Maine News Headline Animator

Maine News

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Maine News for Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Real Clear Politics
RCP Average 10/07 - 10/14 -- Obama 50.1 to McCain 42.1

Portland Press Herald
Maine Democrats unfazed by Palins' visits
They've been deploying volunteers to go door-to-door from 34 offices statewide.

Infusion to banks kindles new hope
The U.S. is pouring up to $250 billion into banks and is counting on them to ease the credit crunch.

Rivals spar over Iraq, partisanship, economy
Positions outlined as race tightens three weeks before Nov. 4 election

Maine's delegation optimistic about plan

Jetport expansion delayed for a year due to bond market
Under the revised schedule, the earliest the expansion would open is the fall of 2011.

Regulators, fishing industry spar over plans to cut days at sea
Fishermen at a meeting in Portland Tuesday say potential 18 percent cuts could kill the Maine fleet.

House District 112: Falmouth residents vie for seat
Both hopefuls favor school consolidation in general, but question whether it's a good move for their town.

House District 108: Rivals back school consolidation
Strang Burgess says state needs to cut spending and taxes; Bonechi would work to attract business.

House District 107: Candidates push for changes
Innes sees affordable health care as a priority; Bicknell wants to control and shrink state spending.

Bangor man faces new charges in phone-jamming case
Ex-GOP official James Tobin is now charged with lying to the FBI.

Wood fuel demand worries foresters
Conference attendees say there could be less wood for paper and lumber.

NRA mailer targets Obama
Postcards sent to Maine members claim that the Democratic candidate has a 'radical record.'

Overdue stimulus checks on the way
Checks were delayed to married couples whose names didn't match Social Security numbers.

Editorial
Though not easy, school mergers are needed
Voters in southern Maine will be asked to create five new consolidated school districts.

Legislature should set the tone with its own cuts
The lawmakers themselves don't spend a lot, but leadership demands they find savings.

JEFFREY MESSERScarborough voters should consider the good that a racino could do
Those who worry about gambling's inroads should understand that it is present already.

Bangor Daily News
In preparation for the cold season ahead, the state has bought 2,000 home winterization kits for low-income Mainers.
ORONO, Maine — As more wood is used for fuel, the demands on Maine’s forests are changing quickly — and that might affect the long-term viability of Maine’s iconic industry, said attendees Tuesday at a conference at the University of Maine.

AUGUSTA, Maine — Breeders and dog aficionados across the state are saying their voices are not being heard by state Animal Welfare Division Director Norma Worley, whom they describe as being too aggressive and failing to work with local dog rescue groups and private shelters.

ACADIA NATIONAL PARK — A supervising park ranger thought another ranger was “out of control” during an Aug. 18 confrontation on Day Mountain that resulted in fractured facial bones for a Seal Harbor man, according to internal park ranger reports about the incident.

Third-quarter campaign fundraising figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Senate campaigns of Rep. Tom Allen and Sen. Susan Collins show that Collins raised $52,000 more than her opponent in July, August and September.

BANGOR, Maine — Her visit to Bangor had been announced for about 24 hours, and already, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin needed a bigger venue.

Editorial
As panic selling spread and stock markets plunged with no bottom yet in sight, Warren Buffett, the world’s richest person, followed the example of J. Pierpont Morgan in the Panic of 1907 and did some buying.

After a week of increasingly bitter and personal attacks, Republican presidential nominee John McCain has asked his supporters for a more respectful campaign. We hope this means a new direction for the McCain campaign, a new direction that will be on view Thursday when his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is in town.

Kennebec Journal
STATE'S DEMOCRATS SHRUG OFF PALIN VISIT
Maine's Democratic Party is ready for Sarah Palin's visit on Thursday.

Allen, Collins cite differences during their debate for Senate
With three weeks remaining before Election Day, the candidates for U.S. Senate in Maine honed their messages Tuesday in a midday debate punctuated by disagreements over partisanship, health care and the impact of Bush administration economic and foreign policies.

KENNEBEC COUNTY Both list experience in commission race
The two people vying to become a Kennebec County commissioner each bring years of experience -- one in finance as well as local and county government, and the other in state government leadership as well as corrections and community issues.

HALLOWELL City won't go for funds
HALLOWELL -- Hallowell will not seek state bond funding to enhance the city waterfront.

Anti-scam guide for older people
The state is offering free advice for older Maine citizens on how to protect their homes, finances and identities, and how to cut down on unwanted telemarketing calls and junk mail.

Anti-violence body to 4-day workweek
AUGUSTA -- The Family Violence Project, which offers services for victims of domestic violence, is switching its main office hours to a four-day work week to address soaring fuel costs.

BRIEFS
CHINA -- School Committee members will continue discussion of a proposed regional school unit with four Oakland-area towns at Thursday's meeting, scheduled for 6 p.m. in the China Middle School library.

SAD 47 to eye sports at tonight's meeting
SIDNEY -- School Administrative District 47 directors will review fall sports participation and get an update on school consolidation developments when they meet tonight.

