All posts tagged "Commentary"
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Pro-union state senator opposed her brewery employees’ unionization efforts
Rising Tide Brewing, a popular brewery located in Portland, faces a national labor...
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Maine’s high court rules RCV must be used in presidential election
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled Tuesday that ranked-choice voting must be used...
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Mills’ curtailment order balances the budget for now, but tough choices remain in the future
Last week, Governor Janet Mills issued a “curtailment order,” a tool Maine governors...
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Why is the left promoting electoral dysfunction?
Every citizen who meets statutory qualifications has the right to vote, and to...
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Domestic violence remains a concern amidst pandemic
It’s no secret that 2020 is a year like no other, and COVID-19...
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Federal regulations have made western wildfires worse
Parts of the western United States look like scenes from an apocalyptic movie—a...
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Maine school choice lawsuit replicated in New Hampshire, Vermont
A pair of lawsuits that mirror a Maine-based legal challenge (currently pending in...
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BDN Editorial Board tells Mainers to pay up for Gov. Mills’ mistakes
The BDN editorial board’s recent commentary on the state budget shortfall reminds us...
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How will Maine’s struggling small businesses survive the next unfunded mandate?
The National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) issued a press release Monday raising...
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Shutdown Stories: Aquaboggan
Aquaboggan in Saco was forced to close in late August after receiving a...
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Mills administration and MPA conclude football, volleyball cannot be played this fall
Bowing to pressure from the Mills administration, the Maine Principals’ Association announced Thursday...
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The new left rejects a self-governing republic
I’m an engineer by aptitude, education, and vocation. Those of you who are also...
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Reisman: See you in September?
Last week marked the beginning of my 37th year at the University of...
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CBO projects highest rate of US debt-to-GDP since 1945
My colleagues and I have previously written on the State of Maine’s impending...
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Understanding the CDC’s new data on COVID-19 deaths
Recently, some on social media have shared a misrepresentation of an August 26...
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Governor Mills moves the goalposts on high school sports
After telling the public that the Maine Principals’ Association (MPA) would have the...
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SoS Dunlap asks Maine’s high court to strike RCV people’s veto from November ballot
Secretary of State Matt Dunlap is challenging a decision issued last week by...
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How will the University of Maine System enforce its new social distancing rules?
Do you remember this spring when we were told to stay home to...
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School reopenings linked to union influence and politics, not safety
School closures have affected over 55 million K–12 students in the U.S. since March as...
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Mills administration appears destined to halt high school sports this fall
The Maine Principals’ Association’s (MPA) Interscholastic Management Committee voted unanimously on Thursday to...
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Waterville-area school district plans to bring students back to school full-time
In mid-August, the board of directors of Regional School Unit 18, a school...
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Survey shows 1 in 5 small businesses will close soon if economic conditions do not improve
The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) released a new survey Monday of...
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Court overturns SoS Dunlap’s decision to keep RCV veto off November ballot
A judge ruled late Monday that the Maine Republican Party collected enough valid...
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Governor’s arbitrary decisions will haunt Maine for years to come
We are quickly approaching Labor Day and the end to the summer season...
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Gov. Mills’ business relief package too little, too late for many small businesses
Maine Gov. Janet Mills announced Thursday the creation of a new small business...
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Coronavirus found in Brazil sewage samples months before first cases reported
Researchers studying sewage samples from southern Brazil found remnants of the novel coronavirus,...
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Reisman: Midsummer Nightmare
August rolled in and although the garden looks good, I cannot say the...
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In ending referendum on CMP corridor, Maine’s high court limits future use of Maine’s ballot initiative process
On August 13, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court issued a judgment regarding a...
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New CDC report highlights mental health costs of the pandemic
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday released a report...
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USM president’s BLM statement and ‘antiracism pledge’ troubling for many reasons
Last week, Reason covered a story about the new “Black Lives Matter Statement...
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Maine’s current economic forecast should prompt substantial spending cuts
The latest report from Maine’s Revenue Forecasting Committee (RFC), published earlier this month,...
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The effects of Maine’s economic, societal shutdown from COVID-19
Maine Policy Institute today released a new report that sheds light on the...
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‘Defund the police’ is not a real reform strategy
The last few months have been tense, marked by social distancing and physical...
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The War on Drugs has caused more harm than good
In recent weeks, documented cases of police brutality amid the pandemic have sparked...
