Maine
updated
1:05 a.m.
OK, my first diary. Someone may cover this soon, but I am just so sick of these "intelligent design" idiots. Once again a couple of people that do not understand biology, chemistry, history, etc, are trying to get equal time for creationism or to just not teach evolution in science class. I am going to print and mail them a copy of the "Open Letter To Kansas School Board", regarding H...
DailyKos (Maine) - Sun 8:05 p.m. - 3 clicks 
Here’s Jenna Bush-Hagar standing with her plastic mannequin family on her wedding day. Is it just me or do they all look very uncomfortable in this picture? Is Barbara posing because she thinks she’s the latest uber Super Model of the century or maybe she’s trying to outdo her sister? Could be. And what the hell [...]...
White Noise Insanity - Sun 4:50 p.m.
And we thought John McCain had way too many lobbyists around him to the point he couldn’t move without stepping on the toes of one! Nope. Oh wait. Nevermind. Scratch that. He does have lobbyists around him alright. He’s got some now who… ….HAVE BEEN LOBBYING FOR THE MILITARY JUNTAS IN MYANMAR, you know, the assholes [...]...
White Noise Insanity - Sun 4:50 p.m.
(Pot of flowers I created recently for the deck. I’ve created a pot for my Mother for Mother’s Day today, but her pansies will be cream & fuscia with a spike in the middle) *********************************** Yep, it’s Mother’s Day today….and guess what the “family values”, “we’re more loving, compassionate than you”, and “God ...
White Noise Insanity - Sun 7:05 a.m.
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all of you that are, and I hope you enjoy this glorious day that is here in Maine. An open thread. ...
Turn Maine Blue - Sun 7:05 a.m. - 12 clicks
Well, of course it’s fine. John McCain thinks it sucks and said this in response, “Apparently, Obama’s lively calls for new politics ended today.” Awwwww, poor McCrazy. He was hoping Barack would lay down and let McCrazy do all the talking, you know, like George Bush & Dick Cheney want the American people to do when [...]...
White Noise Insanity - Sat 7:10 p.m.
It's important, I think, to acknowledge the little things that people do, not only to give props to those that have volunteered their time, but also to remind the rest of us that even seemingly minor things (and of course major efforts like this) can make a huge difference in other people's lives: Students at Rockland District High School traveled across the United States to lend a helping h...
Turn Maine Blue - Sat 4:23 p.m. - 2 clicks
How sad. I’ve only known QuakerGirl for about a year now. I’ve never met her, but she was the one who contacted me to help out with Congressman Tom Allen’s appearance on FDL there last year. Her comments and contributions over on FireDogLake are always insightful with some humor thrown in and with me being [...]...
White Noise Insanity - Sat 8:20 a.m. - 22 clicks
(pic) Is there a connection between Jenna getting married on the same weekend Mother’s Day is to be celebrated? Maybe today is your typical Southern shotgun wedding? Hey, could be, but I doubt it. America’s Sweetheart of the WORST PRESIDENT IN THE HISTORY OF OUR NATION is getting married today and doesn’t have time to think [...]...
White Noise Insanity - Sat 5:46 a.m.
This opinion piece from Wednesday's Bangor Daily News is of special interest, not only because the BDN chose to print it, but because of how it selectively uses historical examples to support extremist view, while ignoring current examples that dispel it. The write, Hayes Gahagan of Presque Isle, is a former state senator and a member of the Republican State Committee: The Republican Par...
Turn Maine Blue - Sat 5:45 a.m. - 20 clicks
Yesterday's Attorney General poll needed no runoff as John Edwards won more than 50% in the first round. Results below the fold. With the Obama Veepstakes poll now concluded and Gov. Bill Richardson as your chosen running mate (which was covered by the Santa Fe Reporter ) it's time to take this a step further: Who would you like to see in an Obama cabinet? Today you can vote on the ne...
DailyKos (Maine) - Sat 3:33 a.m. - 71 clicks
Cross posted at Turn Maine Blue Our Senator, our friend from up in northern Maine, has another video out, one that I'm sure you will want to share: Thanks to the hard work of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, there is a list of votes by Susan Collins that shows how much she supports our nation's veterans. See some of the list below the fold: ...
