Maine News for Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Portland Press Herald
Crisis, options irritate state residents
Some see any rescue as a necessary evil; others predict a huge debt that won't even halt the slide.

Maine Democrats split on bailout vote
Allen is unhappy with the defeat; Michaud is unhappy with the bill; constituents are mostly just unhappy.

Out of Canadian court, Greenlaw back at sea
Her boat might have drifted into Canadian waters during the filming of a TV fishing special.

Emission credits raise $39 million
The Northeast's effort to reduce greenhouse gases could become a national model, participants say.

Advice on managing offenders gathered
An expert tells legislators to focus on high-risk sex criminals, and that blanket policies often don't work.

Upheaval reshapes banking landscape
The U.S. is left with three superbanks, but the 8,500 community institutions will still provide alternatives.

Citigroup buys Wachovia banks
The agreement gives Citigroup more than 4,300 U.S. branches and $600 billion in deposits.

Editorial
Working Maine familes to pay for House failure
There's was plenty to dislike in a bailout of financial markets, but jobs depended on it.

RON BANCROFTThe presidential candidates get a debate report card
Obama is the winner in both style and substance in this cycle's first presidential debate.

Bangor Daily News

Michaud, Allen split on rescue proposal

U.S. Rep. Michael Michaud split from the majority of his fellow House Democrats on Monday to vote against a $700 billion bailout proposal, which ultimately fell 13 votes shy of passing.

Storm effort called ‘great training exercise’

MACHAIS, Maine — Monday dawned with a brilliant sun, clear teal-blue skies and fall leaves exploding into blinding reds, yellows and golds. The overnight rain had scrubbed the air clean, and damage reports from Tropical Storm Kyle were minimal in Down East Maine.

Market Meltdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a vote that shook the government, Wall Street and markets around the world, the House on Monday defeated a $700 billion emergency rescue for the nation’s financial system, leaving both parties and the Bush administration scrambling to pick up the pieces.

Four Plum Creek plan protesters arrested

A state office building was locked down for several hours and several protesters arrested Monday in the latest flare-up over Plum Creek’s controversial development plan for the Moosehead Lake region.

Editorial

Health Care Cost Questions

A dispute between the hospital in Ellsworth and the state’s largest health insurance company is a symptom of a much larger problem. Without adequate information on what health care costs, insurers, lawmakers and others have no real idea whether medical care in Maine is too expensive.

Kennebec Journal

House 79 race classic case of upstart vs. incumbent
Charles Jacques, a first-time candidate running for House District 79, said he is promoting a platform that "advocates liberty and freedom," including disbanding county government and legalizing marijuana.

Maine reps split votes on bailout
Maine's Democratic U.S. representatives landed on opposite sides of the financial bailout bill Monday, as constituents besieged them with calls on an issue fraught with political as well as economic risks.

Grant to provide Gardiner with enhanced signage
GARDINER -- A $50,000 grant will help people find their way around historical and cultural sites and hopefully boost the local economy.

STATEHOUSE Testimony targets sex offenders
AUGUSTA -- Victims of sex crimes and the offenders often live in the same home, where the crimes also occur.

4 arrested in Plum Creek protest
AUGUSTA -- Four Earth First! protesters, locked together by bicycle locks, were arrested Monday after being forcibly removed from a state office building.

Casino resort touted for Oxford County
AUGUSTA -- Backers of a proposed casino in Oxford County said Monday a casino brings another kind of entertainment to Maine that would complement offerings in tourist destinations such as Bar Harbor and Old Orchard Beach.

Editorials:

Election-year politics doomed bailout measure
For more than a week and a half, the Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 that was defeated Monday by the House has been called "the Wall Street Bailout" by politicians, the media and the public.

DAVID B. OFFER : Palin chosen for conservative views, not potential as leader
Sixteen years ago, James Stockdale bumbled his way through a nationally televised debate among candidates for vice president.

MARK L. JOHNSTON : Bank-credit union merger plan good for both
The recent news about a potential merger between Kennebec Savings Bank and Kennebec Valley Federal Credit Union has resulted in some healthy discussion, but unfortunately, some misinformation in the process.

Sun Journal
Bailout melts down
WASHINGTON - In a vote that shook the government, Wall Street and markets around the world, the House on Monday defeated a $700 billion emergency rescue for the nation's financial system, leaving both parties' lawmakers and the Bush administration scrambling to pick up the pieces. Dismayed investors sent the Dow Jones industrials plunging 777 points, the most ever for a single day.

Allen votes for rescue, but Michaud against it
U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, a Democrat from Maine's 2nd District, voted against the passage of the $700 billion emergency rescue bill for the nation's financial system.

Backers: Casino would hire 800
AUGUSTA - Backers of a proposed casino in Oxford County said Monday a casino brings another kind of entertainment to Maine that would complement offerings in tourist destinations such as Bar Harbor and Old Orchard Beach.

Falling snow detected on Mars
LOS ANGELES - NASA's Phoenix spacecraft has discovered evidence of past water at its Martian landing site and spotted falling snow for the first time, scientists reported Monday.

Greenlaw back to sea after arrest
Famed skipper and Maine author Linda Greenlaw headed back to sea Monday to resume her made-for-TV swordfishing trip after being arrested and hauled into a Canadian court for allegedly fishing inside Canada's 200-mile limit.

Editorial
Bailout bill needs global perspective
Congress has shown tremendous restraint in fighting calls for rapid action in the proposed $700 billion bailout of shaky banks. Its patience should be rewarded, by taking time to consider the global impact of its actions.

MPBN
Activists Disrupt LURC Office, Police Respond

Nearly a dozen protestors representing Earth First!, the Native Forest Network and themselves, disrupted the offices of the Land Use Regulation Commission in Augusta today, putting the building in lockdown for several hours and prompting Capitol Security to call in state and local police for assistance. Four of the protestors chained themselves together with bicycle locks, making it difficult to get them out. As Susan Sharon reports protestors are upset over LURC's handling of the Plum Creek development and conservation plan for Moosehead Lake.

Effectiveness of Sex Offender Registries Explored By Legislators

As the lawsuits pile up in the state's courts over the constitutionality of Maine's sex offender registry laws, members of the Legislature and other key state leaders met today for a day-long conference on national sex offender policies in general and the effectiveness of registries in particular. Many offenders are challenging a change in the state's 1999 registry law that requires violators to register for convictions that took place up to 26 years ago. As A.J. Higgins reports, one leading psychologist questions whether the registry actually has any impact on recidivism.

A Machias Hospital Scrutinized by Area Residents

Downeast Community Hospital in Machias is under scrutiny from local residents who say they are concerned about staff turnover and also about the quality of care. At a reecent rally, some community members said they will now travel two hours to Bangor or Ellsworth for medical services, rather than be treated at Downeast. Quorum Health Services, the national hospital management firm that took over Downeast Community Hospital in 2002, says accusations of staff mistreatment and high turnover are exaggerated and are causing unnecessary harm to the hospital's reputation.

Casino Issue Still Alive In Scarborough

To keep his horses in top form, harness driver Drew Campbell has jogged them along the half-mile track of Scarborough Downs for about eight years. Over that time, he's watched harness racing struggle, as audiences lose interest in the pastime, and top drivers and horses leave the state for bigger winnings.