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Home » News » Commentary » Welfare Extravagence Undermines Portland as Budget Fight Looms
Commentary

Welfare Extravagence Undermines Portland as Budget Fight Looms

Steve RobinsonBy Steve RobinsonFebruary 26, 2015Updated:February 26, 20157 Comments4 Mins Read
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Checkmate, Mr. Mayor.

With the revelation that Portland’s homeless shelters have knowingly been giving shelter to frequent stayers who have more than $20,000 in their checking accounts, Mayor Michael Brennan has effectively been muted in all discussions of Governor LePage’s budget and General Assistance reform.

What’s that you say? Portland would be hit hardest by the elimination of revenue sharing? Well, Mr. Mayor, you probably should stop letting those wealthy one-percenters mooch off the system.

Brennan’s defense is that these individuals probably have mental health issues or drug addictions — as if that excuses this blatant example of the welfare state gone awry.

For starters, Brennan doesn’t know these individuals or their predicaments. His excuse is mere speculation. He doesn’t even know the immigration status of Portland’s General Assistance recipients — let alone their medical conditions.

Secondly, just because they may have mental health issues or drug addictions doesn’t mean they can’t help pay for services they receive. Quite obviously, some of these individuals ought to be forking over some of their savings to cover the cost of their services — regardless of whether their afflictions extend beyond the typical poor life-decisions of most shelter occupants.

Brennan’s sputtering excuses can’t obscure the spectacular failure of welfare policy that has occurred on his watch. The mismanagement has led to Portland consuming 63 percent of all General Assistance spending, despite being home to just 5 percent of Maine’s population.

Brennan’s sputtering excuses can’t obscure the spectacular failure of welfare policy that has occurred on his watch. The mismanagement has led to Portland consuming 63 percent of all General Assistance spending, despite being home to just 5 percent of Maine’s population.

Means-testing, immigration status checks, cost-sharing — all of this flies in the face of Brennan-led Portland’s anti-poverty strategy, which so far has been to lure the poor with easy-to-get handouts and register them to vote.

The only non-coddling action he’s taken is to ban them from traffic medians. Wouldn’t want the underclass spoiling the vistas of the city’s commuting lawyer-lobbyist class, now would we.

Rather than simply agree with the LePage administration that there is a problem in need of a solution, Maine’s liberal chattering class has attacked the messenger.

“What are we supposed to do, leave them out in the cold to die?” they ask.

No one is suggesting that, of course. But liberal talking points are most always flaming arrows aimed at straw men of their own creation rather than actual arguments or problems.

Every median-stander is entitled to be let in the first night. This is a dictate of both conscience and law. But after that first night some evaluation of need and capacity to pay is in order.

The liberal imagination is particularly ingenious when it comes to defending government programs. The welfare lobbyists told us last year that it’s easy to imagine someone withdrawing EBT funds at a strip club and using the money to buy diapers.

Now the same crowd says it’s easy to imagine the government pumping disability checks into some unmaintained bank account that the shelter user has no knowledge of. A bit more plausible, yes, but, if true, how is this not a cause of outrage? How is this — allocated taxpayer resources never alleviating the problem they are intend to solve — not a bipartisan cause for concern?

Perhaps it’s because Portland liberals are too busy smearing conservatives to do anything other than sanctimoniously feign concern for the homeless.

Try as they might, liberals can’t gloss over the failure of Portland and its shelters to act in the best interest of both the homeless and the taxpayers.

The city needs to get it’s act together — and quickly — as LePage has scored a major victory in the budgetary fight for true fiscal reform.

The blank checks that have underwritten Portland’s reckless and ineffective anti-poverty policies are about to come to an end.

Featured General Assistance Maine Michael Brennan Opinion Portland Welfare
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Steve Robinson is the Editor-in-Chief of The Maine Wire. ‪He can be reached by email at Robinson@TheMaineWire.com.

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<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="9968 http://www.themainewire.com/?p=9968">7 Comments

  1. Ray Bates on February 27, 2015 12:22 AM

    Wow Steve, you hit that one out of the park-Great Job…Now then Mr. Brennan, what say you??

  2. SteveandMarilee Hartley on February 27, 2015 12:22 AM

    Great reporting as usual Nephew

  3. Viola F Hayhurst on February 27, 2015 2:51 PM

    The logical outcome of Portland’s open door policy … but why should the rest of Maine be forced to underwrite it ? First of all….. ask most of the shelter managers that have left in disgust… on a given night over 90 % of their clients are transit ….notably most coming from Massachusetts. But Brennan is a social worker per none and the shelter monies does fund the jobs of many of his like minded — as long as they do not ask too many questions . And we gotta protect these jobs !

  4. Penny Morrell on February 27, 2015 2:51 PM

    Oh, to see this article in the Portland Press Herald! Not so much.

  5. Donn Cairns on February 27, 2015 2:51 PM

    The dirtiest little secret about Portland’s economy is that one of the most significant pumps is all the welfare dollars that flow in to pay, not only “clients” but the payrolls and ancilliary spending by all the agencies located in Portland. It is the sole reason Brennan screeched so loudly when LePage moved the service centers to South Portland.

  6. Eberhart Earl on February 27, 2015 2:51 PM

    excellant and to the point….a trait that escapes the liberals…

  7. Jonathan Canfield on February 28, 2015 3:52 AM

    What they might do is grade the GA in accordance to the number on welfare. That is, if Portland is only 5 +- % of the statewide GA , then only give them 5 % of the total state GA budget, and NO more! Ultimately, it is NOT the taxpayer’s responsibility to support IN ANY WAY those who are on GA.

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