It’s a strange time for the newspaper industry — especially here in Maine, where we recently witnessed several seismic shifts in the media landscape.
Yesterday it was announced that Donald Sussman’s investor group will now own a 75 percent stake in the company that publishes the Portland Press Herald, Kennebec Journal, Waterville Morning Sentinel and the Maine Sunday Telegram.
Hedge fund financier and philanthropist Donald Sussman said he wanted to save a Maine institution and will keep his hands off the wheel of editorial decisions. (Bangor Daily News Photo)
That’s all fine and dandy, except for one small twist: Sussman’s wife just happens to be Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, and she shows no sign of leaving Maine’s First Congressional District anytime in the near future.
Sure, Sussman says he has only the best of intentions, and adamantly vows that he will not interfere with the newspapers’ editorial process. Yeah, okay…whatever. For the record, I actually have a full-head of hair.
I was lucky to work for a family-owned group of weekly newspapers. David & Carolyn Flood gave me a very long leash, but I was never foolish enough to forget that I was on a leash. The Courier was not my paper.
There were many times when my editorials and opinion columns came nowhere close to matching the opinions of my employers, but they sighed…rolled their eyes…and kept giving me a paycheck. For better or worse, I was promoted three times during the seven years I worked for David and Carolyn.
My salary steadily increased and the newspaper thrived. The Courier was the paper of record in Biddeford and Saco, but I always knew I had a boss…heck, sometimes I even paid attention to David.
But all good things come to an end, and it remains to be seen whether the Press Herald or smaller weekly papers such as the Courier will continue to survive in this brave new world of digital media.
Regardless of the financial implications of producing dead-tree news, the Press Herald and its sister publications have crossed a murky line, despite the financial necessity of the decision.
It’s a tough call. Do you fold, and allow a historical institution to become nothing more than a memory? Do you surrender and send hundreds of employees to the unemployment line?
Or do you hold your nose and make a deal with the devil?
U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine)
I’m sure Donald Sussman is a nice enough guy. I’ve never met him. But regardless of his Boy Scout oath to be ethical, every story that involves his wife, her decisions or her detractors will now be tainted with lingering doubt.
In November 2010, the Portland Press Herald surprised many of its readers by endorsing Republican Dean Scontras over Pingree during her campaign for a second term. If that happened now, we would have to wonder whether such a stance was motivated by an editorial board trying to make a public statement about its objectivity.
Journalists bristle when discussing ethical standards, so I do not envy the dilemma now faced by the reporters and editors at Maine Today Media. No matter what lines they feed themselves before going to bed each night, each one of them also knows that they also are on a leash . . . a very tenuous leash.
But before you criticize reporters being on a leash, consider the plight earlier this month for the more than 50 employees at the Village Soup newspaper who were laid off when that group of weekly newspapers suddenly closed.
Being off the leash feels good, right up until you discover that you no longer have a bone to chew.
I know, I know . . . King is the heir apparent for the U.S. Senate seat that will be vacated this year by Olympia Snowe.
Although the polling data points to a considerable edge for the feisty and “independent” former governor, I’m not so sure that King is a lock for the seat.
I’m still a tough guy: Talking Points photo
But it would seem that I’m in the minority among political observers. Pundits from Brunswick to Baltimore have essentially declared the race over, chattering with glee and wildly speculating about which political party will earn the King’s favor.
Here’s my guess: you won’t find Angus King sipping mint juleps with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell at the Kentucky Derby.
King is about as independent as my left foot.
Sure, my left foot likes to think it’s independent, but it’s still my left foot. It serves my left leg. It is the foot I always use for a pivot when I decide to make a left turn while walking.
Make no mistake, King is a Democrat who doesn’t have enough guts to call himself a Democrat.
If you want to see an independent from Maine, drive to Millinocket and visit Democrat Mike Michaud, a pro-life Democrat.
Being a pro-life Democrat is sort of like being a vegetarian Republican. Such a distinction makes you rather unpopular within your caucus and immediately leads to obscurity in Beltway power circles, which probably explains why Michaud serves on the Transportation and Veteran’s Affairs committees.
It’s no wonder why Roll Call named Michaud in 2009 as a prominent member of the Obscure Caucus, a group of men and women who,when combined, have fewer Facebook friends than my dog.