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Secretary of State misses 13,000 ballots in initial July primary RCV tabulation
Maine’s ranked-choice voting woes continue. Secretary of State Matt Dunlap announced Monday his...
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Maine needs to address its medication management crisis
Rural states, including Maine, are facing an impending health care crisis: we are...
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Maine businesses and government need to coordinate to prepare for future of COVID-19
As of July 1, Maine has entered its third stage of the COVID-19...
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New lawsuit seeks to end the use of ranked-choice voting in Maine
Four Maine citizens filed a lawsuit late last week against Secretary of State...
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New nationwide campaign to educate voters on pitfalls of ranked-choice voting
A coalition of state-based think tanks launched a new nationwide campaign Friday to...
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A misguided strike at Bath Iron Works
I have been deeply disappointed to see the strike going on at Bath...
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Maine DOE’s school reopening guidance presents major challenges for working families
On Friday, Governor Janet Mills released guidelines for schools as they consider whether...
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Education savings accounts can give Maine families more flexibility as school year nears
As the school year fast approaches, only one item in the curriculum seems...
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Fall is coming, and decisions on school reopenings should come sooner than later
Now that Governor Mills has signaled through her executive orders that the 2020...
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Education savings accounts provide families more schooling options amid COVID-19
During periods of crisis, some of the most innovative solutions to problems have...
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Coronavirus, Governor Mills, and the Constitution
Governors and bureaucrats are picking and choosing which parts of the Constitution they...
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What Maine residents should expect on Election Day
On Monday, June 15, Governor Mills’ office released guidelines for town meetings and...
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Will Maine’s DOE overstep its authority in coordinating school reopenings?
On June 11, Maine’s Department of Education (DOE) released a working draft listing...
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Maine must open now
Our Governor assumed full control of our state economy in the face of the coronavirus. The Governor’s stated...
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Governor Mills delays indoor service for bars across the state
On Monday, Governor Janet Mills announced that she will not allow bars to...
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BIW’s largest union rejects contract, goes on strike
On Sunday evening, members of Local S6 voted to reject Bath Iron Works’...
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Shutdown Stories: Maine Indoor Karting
In November 2003, Maine Indoor Karting (MIK) opened its doors, becoming the first...
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Governor Mills accelerates business reopenings across the state
On Monday, Governor Janet Mills announced that restaurants in Androscoggin, Cumberland, and York...
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Maine GOP collects enough signatures to advance people’s veto on ranked-choice voting
The Maine Republican Party says it has collected enough signatures to challenge a...
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Leisure and hospitality sector suffering most among struggling Maine industries
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the website MoneyGeek has been analyzing unemployment...
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Auburn, Windham pass resolutions supporting the reopening of local businesses
On Thursday, June 11, the Windham Town Council voted 5-2 to pass a...
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Pressure mounts on Speaker Gideon, President Jackson to reconvene the Maine Legislature
The Maine Legislature may soon reconvene three months after lawmakers adjourned the 2020...
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Hotelier criticizes Governor Mills’ testing alternative
Mark Walsh, Vice President of Ocean Properties, criticized Governor Janet Mills’ and her...
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Improving mental health care in Maine could save taxpayer dollars
Within the state of Maine, an ongoing mental health crisis persists even in...
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Freeport restaurant owner gets license suspended after opening for indoor dining
Dominic Petrillo, owner of Petrillo’s restaurant in Freeport, got his license temporarily suspended...
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Gov. Mills’ alternative to quarantine requirement criticized by tourism and hospitality groups
On Monday, Governor Janet Mills announced an alternative to the 14 day quarantine...
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Lawmakers express bipartisan frustration over labor commissioner’s absence
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle voiced frustration last Thursday after Department...
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Bars and breweries in Portland change licenses to circumvent state restrictions
Four businesses in Portland––Novare Res, Sagamore Hill Lounge, Tomaso’s Canteen, and Rising Tide...
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Councilor Ben Hartwell: ‘I had to do something’
A few weeks ago, I read about the City of Calais declaring all...
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Hotels in Maine urge Governor Mills to lift 14-day quarantine for out-of-staters
More than 30 hotels in Maine are asking Governor Janet Mills to remove...
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Governor Mills denies Democrats’ request for a COVID-19 response task force
On Friday, Governor Janet Mills released her response to requests from Speaker of...
