AUGUSTA, Maine — Gov. Paul LePage sent a letter to President Barack Obama this week expressing his disappointment with the federal government’s decision to waive, if sequestration goes into effect, a federal law requiring large employers to notify employees several weeks before a closure or significant layoffs are made.
According to Gov. LePage’s letter, the U.S. Department of Labor and Office of Management and Budget recently said employers need not comply with the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, which requires companies with 100 or more employees to notify affected workers 60 days before closures and layoffs, if sequestration goes into effect.
Sequestration is the automatic, across-the-board cuts that will go into effect Jan. 2, 2013, if Congress fails to reach an agreement on budget cuts required under the federal Budget Control Act of 2011, which allowed the country to raise the debt limit.
Gov. LePage in his letter writes that President Obama’s decision to allow companies to ignore the WARN Act is an abdication of his responsibilities under the law.
“While the timing may be inconvenient, communities and employers deserve to know about the potential mass layoffs and, even more, the law requires it,” Gov. LePage writes.
If sequestration is left to occur, large companies that work for the government, including defense contractors in Maine, would be affected.
“Jobs in many of Maine’s crucial industries, including shipbuilding and submarine repair, are on the line,” Gov. LePage wrote in his letter to the president.
Gov. LePage also cites a study from George Mason University that claims Maine could lose 4,055 jobs alone from the cuts suffered by the U.S. Department of Defense.
Maine has its own statute that extends WARN Act protections by imposing a fine of $500 on each company that does not provide 60 days’ notice of an impending layoff to employees. It also requires companies to give severance pay to each laid-off employee.
However, the federal government has said it will pay any fines and other costs incurred by not following the WARN Act, such as the fines that could be incurred under Maine’s law.
“I am deeply concerned about your assurances to contractors that the federal government will use taxpayer money to reimburse them for any fees or other costs related to not following the law,” LePage writes. “It is astounding to me that in a time of deep debt, you would spend taxpayer dollars to pay the fines of private companies rather than working with Congress on a solution to the sequestration problem.”
Julie Rabinowitz, a spokeswoman for the Maine Department of Labor, said it’s unclear whether the federal government also would cover the severance pay as required under Maine law.
And we the voters of Maine will be telling Mr. LePage about our disappointment about him and his adminstration on November 6th. Hint here Paul, start practicing your quack quacks and hobbled walk now. Maybe some folks will feel sorry for you after two years of lame duck whining and the trouncing you’ll take in 2014 won’t be as embarrassing as it would be if your own term was up this time around.
How about our disappointment with Obama, this is not about LePage, it is about Obama making more of a mess.
Please feel free to express your minority opinion on any subject you like. That’s one of the things that still makes America greater than any other country in the world.
No, Brucie, this whole sequestration began when the Tea Party Republicans threatened to shut down the government by not raising the debt ceiling in the summer of 2011 unless drastic cuts in spending were enacted. Boehner and Ryan insisted on this deal as the fall back position if a designated supercommittee of Congress could not agree on an alternative plan. No Congress had ever put up this level of resistance to raising the debt ceiling in the history of the Republic. The Tea Partiers now do not wish to reap what they have sown.
The debt ceiling is basically a routine matter. It was raised MULTIPLE times by Reagan and Bush. Never did the right wingers bat an eye. It is really a procedural matter. But now that the cooks have taken over the right wing asylum, they will allow us to default first. TeaPublicans = Radical Right Wing Extremists of the most disgusting order.
oh and we were all dreaming when the dems pulled fillerbusters by the half dozen keeping anything from getting down a few years back.but of course demotwits do no wrong according to you.
There have been more filibusters by the Republican party in 2010 then at any time in our country’s history.
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/02/12/84487/senate-republicans-filibuster.html
So, if you really are upset about politicians “not getting anything done,” because of the filibuster, you should also include your own party in your criticism.
Are you capable of that?
They filibustered right wing judicial nominees. None of Bush’s signature bills were filibustered: both tax cuts, Medicare Part D and No Child Left Behind all were never met by a filibuster.
If the Trust Fund Baby somehow wins the election, you will see that debt ceiling disappear in the wink of an eye. No Repub president has ever cut spending.
Certainly NOT for the military!
looking at the Federal Deficit, how high should we be going.
Republican Presidents have raised the debt ceiling more than Democratic Presidents. Is it wrong when a Democrat does it but not when a Republican does it?
Republicans have raised the debt ceiling way more than Democrats.
Why didn’t you complain about that?
The Federal Def. has never been so high. How come Democrats are not complaing about it, instead of wanted to add to it.
My question was why didn’t you complain when the Republicans were raising the debt ceiling over and over. Bush raised it many more times than Obama.
Nice try at deflection, though.
Fact is not deflection as to Obama raising the Federal Def. as high as it is. Actually I wasn’t posting then, though I still would complain about it. I also said we should not of sent our troops there. Unlike his father, bombing would of been the best. If I had a question is why are not the Democrats doing something about the deficit instead of continually raising it and the debt ceiling.
At current interest rates the deficit is not a problem. We ran up a much higher debt to GDP ratio in WW II and that level of investment in factories and infrastructure fired record economic growth for the next 30 years. That growth reduced the debt as a percentage of GDP.
What are your specific disappointments with our president?
Should we start with the Federal Def., or foreign policy, actually what foreign policy. Fuel prices are higher, if I remember reading somewhere Fuel assistance was cut at the Federal level.
Dick Cheney told us deficits didn’t matter. so they booked the cost of 2 wars on the cuff. so we have been digging out from that junk under Obama.
