Category Archives: State

Mainers are finding out they voted for tax and spend

Spend spend spend. Tax tax tax. You heard a lot of flowery talk about responsibly leading Maine. You heard about discipline and “investments” that would make the state better. “No, we won’t raise your taxes,” they said, “we’ll just re-prioritize state government and we’ll use money we already have to do a few things responsibly.” […]

Universal pre-K is the wrong path forward for education

“I will work with the new Legislature to achieve the best education for our people, from preschool through college and beyond, beginning with full and fair funding for schools, including our Career and Technical Centers.” So said Gov. Janet Mills in her inaugural address, a week ago. It was a minor line, and the only […]

Congratulations Gov. Mills, now lower taxes

Dear Gov. Mills, By the time you read this, the word “elect” will have been dropped from your title, and you will be our new governor. I say “our” new governor, because too many politicians of both parties forget that they have been elected to represent everyone, including those who love them and voted for […]

The 2018 Conifer Awards

I don’t think there is anything better than Christmas traditions. Christmas mass. Gift giving. Music. Family. Dinner. Taking six hours to put together over-engineered and insanely designed larger items for the kids, forcing you to go to bed at 3:30 in the morning. The usual. Along with my yearly predictions, I have also traditionally given […]

19 bold predictions for 2019

Christmas is a time for giving, and boldly predicting what will happen next year has been my gift to you every year since 2011. As usual, I got a lot right last year. I told you what would happen in the Republican primary, that there would be a ranked-choice voting people’s veto, that 2018 would be a bad election year for […]

Now is the time to cut taxes and reform government

At what point in your life are you most likely to spend extravagantly? When are you most likely to waste? When are you most likely to purchase the thing you don’t need, or indulge yourself on the thing that you want, or eat out more often, at more expensive restaurants? The answer is universal for […]

George H.W. Bush, the last true American statesman

In the past several days, you have of course heard many things about George Herbert Walker Bush. His decency and goodness. His commitment to service. His dignity. Yet, the former president’s most enduring gift to the American people is not only his demeanor. Rather it is in something that never actually even happened. And the legacy […]

Poliquin right to challenge ranked-choice voting

In a surprise to exactly no one, Bruce Poliquin filed a lawsuit in federal court on Tuesday, challenging Maine’s ranked-choice voting system. Contrary to the already developing narrative being used by some, this suit is not being filed because Poliquin is a “sore loser” — indeed, it is being filed as he stands the plurality […]

There was no blue wave, except in Maine

Going into Tuesday’s election, there were a lot of predictions. A lot of polls. A lot of prognostication. The conventional wisdom was that we would see a Democratic tidal wave across the nation, sea to sea, from the House to the Senate to state governorships. Yes, I grant you, there was more pessimism in the […]