But at least Michaud has the guts of his convictions.
Let’s be independent together:Eliot Cutler and Angus King:Bangor Daily News photo.
Sure, there are advantages to being an “independent.” First, you don’t have to spend any time or money on primary campaigns that can suck the last remaining dollar from a candidate’s wallet and leave him or her pleading for a lobotomy some four months before the real campaign begins.
Being an independent also means you can play both sides of the political aisle without feeling like a hypocrite. Being an “independent” in the U.S. Senate automatically puts you on the short list of those who get to lead the daily singing of Kumbaya at Dupont Circle.
Besides politics, in what other realm can you describe yourself as an independent?
“I’m not a Red Sox fan or a Yankees fan. I just like baseball and think both teams should work together and not be so concerned about winning the game.”
In fact, All Along the Watchtower has obtained secret footage of closed-door meeting between Angus King and Maine’s other so-called “independent,” Eliot Cutler in 1992:
But enough of my loathing for political “independents.” Let’s take a closer look at King’s strengths and weaknesses going into this race.
We’ll start with his strengths:
1.) King is very popular, and his “independent” label will allow him to draw on a voting pool from both Democrats and Republicans who enjoy singing Kumbaya while roasting marshmallows.
2.) He has strong statewide name recognition and the gravitas associated with being a two-term governor.
3.) In a state not known for picking the sharpest tool in the shed as its governor, King is actually quite smart and articulate.
4.) He is tall and appears physically fit.
5.) He has a wicked cool name. I mean, really . . . say it out loud . . . Angus King.
Now for some of his weaknesses:
Will being indeppendent still fly with Maine voters? Eliot Cutler thinks so. Bangor Daily News photo
1.) A fiscal conservative? Not so much
I recently asked someone who knows Angus King quite well how King differs from Democrats. “On what specific issue would King break ranks with Democrats and side with the GOP?” I asked.
“Oh, he’s a fiscal conservative,” came the reply, right on cue.
A fiscal conservative? Hardly.
In his weekly Politics & Other Mistakes column, Al Diamon eviscerated the former governor’s favorite talking point with this gem:
“King, the alleged fiscal conservative, emptied the state’s Rainy Day Fund. The socially liberal governor called for cuts in Medicaid and other human services programs. The financial hawk wanted to delay scheduled income tax cuts, and allow cities and towns to impose a local-option sales tax. But true to his left-wing side, he insisted on spending at least $25 million on those laptops.”
If you want to sample what fiscal Republicans think of King, you should visit As Maine Goes, a conservative web forum where an entire thread has been dedicated to calling out King’s shortcomings as a fiscal conservative.
2.) An awkward connection to Eliot Cutler:
Ironically, the AMG thread is labeled, The King Files, a tounge-in-cheek tribute to the controversy surrounding the Cutler Files, an anonymous website dedicated to exposing the shortcomings of Eliot Cutler, Maine’s less popular “independent” who lost his 2010 bid for the Blaine House.
Like a double-chocolate cheesecake, this aforementioned tidbit is layered with irony, especially since Dennis Bailey, one of King’s closest advisors who also served as his communications director, admitted last year that he helped create the site.
3.) Father Time:
King is 68, meaning, if elected, he will be approaching 75 by the end of his first term. Statistically speaking, that means King will finish one term in the senate roughly three years before he takes a dirt nap. Time is certainly on Chellie Pingree’s side.
4.) Waning influence?
For a guy who is so gosh-darned popular, King has had recent difficulty pushing his policy goals as a private citizen. For example, despite being consistently trotted out to oppose casinos, King’s dire warnings about the evils of gambling have fallen on deaf ears lately. Maine will soon have two full-service casinos. Is King’s influence as strong as he remembers it?
5.) Technology:
Further irony would normally be difficult at this point, but it certainly seems strange that a former governor who spent the bulk of his second term extolling the virtues of computer technology would now find himself snarled in the tangled web of social media pitfalls.
When King left the Blaine House in 2002, there was no such thing as Facebook or Twitter. But a lot has changed since King convinced lawmakers that every seventh-grade student should have a laptop computer. In fact, one of those former seventh-graders grew up and decided to launch a Twitter account for the former governor.