United States does not belong to OPEC. OPEC and oil market speculators drive world oil prices. Oil is a commodity.
The deficit has climbed drastically under Obama’s watch. How may solidiers are getting killed in Afghanistan? Seems to me it is a record number. Why are not our soldiers all homel, that was one of his promises, was not it?
Have you listened to the Republicans running for office? They all seem to be in favor of keeping our troops in Afghanistan indefinetly. Obama has them scheduled out in 2014. I’m not in favor of keeping them one more minute unless we are leaving with a scorched earth policy.
I don’t want our troops either place. I doubt they will be out by 2014, the same they are not all out of Iraq. If you think they are out of Iraq, you need to check again.
Yes, we still aren’t out of Korea after 50+ years.
In this case I’ll take Obama over Romney. Romney is under the control of the do nothing war hawks who keep their kids well protected.
Today Tea Party Paul’s Finance Commissioner reported that Maine’s first quarter income was $26.9 MILLION DOLLARS below LePage administration projections. Annualized that will come to over $100 MILLION DOLLARS. Tea Party Paul can’t even run a small rural State like Maine. What makes him think that anyone in Washington is even reading his letters. But then again they might be especially if he is still writting them in crayon. This tea party insanity has to be stopped. November 6th is the time to stop it.
The failed Baldacci administration LOST that much at DHHS in the blink of an eye. Compared to Baldacci LePage is a freaking genius.
If you really think that LePage is a genius then good for you.
No!
“Not” Good for You!
God Help Us!
Let me correct your facts – LePage is the “Worst” Governor ever to be elected in Maine history. Why he now is ever larger than the Governor of New Jersey and that is large. That is the reason he can only move his mouth as it is hard to move his massive body. But, all the Green Shirts love him. Paulie you are a sad statement for Maine.
You want “Cuts” Tea Partiers ?
You got it!
It’s been in your plans for two years , we have been warned and we are fully aware!
Stop the blame game to Obama!
We KNOW better!
People have been warned!
You are the Reason, the Cause, and the Perpetraitors,
and the only ones responsible are you!
this is Obama’s mess
I hope Obama writes him back and tells him where he, and his whining, can go.
You have a problem with following employment contract law? Whats wrong with you folks?
Liberals always believe that laws are for the little people.
You are thinking of rich Republicans!
You and I both know the Tea Baggers in Congress are causing this whole mess!
Thats not true. Obama should learn to Compromise and in the meantime follow the law.
You cannot compromise with the TPers. Their mantra is “No compromise.” In no way can you blame the ineptness of this Congress on Obama. From day one, the Republican’s only objective has been to try to make Obama a one-term president. To that end, they have let the country down with their political game playing.
Perhaps the President should have learned to compromise during the health care debate and the stimulus debate when he had large majorities and told Boehner he didn’t need to. “I won the election.” He said. He never learned that to get a little he needs to give a little. The President caused this impasse by his arrogance and intransigence.
Don’t you ever get tired of carrying water for the Teapartiers? I would think your arms are about ready to fall off.
The history is there, you just need to shut down the radical left wing noise long enough to look it up.
Give me one example of a Tea PArty compromise.
Give me an example of Presidential Compromise?
Extending Bush Tax cuts in return for extended unemployment benefits.
Both sides found common ground. Agreed. Good. It can happen, but more often than not this President pushes farther than he should.
The compromise happened in spite of the Tea Party, not becasue of it. There were still enough real Republicans willing to work with President Obama that the Tea Party core (the new 83 members elected in 2010) could not stop the compromise.
Anything short of joining the Tea Party and total agreement with everything the Tea Partiers want is not considered compromise. They do not allow dissagreement.
Neither does the left. Therefore Impasse.
Ridiculous. Democrats compromised all over the place with Republicans in the making of the ACA, to the point where many on the left were very unhappy with the final form. The fact that there were no Republicans who voted for it in the end only serves to prove that they were never negotiating in good faith from the beginning. You don’t force a compromise, and then withhold your support after your partner adopts your changes. That is a “false equivalency” argument that you are putting forward. And people understand that it’s just a debating ploy.
No They didn’t. The proof of lack of good faith was when The President told Boehner he didn’t need him. You reap what you sow.
When they shut down the tissue mill complex at the Old Town paper mill there was no warning. People showed up for their shift and were greeted by out of town security guards and told they would have to make arrangements to get their personal belongings out of the mill. When they decided to shut the whole mill down permanently in 2006,with no prior warning, my boss came into my office at break time and told me to pack up my tools and go home because they were shutting the mill down and planned to demolish it. Being almost 60 years old with 34 years of service it was quite a blow. Good luck finding full time work at that age. There wasn’t a whole lot of public outcry then. We did receive severence packages because it was a permanent shutdown. Temporary shutdowns and layoffs don’t get the same benefits. If the Republicans quit playing their stupid games there will be no sequestration.
I do not know the law in your situation. Federal Law with Federal contracts is pretty clear though.
if the dems have their way, every ‘plant’ in this country will be shut down.
No that would be Republican, Romney and Bain Capital’s philosophy, “No job is better than one in China.”
“No job is better than one in China.”
That’s true according to Jeffery Immelt, who’s has outsourced more jobs then anyone. And he’s also Obama’s “employment czar”, or some such title.
http://www.examiner.com/article/bain-capital-is-closing-an-illinois-plant-and-shipping-jobs-to-china
This is an example of a profitable company owned by Bain Capital having it’s jobs sent to China. The cpm[any is not losing money or in financial trouble, the only thing wrong with it is it doesn’t make “enough” profit. Today’s Bain Capital is just following the model started by Mitt Romney and still championed by him.