DailyKos (Maine) - Fri 5:23 p.m. - 25 clicks
USA Today raises the issue: Republicans have 23 Senate seats to defend in the fall, and four incumbents — Sununu, Susan Collins of Maine, Gordon Smith of Oregon and Norm Coleman of Minnesota — are among the most vulnerable. [...] Jennifer Duffy, who analyzes Senate races for the non-partisan Cook Political Report, said the deciding factor for GOP incumbents in November could be whether Democr...
Collins Watch - Fri 10:58 a.m. - 19 clicks
(pic) Maine Author Stephen King made this comment recently when talking with some high school students: “If you can read you can walk into a job later on. If you don’t, then you’ve got the Army, Iraq - I don’t know.” Yep, he said it. What Stephen King was trying to say and what the weak minded weren’t [...]...
White Noise Insanity - Fri 6:12 a.m. - 22 clicks
CTuttle of FireDogLake posted this hilarious video last night from the Washington Post. All I’m going to say is I can completely relate to the donkey’s reaction!!! You’ll love it. Enjoy! (CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO) (pic) ...
White Noise Insanity - Fri 6:12 a.m.
Last night another candidate forum was held, this one in Ogunquit : Debate was lively and largely aimed across party lines as seven of the eight candidates for Maine's 1st Congressional District seat faced off during a forum at the Dunaway Center on Thursday night. The exception was Adam Cote, who broke ranks with his Democratic peers on issues like health care and Iraq. The forum was sponso...
Turn Maine Blue - Fri 6:12 a.m. - 14 clicks
http://publicbroadcasting.net/... This podcast has a sampling of Tom Ledue's stand on the issues. In lieu of the debate, MPBN televsion will interview and question Tom on the issues on May 22. Airing live at 8:00PM. ...
Turn Maine Blue - Thu 9:37 p.m. - 3 clicks
Cross posted at Daily Kos Our Senator, our friend from up to the County, has another video out, one that I'm sure you will want to share: Thanks to the hard work of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, there is a list of votes by Susan Collins that shows how much she supports our nation's veterans. It is an appropriate accompaniment to the video above: 6 April 200...
Turn Maine Blue - Thu 9:37 p.m. - 8 clicks
Sen. Collins waives two cents at war critics, and BDN acts like she's given them a dollar. Wednesday's BDN editorial is better than the paper's first article touting the junior senator's proposed ban on Iraq reconstruction spending: The piece acknowledges that the plan is almost purely symbolic. But it still errs in characterizing the proposal as genuine, meaningful progress. Notably, it fai...
Collins Watch - Thu 1:02 p.m. - 24 clicks
Bill Moyers , in an interview yesterday with Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! had some intelligent things to say about the media. Here's a slice of fried gold: ...the media doesn’t allow complicated thought to be articulated in ways that enlighten instead of misinform people. ...Politics often exposes us to the corroding acid of the politics of personal destruction, but I’ve never seen anyt...
Borrowed Suits - Thu 10:32 a.m. - 6 clicks
Cross-posted at Maine Owl Iraqi official livid over proposal supported by Senator Susan Collins to force attachment of oil revenue for American purposes "America has hardly even begun to repay its debt to Iraq." --Abdul Basit, the head of Iraq's Supreme Board of Audit With another massive Iraq war funding bill now before Congress, it has become popular among Republicans and Democrats ali...
Turn Maine Blue - Thu 10:32 a.m. - 15 clicks
As far as I can tell, neither Sen. Collins campaign website nor her Senate site so much as mentions last week's Maine Republican convention. No text, no video, nothing. Seems the junior senator might prefer we forget that, like far-right columnist Cal Thomas and former Governor Mitt Romney, she received an enthusiastic reception from Maine's anti-choice, laissez-faire Republicans delega...
Collins Watch - Thu 8:05 a.m. - 13 clicks
I was shocked to read this in today's Bangor Daily News : Knowing their electricity wouldn't be cut off in the winter, local residents Lana and Jon Courtright chose to buy food and gasoline instead of paying their electric bill. The bill was placed on the back burner and now "we're just behind," Lana Courtright said on Wednesday, adding the couple received a disconnection notice from Bango...