There’s just one problem: The former governor and senate hopeful has no control over the Twitter account, best evidenced by its pithy and hilarious tweets, such as:
Maine is completely covered in rain and clouds, and crappy tweeters are still purporting. Coincidence? Don’t test me; or
Lordy it’s bad enough I have blowhard Cutler calling me day and night. Now I have this pushy broad (Cynthia Dill) sending me crappy twitters.
For more of the Twitter feed that is driving Angus berserk, you can follow the anonymous, fun-loving tweeter: @king_angus
See what happens when you give every seventh-grader a laptop?
Anyone with a pulse and an IQ exceeding room temperature can likely agree that our nation’s health care system is seriously flawed.
But that’s generally where the agreement stops.
That’s why I was impressed when Biddeford Mayor Alan Casavant posed a series of observations about Maine’s own raging health care debate on his Facebook page.
August 2009: Large crowds in Portsmouth, NH, protest outside a high school where President Obama speaks about the need for health care reform.
Casavant is also a member of the Maine House of Representatives, and his comments were based on his observations during a legislative hearing about how best to address rising health care costs.
“Clearly, resentment [of] the Obama plan drives a lot of these bills,” Casavant noted, referring to the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2009.
“For some, the costs of treatment and medicine exceed their ability to pay,” he said. “So the moral question is: What should a society do in such situations? What should government do? Do we act, or do we allow the laws of Darwin to supersede our compassion, integrity and our humanity? The system is broken. . .”
I applaud Casavant for raising the topic, but submit that our health care system is NOT broken, it is fixed . . . meaning it is rigged.
Our current system is either outdated and ineffective, at best ; or it is favorably geared toward an ever shrinking pool of those who can afford to keep up with skyrocketing costs.
Are you with me, so far? Good; because this is where the debate gets tricky.
Before we proceed any further, we must agree to at least one basic fact, regardless of our individual political/cultural/socio-economic viewpoints.
Health “care” and health “insurance” are completely different topics that are too often linked at the hip.
Let’s start with health insurance.
If you drive a vehicle in Maine, you are required by law to have a minimum-liability insurance policy. This law exists to protect drivers who are harmed by another driver’s neglect or carelessness.
Driving, as the state of Maine tells all new drivers, is a privilege, not a right.
I will take that a step further and say that health “insurance” is also not a right.
Laura and I scored tickets to see President Obama speak about the need for health care reform in 2009. Then, just as it is now, we both had reservations about the president’s plan. Laura tried to ask a question, but she and many others did not get picked.
The argument about whether health care is a right remains a bit more ambiguous, but let’s remember we’re now discussing health “insurance,” not health “care.”
The discussion about rights and expectations have only been muddied by the nation’s new health care law, which mandates individuals to purchase health insurance in the private marketplace.
The so-called “individual mandate” is one of the more controversial aspects of the health care reform law signed by President Obama. That issue is scheduled to be deliberated by the U.S. Supreme Court this year.
Interestingly, critics of the individual mandate can be found from both the left and right side of the political spectrum.
Conservatives argue that the individual mandate further erodes personal liberty and crosses the sacrosanct line between personal choice and government mandates.
On the other hand, more progressive Democrats — especially those who pined for a public option or a single-payer system of healthcare reform — describe the individual mandate as nothing more than a very big gift for evil insurance companies that stand to gain millions of new customers.
But all that debate and Constitutional introspection pales in comparison to the more fiery rhetoric associated with the subject of health insurance profits.
Left-leaning groups, such as ACORN and HCAN (Health Care for America Now) say that corporate, for-profit health insurance profits are skyrocketing and have quadrupled over the past few years.
It’s a favorite talking point of progressive Democrats and very handy when whipping up grassroots mobilization to support the president, but it’s not entirely accurate — although rated as “mostly true” by PolitiFact, a Pulitzer Prize-winning organization established by the Tampa Bay Times to fact check political rhetoric.
Meanwhile, the health insurance industry is crying poverty, saying their profit margins are among the lowest of any industry in the United States — ranging between two and four percent.
So, which one is right?
Unfortunately, the inconvenient truth is that both groups are a little bit right, and a lot wrong.
And that is bad news for those of us trying to navigate the turbulent waters of this complex debate.
