WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans blocked an election-year Democratic bill on Wednesday that would boost the federal minimum wage, handing a defeat to President Barack Obama on a vote that is sure to reverberate in this year’s congressional elections. The measure’s rejection, which was expected, came in the early months of a campaign season in which […]
politics
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Legislature prepares to take up LePage vetoes Thursday
How the Legislature is voting on vetoes. AUGUSTA — Dozens of bills spiked by Gov. Paul LePage will get another shot this week when lawmakers return to Augusta on the heels of a session filled with partisan wrangling that will continue into the November elections. On Thursday, the Democratic-controlled Legislature will consider at least 46 […]
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Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Two Lewiston casino PACs to pay $15,000 fine
AUGUSTA — The state ethics commission voted unanimously Wednesday to accept a consent agreement proposed by the agency’s staff that would levy a fine of $15,000 against two political action committees that supported a Lewiston casino bid in 2011. The action of the Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices marks the second-largest penalty […]
Posted inMaine
King to chair hearing investigating ‘dark money’ in politics
Watch the hearing live on CSPAN Tweets about “#darkmoney” AUGUSTA — An effort by U.S. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, to examine the impact of so-called “dark money” on state and federal elections drew praise from clean election advocates in Maine on Tuesday. But just a day before King was set to chair a hearing of […]
Posted inMaine
Michaud and Cutler lead in fundraising for Maine governor’s race as LePage trails slightly
AUGUSTA — The campaign war chests of two of the top three leading candidates for governor in Maine have broken the $1 million mark. The campaign for Democrat Mike Michaud, Maine’s 2nd District U.S. congressman, said its candidate had collected $1.4 million as of the April 29 deadline while independent candidate Eliot Cutler reported contributions […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Collins says she wants compromise on minimum wage bill
WASHINGTON — Moderate Republican Sen. Susan Collins says she expects to oppose the Democratic effort to raise the federal minimum wage, all but dooming the election-year proposal. That election-year bill, on which the Senate is expected to vote Wednesday, would raise the current $7.25 hourly minimum to $10.10 over 30 months. It will need GOP […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Supreme Court upholds EPA effort to limit air pollution drifting east
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday handed the Obama administration an important victory in its effort to reduce power plant pollution in more than two dozen Midwestern and Southern states, which blows downwind and leads to unhealthy air. The decision caps a decades-long effort by the Environmental Protection Agency to find a legally acceptable […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage vetoes raise questions about role of government
Our View: Veto overrides best for public health, access AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage’s use of the veto pen will make for a busy day for lawmakers on Thursday, reigniting a debate about whether the governor’s endgame judgment of bills is obstructionism or leadership. LePage has racked up a record-breaking 163 vetoes during his first […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage allows drug overdose antidote bill to become law
AUGUSTA — Maine will expand access to a potentially life-saving drug antidote, after the bill went into law Tuesday without Gov. Paul LePage’s signature. The new law allows family members of addicts to be prescribed naloxone, which blocks the brain receptors that opiates latch onto and helps the body take in air. The law also lets […]