Turn Maine Blue - Thu 5:51 a.m. - 13 clicks
Using a rigorous endorsement process, including lengthy candidate questionnaires and interviews, and culminating with votes by the general membership and an Elections Committee, the Maine League of Young Voters has endorsed Chellie Pingree as the best candidate from either party for Congress in Maine's First District. This is the first year the League has endorsed during a primary. Here's w...
Turn Maine Blue - Wed 4:58 p.m. - 20 clicks
I slapped this together because I didn't feel like doing much work today, and I got a little happy about the fact that a) this primary is finally closing down shop and b) it's been a while since I felt this good about the Democratic Party's nominee. I think the last time might have been 1992. The transition between Microsoft Publisher and photobucket isn't seamless; the original backgroun...
Borrowed Suits - Wed 1:21 p.m. - 2 clicks
Congressional candidate Michael Brennan delivered the following letter to his three representatives in Congress today: May 7, 2008 Dear Senators Snowe and Collins and Representative Allen, I am writing you as a constituent to request that you oppose the supplemental funding request of $178 billion for the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that will soon be before you in Congress. I also would enco...
Turn Maine Blue - Wed 1:21 p.m. - 19 clicks
Senate Guru (does he ever sleep?) catches Sen. Collins breaking with Sen. Snowe, Sen. Roberts (R-KS) and the Democrats to vote with the Republican leadership against legislation "to make the flying skies safer and more passenger-friendly." No word yet on why the junior senator opposed allowing even an up-or-down vote on the bill, which included a passenger bill of rights and a tighter inspect...
Collins Watch - Wed 7:30 a.m. - 16 clicks
If you haven't caught the news coverage, Barack Obama defeated Hillary Clinton by 14 points in North Carolina yesterday. He came within 2 in Indiana, and made the coverage go until after midnight as "too close to call". Hillary will more than likely remain in the race for two more weeks, and drop out after KY and WV. The media narrative is that her campaign is over, and they're right- the superde...
Turn Maine Blue - Wed 7:30 a.m. - 3 clicks
As part of its ongoing series profiling each of the candidates running to be Maine's 1st District congressman, Maine Public Radio had this report about Michael Brennan. Click on the "windows" button to stream it on your computer. ...
Turn Maine Blue - Wed 7:30 a.m. - 16 clicks
John McCain and Hillary Clinton have both back an idea that is, to put it plainly, stupid. They want to create a holiday on the Federal tax collected on vehicle fuel, revenues that go directly to the Federal Highway Administration. Economists will tell you that the reality of such a plan is to provide a windfall profit for the oil industry, since supply and demand will not have changed, and consum...
Turn Maine Blue - Wed 6:02 a.m. - 2 clicks
An ACLU spokesman tonight on Daily Kos that Arizona has joined Maine in saying no to the REAL ID boondoggle. The anti-Real ID movement just took a big step forward, with the Arizona Senate’s 21-7 vote to bar implementation of Real ID in Arizona. read more ...
Downeast Politics - Tue 11:41 p.m. - 22 clicks
Let me be explicit about something bubbling beneath the surface in my various posts on HRC's decision to endorse Sen. Collins. Namely: Other progressive interest groups have absolutely no business going there. And it'll be a scandal if they do. I cut HRC some slack on the Collins endorsement because the junior senator has a genuinely respectable record on their agenda. She's been willing to ...
Collins Watch - Tue 11:41 p.m. - 26 clicks
Art. II, Sec. 2 of our Constitution reads: He [the President] shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he [the President] shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all othe...
Turn Maine Blue - Tue 11:41 p.m. - 2 clicks
Noticeably absent from what limited coverage of the Maine GOP Convention was any reporting about John Frary, who is trying to unseat Mike Michaud. You can see his remarks here , but I warn you, if you are prone to motion sickness, do not watch it. It amazes me that all the video images I have seen from the GOP Convention seem to have been recorded on cell phone cameras. One hopes that the Dem'...