But simply blaming “greedy” insurance companies conveniently ignores too many other factors that drive health care costs. Moreover, such rhetoric is debatable, at best; and intentionally misleading at worst,
Rick Newman, chief business correspondent for US News & World Report, makes a compelling case about why health insurance companies make lousy villains, pointing out that profits are hardly the root of a much larger and complex problem.
“Overall, the profit margin for health insurance companies was a modest 3.4 percent over the past year, according to data provided by Morningstar. That ranks 87th out of 215 industries and slightly above the median of 2.2 percent,” Newman reports.
Despite my right-leaning, free-market beliefs, I admit to being somewhat conflicted on this issue, and that’s probably because my household is knee-deep in our own health-insurance nightmare.
My wife, Laura, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis just three days after Christmas in 2008. Her disease is never going to go away. It is never going into remission. It takes a little piece of her each day, even when we don’t notice it.
Laura does a good job of managing her illness, but there is no escaping that MS is a progressive illness that will never go away and only get worse over time.
Neither of us asked for our respective illness. We both work full-time. We pay our taxes, but we are also a health insurance company’s worst nightmare…we take out a lot more than we put in to the system.
If you’re a conservative, Tea-Party Republican, you are advised now to reach for the duct tape because otherwise your head may explode when I offer up this next tidbit:
You are paying a portion of our health insurance.
Laura is a state employee and thus, we are more than lucky to have an outstanding health insurance plan that is offered to all state employees and their immediate family members.
But even if Laura lost her job, and we relied upon a more traditional (and much more expensive) private health insurance plan, you would still be paying for our health insurance.
Why? Because in our current system, healthy Americans subsidize the costs of treatment for the ill. That is the fundamental core of the individual mandate: we need more young, healthy people in the system to offset the cost of treating older and sicker Americans.
I am not a big fan of the individual mandate – beyond the Constitutional arguments, I think the system unfairly penalizes healthy people and will do little to drive down the costs of health care.
There is a lot more to cover, but I will end this installment here and borrow Casavant’s closing observation from his Facebook post: Stalemate [on this issue] is unacceptable.
If one could only be a fly on the wall inside the offices of U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree
Today, former Maine Governor Angus King officially took his big toe out of Maine’s political pool, climbed a 15-story ladder and then did a quadruple jacknife dive (with a twist) into the deep end of the pool.
The ensuing splash was felt in places as far away as Madawaska, and in less than six hours — King received more media attention than Pingree has gotten since the last time Donald Sussman bought a group of newspapers.
Gov. Angus King (Bowdoin College photo)
Until today, Pingree was the commonly accepted front-runner to fill Senator Olympia Snowe’s moderate, size 6 shoes, despite the fact that every Maine resident with at least one vowel in their last name was considering a run for either the First Congressional District or the US Senate.
King’s gravitas, combined with his popularity and solid polling numbers, has Democrats across Maine wondering aloud tonight whether Chellie should just sit tight in her First District House seat rather than risk splitting the vote, allowing a Republican to capture Snowe’s seat.
The balance of the entire US Senate is in play. The stakes are high, and the potential consequences are severe.
But the Republican candidates, a bench which so far includes the Secretary of State, the State Treasurer and the Maine Attorney General, should also be paying attention.
King’s entrance into the race could impact Republicans and Democrats equally, and that’s because King is much more centrist than his independent counterpart, Eliot Cutler.
Many Democrats remain bitter about Cutler’s independent bid for the Blaine House in 2010, speculating that his candidacy split the Democrat base and allowed Republican Governor Paul LePage to win with 38 percent of the vote.
If Republicans are banking on a repeat of that 2010 split-the-Democrat vote strategy, they may want to consider a Plan B . . . because Angus King is no Eliot Cutler.
For starters, King is likable and he also appeals to right-leaning independents.
Sure, King has plenty of detractors and vulnerabilities…but minimizing his candidacy will be a tall order for any of the usual suspects, whether they’re Republicans or Democrats.
Former mayor, state representative and city councilor Joanne Twomey announced Sunday that she would seek a return to the Maine House of Representatives.
At the Biddeford Democratic caucus, Twomey told a sparse group of fellow Democrats that Dist. 135 needs a “real” Democrat to stand up to Republicans in Augusta.