Sarah Palin will visit Bangor for airport rally
AUGUSTA -- Vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin will appear at a rally Thursday in Bangor as she winds up a series of campaign stops taking her from the South to New England.

Editorial

Finch knows education vital to workforce
The voters of House District 84 have been well-represented during the past six years by Democrat Ed Finch. A retired teacher and 11-year veteran of the SAD 49 board (which includes the towns of Albion, Benton, Clinton and Fairfield), Finch says that "education is my life." And he's made education the focus of his work in the Statehouse, where he has been an informed and thoughtful voice on the Education Committee during a time of great change.

RON PHILLIPS : Amend U.S. bankruptcy law to help prevent foreclosures
In the wake of the $700 billion "bailout" bill, it is difficult to come up with a clear insight about what happened, what is happening or what will happen in the financial markets.

GEORGE SMITH : Author's account of life in woods the 'ultimate in escapist literature'
She took to the woods in 1933 and although she would eventually move to the coast and even live out-of-state, Louise Dickinson Rich's life was defined by Forest Lodge on the Rapid River.


Sun Journal

NRA postcard against Obama
LEWISTON - Maine members of the National Rifle Association and other local sportsmen recently have received anti-Obama mailings as part of the group's multimillion-dollar fall campaigning blitz.

GOP phone jamming leads to new charges
PORTLAND (AP) - A former Republican official accused of taking part in a plot to jam Democratic phone lines in New Hampshire on Election Day 2002 is facing new charges.

Senate candidates debate for 5th time
PORTLAND (AP) - Sen. Susan Collins and Rep. Tom Allen stuck to familiar campaign themes Tuesday during the fifth of their 10 Senate debates, but shared one complaint in common: third-party TV ads that portrayed them as villains.

Vegas-funded casino PAC outspends opponents 18-1
AUGUSTA - A political action committee backing a proposed resort casino in Oxford has outspent an anti-casino PAC by a margin of nearly 18-1.

Energy needs taxing forests
ORONO - As more wood is used for fuel, the demands on Maine's forests are changing quickly - and that might affect the long-term viability of Maine's iconic industry, said attendees Tuesday at a conference at the University of Maine.

Collins, Allen raise more than $13 million
PORTLAND (AP) - Republican Susan Collins and Democrat Tom Allen have together raised more than $13 million in their Senate race, the most expensive political campaign in Maine history.

Editorial
Sweetening the bailout's sourness
Kudos to the U.S. Treasury for making the bailout plan better. Taxpayers should prefer "helping" banks make bad loans disappear to just removing horrendous debt from their books in one swath.

McCain gives up principle to play the politics game
My 401(k) is down $21,000 since the end of September. And John McCain thinks I should be worried about William Ayers.

MPBN
Practicing Medicine Is Like Pulling Teeth
In Maine, there are just not enough dentists to go around. For roughly every 2,200 Mainers there is just one dentist, according to one estimate. That's compared to the national average of one dentist for every 1,600 patients. An innovative program uses not dentists, but doctors to help alleviate the shortage. Josie Huang has more on the story.

Husson Earns University Status
At the stroke of midnight Saturday, Husson College in Bangor was renamed Husson University. No longer a business and nursing school, Husson now offers more than 25 graduate and undergraduate degrees and certificates at satellite campuses throughout the state. As Anne Ravana reports, the school, and its reputation, have come a long way.

Tom Allen Focuses on "Change in Direction"
After serving for 11 Years as Southern Maine's Representative in congress, Democrat Tom Allen now has his sights set on the US Senate. Allen's message has focused on the call for a change in direction away from the Bush policies that he says have left Mainers in worse shape than they were eight years ago. In challenging two-term, Republican incumbent Susan Collins, Allen has tried to tie Collins to Bush, and at the same time build support for his campaign in the more conservative second district. A.J. Higgins has this profile as part of MPBN'S "YOUR VOTE 2008" coverage.

Canada Deciding On New Prime Minister
Maine's closest international trading partner is going to the polls today to elect a new government. For Canadian Prime minister Stephen Harper, it's a chance to turn a ruling minority government into a majority, while liberal leader Stephane Dion - leader of the main opposition party - is hoping to unseat his conservative party rival. Earlier Tom Porter asked Professor Howard Cody, from the University of Maine's Canadian studies program, why Mainers should care what happens across the border.

Tribes Keep Close Watch on Casino Campaign
Leaders of the Penobscot Nation and the Passamaquoddy Tribe are closely watching the casino campaign unfolding in Oxford County. Over the last 14 years, Maine's two Indian tribes have seen their own hopes and plans for a casino in Calais, a high stakes bingo operation in Oxford County, a casino in southern Maine and, last year, a racino in Washington County, defeated at every turn. And as Susan Sharon reports, despite their silence this election, they have strong feelings about the outcome of Question 2 on the statewide ballot.