To add insult to injury the workers at this plant had to not only train their Chinese replacements but Bain Capital took down the American Flag and replaced it with a Chinese one while the Chinese workers were being trained. Bain Capital and all teh other multi-national companies have no loyalty to America, just the almighty dollar
There’s only one Vulture Capitalist running for President, and that would be Mitt Romney.
Michael – I believe you have a very important story to tell. Unfortunately, your story is exactly how those to the right want it to work. The demand for worker loyalty without the requirement of reciprocation. The continued demand to slant the playing field in their favor under the guise it benefits all – without the teeth behind it to ensure that occurs. You and I know this issue is not simply about notification. It is about notification that individuals are losing their jobs just prior to an election to create a perception that current political leaders are to blame. Nothing more than political gamesmanship.
If this was truly the concern, the true matter would have been addressed and the ceiling bumped.
They won’t be happy until the Republican party is eradicated and we have a single party system. Bet you can’t guess what that party will look like some day.
The current Progressives might as well be the updated Marxists.
so you don’t have an issue with unions? Or should laws be applied selectively according to what is convenient? I think this is the issue most folks have with this – it is very clear the Governor simply does not like the fact the President sidestepped the political trap which was set by the extremists by failing to address the matter.
Personally I see the President’s move comparable to that of Bill Belichick utilizing the nuances of the rules to his advantage – as the extremists attempted to do, except they just got out-maneuvered.
We’ll do it on Nov.6 at the voting booth, Bangorian. He will become a political nonentity in short order.
guess again
He won’t have to. Nov 6, problem will be solved.
I love how “personal responsibility” for conservatives always seems to involve pointing their finger elsewhere.
Sounds like that useless bunch of slackers we call a Congress. I think I heard one of the Repubs say their only job this year was to defeat Obama. Sounds like they just plain forgot who they work for. Too bad we can’t lay off the Tea Baggers in Congress!
That was Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader, who stated in February, 2009, that “The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”
Hard to get much done with obstructionist partisans like that fighting you every step of the way.
What about Harry Reed not bring one Republican bill to the floor for a vote and that is not being an Obstructionist?
Reed has the good sense to not waste the Senate’s time on bills that have no hope of passing, nor getting signed into law by the president. Unlike the House where they voted so many times to defund/repeal the Health Care Law that I lost count. Did they really think that had any hope of passing? Yet they sit on important stuff like the Farm bill (which the Senate did pass a version of).
Perhaps, but we know of at least one Politician who was fond of voting “Present” whenever the Annointed One didn’t want a voting trail to follow him further.
Relevance?
Fair question: The Topic Of The Day was about “leadership” provided by LePage in his letter to Obama. My response referenced Obama’s utter lack of anything approaching “leadership” while a State Senator… and for that matter, as president.
I rest my case.
You are the only person who thinks Reid has good sense.
Clearly not, as indicated by the number of likes her comment received.
Would you bring a Stripper to your Ten year old Kids Birthday Party?
Nope. It’s Congress’ mess.
keep telling yourself that
and IF he gets back in no matter what, you would would blame someone else. Hopefully he will not or their will be more problems. Yet still you would not admit it.
Only in your mind!
Indeed, and let the cuts begin!!
It’s about time the lazy baby boomers reaped the harvest they have sown…
Maybe you should clarify who you are calling lazy.
you are in your own little world carter.
16 trillion in debt and you and Obama want to put your head in the sand and pretend that we can go on forever borrowing .40 cents of every dollar you wastefully spend. Your gutless president and democratic senate hasn’t passed a budget in almost 4 years. Both parties are responsible period.
And yet you dance for joy at the wasteful many billions spent on the tax subsidies for big oil that Obama and the Democrats are trying to get rid of, along with tax subsidies for other corporations, no-bid military contracts, and on and on. Your Buddy PRESIDENT ROVE and his puppet-in-chief Bushy put two wars and a donut-holed prescription drug bill AND massive job-killing tax cuts for the rich all on a credit card thus exploding the debt and squandering the surplus handed to them by Clinton. Obviously there would be some more thanks to the Bush Recession which lost us 8 million jobs and the revenue that they generated. And your flip flopper Etch A Sketch lying pal the Mitt Twit wants to go right back to that. All they while, you right wingers dance for joy every time a US company goes to China as you whistle that “Oh, they need to do that to compete.” Right wingers are corporate toadie frauds. And as to “weakness,” Obama ordered the killing of Bin Laden along with many other high ranking Al Qaeda leaders, he has frozen spending, cut a trillion in spending over ten years, has a plan to cut 4 trillion more if the corrupt TeaPublican radicals would get out of the way, and also maintains the right investments we need to grow the economy which even with the TeaPublican obstruction has added over 5 million jobs in 31 straight months of increases. The WEAK, RADICAL, and BACKWARD THINKING TeaPublicans need to go back to their Neanderthal caves where they belong and let the grownups run things. And that means LeBUFFOON needs to lead that trip and drag his knuckles along the ground back to the GOP (Goofy Old Potbellies) cave. PS: We’d have had budgets had they not been blocked by the corrupt TeaFools. And you know it.
dems had the numbers to get stuff done the first 2 years Obama was in office and they couldn’t get along ,long enough to do anything,so stop the blame game and take responcablity for a failed president.He was given a fire and desided to put it out with gas.
They only had a supermajority for 24 Congressional work days in the first two years. During that time they passed the health care law. There wasn’t much time for additional items.
Hopefully, they’ll never enjoy another “supermajority” again as bad things happen when there’re no “checks and balances” in a system designed for compromise and debate.