Twomey also said that she encouraged Rep. Paulette Beaudoin to seek the Dist. 135 seat four years ago, but decided that Beaudoin was either unwilling or unable to stand up to Republicans and should be replaced.
Joanne Twomey: A “real” Democrat?
Funny thing is: Twomey was not worried about Beaudoin’s performance until she lost her re-election bid for the mayor’s seat. Now Twomey needs a job. Now she is ready to fight Republicans and Democrats and anyone else who gets between her and her need for health insurance at taxpayer expense.
A video from the Biddeford-Saco Courier:
Joanne likes to talk about her “no-compromise/principled” position.
But does that hold water?
1,) The woman who once bemoaned the idea of a casino in Biddeford — testifying before the Biddeford City Council in 2003 by saying — “In my Christmas village, there is no casino,” suddenly flipped when she got herself into a budget pinch, and she quickly became a cheerleader for a proposed casino. Principled? Really?
2.) The woman who built her political career on the backs of criticizing the owners of the MERC facility was giving them hugs in front of news cameras just two weeks before the 2009 mayoral election.
Just a few weeks later, after winning re-election as mayor, Twomey once again reversed her position. Principled? Really?
3.) On Sunday, during Biddeford’s Democratic caucus, Twomey said she encouraged State Rep. Paulette Beaudoin to run for the legislative seat that Twomey held until term limits forced her out in 2006. Now, Twomey says the people of District 135 need a “real” Democrat.
For such a principled person who professes to believe in the people, Twomey does not hesitate to play political hardball, but her victim routine is wearing thin.
It’s probably why Biddeford voters threw her out of office by an overwhelming margin in November. You can only fool people for so long.
But there’s also another reason Twomey lost by a 62-38 margin: She did very little campaigning.
Maybe she was overly confident. Maybe she was tired. Maybe she thought the city’s strong support for a proposed racino would ensure her easy re-election.
Twomey is a political quaqmire. On the one hand, she is a savvy politician. On the other, she is ruled by her emotions.
But this time, it looks like she is in this campaign to win. She’s accepting help from Ryan Fecteau, an eager beaver youngster with a solid grasp of 21st Century campaign techniques.
Twomey will likely do well in the Democratic primary against Beaudoin, a post-70-year-old woman who isn’t much of a campaigner and has never been challenged by her own party.
Former Biddeford City Councilor Perry Aberle, a man who describes himself as a “friend of Joanne,” is considering running as a Republican in District 135. If Twomey wins the Democratic Primary on June 12, Aberle will have his work cut out for him.
As I predicted on November 8, 2011, Joanne Twomey is far from done in Biddeford politics.
You know, . . .the humble Tom Clancy character who routinely saved the world from a cadre of evil forces while also writing a thesis about the importance of granola in the post-Soviet socio-economic structure.
Ryan Gavin
But what about the other guys named Ryan? The ones who were born in 1992 and grew up in Biddeford?
One of them made a short-lived bid to be Biddeford’s mayor, and the other one is wreaking havoc with the city charter.
Both Ryan Gavin and Ryan Fecteau are all of 20 years old, and, make no mistake: they are politically ambitious.
Nearly a year ago, Ryan Gavin, fresh off the heels of learning how to shave and graduating from high school, decided he was the most qualified person to become Biddeford’s next mayor.
After all, Gavin had all sorts of experience built up after serving two terms as an un-elected student representative on the Biddeford School Committee and a valid driver’s license.
Sadly, he was more qualified than many others who tried to become the city’s mayor. Karl Reed’s 2009 campaign comes to mind.
Ryan Gavin put on his best Sunday suit and a pair of sunglasses to make his public announcement from the back stairs of City Hall on a weekend afternoon.
Sadly, the media actually covered this event that included 11 people listening to a kid who looked an awful lot like John Belushi’s character from the Blues Brothers.
Jake was on a mission from God. Ryan was on a mission to save Biddeford from the clutches of Darth Vader, more commonly known ’round here as former mayor Joanne Twomey.
Gavin was smart enough to remove his sunglasses halfway through his press conference.
He was also smart enough to quickly figure out he had a snowball’s chance in hell of ever getting elected in a city brimming with old people who vote like clock-work.
