It seems futile to add to what has been said over the past week, but also impossible not to speak of it. Protesters are people who want change. Rioters are people who want disruption and destruction. Rioters, at the behest of the President, set out to seize the Capitol and demand the audit of certain …
“There just might be something in the air that feels, dare we say it, hopeful,” writes Columnist Jill Goldthwait this week.
“Sunrise is three minutes later than on the Dec. 21 solstice, but sunset is 14 minutes later, giving us a net gain of 11 minutes of daylight. Speaking of daylight, we are in no way done with COVID, but vaccines? Daylight. The disease is rampant all over the country and it will be a while before we can begin to relax precautions, but there is a glimmer of hope that we are headed toward better days. In the meantime, we know how to do this, right?”
“We should never pay people not to work,” said Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas. President Donald Trump himself called it a “disincentive to work.” Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kansas) said many in his caucus agree.
And they are right! We know this to be true because look at Congress. Members are paid $174,000 a year, and do they work? No, they do not! Take away that $174,000 and you’ll see them up off their duffs, working like fiends!
Funny how the minority party in a legislative body is the one to call for reform while the majority party likes things just the way they are, thank you very much. So it goes in Maine, where there has been a little burst of reform proposals from Republicans, the party currently in the minority in …
The 130th Maine Legislature cobbled itself together on Dec. 2 to sort out the organizational duties necessary to convene for real. COVID-19 is wreaking havoc with the customary chamber meetings, committee meetings and public participation. It’s all hands on deck to figure out how to make it work. Pandemic notwithstanding, step one in the process …
Busted! Once again, the coast of Maine has been the entry point for foreign intrigue, and once again the threat has been exposed. Years ago, it was German spies in a U-boat landing on the coast near Hancock Point in November of 1944. Their undoing? They trudged up the Hancock peninsula wearing “street clothes and …
With an election unmatched for turnout despite the pandemic and a brilliant performance by poll workers of every political stripe, we can give thanks that our electoral system held together. Same goes for the courts, which have cut through the onslaught of election claims and counterclaims with clarity and efficiency. Yet as the media competes …
Though Secretary of State Matt Dunlap says there are a few loose ends to wrap up (including two recounts), the state election is pretty much a wrap. Town clerks and their steadfast crews, the hard-working heroes of the election, have breathed a sigh of relief. It’s over. So, what’s new in the Maine Legislature? On …
The machinery of the state Legislature is grinding into gear, with all the clanks and groans attendant after sitting idle for seven months. It adjourned in a pandemic rush last March, hurrying to get essential business done and leaving everything else for another day. Republicans criticized House Speaker and U.S. Senate candidate Sara Gideon for …
From Tuesday evening until Saturday morning we were a nation obsessed. One of the most consequential presidential elections in U.S. history hung in the balance while vote counters counted and pundits explained over and over why the race could not yet be called. Pollsters may have missed the mark again after their botched call of …
A letter to my grandchildren: Hello, you six. We’re getting along here just fine, connecting with friends outdoors or by phone or electronically, but when it comes to you guys it’s quite hard to accept that that’s the only way we can be together. Farmer Bob just called to see if I wanted a turkey. …
In this last, pre-election edition, opining on election races is verboten. At a time when few are thinking about anything else, that necessitates some head-scratching. What is a writer to do? Extol the glories of the autumn foliage? Offer some Thanksgiving recipes? Lament the absence of marshmallow Peeps this Halloween? We can do better than …