Healthcare law what a joke, only because Olympia Snowe allowed it.
? Snowe voted against it.
She voted to bring the mess out of comm., she could of stopped it.
There were enough votes to bring it out of committee without her.
Bin Laden, should of been killed in the Clinton admin, 4 times. Anyone who would of been in office would of ordered his killing. Don’t forget NAFTA, who signed it. Obamacare how much takenout of Medicare to start something that isn’t right.
Budgets begin in the House! the Repubs won’t even pass the bills they originate if they feel Obama likes them. Maybe you think he should pass a budget without their approval?
thats a lie.
Keep dreaming.
“All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other Bills.”Article 1, Section 7 in case you didn’t read that far.
Anything that conflicts with the preconceived idea that Obama is at fault will be classified as a lie by the partisan trolls that populate this comment board. If they didn’t hear it on Fox News, it didn’t happen.
The next time you feel like calling someone a liar, check your facts first.
neither will the Dems hmm lest see the last Sentae vote on a budget was 97 to 0 So it belongs to all of them in DC
Maybe that’s because the Repubs keep throwing in an amendment for the repeal of Obamacare.
Obama had the house for two years and still no budget. They passed Obamacare without one GOP vote and none of the Dems. even read the bill. Just blindly follow the bosses orders. Obama doesn’t know how to lead and remember it was Obama during his first two years that told the GOP he didn’t need their votes. WHOOPS.
Obama sent the budget to Congess on time every year, including this one. Congress has not acted on it to date for this fiscal year starting this month.
The first two years you can blame Obama own party. They had control of the house and the senate.
They only had filibuster-proof control of the senate for 24 congressional working days. During that time they passed a lot, including the PPACA. Budget was not the highest priority.
How do you get a bill pased by the Repubs in the House when they even vote against their own bills? maybe that will change after the next election. Let’s hope.
I wouldn’t bet the farm on it. The power of propaganda is very strong, and so is the power of incumbency, backed by hundreds of billions of anonymous GOP superpac money, and Republicans have control of a large majority of state legislatures which have redistricted voting districts (gerrymandered) to an extent never before seen in history.
Remember the battle cry of 2010, to throw out all the incumbents? Well in Congress, everyone is up for reelection every time, but do you hear the call this year for throwing out incumbents? No, because Fox doesn’t WANT incumbents thrown out, unless they’re Democrats.
Budget? Congress has not passed a budget since 1997. Bill Clinton was in his second term.
The house has passed a budget dozens of times.
You have that right both parties are responsible for this mess, though all the Democrats can do is blame Bush. I guess no one has been in office for 4 years, doing absolutely nothing, the debt raised itself, and Amabassador is dead and dragged around. Reminds me of Somaia, a President not prepared.
Congress has not passed a budget since 1997. This includes the last three years of the second Clinton term, all eight years of the Bush administration and yes, the first term of Obama.
A bit over the top, besides being totally oblivious to facts. For instance, the democrats have yet to propose a budget in well over two years. Your party is losing, and the national embarrassment and fraud of ‘Obama the Community Organizer’ will likely be ended next month.
The budget canard again? Let me give you some actual facts.
The Obama administration proposed its 2012 budget on February 14, 2011.
President Obama proposed his 2011 budget during February 2010.
Furthermore, The 2013 budget for the fiscal year starting this month was issued by the president in February 2012. The actual appropriations for fiscal year 2013 must be authorized by the full Congress before the budget can take effect, in accordance with the constitution.
” For instance, the democrats have yet to propose a budget in well over two years. ”
Boy, aren’t you gulible!
Dumbert, you are missing the fact that Obama does not want the legally required notices to go out because it will negatively impact his re-election efforts. Pure political folley. You guys had your chance and blew it! Just a few more weeks and the adults will take over.
I love that ‘adults-taking-over’ thing. The Bushies tried using the same, pompous line just before that charade of an administration embarrassed itself on a weekly basis and made a mockery of U.S. statesmanship.
Do ya’ think 9-11 was ALSO the result of some silly “movie trailer” as Nobama’s minions were spouting for several weeks?
He’s sucking up to Islam so hard (which he was taught while living in Indonesia with his step-dad) that even Major Nedal’s “terrorist attack” remains a “workplace violence” event.
Sure, the Middle East just LOVES this excuse for an Administration!
Perhaps they’ll behead the Progressives last…
Adults? Do you mean send-it-to China Rumney?
you are nuts
Nuts is following the paradox of cuts and auesterity imposed by the Tea Party thinking that if you give all the money to the top you somehow create an economy with that— lop sided –equation.
It is the paradox of thrift whereas it may be good for the individual to save but in doing so in the aggregate it undermines the ability to EARN by stagnating the economy!
Nearsightedness –“My”-Opia is the disease of the Tea Party!
They are blinded by ideological Greed!
So I guess Obama’s racking up 5-6 Trillion dollars in debt in less than 4 yrs has nothing to do with any of our problems? His mishandling of the Benghazi situation in Libya where our ambassador was killed when he had been asking for more security personnel & was refused? His administration’s lies & failure to tell the American people what really happened – instead blaming a video that had nothing to do with the situation. You want to vote for someone like that, go right ahead. You’d probably be better off, however, getting your head out of wherever it is stuck.
so now he cares
What a lame attempt to make political hay out of an issue that your own party caused.
And what about all that “daylight” between LePage and Republicans running for office here in Maine?
Those candidates know a good thing when they see it — and, of that daylight, they can’t get enough.
Governor, just go away.
