After years of its status as a beacon of opportunity for young people, the city of Seattle is experiencing troublesome…
This article first appeared in the Portland Press Herald. “Nobody spends somebody else’s money as carefully as he spends his…
Maine’s progressives have been selling the benefits of the minimum wage increase using faulty analysis. Don’t buy the hype. Our…
On Tuesday, April 24, the Portland City Council’s Health and Human Services Committee convened to take public comment on a…
Earlier this year, the Maine Center for Economic Policy, a left-wing think tank, published an article written by its budget…
“A plan to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule.” H.L. Mencken All…
Americans paid their 2017 federal and state income taxes this week. Filing taxes isn’t a pleasant or easy task, but…
The clock struck midnight, but what did that mean? The second regular session of the Maine Legislature is supposed to…
It’s easy to oppose the recent Republican tax cuts when the mainstream media tells you to do so. Millions of dollars were…
As the legislative session enters its last weeks, Democrats are sitting on their hands, hoping voters won’t notice they have…
In December 2012, after the The Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre on December 14, Stephen Hunter, a Pulitzer Prize-winning former film…
Ever since Cain slew Abel with a rock, human society has struggled with an age-old question: how do we prevent…
Maine still has a chance to fix its broken ballot initiative process this legislative session. In a surprise move, Maine’s…
This article was originally published in The Ellsworth American. The Maine Legislature is expected to adjourn in a few short…
On Monday, April 9, at 1:30 p.m., Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs will hold public hearing…
As we wrap up this legislative session, I am making our elderly a top priority. Unfortunately, they are not a…
This article was originally published in the Bangor Daily News Many tax filers use online programs such as TurboTax to…
If you were pushing one of the largest tax hikes in history on Maine citizens, would you want them to know about…
Yesterday, Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap announced that “ranked-choice voting can’t occur in June without legislative action.” This was…
As Governor, it’s my responsibility to make the tough decisions. The upcoming closure of the Downeast Correctional Facility in Washington…
Education in Maine is captive to progressive administrative and structural stagnation. Our educational system has become the dream of progressive theorists…
Political spats in Maine are threatening free press rights, and a bad law is at the source of it all.…
I have been working hard to protect our elderly Mainers and to help them stay in their homes. But Democrats…
This article was originally published in the Portland Press Herald The First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of speech is under…
James D. Herbert’s Feb. 11 column in the Portland Press Herald, “Are We Just Another Echo Chamber?” drew less attention than one…
The federal tax cuts will provide about $1 billion in tax relief this year and next to Maine families and…
A lot of ink has been spilled detailing the catastrophic consequences of crafting tax policy through public referendum, as left-wing…
The nationwide school walkout scheduled for Wednesday, March 14 at 10 a.m. is not a meaningful civics lesson or a…
Here we go again. There’s another referendum on the ballot this fall that sounds too good to be true. Trust…
The anti-gun crowd cannot absorb the absolute truth that deranged people and plain old criminals don’t pay any attention to…
One of my most important duties is to appoint judges to Maine’s district, superior and supreme judicial courts. The Maine…
The Editorial team at the Bangor Daily News (BDN) held onto my recently published Op-Ed just long enough to put…
Maine’s experimental education model, proficiency-based learning, has received strong pushback in recent weeks from various communities around the state as…
The level of hate and vitriol that is leveled at conservative government officials, students, educators, entertainers, media and business persons…
We need to make sure that employees in Maine do not see the same cut in pay that’s happening to…
The sharing economy, including platforms like Lyft, Uber and Airbnb, present new and unique economic opportunities to the many Mainers…
Milton Friedman, the Nobel-prize winning economist, once said, “It is just obvious you can’t have open borders and a welfare…
It’s been 100 days since voters passed the referendum to expand Medicaid. So far, the legislature has done nothing to…
Advocates claim that by raising the minimum wage, hard-working Mainers working in these positions will be better off, as they…
We need to treat our elderly with respect and let them keep their dignity. And we must let them keep…
When conservatives in Augusta pushed to implement the law enabling charter schools in Maine in 2011, their goal was to…
This article was originally published in the Sun Journal. Nearly two years ago I decided to run for office with…
Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on Health and Human Services recently held public hearing for a flurry of child care bills…
One of the few bills making it through Legislative Council this session that actually rises to the emergency threshold outlined…
When I came into office in 2011, the state workforce had been subject to pay freezes and furlough days, reducing…
Maine employers have been struggling to meet the demands of Question 4 since its passage. The initial swell in 2017…
This article first appeared on InsideSources.com As the Golden Globes Awards made a long overdue attempt to atone for a…
Did you know that you are currently in debt for over $1 million? As an individual American taxpayer, $1 million…
Obesity is a problem in our nation, and it’s a problem in Maine. But the USDA refuses to prohibit the…
Occupational licensing is intended to safeguard the public from unqualified, incompetent charlatans whose low-quality goods and services put the health…
