Barack In Portland

Barack Obama will be holding a Countdown to Change event in Portland on Tuesday September 25th. Doors open at 4 and the program starts at 5.

You can buy tickets online ($23.00)

The Portland Expo
289 Park Avenue
Portland, ME 04102

It's Starting To Heat Up

The Maine Senate Race is going to be a barn burner.....this commercial has run three times tonight during our local newscast.

Firedoglake and Kos are all over Susan B.

Of course, she does have her supporters (and if they're for her, well.....)

If nothing else, this is going to be entertaining for the next few months, no?

Senator Collins Changes Her Mind?

Or did she evolve? No matter...

We've been wondering how long it would take Senator Collins to change her stance on Iraq, given that most in the state of Maine want us out of Iraq yesterday. We still haven't made up our minds as to who we're voting for, but the Senator's stance on Iraq has made both of us far less likely cast our votes her way. It's been especially disappointing that she's held out far longer than other less moderate Senators on this matter.

Now USAToday reports that:

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a co-sponsor of Salazar's legislation on the Iraq Study Group, wants to go further: binding legislation that would order Bush to restrict the mission of U.S. troops to counterterrorism, training Iraqis and protecting U.S. assets.

The goal, she says, is to "set the stage for a significant but responsible withdrawal of American combat troops over the next year."

For most of these lawmakers, their decision to embrace change is colored by politics.

Collins is seen by Democratic challengers as particularly vulnerable in the 2008 elections because of the overwhelmingly anti-war sentiment among Maine voters.

Ayeuh. (emphasis mine)

Interesting Tidbit

....from the BartBlog....Joe Leiberman is holding a fund-raiser for Susan B. Collins.
Most interesting is this quote:

Not only has Lieberman endorsed Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine.) -- one of Democrats' biggest targets in the 2008 cycle.....

Little Ole' Maine making a "biggest target" for anything? Interesting.

I, personally, like both of our Senators. They both seem to genuinely put Maine interests ahead of party politics. They've both stood up to W. once or twice, but as a good friend likes to remind me, keeping "a Democratic majority in the Senate is crucial to the future of our nation." This should be an interesting election.

Maine Group Calls for Bush's Impeachment

We're not the live free or die state, but we think for ourselves. At least we think we do:

President Bush's policies on Iraq have prompted two groups in Maine to call for his impeachment. Maine Lawyers for Democracy and the group Maine Campaign to Impeach held a news conference Monday.

They say President Bush and Vice President Cheney broke laws when they made the call to invade Iraq four years ago.

"The Bush-Cheney administration mislead this nation into the Iraq war and commenced the war in clear violation of law. They deceived Congress and the public about the so-called imminent threat posed by the nation of Iraq," said John Kaminski from Maine Lawyers for Democracy.

"Not only must we hold our highest leaders in the land accountable, but we must also hold ourselves responsible for ensuring that those leaders are not betraying the trust that we have invested in them," said Dud Hendrick from Maine Campaign to Impeach.

The groups are calling on Maine congressmen Tom Allen and Mike Michaud, both Democrats, to begin impeachment proceedings against the President and Vice President.

Compromise on Groundfishing Possible

The State Legislature is considering a bill designed to help save Maine's groundfishing fleet.
Fishermen would still not be able to sell lobster caught in their nets, but would offer a fuel tax exemption and rebates on fees paid at the Portland Fish exchange.

No Child Left Behind Reforms

Maine (have I mentioned this before?) is one of only two states with two women representing us in the Senate. Senators Snowe and Collins are common-sense Mainers and at least to our way of thinking, spend a lot of time trying to do what's right for their constituency, even when that means not toeing the party line. Snowe was re-elected by an overwhelming majority this year and her approval ratings (79% favorable) are the highest in the Senate. She was featured in Time Magazine last fall as one of the Top 10 Senators.
Anyway, Senators Snowe and Collins are introducing legislation to improve No Child Left Behind, which will hopefully help stop leaving behind so many of those students that the original bill failed to pick up at the bus stop.
From the press release:

Senators Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins today introduced the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Flexibility and Improvements Act. This bill reforms the No Child Left Behind Act, giving states, school districts, and schools greater control and flexibility in implementing and executing the No Child Left Behind law. This legislation builds on the major recommendations made by the Maine NCLB task force which was created by Senators Snowe and Collins in 2004.