Ryan Gavin eventually became an important part of Alan Casavant’s mayoral campaign team.
Let’s pause for just a moment and give out a shout-out to Ryan Gavin’s parents.
If I could be half the parent that Ryan’s parents were, I would be thrilled and could die feeling as if I accomplished something decent in my lifetime.
Ryan was an exceptional student at BHS. He is, today, an exceptional student at UMO.
He is polite, smart, articulate and — unlike many of his peers — he not only cares about what is going on in the world around him, he’s also willing to step up and fight for it.
Ryan Fecteau
All of which brings us to our next point: Ryan Fecteau, a 2010 graduate of Biddeford High School who also served as a student representative on the School Committee.
In November, Fecteau began what will probably be a long and notable political career by actually winning an election.
Fecteau was one of five people elected to serve as a commissioner on the city’s charter review commission, a previously described group of dorks who want to sit around and debate whether the city’s bylaws should include more semicolons.
There were seven slots available and only five candidates on the ballot, so it’s not like Fecteau proved himself to be a tactical genius.
But you still have to respect a kid who is willing to tinker with the city’s charter when most young men his age are doing more important things like getting laid or drinking beer.
But not everyone in Biddeford is happy about Ryan Fecteau’s grand plans for Biddeford.
In fact, during last weekend’s downtown winter festival, I heard some people complain that Fecteau is actually living in Washington DC and is unable to attend the charter meetings in person. I wish I had figured out how to do that.
His critics also said he was trying to ram through “a lot of stupid ideas.”
So, I picked up the phone and called him, half-expecting to get his receptionist who would politely tell me that Congressman Fecteau was in a meeting with the Secretary of Commerce but appreciates my concerns and will have a form letter sent to me.
Actually, Fecteau is a sophomore at Catholic University of America, and it should come as no surprise that he is studying political science.
Fecteau said he saw an opportunity to get more involved in Biddeford politics, and he seized it.
“It’s a rare opportunity, even though we had a charter commission five years ago, who knows when I would have another chance to do this work,” he said.
When asked his opinion about the city’s police and fire commissions (two of the charter’s more controversial items), Fecteau said he would like to see the two combined, if not eliminated.
So far, so good. The city of Biddeford has more commissions and committees than the state of New York.
Fecteau also says he will only miss one more of the commission’s seven monthly meetings.
“The telephone is not a new invention,” he patiently explained to this over-40 geezer.
Asked to explain one of his recent Facebook posts in which he described Joanne Twomey as “a real Democrat” when compared to State Rep. Paulette Beaudoin, also a Democrat who may be challenged for her seat by Twomey in the June 12 primary, Fecteau chose his words carefully.
“I don’t agree with Joanne on everything,” he said. “Paulette is my neighbor, and we’ve had many, many conversations. The Democratic Party has a plank for a reason. I just think Joanne would be a better advocate for many of the party’s core issues.”
Again, so far…so good, but then we started talking about one of his new ideas.
Fecteau would like to see voting day moved to Saturdays instead of Tuesdays. He thinks such a move will increase voter turnout, completely forgetting that such a move would require Biddeford voters to go to the polls twice in one week: once for state and national elections, and then again for local elections.
“Yeah, I guess that’s an idea that needs more work,” he conceded.
I also told him Saturday voting would infringe upon the voting rights of normal college sophomores who spend the bulk of their weekends drinking beer and getting laid.
But for all you old farts who think these young punks ought to learn how to tie their shoes before running around and changing our government, you ought to take another sip of your Geritol and consider this:
There was a young punk from Bangor who got elected to his city council at the age of 23 before becoming one of the youngest state senators in the Maine Legislature. That little twirp named Johnny went on to serve in the U.S. Congress before becoming Maine’s 73rd governor.
On the other side of the political aisle, another young punk from Bangor became the youngest person to ever get elected to the Maine Legislature. Tarren Bragdon, former CEO of the Maine Heritage Policy Center, has had a big impact on Maine politics and public policy.
And no one should forget the impacts of two of our nation’s youngest presidents, Republican Teddy Roosevelt (42) and Democrat John F. Kennedy (43). Of course, Roosevelt was not elected at 42 because he was sworn-in after President McKinley was assassinated, but still . . . the U.S. Constitution says you can be president when you’re 35; a senator once you hit 30 or a member of the House at age 25.
