PORTLAND, Maine — Maine State Treasurer Bruce Poliquin is giving his Senate campaign treasury a boost.
Documents filed with the Federal Election Commission indicate he has raised more than $229,000 through May 23. And he provided nearly half of that himself. The FEC filings indicate Poliquin gave $109,000 to his campaign.
The pre-primary filings from all candidates aren’t yet available.
The ones that were available showed Charlie Summers raised $89,915 and William Schneider $76,222 among Republicans.
All told, there will be 10 candidates — six Republicans and four Democrats — on next week’s primary ballot for U.S. Senate.
Wow! Maybe Bruce will have to start selling more trees off that tree farm of his.
Probably most have already been sold and made into political signs. If there is a way to now claim another deduction without double-dipping, (key word “without”), it will be done.
Actually the taxpayers of Georgetown, Maine are paying for his campaign. That money should have been paid in property taxes on his ocean-side mansion there.
Instead he claimed his front yard is a tree farm so he can shift the cost of plowing his roads and educating Georgetown’s children to other taxpayers.
This guy’s Republican front-runner material all right.
Well of course he does – when the democrats craft these byzantine laws to favor special interests, why are you surprised when someone, playing by the rules, takes advantage?
Jason:
Can you please lay out for me the procedure for getting your property into the tree growth plan? As I understand it, it’s not as easy as just claiming “my property is in tree growth.” You need to file an application that must be approved, no? So, how is this Mr. Poliquin’s fault that it got approved? I can assure you that Mr. Poliquin has paid taxes through the roof for the entirety of his adult life. He has done some amazing things in his lifetime, having worked his way for everything he has. He has coached youth athletics (even though his son wasn’t involved), high school baseball, college baseball and given to a number of charitable organizations. He does this all selflessly and with a huge smile on his face. People like you can only slam on him for the person he is. I wouldn’t swap 1 Bruce Poliquin for 1,000,000 of you any day of the week.
Do you own homework!
Democrats admire candidates who contribute more than their share to benefit their neighbors and the community. I admire and respect Chas. Summer’s military service, for instance.
Republicans seem to admire those who find the best way to contribute the bare minimum. LePage and Poliquin and Nutting for instance.
How streching the truth in order to make sure that he contributes as little as possible to his town qualifies him as a good US Senator evades me.
With all due respect, JasonWeb, you have no idea how much Bruce gives to the community. However, I understand that people like you will only believe what they read in bias newspapers. They won’t actually go out and see for themselves.
He is a rich, powerful man. If you don’t think the town fathers or whomever took that into consideration and granted a few “favors”, you need to stop smoking that stuff. Just sayin’, for what it’s worth.
If you are that rich…………you shouldn’t be a politician.
Politicians are nearly always lawyers…have you ever heard of a lawyer living on social benefits? That’s an oxymoron if I ever heard one.
Other points of interest:
Poliquin only has $19,000 cash on hand and received $2,500 from real estate developer Joe Boulos;
Schneider received $2,500 from Les Otten; and
Summers has spent less than $5,000 so far and has $85,000 cash on hand.
How much have the Democratic candidates received from Sussman and crew? How much have they spent?
If Poliquin Contributed half of of the Campaign Money that he will use to express himself,
Does that make him a Half Wit?
Somebody should tell this guy to save his money. He has no chance of being elected.
Most every penny Poliquin spends out of his pocket is money he has stolen from the taxpayers. He’s a crook and LePages best friend.
In a well-crafted response, can you please lay out for me how he has stolen from the taxpayers? By well-crafted, I mean please cite resources and specific details. Don’t just tell me he put his property in tree-growth because there was nothing illegal about this. In fact, one can’t just put a property in tree growth without an extensive application process.
I think the Lumber Baron should bet the farm on his election…purely for my entertainment !
If the election goes to whoever puts up the most roadside signs then Polquin’s got it in the bag.
There will be alot of Sand Pits full of Poliquin Signs come November!
They make for great Targets to sight in your deer rifle!
Another fine supporter of free speech rights, and equally ignorant of campaign sign laws. Tampering with, or removing campaign signs is a criminal offense.
No Kiddin!
You will be able to pick them up at the Town Dump for free!
You might want to have a Talk with your Criminal Governor about Illegal campaign signs on the Turnpike!
“Open For Buisness” comes to mind!
“p O l i q u i n”
Aim for the O
Have you seen the TV ads where he’s hugging Lepage and bragging about screwing workers out of their retirement benefits?
George:
How would you have proposed to dig Maine out of the deep hole left by prior administrations? Just curious if there is anything else in that brain of yours than insults.
I have, George. Have you? I am simply amazed at what people say on these forums based upon media spins–not on actual fact.
FWIW, that’s exactly what I expected you to say…anything but proof works for your ilk.
What proof would you like Mainegal? I haven’t seen one shred of proof on the other side aside from blown out of proportion media slants.
Here is a Fact!
The intent of tree growth is that the trees on the property have to actually be harvested.