“LePage writes. “It is astounding to me that in a time of deep debt, you would spend taxpayer dollars to pay the fines of private companies rather than working with Congress on a solution to the sequestration problem.””
Are you kidding us Guv’nor ? Is this the first time you’ve heard of sequestration ? Don’t you have any advisors who read ? How about that publicity mouthpiece with the third grade education ? Work with Congress – really, are you kidding ?
Somebody – please – get this guy some help ! He’s making us ALL look bad.
“Seuestration” is a 50 cent word.
The Green Shirt people love Big Paulie, now over 310 pounds. That is why the Blaine Manson staff had to increase the food budget and more chocolate candy:)
President Obama is deliberatly violating the rules of the laws involving lay-off notices. He is doing it for purely political reasons. Were the notices to be sent to employees under terms of the law; the employees would be notified just before the election. Doesn’t take too much smarts to figure out the damage that would cause Obama. Politics before people; the Democratic Party way !
You sound like a pretty intelligent person. Why don’t you take Obama to court? I am sure you would win.
When haven’t the republicans not done anything for political reasons. The repubs do something its because its the right thing to do. NOT. When the democrats do something its the fall of the country. The repubs have nothing to brag about. Its politics as usual and both parties are doing a bang up job of it.
Relax and quit whining. Congress is still trying to work out a deal so they can keep wasting billions on Defense spending. There is a lot of uncertainty, so why should these people be given a notice if in all likelihood won’t lose their jobs?
No dear. Sequestration, if it occurs, will not take effect until well after the election. This change in rules regarding lay-off notices will not happen unless sequestration takes effect.
LOL, do you honestly believe that ANY sitting President of the USA has been in sitting at his desk going over lists of people to lay off? When they should be notified? I’m going out on a limb and guess not.
A clueless mass of pulp, that has no compassion for anyone, anything, bringing Maine as a State, to the deepest lows of humanity, his cursing and abusing those who are in need, caught in this hostile period of time in our economy, our hostile Governor, seemingly similar to Louis the 16th in France, the saddest days of Maine I have ever witnessed.
Get used to it if Romney gets elected. He was cut from the same die.
I was just wondering why Governor LaPage doesn’t send his party’s leaders a letter asking them to work with the President?
Whenever good compromises with evil, evil always wins.
I know, the Democrats should have never budged during those Bush years…..we’ve been paying for it since early ’08!
Guess we know who the evil group is: TPers in Congress.
And evil prevails when the good remain silent, which is why we “call” you out on your twisted thoughts. Step away from the bible and get a real education in the real world that your pastor is probably telling you is so bad.
Working with Congress? The Republicans have taken a “NO” approach since the President was elected. LePage again is trying help the Republicans politically.. LePage has done nothing for the State of Maine and time will show this.. He will never get elected again! This was the biggest mistake we ever made… LePage is the worst extreme of Tea Party Republicans! They are like a Cancer in the States and in Washington..Vote Republicans out of office.. LePage needs to go along with his cabinet and family members! Go back to Mardens where you belong. Maine can do alot better with out you! November 6, Vote against the Republicans running for office.
And what about the senate democrats, huh?
They went on and on about cutting the deficit for years and were integral in the entire debt ceiling debacle, now they’re worried about automatic cuts? That was the entire point — to force a deal. They’re trying to reneg on the one part of situation both sides agreed on — automatic cuts.
The automatic cuts don’t even seem that bad to be honest. Fiscal cliff? Seems more like a fiscal inconvenience.
This wouldn’t be neccessary but for the Tea Party GOP’rs in the House who do nothng but say no to any and every Budget that has been proposed, and are ready to be put to a vote. As much as LePage is a PITA on this one instance he is right. Obama needs to push this nonsense and get the budget resolved. But it also requires that the Moderate’s in the GOP grab their current party leadership and tell’em that of they don’t get off their keester’s that a potential mass defection is VERY possible. Imagine 25 to 50 House GOP members doing a Joe Lieberman and suddenly going either Independent , or worse, Democrat. Angus may not be as alone as he might think. And both Cantor and Boehner had better get their rubber duckie’s inflated ’cause that water’s are looking real deep, real quick.
Governor LePage, how would you respond to a person who has already told you to “Kiss his butt”?
‘As you sow, so shall you reap’
Maybe he was just trying to compromise and reduce the regulatory burdens on companies. Shouldn’t the good Guv be happy??
Porky should write letters to his GOP buddies and get THEM to put the country first for a change, and stop using his letter writing to the President as a publicity stunt; especially when these are the kinds of cuts he’s been all hot for all along.
Porky the puppet probably didn’t write any of these letters, charmingman. I’ve heard the man speak in public and it is embarrassing to watch. He can barely get two coherent sentences out when he ad-libs. This letter was written by the behind-the-scenes special interest groups he caters to and simply required that he sign it then alert the media.
It seems to me that the Governor would be advised to work with our Congressional delegation rather than grand standing with a letter to the President.
Lepew could care less about this. It’s just his latest example of trying to make a name for himself…his last hurrah before he and his “too-scared-to-buck-him” fellow Republicans are given the old Maine heave-ho on Nov. 6.
Reclaim Maine Vote Democrat 2012
LePage is a HYPOCRITE, and a ONE term Governor
Governor, why don’t you ask former governor and CEO of Bain Capitol, Mitt Romney why he is currently closing the Freeport, Illinois factory and sending it, along with the jobs to China? Romney is the major stock holder of over 8 million invested.
Romney during the debate accuses our President of sending jobs to China to hide the truth that he himself is doing just that!!!
Those American workers were made to train Chinese workers, who were brought in to that factory. The American Flag was taken down. This non-union factory operated at over a 500 million dollar profit this second quarter. They build sensors for the automobile industry.
