Table of Content
- Back from Florida, Paul LePage declares residency in Maine
- Biden and House GOP to Start 2023 With Scant Ties
- Former Portland city manager under fire at his current post in Florida
- Biden Beats Trump Among Billionaires
- Education
- The season is approaching to review your property tax bill
- Political positions
LePage faced no primary opposition, and was the Republican nominee to run against Mills in the November general election. In April 2021, he announced that he would be a candidate for governor again in 2022. He faced no primary opposition but lost to incumbent Janet Mills by 13 percentage points in the November general election. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country. The former governor’s residency statushad not been a major campaign issue because Maine’s constitutional requirement is fairly loose.
On March 23, 2011, LePage sparked protests when he announced that he planned to remove a large mural depicting the history of the state's labor movement from the lobby of the Maine Department of Labor offices. Despite protests, on March 28 it was disclosed that the murals had been removed over the weekend. The Portland Museum of Art issued a statement that said LePage's decision has tarnished the state's reputation as a haven for artists.
Back from Florida, Paul LePage declares residency in Maine
The Maine Legislature approved six additional agents, two prosecutors, and two judges in the 2015–16 state budget, but LePage criticized that as "chump change" and has asked for more. He has criticized legislative Democrats skeptical of his proposals, stating "If I didn't know better, I was a real cynic, I'd think that the Democrats like drug dealers." He has stated he would use the Maine National Guard for drug enforcement if necessary, and has actually done so. He has also said, "Everybody in Maine, we have constitutional carry, load up and get rid of the drug dealers," which he clarified meant that an environment should be created that will keep drug dealers away from Maine, not that people should engage in vigilantism.
The situation spurred statewide backlash including a federal investigation of the alleged intimidation, which concluded that LePage's administration improperly acted with "what could be perceived as a bias toward employers". LePage expressed an intent to reform welfare eligibility requirements, though he did not specify how he would do so. He also supports lifetime limits on welfare support, requiring recipients to perform work in the community, and a tiered payment system that gradually removes benefits as recipients earn more money working, rather than cutting them off entirely at a certain income level. He stated this view regarding the case of Ethan Henderson, a 10-week-old baby who was allegedly killed by his father. He also has expressed support for giving the death penalty to drug dealers whose drugs cause a fatal overdose.
Biden and House GOP to Start 2023 With Scant Ties
On March 21, 2013, LePage summoned a dozen state employees of the Bureau of Unemployment to the Blaine House for a luncheon to discuss the state's unemployment compensation hearing and appeals process. Although LePage described the meeting as "cordial", the workers described it as pressuring and used to intimidate them to give more rulings on unemployment claim appeals in favor of businesses, as well as to state that they were doing their jobs poorly. LePage called the accusation "outrageous" and said that David Webbert, the president of the Maine Employment Lawyers Association who made the allegation, was making it up.
By then, they had claimed a homestead exemption on that home, indicating it was at least the permanent residence of Ann LePage at a time when her husband was still Maine’s governor. A Florida tax lawyer told The New York Times this was possible under state law but “atypical” since spouses typically are in homes together. His final budget proposal in 2017 contained a tax overhaul that would have combined income tax cuts and sales tax expansion while limiting Maine’s homestead exemption to people over 65, although that the package was never seriously considered in a divided legislature. After leaving office in 2019 because of Maine’s prohibition on serving a third consecutive term, Mr. LePage obtained a Florida driver’s license and registered to vote in the state.
Former Portland city manager under fire at his current post in Florida
On May 23, 2013, LePage announced that he would move his office out of the Maine State Capitol and work from The Blaine House due to what he called efforts by majority Democrats in the Legislature to censor his speech. This included the refusal of the Appropriations Committee to allow him to address them on May 19, and later being asked to obtain permission from the Legislative Council to have a TV outside of his office displaying the number of days since his budget was proposed. The remark about Vaseline was heavily criticized by public figures on all sides, including Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves, who called the comment "obscene" and criticized its being on the evening news when children could hear it. LePage is known for his bombastic and off-the-cuff remarks that have, during his tenure as mayor of Waterville and governor of Maine, drawn domestic and national controversy as well as critical acclaim. He has cited the fact that French was his first language as a reason for his controversial statements.
He has said that coverage mandates for Maine insurance policies should be pared back because they make insurance policies too expensive. He believes that MaineCare, the state Medicaid program, has too many enrollees and is too easy to qualify for. He vetoed a bill to expand MaineCare under the Affordable Care Act on June 17, 2013, and has criticized efforts by the Legislature to write an expansion bill that will obtain enough votes to override a veto, stating that the Legislature has "no compassion". LePage has stated that the size of state government is likely too large and that he would probably seek to reduce the number of state employees. LePage has criticized wind power and in particular the large-scale expansion of installed capacity mandated by Maine's 2008 Wind Energy Act and wind energy's large role in the state's Renewable Portfolio Standard.