Filing – owners must file an application by April 1 of the year in which classification is first requested with the assessor(s) of the jurisdiction where the parcel is located. See Section 6 for the filing requirements related to the transfer of classified forest land. Annual filing is not necessary; however, assessor(s) may request the filing of a new application at any time giving 120 days written notice.
Separate applications must be filed for each non-contiguous parcel and a separate application for each part of a parcel if the parcel is located in more than one municipality or county. If filing an application for classification of less than 10-forested acres in a municipality with the remaining forested acreage in the parcel located in an adjacent municipality, the owner of the parcel must provide copies of both applications to each town. The application must be accompanied by a map showing the location of the different forest types for land being classified (softwood, hardwood, mixed wood) as well as a description and location of land not classified in the parcel to at least the nearest whole acre. The application includes a sworn statement that a forest management and harvest plan has been prepared for the parcel and that the owner will follow the provisions of the plan. Proof may be required by the assessor(s) to confirm the landowner’s sworn statement. However, certain proprietary detail that is included in a particular plan must be held as confidential. Upon completion of the assessor’s evaluation or review of a plan, the plan must be returned to the owner or an agent of the owner. As far as I am concerned, this is the procedure. It had been followed by Mr. Poliquin and there has been no proof to the contrary.
{ The application includes a sworn statement that a forest management and harvest plan has been prepared for the parcel and that the owner will follow the provisions of the plan.}
You Do Know that He took it “out” of Tree Growth!
So much for the “HARVEST PLAN” !
Yes and, knowing Bruce, I am sure he paid the penalties to do so.
He will continue to pay the “Penalty” in November!
He won’t make it until November. He will get beat in the primary.
If he does, he will still be Maine’s Treasurer. That’s a “win” for Maine, either way. He’s done an incredible job already, reining in the slush-fund spending from the former Democratic administration in Augusta.
If he does he will still be a “Violator” of the State of Maine Constitution!
Maine deserves better!
He didn’t pay any penalty he moved the land into another tax reduced program to avoid any penalty, the property had a cause in it when Brucey bought it that it could not be harvested how does that fit in the Tree Growth program, sounds like fraud to me.
In addition, apparently you should have done a little more homework in junior high or high school English class. I think you were looking for: “Do your own homework!” No?
Okay. You win Bruce is a Saint and has never done anything wrong in his life. Having said that he still will not win the primary.
And life will go on.
Probably most of that money was given to him by people who didn’t want to public know they supported him. Maybe the Heritage Policy Center for one.
Ah – speculation and innuendo masquerading as “maybe so.” Got it.
Poliquin is a legend in his own mind!
It appears that you are as well.
Hardly!
I wouldn’t even vote for me!
More like out of our pockets. How much slack did the rest of us have to pick up for his tree sanctuary?
Here is my “cocktail napkin” analysis of the Republican US Senate candidates:
D’Amboise: Scott gets credit for being an early challenger to Senator Snowe. He has a strong grass-roots Tea Party support. Unfortunately he has a weak professional resume, and appears to have made poor use (even misused) the campaign funds he has raised. Looking over the FEC reports one wonders if he was ever a serious candidate, or whether he is using his campaign to elevate his own lifestyle.
Bennett: Rick has a strong professional and political resume and a track record of consistent and principled politics. As Senate President he held Angus King’s feet to the fire and forced him to honor promises of fiscal restraint. Check the record and you will find that once Bennett no longer held power in the Maine Senate, spending skyrocketed. Rick’s challenge is that many people have forgotten his contributions as he has been out of the spotlight for some time.
Plowman: Deb has paid her dues as an excellent legislator. She has the most experience in state government with solid conservative credentials. It also helps that she is the only woman in the Republican race. Unfortunately her name recognition outside of Penobscot County is slim, and she seems to have a shoestring campaign without a clear political strategy. She may not be up to the job of taking on the Angus machine.
Poliquin: Bruce is well known and has plenty of money. Despite coming in dead last in the Gubernatorial primary two years ago he has used his position as State Treasurer to fashion himself and a crusader for fiscal sanity. The problem with Bruce is that there is the faint whiff of the barnyard about him. He hasn’t come clean on how he morphed from an anti-business environmental activist on the board of the NRCM in the 90’s to a died-in-the-wool conservative. Bruce also has a problem with his more recent support for gun control. When running for Governor he was the only Republican to support handgun waiting periods and registration.
Schneider: Bill is a wicked nice guy and a sympathetic figure. His selling point to Republicans is that as AG he has joined the lawsuit against “Obamacare”. Bill is plugged into the moderate Republican establishment. That’s also his biggest problem: he has the taint of a tacit Snowe endorsement.
Summers: Charlie Summers strikes a dashing figure and as Secretary of State has a prominent place in the public arena. His military background is appealing and he has a great looking family for publicity shots. Unfortunately there seems to be a certain lack of depth of substance to Charlie. He ran two uninspiring campaigns for Congress. Charlie Summers also lost points with thinking voters when he played second fiddle to Charlie Websters ham-handed attack on legal student voters.
