AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — The Maine Department of Labor says the state’s unemployment rate ticked up two-tenths of a percent last month to 7.4 percent. The rate is up from 7.2 percent in April, but down from 7.7 percent in May of last year. The state says the number of people working in Maine is […]
Maine
Posted inOur View
Setting the scene of national debate, Maine candidates
Well, now we have it. The field is nearly set for Election Day 2012. President Barack Obama versus presumptive Republican challenger Mitt Romney. U.S. Senate contenders Charlie Summers versus Cynthia Dill versus Angus King. U.S. Rep. Michael Michaud versus Republican challenger Kevin Raye. U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree versus a Republican challenger Jon Courtney. Sen. Susan […]
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Summers and Dill will face King in Maine’s U.S. Senate race
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Republican Charlie Summers and Democrat Cynthia Dill won their crowded primary elections Tuesday in the race for Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe’s soon-to-be-empty seat, setting the stage for a three-way race with a popular former governor that could shift the balance of power in the U.S. Senate. Summers was leading with 30 […]
Posted inMaine
Maine’s economy shrunk in 2011
AUGUSTA — Maine was the only state in New England last year to see a reduction in the gross domestic product, which measures overall economic activity. “It is the primary measure of economic growth for each state,” said Mike Allen, associate commissioner for the Department of Administrative and Financial Services. Allen, an economist, serves on […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Disney seeks out haggis from W.A. Bean in Bangor
W.A. Bean, based in Bangor, makes red hot dogs — an iconic Maine treat, found on grills statewide all summer. They also sell hams, poultry, high-quality steaks and plenty of other meat products — but there’s one item W.A. Bean makes that, while not quite as popular as their hot dogs, certainly has a niche […]
Posted inMaine
Raye wins Maine’s 2nd District GOP primary
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine Republican voters on Tuesday picked Kevin Raye, the state Senate president, to face incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud in the 2nd District House race in November. Early unofficial results showed Raye of Perry, a familiar figure in the state’s political scene, defeating primary challenger Blaine Richardson of Belfast, a […]
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U.S. Senate race main draw in Maine primaries
PORTLAND (AP) — The race for the U.S. Senate is the main draw as Maine voters go to the polls to decide which Republican and Democratic candidates will appear on November’s ballot for U.S. Senate and House elections. Six Republicans and four Democrats seeking to fill the seat being vacated by Sen. Olympia Snowe are […]
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Wisely, Maine gave firm no to private prisons
Maine flirted briefly in 2011 and 2012 with a bill that would have allowed construction of a private prison in the Piscataquis County town of Milo. Officials there, where unemployment has been high, have been talking for several years with the Corrections Corporation of America, the largest for-profit prison operator in the country. Both Gov. […]
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Six Republicans seek party’s spot on U.S. Senate ballot
LEWISTON — Republicans and Democrats will go to the polls Tuesday to pick each party’s candidate for the upcoming U.S. Senate election in Maine. Democrats have four candidates; Republicans have six. All are vying to be Maine’s replacement for long-serving Republican U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe. Many on the ballot have said the election is the […]
Posted inLocal Sports
Decline in agriculture means dwindling deer population
Whenever wildlife biologists and sportsmen gather to discuss the causes of Maine’s declining deer numbers, there is almost always an agreement on one thing. When it comes to chief causes in the whitetail decline in Maine, habitat trumps both predation and severe winters. Sure, coyotes and bears raise havoc with fawn survival, and deep snows […]