Biden Beats Trump Among Billionaires
He has also compared the ACA with Canada's health care system, stating that Canada rations care and that many Canadians come to the U.S. to get treatment because of it, and that similar rationing here would result in deaths. LePage signed a bill to bring Maine in alignment with the Common Core State Standards Initiative on April 1, 2011, making the state the 42nd to do so. By 2013, however, LePage expressed opposition to the standards, citing fears of a federal takeover of education and student privacy concerns. LePage has expressed opposition to the legalization of marijuana, seeing it as a gateway to more powerful drugs like heroin, but has said that if legalization were approved by referendum, he would honor it. However, in 2018 he vetoed a bill to establish retail sales of cannabis in Maine in accordance with an initiative that voters approved in 2016. LePage had previously indicated his interest in the 2022 election based on whether Governor Janet Mills could implement Maine's Medicaid expansion referendum in what he believes to be a sustainable way.
The LePages have struggled with tax issues while toggling between the two states for more than a decade. “It’s possible under the law, but usually if one spouse is in the house, they’re both in the house,” he said. The campaign did not comment on the second exemption held from 2018 through this year.
LePage supports the idea of the state removing the children of welfare recipients from their homes if the recipients are found to be using illegal drugs and refuse to enter rehab. Current law allows the removal of children only due to neglect and abuse, which can result from drug use, but is not drug use itself. LePage applied to Husson College in Bangor, but was rejected due to a poor verbal score on the SAT because English was his second language. He has said that State Representative Peter Snowe—the first husband of former U.S. senator Olympia Snowe—persuaded Husson to give LePage a written exam in French, which allowed LePage to show his reading comprehension skills and gain admission. At Husson, LePage improved his English-language skills and became editor of the college newspaper. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in business administration in finance and accounting and later earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Maine.
Since the issue came to light, the LePages have repaid Waterville $227.93 in back taxes and requested removal from the homestead program in the city. There is no penalty attached to violating the Florida statute requiring a voter who moves to notify the registrar in his county. LePage registered as a Republican on Jan. 2, 2019, in Ormond Beach and has apparently never taken steps to indicate to officials in Florida that he’s moved back to the Pine Tree State he governed for eight years after winning office in 2010. It was Gattine’s criticism of LePage’s race-related comments about the opioid epidemic that culminated in the governor’s threat of a duel. But for Gattine and other Mainers, LePage’s behavior was somewhat typical by that point. Over his eight years in office, LePage cultivated a reputation for offensive comments and for adversarial relationships with reporters, Democrats and even fellow Republicans.
Over the years, LePage said Maine’s taxes are too high, forcing snowbirds to declare their homes to be in Florida. Florida has no income tax, and property taxes are lower, the former governor said. He told a radio show host that he was moving if Democrat Janet Mills was elected governor. She took office on Jan. 2, 2019, the same day that an election official said LePage registered to vote in Flagler County. On July 8, 2012, LePage said, while discussing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, that the Internal Revenue Service was "the new Gestapo" due to their role in enforcing the law.
In violation of Florida election law, LePage, who is registeredto vote in Maine, failed to notify Flagler County that he is no longer a resident of that state, where he registered to vote in 2019. Mills has hammered that theme in her messaging as well, using her campaign ads and speeches to resurrect LePage’s past comments and conduct while in office. Speaking at a fundraising event in Portland on Thursday, Mills reminded supporters that LePage once expressed openness to overturning Roe v Wade, the landmark supreme court case that established federal protections for abortion access. The supreme court did indeed reverse Roe in June, and LePage has since sent mixed messages about his stance on abortion policy. Gov. LePage accused of voter intimidation after he says college students must establish residency if they choose to vote in Maine.
LePage's comments were widely condemned by Democrats and some Republicans, including U.S. Senator Susan Collins, State Senate President Michael Thibodeau, State House Minority Leader Kenneth Fredette, State Senator Roger Katz, and State Senator David Woodsome. Leading Democrats have called LePage "unfit" to serve and have demanded his resignation.
Depicted in an old real estate listing is the house at 40 Gale St. in Ormond Beach, Florida, that Paul and Ann LePage purchased in 2018. LePage insisted that he never said that Mr. Trump had not won the 2020 election. Rob Caldwell on Channel 6 asked him that several times during an interview that aired on the 207 show. The snowbird who lives in Florida in the winter has registered to vote in the Sunshine State, the Sun Journal reports. But he also clashed with the media on the issue after he initially refused to answer questions about his wife’s residency status, why his name was not on either deed, and whether he paid in-state tuition rates for his children attending Florida colleges. As of midday Thursday, a year after registering in Maine, LePage is still listed as a registered voter living at 40 Gale Lane in Ormond Beach, a home his wife Ann purchased in 2018 and still owns.
