Sam Smith - Because the choice for Maine governor is so close, I've waited for the day before the primary to say who I'm voting for. In fact, I can't think of another election in which I was ready to vote for five different candidates, each qualified for the job. Because of her impressive record it looks like I'll be going with Shenna Bellows. My second, third and fourth choices remain for a few hours yet in uncertain order but include Nirav Shah, Troy Jackson and Hannah Pingree.
As for senator, I'm quite happy with Graham Platner, in part because he's one of the few politicians I've ever known about who admitted to some his poor choices when he was young and how he has improved with time. Typical politicians deny or hide the faults of their past as exemplified by Donald Trump who doesn't come close in decency to Platner.
TOWN OF FREEPORT
Road striping will begin throughout town at 8am on Tuesday, June 9th. Work will continue through the end of the day or into Wednesday, depending on weather and progress. Drivers are asked to stay 500 feet back from the paint truck and its following truck. The paint is engineered to dry very quickly, but if you pass the trucks, you may leave a trail on the road and get paint on your vehicle.
JOBS
- L.L.Bean, Inc. posted a job opening for Retail Sales Associate – Freeport Main Street Stores in Freeport. Apply here.
- Under Armour, Inc. posted a job opening for Seasonal Stock Associate in Freeport. Apply here.
- You can search for other jobs near Freeport here.
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National Memo - Maine Sen. Susan Collins failed to report up to $395,000 in stock trades, violating a law that she helped pass. The Stock Act requires members of Congress and their spouses to disclose stock transactions within 45 days of a trade being ordered. A review of the Republican senator’s disclosures from 2013 to 2018 shows 24 transactions that were reported more than 100 days late.
All of these trades were made by Collins’ husband, Thomas Daffron, a former lobbyist. The late-reported items include shares of Microsoft, JPMorgan Chase, and CVS.
....Collins supported the Stock Act when it was introduced in January 2012 and helped shepherd it into law by becoming the first Republican to back the measure. It ultimately passed with bipartisan support and was signed into law by President Barack Obama.
“At a time when polls show low public confidence in Congress, there is a strong desire to address the concerns that underpin the public’s skepticism and assure the American people that we put their interests above our own,” Collins said in defense of the law.
Collins has since opposed efforts to completely ban stock trading by members of Congress, an idea supported by the vast majority of voters and members of her own party. A Brennan Center survey found that 81 percent of adults support such a ban.
... In 2001, she reported her net worth as between $111,000 and $315,000. According to Quiver Quantitative, which tracks the wealth of lawmakers, her net worth in 2013—less than a year after marrying Daffron—was $3.8 million. Today, it is $6.9 million.
Maine Morning Star - The campaign for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner raised more money on Friday than any day since Gov. Janet Mills suspended her campaign, a day after accusations of toxic behavior were reported by some of his exes.
The campaign shared the figures while Platner and other progressives, including U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna of California, rallied in Bar Harbor ahead of the primary on Tuesday.
By 7 p.m., the campaign reported raising $200,000 from more than 5,000 donors. The average contribution was $40, according to the campaign.
Newsflash - The U.S. Senate rejected the SAVE America Act on Thursday, dealing a blow to President Donald Trump’s efforts to impose voting restrictions ahead of the November midterm elections.
Senators voted 48-50 against advancing an amendment that would have incorporated Trump’s top legislative priority into an immigration-focused spending bill. The vote offered the clearest sign yet that despite pressure from the president, a handful of Republican senators continue to resist advancing the bill, which critics say would unleash immense chaos ahead of elections this fall.
The SAVE America Act would require voters to offer documents, such as a birth certificate or passport, proving their citizenship when registering to vote. It would also mandate voters show photo ID when casting a ballot and restrict where voters can register, effectively eliminating voter registration drives.
Democrats and voting rights groups have assailed the bill, saying it would disenfranchise voters and upend the midterms because the new rules would take effect immediately. Trump and the bill’s GOP supporters say it’s needed to combat noncitizen voting, an extremely rare phenomenon.
Since taking office last year, Trump has made a series of attempts to shape how elections are run. An executive order that would limit voting by mail remains in effect for now as opponents challenge it in federal court, and the Department of Justice continues to seek to force states to hand over sensitive voter data, so far unsuccessfully.
The Senate amendment, offered by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, also included restrictions on sports participation by transgender athletes. On social media after the vote, Graham called the SAVE America Act “one of the most consequential” pieces of legislation developed by Trump and his team.
“All Democrats voted no, and they will eventually pay a price,” Graham wrote.
But the proposal fell short among a small group of Republicans, too. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Thom Tillis of North Carolina joined Democrats in voting no.
Collins is seeking reelection in what is one of the most competitive Senate races in the country. McConnell and Tillis have both opted against seeking reelection, while Murkowski has said the bill would set up barriers for voters in her large, rural state.
Shenna Bellows - As I’ve traveled the state, I’ve heard from so many Mainers about their kids and grandkids who are working two or three jobs and barely keeping their heads above water. Young people are leaving the state because they can’t find housing they can afford or a job that pays the bills. That’s why my top priority as your next Governor will be an Economic New Deal for Maine....
Invest in start-ups and small businesses through the Maine Transformation Fund, not unlike the microlending program I set up when I was a small business development volunteer in the Peace Corps in Panama.
Create more housing through a Maine Housing Corps to train young people as carpenters, electricians, and plumbers and rehabilitating derelict housing stock to get it back into the market as affordable housing.
Bring down electricity costs by capping the profits of foreign-owned power companies to 6%.