Baine purchased this factory 4 years ago as part of their HARVESTING PROGRAM in accordance to their agenda for profiting off American workers, according to a tape shown on RV with Romney stating just those words.
American workers were fired with no severans pay, lost their retirements and health care insurance.
This news was reported last night, 10/19/20012 on MSNBC NEWS last night televised on the ED SHOW from Freeport, Illinois.
If any republican governor, including yourself supports Romney, think twice where your patriotism lies.
Maine deserves answers. As a Mainer, it would be hard for me to believe that you would support Romney, especially now these facts have been brought to lite.
Here’s the link.
http://tv.msnbc.com/2012/10/19/live-from-bainport-sensata-workers-protest-bain-and-its-corporate-values/
Thanks for your response. I watched in disgust the program from Freesport last night. As far as I’m concerned, Romney is a conspirator against American Workers. He is not a patriot, but a flip-flopping liar who is rude and has no respect for woman or man who comes from the working class in this country. He calls himself American. He is a deceptive rich degenerate who will say anything and do anything to discredit the worth of American workers.
It is really unfortunate that working people are too buy raising their families and only hear sound bites about Romney and Ryan that sounds good to them.
I followed congress the last 4 years watching 13 job bills blocked by the House. they blocked every single bill to help working people. Ryans big mouth steered Majority Leader John Boehner to stop our economy in its tracks because their agenda was as Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of the Senate stated the agenda was to make sure President Obama is a one time president. After seeing for myself and hearing it, then and there, I knew nothing would get done on behalf of the American peoople.
I watched it also If Mitt really cared about jobs he would have showed up when invited and explained why they are offshoring a plant that made big profits. The slap in the face is having to train the chinese to do the jobs when its shipped overseas. More “harvesting for profit” plus tax breaks for shipping everything overseas.
It’s exciting to anticipate that the liberal communists who post here will endure weeping and gnashing of their rotting dentures when Obama is fired for incompetence and duplicity by the American public! And even better! how they will scream bloody murder when the sodomites and their liberal enablers are instructed in a resounding peal to take their brand of perversion and resign it to the darkest recesses of Hades. Meanwhile… let them find encouragement on MSLSD and other failing media outlets who spew manure and “stuff” from the derrieres of prevaricators like Mr. Ed and Comrade Chris.
Judging by your response it is the conservative fascists who are weeping and screaming bloody murder as they try to sodomize all who disagree with their pathetically extreme right wing pandering while goose stepping to a Wagner tune.
“Prevaricators”, huh? Have you seen any of the past four years clips on your “Chosen One” that is currently vying for the Presidency? Not likely, since it appears that your almighty rhetoric is being fueled by the early pages of the King James.
So far, all that the TeaPublicans can come up with as a “plan” to solve unemployment is tax cuts. From 1993-1999, the top income tax rate was 43.7%. During those years we had Federal budget surpluses, the Federal debt was being paid down, and the unemplyment rate went from 6.9% down to 4.2%. Now the top Federal income tax rate is 37.9% and the only thing that the TeaPublicans can offer is the promise that if taxes were just lower, they would start hiring. What I’m seeing is a bunch of oligarchs and plutocrats playing a game of chicken with the people of America and it’s time that is stops. LePage came into office with the promise of “creating jobs.” So far the only jobs he has created have been for his daughter and brother-in-law while the state has lost a net of 5000. Instead, he and his right-wing cronies have been using smear, fear, and OUTRIGHT LIES, to try to push through REGRESSIVE policies and voter suppression. Come November, I hope the people of Maine politically neuter LePage.
Cranky, Please note that while the Top Marginal Rate was, indeed, higher in the 90’s, the list of both Tax Deductions and particularly Tax Credits was also much higher; leaving the net percentage of taxes owed to income earned was no higher than today.
If “voter suppression” means limiting your vote to a single time and location, or preventing non-residents from voting illegally, I’m all for it.
There was part of a comment here, but I hit the return button too soon. Guess I must have been fired up to make some pithy comment.
Obama is a dictator he says if you dont do it my way then we dont do it at all.
Excuse me.
What about corporations which have told their workers: “It’s either Romney and Ryan-or-I’ll close the plant.”
The corporate boss who told his 2,000 employees: “If Barack Obama is re-elected, I’ll close the plant and you’ll all walk.”
What about the miners forced to become a backdrop for a Romney political twirl with no pay, at the insistence of the mine boss?
Plutocracy at its worst. The rich rule and the workers tolerate, or, walk. Almost like a dictatorship wouldn’t you say?
Big money has taken over the electoral process in America. We pride ourselves on being free. Yet the freedoms we inherited are being slowly taken away. Voter suppression is common across the states, as the tea party clan tries to force low income and minorities to get ID’d or not vote. Attempts to stop registration on voting day was blocked by those of us in Maine who refuse to stir the tea for the party.
Everything Le Page has done over the past two years is in accordance with the tea party manifesto. Dissolve government, get rid of public schools, voter suppression -a la Charlie Summers- and kill wage bargaining by state employees. They’ve got a ways to go, because there are a lot of Mainers who just won’t tolerate a state dictator.
Governor LePage, please read the July 15, 2012, issue of Defense Journal. There is an article entitled “Firms Struggle to Keep Talent in Downturn.” Losing trained workers is harmful to businesses including businesses that provide for America’s national defense. If the WARN Act is followed, defense industries may indeed lose important workers. It is unlikely that sequestration will take place. Both sides have too much to lose. But in the meantime, those industries will likely lose those important workers. So Governor LePage, are you endangering America’s national defense to make a political point?
