Author: Nina McLaughlin

AUGUSTA – The Maine Republican Party today is exposing a financial connection between the House Chair of the Maine Legislature’s Taxation Committee, and the group that funded the 3% income tax hike in the November election. “We are bringing this information into the public eye because the people deserve to know,” said Maine GOP Chairman Demi Kouzounas. “We request swift action from House Democrats to remedy this situation, and restore confidence in the Taxation Committee as they undertake work that will impact every person in the state of Maine.” At issue are campaign finance documents revealing Rep. Ryan Tipping, D-Orono…

Maine GOP Chairman Rick Bennett released the following statement in response to the dismissal of the appeal of Speaker Mark Eves’ political lawsuit against Governor Paul LePage. “From the beginning, we have stood with Governor LePage as he courageously said  ‘enough is enough’ to insider cronyism among liberals in Augusta. Yesterday, a court has once again ruled in favor of Governor LePage’s actions and against Speaker Eves’ politically motivated lawsuit. “Maine people should never have to accept unqualified applicants procuring well-paid, taxpayer-funded jobs through inside political connections as Speaker Eves had done. Governor LePage, knowing he was risking great personal…

Every two years liberals in Maine unveil an economic plan with a new catchy name. They plan a ‘listening tour’ and pitch vague promises on taxes, insurance and fighting for “the rights of working people.” In 2011 the economic plan ‘Get Real Maine’ was released on July 14th. Perpetually campaigning, Emily Cain explained ‘Get Real’ in the Press Release, “In November, Maine people sent us to Augusta with a mandate – a mandate to create jobs and to improve our economy, for the first time in decades Republicans were in charge… Bill after bill we saw solutions in search of problems…

Last week Emily Cain, Democratic Candidate for the Second Congressional District of Maine, posted a photo in which she poses with a man whilst holding a gun and wearing a blaze orange vest many Mainers associate with fall hunting. The post was captioned, “Our sporting traditions should be left to us. That’s why Emily worked across the aisle to protect our rights, and supported our constitutional right to hunt. Thanks to Ronnie for the great wingshooting lessons!”. The backlash began almost immediately. With many sportsmen pointing out that the Constitution does not seem to give us a ‘right to hunt,’…

This past Friday the Nation was rocked by WikiLeaks’ release of DNC emails. The leaks are described as: “19,252 emails and 8,034 attachments from the top of the U.S. Democratic National Committee — part one of our new Hillary Leaks series. The leaks come from the accounts of seven key figures in the DNC: Communications Director Luis Miranda (10,770 emails), National Finance Director Jordon Kaplan (3,797 emails), Finance Chief of Staff Scott Comer (3,095 emails), Finanace Director of Data & Strategic Initiatives Daniel Parrish (1,472 emails), Finance Director Allen Zachary (1,611 emails), Senior Advisor Andrew Wright (938 emails) and Northern California Finance Director…

In a shameless effort to promote his environmentalism, Representative Jeff McCabe took to Facebook this morning to publicly post any private information that he could find in locally collected roadside trash. The most concerning example of Rep. McCabe’s public shaming spree was a picture he posted of a medical bracelet with the caption, “Anyone sees (Name redacted) JR tell her no littering on Malbons Mills Rd.” This post was shared publicly on Rep. McCabe’s Facebook with the intent to shame this woman whom Mr. McCabe assumes littered intentionally. Perhaps more disturbing than the fact that Mr. McCabe assumed this was a case of intentional…

I’m not generally excited about parks. I like nature, there is no mistaking that- you’re talking to a girl who got her fishing license for the first time last year and used it almost every day. I really am trying, I promise… but parks… Parks make me think of camping and I really dislike camping. I just don’t get it. It’s cold, there are spiders, you sleep on rocks and everything smells like wood smoke… it really isn’t my scene. I think the last time I genuinely got excited about a park was when I was driving through Wyoming and…

This past week our country was saddened to hear former first lady Nancy Reagan had passed away. While in mourning, multiple news outlets and television channels took the opportunity to reflect on the couple’s life and their time spent not only in office, but also out of office. Their story is that of perfection, a union of Hollywood glamor and D.C. smarts without the scandals of Camelot. So in reflecting on their lives, I have to wonder: When did our country lose class and grace? When did people like the Reagans, Grace Kelley, Audrey Hepburn and yes, the Kennedys, go out…

As all of Maine and most of the country is already aware, Donald Trump held a rally in Portland this past Thursday. He was introduced by Governor Paul LePage, who has openly endorsed Trump for President. Naturally the rally had its fair share of protesters, one of whom shouted into the crowd, “vote Sunday,” which, to the crowd’s amusement, Governor LePage quipped, “No, the Democrats will vote next Sunday, don’t tell them this week.” The rally proceeded as planned, Trump went on his way and Mainers went home, more prepared to make the important choice of whom to vote for…