SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2011
VOL. 3 NO. 13
PORTLAND, ME
PORTLAND’S DAILY NEWSPAPER
699-5801
FREE
Bill would end Election Day registration BY MATT DODGE THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN
A bill in the state legislature that would repeal a voter’s ability to register to vote at the polls has some Maine lawmakers up in arms. The bill, introduced by state Rep. Gary Knight, R-Livermore Falls, would remove language from existing election law which states that Maine voters may register to vote on election day, bumping the time frame back to the Tuesday preceding the election. The “Act To Assist Municipal Clerks by Providing Adequate Time To Register Voters” is just one legisla-
“The repeal of Election Day registration may or may not alleviate the burden on city and town clerks, but it does nothing to strengthen voter engagement in our democracy. In fact, it does just the opposite.” — District 120 Rep. Diane Russell tive item currently floating around Augusta seeking to change how Mainers cast their ballots. On another issue, 120 Republican lawmakers support a bill that
would require voters to show photo identification at the polls. “The repeal of Election Day registration may or may not alleviate the burden on city and town clerks, but it does nothing to strengthen voter engagement in our democracy. In fact, it does just the opposite,” said District 120 Rep. Diane Russell. The Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee also opened hearings on proposals that would bar distribution of Maine Clean Election Act funds to candidates in uncontested legislative or gubernatorial see ELECTION page 6
LePage: Pensions, mandates need fixes BY DAVID CARKHUFF THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN
Could street protests and riots by public-employee unions in Wisconsin spread to states like Maine? Gov. Paul LePage said people are angry and warned against “reform for the sake of reform.” LePage also said he’s pursuing a path to avoid mandates of the new national health care reform that he said would further weigh down the state budget. The governor made his comments during a budget update Friday at a Capital for a Day luncheon hosted at the Eastland Park Hotel by the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce. Wisconsin is facing a $3.6 billion budget deficit, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and the Republicans in the legislature called for public employees there to contribute about 12 percent for their health care premiums and about 5.6 percent to their pensions, sparking an outpouring of angry protests in Madison. see PENSION page 8
The art of aging gracefully ... or not See Bob Higgins on page 4
Gov. Paul LePage was unflinching as he spoke about the NAACP before the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce Friday. (DAVID CARKHUFF PHOTO)
Governor puts onus on NAACP LePage says civil-rights group seems to ‘have a problem with me’ BY DAVID CARKHUFF THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN
Nearly a month after Gov. Paul LePage said some critics could "kiss my butt" and dismissed the NAACP as
Who’s your daddy? See Mark Curdo’s column with pictures on page 7
a "special interest," the governor said Friday that attempts to meet with the group and patch up their relations had not advanced. "Quite frankly, the way I look at it is
it's not my monkey, it's their monkey," LePage said in response to a question about his strained relationship with the civil-rights organization. see NAACP page 9
“Fairy Tale Players” coming to Westbrook See the Events Calendar, page 13