Four years ago, on July 17, 2014, a Boeing 777-200 rose from a runway at the Amsterdam airport bound for Kuala Lumpur. Aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 were 298 human beings. As the plane passed over Ukraine and neared the Russian border, a 9M38 series Buk missile, fired from a launcher belonging to Russia’s 53rd […]
politics
Posted inMaine, sj-web
The last time Maine's 2nd District ousted a congressman? 1916
One clear lesson from Maine’s political history is that it’s awfully hard to knock a 2nd District congressman out of office. Nobody’s done it, after all, since 1916. Since that September day more than a century ago when Democrat Daniel McGillicuddy of Lewiston went down to defeat, a dozen men and women who held the […]
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Posted inMaine, sj-web
Bruce Poliquin backs GOP bid to smother carbon tax
Maine lawmakers split this week on a U.S. House vote to condemn the idea of a carbon tax to fight climate change, though no serious effort has been made to impose it — and there’s no chance the Republican-controlled Congress or President Donald Trump would approve. U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin, a two-term GOP lawmaker from […]
Posted inNational Sports
NFL, NFLPA call timeout on national anthem policy
The NFL halted implementation of its new national anthem policy under an agreement with the NFL Players Association. The sides announced the deal Thursday night. The agreement also keeps the grievance filed by the NFLPA over the anthem policy, ratified by the NFL owners at their May meeting in Atlanta, from moving forward, at least […]
Posted inNation / World, sj-web
Donald Trump aims to end automatic protections for some species
DENVER (AP) — The Trump administration on Thursday proposed ending automatic protections for threatened animals and plants and limiting habitat safeguards meant to shield recovering species from harm. Administration officials said the new rules would advance conservation by simplifying and improving how the landmark Endangered Species Act is used. “These rules will be very protective,” […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Maine
Trump administration extends special protections for small group of Somalis
The Trump administration has extended special protections for a small group of Somalis living in the United States, after dismantling the same program for immigrants from Central America and other parts of the world. Thousands of Somalis live in Maine, but only a handful is affected by Thursday’s announcement. The federal government decided it would […]
Posted inNation / World
White House invites Vladimir Putin to Washington for fall meeting
WASHINGTON (AP) — Unbowed by criticism over his Helsinki summit, President Donald Trump extended an invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet in Washington in the fall, the White House said Thursday. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on Twitter that Trump had asked National Security Adviser John Bolton to invite Putin, adding, “Those […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine Supreme Court grapples with Medicaid expansion case
Maine Supreme Court justices heard lively arguments Wednesday over whether to allow the LePage administration to continue to delay filing plans with federal officials to expand Medicaid while the larger legal case plays out. Chief Justice Leigh Saufley acknowledged that the court faced a “procedural conundrum” in hearing an appeal of a lower court ruling ordering the LePage administration […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Federal voter fraud commission documents released
Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap was notified Wednesday that he will receive, within 24 hours, documents related to a presidential commission on voting integrity he served on last year. Dunlap, one of 11 members appointed by the Trump administration, sued the commission last year after he was excluded from information, including state voting data. A federal judge […]
Posted inBusiness
Got milk? Maybe not if it’s from an almond or soybean
NEW YORK (AP) — Soy and almond drinks that bill themselves as “milk” may need to consider alternative language after a top regulator suggested the agency may start cracking down on use of the term. The Food and Drug Administration signaled plans to start enforcing a federal standard that defines “milk” as coming from the […]