AUGUSTA — Lawmakers are considering relaxing a prohibition on money changing hands when hunters legally swap permits in Maine’s competitive and tightly regulated moose hunt. Since 2015, hunters who were successful during the state’s moose lottery have been allowed to exchange permits but could not offer each other money or any other form of compensation. […]
politics
Posted inNation / World, sj-web
Conservatives balk at GOP plan to avert government shutdown
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hard-line conservatives are threatening to scuttle Republican leaders’ plans to prevent a weekend government shutdown and saying GOP leaders lack the votes to push their proposal through the House. The setback late Tuesday came as a deal between President Donald Trump and Congress to protect young immigrants from deportation also remained distant. […]
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Posted inMaine
Marijuana legalization panel votes to delay social cannabis clubs until 2023
In their first major concession to Gov. Paul LePage, lawmakers crafting rules for Maine’s legal adult-use cannabis industry agreed Tuesday to ban social clubs until 2023. The Legislature’s Marijuana Legalization Implementation Committee voted 5-1 to delay social club licensing for five years in hopes of pacifying those who last year voted against a bill that would have […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Democratic 2nd District congressional race heats up
Two of the Democrats vying for the right to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin this fall announced endorsements this week that might boost their chances in June’s primary. The most surprising came when two-time Lewiston mayoral contender Ben Chin, who lost runoffs in both 2015 and 2017, threw his support to Monroe home builder […]
Posted inNation / World
Shutdown looms as Republicans seek short-term spending deal for government
WASHINGTON — Chances of a government shutdown grew Monday as Republicans concluded that they would be unable to reach a long-term spending accord by the Friday deadline. GOP leaders are now turning to a short-term funding measure in hopes of keeping agencies open while talks continue, but Democratic leaders say they are unlikely to support […]
Posted inMaine
GOP says Janet Mills aims to bolster gubernatorial run with abortion bill
Republican lawmakers are suggesting that Maine Attorney General Janet Mills resign over a bill she has pushed forward that would allow nurse practitioners and physician assistants to perform abortions. The bill is raising the hackles of anti-abortion conservatives, but it could also bolster Mills’ image as a defender of abortion rights as she seeks the […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Paul LePage will give his final State of the State address on Feb. 13
AUGUSTA (AP) — Republican Gov. Paul LePage is going to deliver his final State of the State address next month. His office confirmed that he’ll address a joint session of the Maine Legislature on Feb. 13. That’s the date proposed by Democratic House Speaker Sara Gideon and Republican Senate President Mike Thibodeau. This will be […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, sj-web
In Maine, is GOP linked to flurry of anonymous attacks?
Ben Chin, a 32-year-old Democrat, ran away with the preliminary vote in November for mayor of Lewiston, the second-largest city in Maine. But he could not avoid a runoff with City Councilor Shane Bouchard, a Republican backed by Gov. Paul LePage. Shortly after the November election, an anonymous conservative website called Maine Examiner began hammering […]
Posted inNation / World
Pennsylvania: ‘They can have their guns or their marijuana, but not both’
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The federal government says grass and guns don’t mix, and that is putting gun owners who use marijuana — and the strongly pro-gun-rights administration of President Donald Trump — in a potentially uncomfortable position. As gun-loving Pennsylvania becomes the latest state to operate a medical marijuana program, with the first dispensary […]
Posted inNation / World
Donald Trump has kept many promises during his first year in office
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump often brags that he’s done more in his first year in office than any other president. That’s a spectacular stretch. But while he’s fallen short on many measures and has a strikingly thin legislative record, Trump has followed through on dozens of his campaign promises, overhauling the country’s tax […]