Congressman Fecteau?… it’s not as implausible as you may think.
If you or someone you know was hoping to make Gov. Paul LePage’s visit to Biddeford a big part of your Valentine’s Day plans, I hope you have a Plan B.
According to Mayor Alan Casavant, the governor had a scheduling conflict and rescheduled his visit to March 5.
Casavant said he is still looking forward to the governor’s visit, but our sources tell us that former Mayor Joanne Twomey will likely be very disappointed by the rescheduling.
“Randy you and Allen (sic) are very wrong, I am looking forward to seeing Governor LePage, you forget I met him when I was Mayor and asking him to bring jobs to Biddeford. Not only will I shake his hand, I will give him a big hug and tell him he should have a heart on Valentine’s Day…”
It looks like Twomey’s big hug will have to wait at least a couple more weeks.
That extra time may give Twomey the time she needs to complete her filing papers and gather signatures for her bid to oust fellow Democrat Paulette Beaudoin for the House District 135 seat.
Some of Twomey’s strongest supporters tell us they have been receiving conflicting information from Twomey about whether she will actually file and run a primary campaign.
I’ve got even money that says Twomey may swing for the bleachers and instead set her eye on the increasingly crowded field in State Senate District 4.
Democrats Stephen Beaudette (a former state rep. and city councilor); David Dutremble, a Biddeford firefighter; and Jim Emerson, a school committee member and former city councilor, have all indicated they want their party’s nomination in the June 12 primary.
As of today, no Republican candidate has surfaced, but James Booth of Arundel has filed as a un-enrolled candidate, virtually guaranteeing a spot for his name on the November ballot since he does not need the blessing of a political party during the primary election.
All candidates for the Legislature must file their paperwork and signatures with the Maine Secretary of State’s office no later than March 15.
Thus, there’s a reason for the centuries-old adage, Beware the ides of March. Translated for my friend Brian Keely: the “ides of March” is March 15, the date when Caesar was allegedly murdered by several members of the Roman Senate, including his ally, Brutus.
If you don’t know anything else about Biddeford politics, you ought to know about the Dutremble family, one of the city’s most prolific, political families.
For more than 50 years, the Dutremble family has been — in one way or another — deeply entrenched in local political circles.
State Sen. David Dutremble
Lucien “Babe” Dutremble, one of 13 children, never lost an election during a political career that included several terms on the city council, six terms in the Maine House of Representatives, the mayor’s office and serving as a York County Commissioner. Babe’s brother, Richard, was a York County Sheriff. Babe’s son, Richard, today serves as a York County commissioner.
Just as Babe’s political career was winding down, his second eldest son was making a name for himself. Dennis “Duke” Dutremble served several terms in the Maine Senate before being tapped as the senate president. But he retreated from the public spotlight after losing his bid to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Flash forward nearly two decades, and yet another Dutremble is making a foray into the city’s political establishment, banking on his family’s legacy and his “outsider” perspective.
David Dutremble is a lieutenant in the Biddeford Fire Department, the youngest of Babe Dutremble’s nephews, and is now a candidate for the District 4 State Senate seat.
Despite his legacy name and strong local connections, David is facing some challenges on the road to Augusta.
1.) A crowded primary field could split the city’s Democratic base and allow someone like businessman James Booth of Arundel to take the seat as a unenrolled candidate. Booth, a native of the neighboring city of Saco, is the son of former Saco Mayor Haley Booth and served on the Saco City Council.
2.) Expect his primary opponents (which could include former State Rep. Stephen Beaudette and former city councilor James Emerson) to question whether Dutremble can effectively balance his city job as a firefighter while serving in the State Senate.
Furthermore, we were stunned that David has yet to seek the counsel of his cousins, Duke Dutremble and County Commissioner Richard Dutremble.
CAN’T WE JUST GET ALONG?
David Dutremble graduated from Biddeford High School in 1985. Since 1988, he has been a Biddeford firefighter. He and his wife, Charlene, have five children.
Why jump into the fray for a state senate seat without any prior political experience?
