Want to be governor? Here's how

Attention candidates for Alaska governor: Forget the gas line. Here's an idea that's guaranteed to net you a victory in November. The bad news is it's already been proposed by a candidate for governor; the good news is he's a candidate for governor of another state.

Nevada independent candidate Eugene "Gino" DiSimone has proposed filling Nevada's budget gap in part by charging residents for the right to ignore the speed limit. According to the Associated Press, DiSimone wants to sell 24-hour highway speeding passes for $25. There are a few caveats: You still can't go over 90 miles per hour; you have to have a vehicle inspection and purchase a transponder (which sounds like a made-up Buck Rogers kind of word but is actually a real thing); the AP says the Nevada Highway Patrol isn't too stoked on the idea. DiSimone estimates the plan will generate $1.3 billion in revenue. (He also plans to generate $1 billion by deporting all of Nevada's illegal immigrants, but if you're a candidate looking to score points with Alaskans of all political stripes, I'd recommend sticking to the speeding plan.)

Here's my question: Why hasn't an Alaska candidate come up with this plan already? If there's one thing Alaskans love more than rugged, outdoorsy politicians, it's politicans who hate rules. Especially rules we all love to break -- like speed limits. Seriously, who among us wasn't a little bit jealous back in the mid-'90s when Montana attempted to do away with the whole concept? (Well, maybe paramedics and other first responders who already spend enough time unwrapping people from around trees.) What better way for a candidate to engender goodwill with the electorate than proposing a way to circumvent a rule that's inconvenienced everyone from time to time?

Of course, we've all encountered drivers who probably shouldn't be on the road at all, and the idea of loosing them on Alaska's highways with speed limit carte blanche is sort of giving them a license to kill. So I might recommend we add a road test and clean driving record requirement to the qualification process. And perhaps there should be some sort of weather conditions guideline? At any rate, the fine print can all be worked out after you're elected. Don't worry too much about the details now. That's for your underlings to sort out once you're safely elected -- an inevitability should you succeed in marketing this plan to Alaska's voters.

Contact Maia Nolan at maia(at)alaskadispatch.com.