Here is a quote from L-3 Communications’ (an aerospace company) CEO Michael Strianese. “Employees will stop and think if we do the conditional WARN Act notice
that companies are talking about,” he said. “It may take your most
highly valued assets, employees, and make them start thinking about how
to pay the mortgage in six months. It may force things to happen that
you really don’t want to happen, and that’s not reversible. I hope
people understand that. It’s not fixable in the short term.”
President Obama is listening to America’s businesspeople and to those responsible for America’s defense. Governor LePage, are you?
Perhaps, but Nobama is also promising to violate American Law in direct violation of his own Oath of Office.
What law chooses –
– machine guns – over children?
you’re quite the legal scholar. thanks for the input.
ROMNEY / RYAN 2012 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Do you copy and paste this every time or do you hold down the exclamation point button until it looks right? You know you could actually say something.
Wonder if Lepage is on Romneys binder list.
Go Penguin go. He is really a crazy clown, that Barack Obama is fast and the Penguin is slow.
“Mr. President, you received a letter from governor LePage of Maine and it requires an immediate response” . ” Excellent, tell him to kiss my butt”.
How is anyone supposed to give 60 days notice when we all know the Rethugs will hold the country hostage until the eleventh hour, like they always do. Drama queens.
I thought that there were three branches of government. I can not see how the agencies list in this article can spend taxpayer money or even tell someone they will pay their fines if they do not comply. The problem is that no one in the respective branches is doing their jobs if so we would not be in this situation. This is not tea party driven. The whole bunch of them are at fault So go to your local representatives office and tell them to instill all the leadership qualities that they tout while out there politicing and get to work.
It is amazing how little LePage has been in the news this campaign season. It’s as if the Republican party has told him to keep his trap shut so they’d have a chance at re-election. Go figure. None of the Republican candidates has sought his endorsement. They know it would be a “kiss of death.”
By my unofficial but “looks like a slam dunk to me” tally, the Rebubs don’t have much support of their comments when the number of “Likes” are counted and compared. Seems like a better way of confirming for me that people actually are aware of the real reason that this has become an issue. I think it’s a hell of a chess game but it is really looking like Obama is going to be declaring “checkmate” when the obstructionists in Washington are having to face their own poor moves.
The comments here seem to reflect what, I believe, is wrong with our political system. There’s plenty of blame to go around for all politicians and both parties, but instead we waste time and energy trying to blame “the other guys”. Unless, and until, the voters make it clear to all politicians that we want solutions and not just finger pointing, we’ll still have the same gridlock and the same endlesss arguments over whose fault it is. One definition of insanity: doing the same things we’ve always done and expecting different results. Ultimately the American voters are to blame for electing these people and for allowing the situation to continue.
I blame the GOP for good reasons – in 2000 we had record budget surpluses that would have paid off most – if not all – of our national debt by now.
What was the first thing Bush and the GOP do in 2001?
Enact massive tax cuts to the rich which put us right back into deficits.
Then they lied us into a trillion dollar war – based on lies – in Iraq… and because of Grover Norquist, they cannot raise taxes to pay for their massive war spending.
So – if you are truly insane – vote for Rmoney and Summers.
You will get more of the same.
Yessah
Comment can’t be empty.
Romney wouldn’t touch our governor with a 40 foot blueberry rake.
Hypocrite. You can’t complain about federal cuts and at the same time encourage them by your policies.
Me, is all that matters.
Le Page, Romney and Ryan and the rest of the tea union, including the founders – Koch, are happily being cheered toward their goal of ridding the country of government, and creating a Plutocracy.
Soon, the Romney and Ryan supporters hope to be happily ensconced in their peasant quarters as they toil in the fields and in the stables for their lordships.
Le Page is the tea party’s wedge in Maine. Recently, after a series of bad entanglements he divorced himself and the state from the National Governor’s Association. Ironically, he now asks the president to reverse his position on the sequestration clause, ignoring the fact that Congress should take the lead.
But “Me” is all that matters to the tea party. This is the Spit and Screech Season for the Tea Party clan.
This guy has been a total disaster for Maine, arrogant, autocratic, and an embarassment Nationally with statements like “Kiss My Butt” NAACP He gave huge monies by tax cuts to the wealthy and now the coffers are looking so poor that we worry hgow we will survive and we have to wait 12 more months to get rid of this cancer in the enxt guba torial election…..I hope he and the entire Republican party get booted as well as Obama nationally.
henry reid and mitch maconnel both have to be booted from the national stage…they are obstructionists and illogical in their policies and in some incidents, malignant to the point of evil
What? Obama has not had a budget passed in FOUR years. Oh yes, blame it on the Tea Party. The House has passed a budget every year, but the Senate (majority are Republicans-not;Tea Party-Not)run and controlled by liberals have not passed a budget in over 1200 days. Wow, it must be Bush?-Not!
Perhaps it is because the House tacks on an Obamacare repeal amendment in every budget.
The last time a federal budget was passed and signed into law was 1997. Bill Clinton was President in the first year of his second term. No budget was signed into law during the eight years of George W. Bush’s administration.
How can a budget be passed into a law when the US Senate will not act on any bill from the House of Represenatives or the president?
Ask Trent Lott, Republican, Senate majority leader from June 12, 1996, to January 3, 2001, then again from January 20, 2001, to June 6, 2001, or Republican Senate majority leader Bill Frist from 2003 to 2007. Evidently they couldn’t get a budget bill passed and signed either.
