Politics

Former President George W. Bush Backs Collins For Senate

By David Sharp - Associated Press • Aug 23, 2020
Mary Schwalm / AP Images

Former President George W. Bush on Friday backed Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine in his first public endorsement of the 2020 election cycle.

Golden Wants House To Address Coronavirus Relief During Unusual Saturday Session

By • Aug 22, 2020
Susan Walsh / AP Images

The U.S. House of Representatives is meeting this weekend to act on a $25 billion measure that backers say is designed to assure the U.S. Postal Service can function at current levels.

Pulse Newsletter: Postal Politics, DNC And 2nd District Ads

By • Aug 22, 2020

This is the inaugural issue of Maine's Political Pulse Newsletter, a weekly update on Maine and national politics in the leadup to the November election. Click here to subscribe, and you'll receive an edition each Friday morning.

Aug. 21: A Different DNC For A Different Time, Plus The USPS And November's Election

By • Aug 21, 2020
Rebecca Conley / Maine Public

On this week's episode of Maine's Political Pulse: 

Maine DNC Delegate: Casting Roll Call Votes From His Winthrop Farm 'Nothing Short Of Breathtaking'

By • Aug 21, 2020
Democratic National Convention / via AP

On Tuesday night, Maine state Rep. Craig Hickman cast Maine's delegate votes during the roll call at the Democratic National Convention. Rep. Hickman is African American, and - as he alluded to in his remarks - gay. And he's a small businessman, something he chose to highlight in his remarks. Rep. Hickman spoke with Maine Public's Morning Edition host Irwin Gratz.

How A White Civil War General From Maine Led The Creation Of The Nation's Premier Black University

By Irwin Gratz • Aug 20, 2020
Courtesy Gordon Weil

Sen. Kamala Harris, Joe Biden's picked for vice president, is an alum of Howard University, a school that turns out to have a tie to Maine. Here to tell us about it is Gordon Weil, a former state official and the author of "The Good Man: The Civil War's 'Christian General' and His Fight for Racial Equality." Weil spoke with Maine Public's Morning Edition host Irwin Gratz.

2 Mail-Sorting Machines Dismantled In Maine, Worker Says

By • Aug 19, 2020

SCARBOROUGH, Maine - Two of 10 mail-sorting machines have been removed over the past two months from the U.S. Postal Service Southern Maine Processing and Distribution Center, in Scarborough.

Electronic technician Tim Doughty told WMTW-TV that he helped to dismantle one of the machines and put it into storage. The other was scrapped altogether.

Mail volume has been down during the pandemic, but Doughty said the dismantling of machines that can sort 36,000 letters an hour is shortsighted. He said volume will grow as the economy improves.

Maine Delegate In Spotlight At DNC As State Casts Most Of Its Ballots For Biden

By • Aug 19, 2020
Image from C-Span

Maine delegates at the Democratic National Convention last night cast their ballots for the party's presidential nominee, and, as expected, most - but not all - of them were for Joe Biden. "Maine casts nine votes for Bernie Sanders and 22 votes for our next president, Joe Biden," announced Democratic state Rep. Craig Hickman.

Maine's Two U.S. Senators: Report Shows Russian Interference In 2016 Election 'Not A Hoax'

By • Aug 19, 2020
Andrew Harnik / Associated Press

The Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday released the fifth and final part of its report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Maine’s two U.S. senators both serve on the committee and agree that legislation must be passed to address the issue.

Sara Gideon Takes Aim At Susan Collins For Co-Sponsoring USPS Retirement 'Pre-funding' Mandate

By • Aug 18, 2020
Willis Ryder Arnold / Maine Public

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Sara Gideon on Tuesday joined in the growing criticism of U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy for implementing changes blamed for widespread delays in mail delivery.

Thousands Of Mainers Have Already Requested Absentee Ballots For November

By • Aug 17, 2020

Maine opened its online absentee ballot request form Monday morning, and the secretary of state’s office says thousands have already filled it out.

US Reps Eye Mental Health Telemedicine For Rural Veterans

By • Aug 17, 2020

BANGOR, Maine - A Maine congressman is working across the aisle with a Republican from Indiana on a proposal that would create mental health telemedicine services for veterans in rural parts of the country.

Collins Joins Critics Of Trump Administration's 'Politicization' Of Department Of Homeland Security

By • Aug 17, 2020
Toni Sandys / Pool via AP

Maine U.S. Sen. Susan Collins has joined with some other Republicans who are critical of changes the Trump administration has made to the mission and management of the Department of Homeland Security.

House Democrats Summon Postal Leaders To Hearing On Mail Delays

By Aamer Madhani and Matthew Daly - AP • Aug 16, 2020
Ted S. Warren / AP Images

The Democratic-run House on Sunday demanded that leaders of the U.S. Postal Service testify at an emergency oversight hearing Aug. 24 on mail delays as concerns grow that the Trump White House is trying to undermine the agency during the coronavirus pandemic while states expand mail-in voting options for the November presidential election.

Dunlap Says There Aren't Enough Signatures For Ranked-Choice Referendum

By • Aug 16, 2020
Steve Mistler / Maine Public

Maine Secretary of State Matt Dunlap has reaffirmed his decision that opponents of ranked-choice voting failed to submit enough valid signatures for another referendum. 

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