Turn Maine Blue - Tue 11:41 p.m. - 19 clicks
Recently, the residents of Montville, a small community located in Maine, became the first town outside of California to ban the cultivation of genetically engineered crops . To do so, they had to take on the deep pockets and misguided motivations of corporations such as Monsanto , the Halliburton of the farming industry. ...
DailyKos (Maine) - Tue 11:41 p.m. - 20 clicks
Sen. Collins breaks with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) over his gas tax holiday proposal. And on the merits, she's right. [Rep. Michaud] said [House Transportation Committee] members are worried that the loss of revenue for highway programs would cost jobs and delay needed bridge and road repairs. "I think we have to look at the long term," he said. "I think we have to look at real solutions, like r...
Collins Watch - Tue 7:42 a.m. - 20 clicks
Not Iraq, huh? In an interview, I [Cal Thomas] asked Collins the main reason Republicans lost their congressional majority and are struggling to regain a political foothold in what looks like a big year for Democrats. She said, "There was an explosion of and increase in spending." Not corruption? Not incompetence? ...
Collins Watch - Tue 7:42 a.m. - 22 clicks
Three things jump out at me: 1. You have to be pretty cynical to accuse your opponent of coddling terrorists and then (minutes later?) face the TV cameras and say about the campaign, "I fear we're gonna see all those horrible attack ads." But it's the kind of cynicism you'd expect from someone who--when it's politically expedient-- promises voters to serve no more than two terms and then goes ...
Collins Watch - Mon 7:31 a.m. - 16 clicks
Via PolitickerME.com : Part 1 Part 2 UPDATE: PolitckerME.com seems to have missed some of the speech. But in these clips, if I'm counting correctly, Sen. Collins says the word "Iraq" only once--and in passing. In general, the address is noticeably light on the discussion of issues, even by the standards of a campaign speech at a political convention. ...
Collins Watch - May 4 - 19 clicks
The AP runs the first extended piece on Sen. Collins' remarks at the Maine GOP convention. Here's the meat of the article: While allowing that she and Allen both care deeply about Maine, Collins said "the similarities pretty much end there" and ticked off a list of areas in which she and the congressman differ. Collins said she supported Republican tax relief efforts, which Allen opposed. Coll...
Collins Watch - May 4 - 16 clicks
Betsy Smith, Executive Director of Equality Maine : "I don't think that the HRC has a basis anymore for this type of endorsement. People were upset in 2002 when they endorsed Collins over Pingree, but it was a little more understandable then...This is a very, very different situation. They now have every reason to look at both candidates, and records that both of them have in Washington." ...
Collins Watch - May 3 - 11 clicks
I haven't been able to get my hands on the text or video of Sen. Collins' remarks to the Maine Republican party convention earlier today. But the very short AP story on her speech is sort of baffling: After a rousing introduction by fellow Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe, Collins ticked off a list of areas in which she and Allen disagree, such as committee choices, privacy and Medicare prescription dr...
Collins Watch - May 3 - 11 clicks
Pivoting off Gerald's strong points , a few final thoughts on Human Rights Campaign's endorsement of Sen. Collins. As I said from the start, HRC had its reasons for endorsing Sen. Collins. But it's worth mentioning that the purely political case for the endorsement is exceedingly, almost laughably weak. Consider: Just about everyone--including Republicans--believes that Democrats will gain ...
Collins Watch - May 3 - 11 clicks
November's election isn't likely to turn on Human Rights Campaign's endorsement of Sen. Collins. But since the junior senator's success with voters depends on convincing them she's a moderate, there are some other progressive organizations whose verdicts will matter: If she's embraced by moderate, left-leaning groups, this will inevitably solidify the impression among voters that Collins is who sh...
Collins Watch - May 2 - 12 clicks
Susan Cover is on the ground at the Republican convention in Augusta. Wonder how Sen. Collins' nod from Human Rights Campaign is playing with the delegates... UPDATE: Politicker ME is promising photos and video. ...