Nice job. Most of these candidates would do a better job than King. I think you are too generous to Bennett – he is way better than King but his resume is way too slim for his time in Augusta. Can’t think of any one big thing he accomplished.
Well, unlike Baldacci and King, he didn’t spend Maine into a billion-dollar deficit. That’s a good start.
Ken, I have to say that I would have thought you better than a cheap shot at D’Amboise. I get that the RLC has endorsed Bennett, but realistically, looking at his positions on military use overseas, the gold standard, the fed, the Roar on Drugs…he won’t get my support, even in the unlikely event he gets the nomination.
I don’t think it’s a cheap shot to point out his poor use of campaign funds. Frankly, given Scott’s social views, I can’t see how any libertarian could support him in a primary.
Fair enough question, just be prepared to have it turned back on you. What is Bennett’s position on NDAA 2012? The patriot Act? the TSA? The Federal Reserve? the Gold Standard? Disengagement of US troops from foreign entanglements? The unconstitutional marijuana prohibition? This begs the question of how any Libertarian could support him, either.
As for Scott’s social positions, fair enough. I don”t agree with his position on Gays and gay marriage, but realistically, that issue is on track to a libertarian-ish resolution in spite of any politician foolish enough to try to stand in its’ way. On the Abortion issue, you’re being somewhat disingenuous on that one. You know that the Libertarian movement, like the Democratic and Republican parties themselves, are of two minds on this. Ron Paul and I share the position, for example, that abortion represents the ultimate use of force against an individual under color of state sanction. This is a position shared by many Libertarians, as you klnow. After all, without the freedom to be born, all the other freedoms are pretty pointless. As with the gay rights issue, this is really not a make or break for me. The bottom line is that like SSM, abortion “rights” have a life of their own and realistically, it doesn’t matter to most people who wins this US Senate race on those issues because whoever wins isn’t going to significantly affect the trajectory on those issues either way.
Scott took this fight to the seat of power when no one, least of all Bennett wanted any part of this fight. That type of gumption, commitment to speaking truth to power needs to be applauded and rewarded. If Scott loses, it only makes the next campaign against an entrenched statist incumbent less likely next time. In the meantime, only D’Amboise has had the courage to take remarkably Libertarian public positions on clearly Libertarian issues like the war on drugs, The Federal reserve, NDAA, the patriot act and foreign troop deployment.
Taken as a whole, balanced out pro and con, the most Libertarian voice left in this primary is Scott D’Amboise. Do I wish it was a more consistent voice? Sure. I’m just glad that from the start of the campaign, when all there was anywhere else was crickets, Scott was out there pronouncing the Empresses Nakedness…as well as the nakedness of the pretenders who would now rise in her stead.
As someone who is likely to NOT have a Gary Johnson bumper sticker on his car in August, despite the fact he is not only the most qualified and the most Libertarian candidate in the race, you excuse me if I question your right to question my Libertarian “props”.
Poloquin’s a typical wanna be professional politician, sort of like Angus King and Elliot Cutler, determined to get access to power, perks and prestige no matter how large a check he has to write to do it. Here’s hoping Maine Republicans don’t fall for it, but they probably will.
In the meantime, I’m signing up to help the campaign of Andrew Dodge, The Libertarian Party’s candidate for the US Senate and the only candidate in November who will be promoting an aggressively small government, low tax, pro-liberty, pro-freedom agenda. I know, I know he can’t win. I’ve been hearing that ever since I first got involved in politics here in Maine.
Of course, that first Maine political campaign I was involved in? Jim Longley’s run for Governor. Funny how often the guys who can’t win somehow end up doing so when their message is clear and consistent, isn’t it?
Poliquin has signed Grover Norquists Pledge. He apparently wishes to be a serf to an out of state entity. Vote No for any office this man runs for.
Vote No to anyone who signs a pledge!
That would include Summers, & D’Amboise. Schneider said he would never sign a pledge along with Bennett but say they do agree with never raising taxes Plowman danced all around the question.
I would hope that since he has spent all that good money on ads that link himself to good ole Paul Lepage, that Maine will send him a resounding message and let him know, that Thanks, but no Thanks, its bad enough the state made a huge mistake by making Paul Governor, but there is no way we are going to send him to the Senate to make things even worse on the Federal Level.
Another Super Rich Republican part of the 1% ers. He is trying to buy an office so he can screw the 99% er Mainers.
The criticism of Poliquin for spending his own money is hilarious. I guess it’s better to spend “other people’s money,” instead. Right?
Myself, I am always happy to see any politician willing to buy their own lunch, pay for their own car (when does Michaud start?), and spend their own money on campaign expenses.
Something the liberal candidates could look at doing more often.
I wonder how much of that “his own money” is tree cash incentives that the rest of us picked up the slack for?
How do we know that his own money wasn’t donated from out of state interest and not claimed as being donated?
Mr. Poliquin earned his money and can spend it on getting himself elected, if he so chooses. Those who do not know what hard work and determination are should be less inclined to complain, but we understand that “99%” of the people are supporting the “1%,” or———is it the other way around!
Yeah, this would be a great country if only there wasn’t a middle and working class!