The race for Alaska’s lone seat in Congress made a stop Friday in Mountain View. Four out of the five candidates talked about immigration, healthcare, education and the economy at the Hispanic Affairs Council of Alaska forum. Congressman Don Young, who told the council he had a scheduling conflict, was a no show.

All four candidates gunning for Don Young’s seat in the U.S. House made their case Friday night for why voters should choose them over the 18-term incumbent at a Hispanic Affairs Council candidate forum in Anchorage. Ethan described how he’s been “field tested” through 10 years in the state House, most of them spent as Democratic minority leader. He said he has proven his mettle, and seemed most passionate when speaking about alternative energy: “If we show the rest of the country we have a better way of getting our energy we can exert leadership and have moral authority,” Berkowitz told the audience.

Ethan joined his fellow Democratic congressional candidates Jake Metcalfe and Diane Benson at the Alaska Wilderness Recreation & Tourism Association Candidates’ Forum. While both Benson and Metcalfe hammered on incumbent Don Young and his campaign’s legal expenses, Ethan stressed that this campaign should not be about attacking Young: “Throwing rocks at an obvious target does not elevate the conversation.”

Ethan joined his Democratic opponents Diane Benson and Jake Metcalfe at the Alaska Wilderness Recreation and Tourism Association Candidates’ Forum to discuss the importance of capping greenhouse gasses and developing ecotourism in Alaska: “If we’re going to change the kind of politics that we’re engaged in, we’re going to have to lift ourselves up. And throwing rocks at an obvious target doesn’t elevate the conversation.”

Ethan joined his Democratic opponents on Tuesday, February 19th, in the Endeavor Room at the Hotel Captain Cook for the 2008 Alaska Wilderness Recreation & Tourism Association Candidates’ Forum.  Read more about the forum at the Anchorage Daily News and KTUU.