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Paul LePage on Government Reform
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Investigate and report publicly on false campaign statements
Gov. Paul LePage hopes to turn the state's ethics panel into a truth squad that checks the veracity of claims made by politicians.The plan directs the Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices to investigate campaign claims
following a complaint by a candidate. The panel would have to make a public statement if the claim is deemed false.
Backers of the effort, which LePage's office says is the governor's "attempt to bring civility to the process," told lawmakers that
having such a check in place will encourage candidates to make fewer false claims about their opponents.
"Should there be no restraint, no limit or no consequence for lying?" said one legislator. But the ACLU of Maine said the proposal violates the
constitution, arguing that courts have found that even false statements deserve First Amendment protection.
LePage's office said it believes that the lack of penalties if a claim is deemed false would allow the proposal to stand up constitutionally.
Source: A.P. in The Republic on 2014 Maine gubernatorial race
, Mar 26, 2014
Replaced same-day voter registration with photo ID rule
After ending Maine's status as a sanctuary for illegal immigrants with an executive order, he pushed the biggest business-oriented tax cuts in the state's history. His targets for free market "reform" included child labor laws, public pension benefits,
and the state's Medicaid system and minimum wage law. He succeeded in getting repeal of Maine's 30-year-old practice of allowing same-day voter registration along with a new photo ID requirement at the polls (later repealed by referendum).
Source: The Tea Party: A Brief History, by R. Formisano, p. 61
, Apr 4, 2012
Page last updated: Nov 25, 2017