“Honestly, I would have gone into local politics a long time ago, but the city’s charter prevents city employees from holding municipal offices. Initially, I was thinking about running for the House until I talked to Alan [Casavant] and found out he is hoping to keep his seat.”
You have all the political muscle you need, given your last name.
(Laughs) “It’s an intimidating last name, you know in local politics…absolutely, but it also carries a lot of expectations.”
Aren’t you busy enough. Why run for public office?
“I think we need more people in Augusta who can reach across the political divides. I think government has a responsibility to do good things for the people. Government should be creating an atmosphere that promotes economic development.”
You sound a little like a Republican.
(Laughs) “I’m a life-long Democrat, but I think both parties want to see Maine succeed. It’s time to stop all the political bickering and blame. It’s time to think about the people we serve. I don’t care who gets credit, as long as we do good things for the people.
“When my kids grow up, I want them to have the same opportunities I had. My step son had to move out west to find a good job. I think that’s really sad. It bothers me to see local kids miss out on the same opportunities we had growing up here.”
How can you be a firefighter and a state senator at the same time?
“I’ll use vacation time, and swap time. I’ve already run it past the guys in the department. I know I have support and we can swap shifts to accommodate my schedule.”
You haven’t talked to Duke about your decision to seek his old senate seat?
(Laughs) “He’s in Florida for the winter. I sent him an e-mail on Facebook, but I haven’t heard back. Maybe he doesn’t check his Facebook.
On a scale of 1-10, how would you rank Governor LePage’s performance?
(Pauses) “I’d probably give him a four. I just think his priorities are out of whack…like going after the labor mural.”
Same scale for President Obama?
“I’d say a 7. No matter who won in 2008, it was a no-win situation for our economy, whether we elected a Republican or Democrat. I don’t think we would be any better off if John McCain had won. I think President Obama has done a decent job.”
Do you really think you can change the political dynamic of partisan bickering?
“Yes, but you have to start small. People used to say that women would never be able to vote. We used to say that a black man would never drive the bus. I believe things can change for the better. I think elected leaders just need to focus on working in collaboration to solve problems.
Biddeford Democrats are off to the races, joining an increasingly crowded smackdown for their party’s nomination to replace term-limited Nancy Sullivan in State Senate District 4, which includes Biddeford, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel.
While area Republicans seem to be snoozing, at least three familiar names will likely appear on ballots during the June 12 primary:
Former State Rep. Stephen Beaudette, the establishment’s favorite, will run as a privately financed candidate, taking on:
Former City Councilor and current School Committee member Jim Emerson, running as a Clean Election candidate; and
A political newcomer with an iconic family name is also in the race and will run as a Clean Election candidate. Biddeford firefighter David Dutremble is the nephew of the late Lucien “Babe” Dutremble, a beloved politician who never lost an election and served several terms as both the city’s mayor and as a state representative. Babe was also a former county commissioner and city councilor.
For your convenience, we have posted a chart of the Dutremble family tree, something David’s opponents will want to study very closely during the weeks ahead.
Come on, don’t tell me you didn’t see this one coming.
That’s right, word on the street, yet unconfirmed, is that former mayor Joanne Twomey is at least contemplating a bid to recapture her former District 135 House seat, and may challenge the incumbent, fellow Democrat Paulette Beaudoin for a chance to take on Republican Perry Aberle in November. So far, Twomey has not registered as a candidate with the Maine Secretary of State’s office.
Joanne Twomey: Portland Press Herald Photo
If this plays out like I predict, it will be the trifecta of disgruntled Democrats in Biddeford.
For those of you playing at home, here’s the run down of Democrat on Democrat for the city’s three State House Seats.
District 135: Joanne Twomey may face incumbent Paulette Beaudoin, a sweet, little old lady who just wants a fourth and final term.
Twomey got trounced just a few weeks ago, when Biddeford voters overwhelmingly rejected her bid for a third consecutive term in the mayor’s office, but she is a fierce campaigner and that, combined with her name recognition, could spell serious trouble for Beaudoin. If Joanne is able to re-assemble her kitchen cabinet, look out!
I have been watching Biddeford politics for more than a decade, and this seems like a first. The GOP must be loving it, and the Dems in Augusta better break out the riot gear. This is one primary you won’t want to miss.
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