LePage goes to Florida
Gov. Paul LePage has demonstrated that his love for the great state of Maine is just as deep as the respect that he has shown for the wishes of the Maine electorate. So I would like to say: “Dear Mr. LePage, Cheers! Welcome to Florida! Please do us a favor and do not return.”
Curtis Meadow
Newport
Reject McNamee nomination
I have learned that a terribly unqualified man, Bernard McNamee, has been nominated to serve on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The commission oversees our energy infrastructure and is tasked with ensuring “reliable, efficient and sustainable energy services at a reasonable cost.” As a Trump appointee to the Department of Energy, McNamee has pushed for subsidies for uneconomic coal plants, and has made a career of advocating for the agenda of coal companies.
In the face of the clear danger of climate change, we should be doing all we can to cut back on our reliance on fossil fuels of all kinds and especially coal. Carbon dioxide is a potent greenhouse gas that is emitted when fossil fuels burn and contribute to the invisible blanket that warms our planet. The heartbreaking fires burning in California now are the latest evidence of changing weather patterns that result from global warming. Putting a fossil fuel advocate in a position of power in this commission is the opposite of what we should be doing. We need people on the commission who understand how climate change works and who can help show the way to increasing our use of solar, wind and other renewable energy sources.
Ask Sen. Angus King, who serves on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, to carefully question McNamee when he comes before that committee.
Martha Dickinson
Ellsworth
Trump’s Whitaker appointment
I can understand President Donald Trump appointing an acting attorney general of the United State who: is opposed to the Justice Department’s investigation into Russian interference in our 2016 election; considers adherence to the New Testament more important than adherence to the Constitution in selecting judges; like Trump, was involved in a business scam that had to pay out millions to bilked customers; and who, like Trump, takes a dim view of the judiciary and an expansive view of executive privilege.
I find it hard to understand Sen. Susan Collins’ tepid response to Trump’s illegal appointment of Matthew Whitaker who has never been confirmed by the Senate and who has said that Marbury v. Madison, which confirmed the authority and independence of the courts, was a bad Supreme Court decision.
Collins’ vote for Brett Kavanaugh signaled her agreement with his protective stance toward the executive and even acceptance of his disrespect for the Senate. Maine voters’ recent repudiation of the abuses of Trumpism (and LePageism) should tell Collins where the majority of her constituents stand on the separation of powers and the constitutional limits to executive power.
Annlinn Kruger
Bar Harbor
Trump usurps Senate’s authority
I appreciated Sen. Susan Collins for speaking in defense of the Mueller investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 elections. Clearly that investigation must be protected, especially because the president has taken the unprecedented step of replacing the Senate-approved attorney general with a person who has not received Senate confirmation. This is a serious issue.
By firing Jeff Sessions and not consulting with the Senate on a replacement, the president has usurped her authority. There was no reason that the president gave that required this action to happen suddenly; he could have come to the Senate with a candidate as the Constitution requires him to do and waited for the Senate to approve that candidate before letting Sessions go. Instead, we have a situation where an unqualified, vocal opponent to the Russia investigation is filling the position of attorney general and President Donald Trump says he will involve the Senate “soon” in naming a replacement for Sessions.
This is not acceptable. Collins has the power to influence Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to allow a vote for protections to the Russia investigation. Collins can refuse to consider any judicial or other appointments unless he calls for such a vote. The Senate Judiciary Committee in April approved such a measure to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller from being fired by Trump. It is crucial that the entire Senate be allowed to vote to protect the investigation into Russian meddling.
Lisa Buck
Orono
Reauthorize conservation fund
It’s great that Maine will receive funds for parks and recreation from the Land and Water Conservation Fund. But that’s only part of the story.
This effective, 54-year-old program expired on Sept. 30 because Congress failed to take action.
It’s ironic to see the Trump administration and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke crow about distributing these conservation dollars. They pushed hard to cut the program by 95 percent in their fiscal year 2019 budget.
The original law authorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund provides for $900 million per year to ensure access to national as well as state and local parks and recreation centers. However, historically Congress has siphoned away a huge portion of those dollars. This is unfortunate because the program has delivered needed investments in parks and outdoor recreation in nearly every county across the entire United States.
Thankfully, the Land and Water Conservation Fund enjoys bipartisan support in the Senate. Sens. Richard Burr, R-North Carolina, and Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, have introduced a bill to permanently reauthorize the program and — importantly — provide full, dedicated funding. A House committee recently approved permanent reauthorization.
The conservation fund does not depend on taxpayer dollars. It takes a sliver of the royalties from offshore drilling in publicly owned waters and reinvests them in parks to benefit future generations. It would be a shame if Congress allows this forward-thinking program to die of neglect.
Jeremy Sheaffer
Maine state director
The Wilderness Society
Hallowell
A nation of immigrants
Our president relentlessly attacks immigrants, falsely accusing them of criminal acts. Let us recall that a caravan of immigrants came here in the 1600s, bringing boatloads of illegal aliens. This is how our country began, and immigration is how our country has grown and prospered. If you aren’t a Native American, you or your ancestors were immigrants. Think about this, and think about the difference between love and hate.
Steve Cartwright
Tenants Harbor