 billion in it for icebreakers. Well, almost$26 billion investment in the Coast Guard, which is the biggest investment in the Coast Guard in American history by far. 16 icebreakers coming with that, 22 cutters, 40 helicopters, a bunch of shoreside infrastructure. A lot of that's going to be in Alaska to defend the Arctic. And we need to defend the Arctic because, as you and I have talked about, the Russians and the Chinese are in our waters and in our airspace all the time, including doing joint operations up here, which is unprecedented. I wanted to ask you about that because the war in Ukraine has hurt Russia's finances, made it more dependent on Beijing, including when it comes to exploring up and around the Arctic.

12:00Margaret Brennan:They had a joint bomber task force come here pretty darn close. Oh, they were in our AIDAs, as we call it. The Air Defense Identification Zone. So are you concerned this actually becomes a flashpoint? I think this is already becoming a flashpoint. I mean, the number of times that the Russians and Chinese are doing joint strategic bomber task forces in our airspace and joint naval task forces in our EEZ, in our waters. In the economic zone. Yes. That's happening on a regular basis now. That's unprecedented. They don't do joint operations anywhere else on America's borders, that's for sure. So again, it's the reason we need to build up not just our military forces, but our infrastructure.

12:48And the one big, beautiful bill I got a provision in to start reopening the ADAC Navy military base. It was out on the Aleutian Island chain. We're going to get a strategic Arctic port built in Nome, Alaska, in western Alaska. So We need the infrastructure to project power, and we are getting that from this administration and the Congress. A lot of this is bipartisan.

13:11Margaret Brennan:Well, the Republican chair of the Armed Services Committee and the Appropriations Committee says there is far more needed for the U.S. military than what has been provided by the White House in their budget. Again,$150 billion in the one big, beautiful bill,$25 billion for the Coast Guard, which is part of our military. but I want to, you know, I'm someone who is a strong advocate for a strong military, particularly up here. And we need to do more and we certainly need to keep it above 3 % of GDP and growing towards 4 % or 5 % of GDP. It's a dangerous world right now. But this one big, beautiful bill, the budget reconciliation bill does a lot for our military right now on urgent needs.

13:53Shipbuilding, as you and I have talked about. Our Navy, our ability to build ships has completely atrophied. Weapons and ammo systems, the Golden Dome, there's a lot in this one big, beautiful bill.

14:06Margaret Brennan:Do you know what that is? Have they actually briefed the Senate Armed Services Committee? I know you have your own proposal, but has the Pentagon told you what the Golden Dome is? I mean, I've been working on this with the Pentagon. This is missile defense that is layered missile defense. So what that means is right here, like I said, you have the ground-based missile interceptor, the missile interceptors in Alaska. You have all the radar systems in Alaska that protect the whole country in terms of ballistic missiles. We have new threats. We have hypersonics. We have drones. We have, heck, even we've seen it here in Alaska, spy balloons.

14:44What we need to do is upgrade the system with what's called a layered defense, not just the ground-based system here, but you work it more with different systems, Aegis Assure, THAAD, and then including space-based systems, both for tracking and intercepting. And you do that with an open architecture in terms of software to integrate those systems. So I am very familiar with what the Golden Dome is doing, and I'm leading the effort in the Senate on it. And by the way, my state is the cornerstone of all the missile defense right now and will continue to be so.

15:21Margaret Brennan:When you're talking about the big, one big, beautiful bill, the tax and spend bill. You smile every time you say that. The Republican tax and spend bill that just passed. Alaska got a lot of special treatment. Alaska did very well. And your colleague, Senator Lisa Murkowski, acknowledged that. She said the bill wasn't good enough for the rest of the nation. You said you had a dark night of the soul at one point. Yeah, I did. You almost didn't vote for this. No, I had a dark night of the soul because I had been working on a provision in that bill. The Medicaid costs paid for by the federal government.

15:57Margaret Brennan:The Medicaid FNAP, as we call it. Yes. And that had the support of the White House, support of all the Republicans, something I've been working on for almost 10 years. Alaska gets a very low match in terms of Medicaid, one of the lowest in the country, which I think makes no sense. So this changes the formula to help states like mine that have very high health care costs. So that was in the bill. And Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democrats literally challenged every single good provision in that bill dealing with Alaska. And I mean every provision. Schumer definitely made himself clear that he was the anti-Alaska senator in the Senate.

16:37Everything. We fought him. We beat him back on almost everything. They won. Chuck Schumer stripped out a Medicaid increase for Alaska. It was tough on me because I've been working on that for a long time. We pivoted. We got the rural health care transformation fund.

16:56Margaret Brennan:You got exemptions for Alaska natives for new Medicaid and snapper food stamps. Work requirements waived for indigenous people. Alaska gets a larger share of rural hospital funds. Why shouldn't people living in other states get those same considerations? We have unique challenges up here. Come on up to Alaska. Or it was a tight vote. It's a great... What's that? And it was a tight vote. Well, it's called... Alaska had a lot of leverage there. It's called good legislating. But what about the rest of the country? You acknowledge your flaws. I'm first and foremost the senator for Alaska. But I care about the rest of the country, too, which is why I focus a lot on energy, a lot on our national security, a lot on border security.

17:34Margaret Brennan:I care a lot about the border security in the southern part of America. So, you know, all senators do that. They take care of their own state. They legislate to help their constituents. My constituents have unique needs, but we also bring a lot to the table for our great country. Like I said, we're protecting the whole country in terms of missile defense right now. We have a huge military up here that we love that is protecting our interests in the North Pacific, in the Arctic. and we are unleashing American energy, which of course helps Alaska, but it helps America. When Alaska is doing well on energy issues, on critical mineral issues, that helps my constituents, but it helps the country.

18:15And that's, again, why I'm so appreciative of the president and his team on recognizing that. The Biden guys, all they wanted to do was shut us down, close off our state. That didn't help anybody. All that helped was the Russians and the Iranians and the Venezuelans.

18:28Margaret Brennan:Senator, thank you for your time. Margaret, great to be here. And welcome to Alaska again. We're glad you're here. Thank you.