On Thursday, Jan. 11 the Joint Standing Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology met for a public hearing on yet…
Too many Maine families are facing skyrocketing property taxes that strain household budgets. Our elderly on fixed incomes are particularly…
In 2016, Maine voters approved Question 4, a measure that incrementally increases Maine’s minimum wage to $12 an hour by…
As American citizens, one of our most precious rights and solemn duties is to vote. The active participation of our…
Legislation in the second session of each Maine Legislature is reserved for the Governor’s bills, budgetary matters and emergency legislation…
Every American citizen should have the right to earn a living and the freedom to pursue the profession of his…
As we look forward to the new year, one of the big challenges facing our state is growing our workforce…
“If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls…
I just received a notice to apply for a license (new city ordinance they slipped through during the summer) to…
At this time of year, we gather with loved ones to celebrate Christmas, count our blessings, remember the past year…
Perhaps the most inaccurate narrative being pushed by lobbyists and special-interest groups in Augusta is that the Maine Legislature is…
The tax reform bill working its way through Washington is good for Maine families and small business. Here’s why: First, both versions…
I have laid out four basic principles to guide the Legislature’s decision on how to pay for Medicaid expansion. We…
The US House of Representatives passed a concealed carry reciprocity bill on Dec. 6 that requires all states to recognize…
How much would you pay someone to invade the privacy of your home? Or to search your premises continuously, breaching…
Proponents of Medicaid expansion have not been honest with the Maine people. They claim it’s free because the federal government…
If you only listened to Democrat politicians and their allied special interests, you wouldn’t know that the tax relief proposals…
The Portland Press Herald on Sunday, Nov. 26 published an article highlighting recent efforts in Maine to crack down on…
The federal government must do a better job to provide adequate resources for background checks on people purchasing firearms. Horrific…
The October 12, 2017 edition of the Bridgton News had a front-page article entitled Your thoughts on land use? The writer, Wayne…
With the goal of looking good to the right market groups, corporations have used considerable resources to push social and…
Mainers are generous people, and we are known to help our neighbors when there is a need. Whether it during…
Herewith a few quick examples of the cognitive cacophony of those on the left, highlighting their unmitigated gall and what…
Mainers enjoy their private property rights. That’s why you should be on the lookout if you are a resident of…
It took a lot of work to balance Maine’s budget, bring fiscal responsibility to state government and restore our rainy…
The United States needs a climate change policy grounded in and consistent with the Constitution. We don’t have one. The…
In today’s world, and especially in rural Maine, finding work without prior experience can be tough, particularly for teenagers and…
We are all heartbroken by the attack in Sutherland Springs, Texas. We are all heartbroken each time fellow Americans are murdered…
Leaders in Washington are seeking ways to stabilize the health care system and lower premiums next year. Deep divisions have…
In 1865, President Lincoln asked Americans to remember soldiers and veterans. He urged them: “To care for him who shall…
I had the privilege of spending some time in your state earlier this year and I truly enjoyed spending time…
Maine voters will decide tomorrow at the ballot box whether to expand Medicaid coverage to childless, able-bodied working age adults…
Lies and deceit continue from the campaign pushing for Medicaid expansion, or Question 2, which would provide health coverage to…
Maine needs you to make important decisions that will affect our future. Please vote on November 7. There are several…
In response to a newsletter put out by Maine Medical Center CEO Richard W. Petersen and other hospitals that are…
For conservatives, the need to reduce taxation and curtail government spending are immutable truths. The national debt will surpass $20.5…
The Maine people are being told that if Medicaid is not expanded, children and the elderly will suffer. Folks, it’s…
The Maine Legislature voted on Monday to delay the implementation of ranked-choice voting until December 2021, meaning ranked-choice voting could…
For those who attended or streamed the public hearing for LD 1646, “An Act to Bring Maine’s Ranked-Choice Voting Law…
A bill to implement ranked-choice voting in Maine, LD 1646, introduced by Kent Ackley, I-Monmouth, received public hearing yesterday at…
The Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs will convene on Monday, Oct. 16 to hold a public hearing on LD…
Special-interest groups are using the ballot box to push initiatives that are bad for Maine. For seven years, I have…
When it comes to Medicaid expansion, at one time, Maine was ahead of the curve. In 2002, long before the…
The most recent killings in Las Vegas will remain in the headlines for a while and the world will look…
Despite being rejected five times previously, once again, a push to expand MaineCare—the state’s Medicaid program—will be debated. For the…
Those elected to represent the people of Maine have a responsibility to prioritize the needs of our state. But Maine’s…
Populist movements are rising up, decrying the “danger and destruction” of capitalism. This false populist sentiment is perpetuated by four…
If you (and your wallet) are fed up with progressive tax-and-spend ballot initiatives, don’t expect them to end any time…
Maine’s senior senator in Washington, D.C. single-handedly killed the chance to reform ObamaCare and provide hard-working Mainers with affordable and…
The word came down just days ago. Uber is going to lose its licenses to operate in London. The official…