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Governor Mills and selective science
This piece was originally published in the Portland Press Herald Businesses throughout Maine...
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Gorham approves resolution to make town open for business
The Gorham town council voted 6-1 Tuesday evening to pass a resolution calling...
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Maine Brewers Guild urges Gov. Mills to relax reopening rules
On Tuesday, Scott Sullivan, head of the Maine Brewers Guild, a nonprofit trade...
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Shutdown Stories: Yankee Lanes
On March 17, Nelson Moody, owner of Yankee Lanes bowling alley in Brunswick,...
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The governor is shifting COVID-19 costs to counties
On May 15, Governor Mills issued an executive order delegating authority to the Commissioner of...
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As election season approaches, beware of the ‘b-word’
Today’s political climate is exceptionally partisan and overly sensationalized. It’s that way on...
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The governor shouldn’t be acting alone
Maine citizens are becoming increasingly divided. It didn’t have to be this way....
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‘How is this constitutional?’ Understanding the limits of emergency executive power
On Thursday, May 14, Maine Policy Institute hosted an online panel discussion with...
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Bipartisan pair of lawmakers call for a more expansive rural reopening
A bipartisan pair of lawmakers representing rural towns in Androscoggin and Cumberland counties...
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Shutdown Stories: Live Well Farm
Patty and Scott Ruppert own Live Well Farm, a destination wedding venue in...
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New legislative proposal would curb emergency powers of Maine’s chief executive
In a press statement released late Monday afternoon, House Minority Leader Rep. Kathleen...
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Modest meat reforms would help Americans stay fed during the pandemic
Recent stories of farmers euthanizing livestock and dumping milk have startled many Americans,...
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Tourism and hospitality groups urge Gov. Mills to nix quarantine restriction, reopen Maine’s economy
Seven groups representing different facets of Maine’s tourism and hospitality industry sent an...
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Government response to the pandemic makes matters worse in Maine
The COVID-19 crisis feeds into the progressive belief that a crisis is an...
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How similar are the recovery plans in Maine and New Hampshire?
Last Friday, Maine Governor Janet Mills released a revision to her phased reopening...
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Gov. Mills announces changes to her plan to reopen Maine
Governor Janet Mills announced changes to her plan to reopen Maine’s economy Friday...
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For how long will Maine be under a civil state of emergency?
On March 15, Maine Governor Janet Mills declared a civil state of emergency enabling her...
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Governor Mills signals changes are coming to her plan to reopen Maine’s economy
Governor Janet Mills alluded to forthcoming changes to her plan to reopen Maine’s...
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Our rights do not disappear in times of emergency
We all knew it was probably inevitable, but it is here, finally –...
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The Legislature must reconvene to rein in the governor’s emergency powers
On Saturday evening, the Republican leaders in the House and Senate, with the...
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Governor Mills’ ‘solution’ is worse than the problem
Like most Mainers, I deferred to the scientists and health experts when the...
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There’s no justification for centralized and dictatorial government
I’m not a doctor but I played one in real life. I served...
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Gov. Mills’ multi-phase ‘recovery’ plan is a blueprint for a prolonged economic depression
Governor Mills unveiled her multi-phase plan for slowly reopening the Maine economy on...
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Auburn mayor Jason Levesque asks Gov. Mills to lift statewide stay at home order
Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque sent Maine Governor Janet Mills a letter Tuesday requesting...
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A plan for reopening Maine’s economy
Maine Policy Institute on Monday sent to Governor Janet Mills a list of...
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Frivolous spending leaves Maine ill-equipped to weather economic slowdown
Unnecessary spending in Governor Janet Mills’ biennial budget, approved by Maine lawmakers in...
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Defeating COVID-19: Lessons from the business of complex warfare systems
The Coronavirus pandemic has us engaged in “warfare” whether we wanted it or...
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Open letter to Gov. Mills: It’s time to reopen Maine
Dear Governor Mills, Many Mainers are facing desperate times. I would like to...
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Lawsuit aims to halt people’s veto effort to repeal ranked-choice voting in presidential elections
The Committee on Ranked Choice Voting, one of the primary proponents of the...
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Governor Mills issues order to stop evictions, foreclosures during coronavirus shutdown
Maine Governor Janet Mills signed an executive order Thursday that effectively prevents the...
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Four new deaths, 770 confirmed cases of coronavirus statewide
The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting Wednesday an additional...
