John --

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about my parents.

My father, Avrum Gross, was Attorney General for Governor Jay Hammond, the father of Alaska's Permanent Fund and the Dividend. I'm proud of the fund's legacy of reducing poverty and giving all Alaskans a measure of economic security.

My father is no longer with us, but I know he'd be upset that Mike Dunleavy played politics with the fund to win an election with false, empty promises. And I know he'd disapprove of Dunleavy's disastrous budget that is causing chaos throughout our state, too.

My mother, Shari, was the first Executive Director of the United Fishermen of Alaska and founded Alaska's League of Women Voters.

So many of my concerns with how Mike Dunleavy, Dan Sullivan, and Donald Trump are fast-tracking the Pebble Mine come from spending time with and learning from my mom. From our time on Alaska's waterways to harvesting salmon with her and local fishermen, I learned to love Alaska, our land, and our people.

We simply cannot allow a foreign company to put the world's largest, most pristine salmon fishery -- and Alaska's $1.4 billion fishing industry -- at risk of environmental and economic devastation.

My parents instilled in me strong Alaskan convictions -- toughness, resilience, and independence -- values that are too rarely seen in politics and our government these days.

John, I'm running to bring these values back to Washington. I'll always fight for Alaska and our shared prosperity -- no matter the political consequence. Are you with me?

If you are, please chip in $5 or more to help us close out our first FEC fundraising deadline at the end of September strong.

Thank you,

Dr. Al Gross