Collins Watch - May 2 - 10 clicks
David Smith , VP of Programs at HRC, via e-mail: [...] As you acknowledge in your blog post, there are many factors that go into determining which candidate to endorse. It is not good strategy to work against an incumbent with a demonstrated track record in the Senate, who has laid the groundwork for the progress we want to make... HRC is a bipartisan organization. This is not an empty princ...
Collins Watch - May 1 - 3 clicks
Human Rights Campaign's decision to endorse Sen. Collins has kicked up some dust with progressives over the last several days. Howie Klein panned the move on Monday, noting at Huffington Post (and in comments here ) that Collins has backed some of President Bush's most egregious judicial nominees, and that she actually scores well below Rep. Allen on HRC's own legislative scorecard . Meanw...
Collins Watch - May 1 - 10 clicks
We've been complaining for some time now about Sen. Collins' lack of engagement with adult Mainers, and about the absence of citizen forums on her schedule: As far as we can tell, it's been more than a year--and possibly much longer--since she's stood before Maine voters, taking questions in a free, public forum. (All the while, she regularly finds time to address middle school audiences .) ...
Collins Watch - Apr 29 - 11 clicks
No, not Hillary Rodham Clinton : The Human Rights Campaign, an advocacy group for gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgendered citizens, announced on Monday that it will support 10 senators for re-election, including Senator Susan Collins. [...] Joe Solmonese, the president of the Human Rights Campaign, said that Collins has been supportive of issues important to gay and lesbian voters, includin...
Collins Watch - Apr 29 - 11 clicks
The KJ runs a pro-Collins letter from Elizabeth St. Laurent--the fourth Collins-boosting letter the paper has run from St. Laurent over the last twelve months. I was torn about whether the letter was even worth flagging. But notice how it slips in the pro-Collins language as if it were an afterthought; as if it were an incidental point, rather than the letter's entire purpose for being. Of c...
Collins Watch - Apr 25 - 11 clicks
As if on cue, the Bangor Daily News applauds Sen. Collins for sponsoring legislation--to the best of my knowledge, as yet unwritten --which would require the government of Iraq to take on some reconstruction and fuel costs. Forget the fact that the entire US outlay for Iraq reconstruction represents less than two percent of what we will soon have spent in that country. Forget the fact that w...
Collins Watch - Apr 24 - 12 clicks
Last week, the Maine Democratic party put out a press release alleging a total Iraq war cost to Maine taxpayers of $1.4 billion. It's a number I hadn't seen before. And I'm always suspicious about statistics that purport to break down government costs, especially when they come from partisan sources: Crunching budget numbers requires making assumptions, and so there's ample opportunity for manipu...
Collins Watch - Apr 22 - 10 clicks
Over the weekend, the Kennebec Journal ran a letter from Maine GOP Chairman Mark Ellis explaining why pols who miss even a tiny fraction of votes are cheating their constituents. Ellis, you'll remember, is the guy who stepped in it last fall, snarling via press release that, "Congressman Allen really seems to have lost interest in showing up to work" after Allen missed three votes for what tu...
Collins Watch - Apr 21 - 10 clicks
Not sure when it disappeared, but the incendiary video at Sen. Collins' out-of-state fundraising site is no longer live. Was it pulled because of the press scrutiny ? Did Sen. Collins get cold feet? Or was it merely a bandwith issue? It's not clear. Before the internet, this kind of vicious, misleading smear would be ancient history by election day. But in a world where information is always...
Collins Watch - Apr 18 - 14 clicks
Appears that Sen. Collins' dinner with the Pope didn't actually materialize . (BDN is now characterizing the plan for the dinner as having been a rumor . But on Monday, the paper presented it as fact . Just saying.) ...
Collins Watch - Apr 18 - 14 clicks
Drew Lavender likes to rock the party... Apparently, this 23 year-old college kid likes to get a little drunk in public. It makes news 'cause he's apparently a pretty good basketball player. La-di-da. He's all the way out at Xavier in Ohio, and I wouldn't post about this at all but for this little tidbit at the bottom of the article: On July 27, police charged him with recklessly c...
Borrowed Suits - Apr 8 - 3 clicks
The closer to the mountaintop we get, the heavier and more subtle the burden becomes. All we can do is to keep climbing. read more: Borrowed Suits ...