The Governor has every right to be “disappointed” not to mention outraged with Obama. So does the entire country. To suggest the President’s performance is anything but a pathetic nightmare, is an understatment. It is painfully clear that most of the comments here are made by those still afflicted with “Bush derangement syndrome”, and “Tea Party paranoia” displaying little to no understanding that congress is being held hostage by the senate,(that would be Harry Reid, not Mitch McConnell), that hasn’t allowed a budget to pass for three consecutive years. Sadly, all the medical research has yet to find a cure for stupid.
But this “fiscal cliff” will solve our debt problem. It cuts spending massively and brings us back to Clinton era tax rates. Haven’t Republicans been harping about the debt for years now? The debt problem is about to be solved, so why are you against it?
800,000 jobs lost a month and a GDP crashing at -8.9% was the result of “Bush Derangement”.
Yessah
You know what’s kind of funny about this “fiscal cliff”? People aren’t thinking things through. All we hear is “we gotta get the debt under control.” And that’s exactly what will happen on January 1st if there is no action. We will go back to the Clinton era tax rates and there will be big cuts to government spending — those things combined will solve our debt problem pretty quickly.
Isn’t it ironic that Republicans are worried that our debt problems will be solved? They’ve been the ones talking the loudest about how big of a problem it is. The issue is that they don’t like how the problem is being solved. It kind of proves that their complaints haven’t really been about debt at all.
Even the most cautious economist and business leaders pronounce the “fiscal cliff” 01/01/2013 will spill a bare minimum of TWO MILLION citizens into the ranks of the unemployed, how could this possibly be good news?
“Cut government spending” has been the mantra. Government jobs don’t count — remember how the stimulus money was maligned? Why is the tune different now?
Whether it’s a government job, or a private sector job, increased unemployment begets more foreclosures, more bankrupcies, more pain and suffering. That is one of the real problems, what ISN’T being counted. The U6 index reflecting the under employed, and the hundreds of thousands that have given up looking for a job.
So why the sudden concern? Unemployment hasn’t been the mantra of the right and especially not what brought us the wave of Republican freshmen congress members — it was all screaming about government spending being out of control. Those detracting the stimulus bills and the jobs bills all had one complaint — government spending doesn’t create jobs, especially if it adds to the deficit.
The tune seems to change and it’s whatever complaint is convenient for the moment. It has nothing to do with real concern and everything to do with scoring political points.
The concern is “needless” government spending, ie: hearken back to Ross Perot (no fan of his), but he had a valid point on the government spending, $650 for a toiliet seat, $400 for a hammer, etc etc. Ted Steven’s “Bridge to Nowhere”. This is NOT a partisan issue.
Clinton, to his credit in ’94 realized he was beat, sat down with Mr. Gingrich & Dole and hammered out deals. They all rode out of town with a balanced budget and a surplus. There is a place known as “middle ground, and reasonable thinking” and we must find that place now.
Nonsense. We spend about a trillion a year on Defense and people like you want to argue that hammers and PBS are the problem. It’s ridiculous.
No, people like me argue the facts. One demonstrable fact is that, the “mantra” persuant to your earlier comment has always been JOBS on the rebublican side, during the first two years of this administation,when the jobs were evaporating. However with a super majority in both the House and the Senate, “we have to pass the bill before we know what’s in it” reigned supreme.Fideling while Rome was burning. More jobs, more tax revenue, more tax revenue less deficits, and reduced national debt. That is a fact.
You claim you argue the facts, but what I’m seeing is you regurgitating the talking points. Hmmm…
On the contrary, if your incoming revenues are less than your expenditures, for an extended period of time….odds are, if you’re an individul you’ll go bankrupt, if you’re a business you’ll be going out of business, if you’re the government, you’ll print more currency, that will eventully lead to hyper-inflation, delvaluation of the currency, and interest rates running amok. That too is a fact.
You strung together 4 different talking points in your previous comment. You don’t want a discussion, you just want to parrot what you were told.
Not talking points, facts, up to and including giving credit and laying blame on both the left and the right. All the while stating economic realities.
Sorry – after Obama passed and signed the Stimulus bill we went from massive job losses to job creation.
The jobs losses were Bush’s parting gift to the nation.
Obama saved us from a Great Depression – and the right can’t handle that.
Yessah
The right can handle it just fine on Nov 6. Please explain how guys like Mort Zukerman (publisher of U.S. New & World report), an ardent democrat, recently said, “One of the biggest mistakes I’ve ever made in my life, in retrospect, was supporting Obama”. He is just one of many disenchanted democracts with the same view. tr.v. dis·en·chant·ed, dis·en·chant·ing,
dis·en·chants
To free from illusion or false belief; undeceive.
Name some “needless” government spending that adds up to a trillion bucks.
Oh yeah – Clinton raised taxes and got surpluses – go figure.
Yessah
17 trillion LBJ’s great society, replete with welfare fraud. (The intent was to abolish poverty, yet the poverty rate has remained the same, 14.7%) .Hundreds off Billions in foriegn aid to countries that hate us. The shamless pork programs sponsored by both (D) & (R) and all the over-charging by any government contractor. The cumulative affect has had a disaster on our economic health.
Yeah – Rmoney and Lyin’ Ryan want to get rid of that LBJ era Medicare thingy.
Good luck with that.
Oh yeah – foreign aid is a drop in the federal bucket.
Try again.
DDG-1000 Zumwalt destroyers – that the Navy didn’t want.
Oh wait…BIW… never mind….
Yessah
And you’re happy about the 130 workers at BIW that are loosing their jobs? That’s 130 more votes for Romney (correct spelling for the spelling challanged) As for Lyin’Ryan…..one word response….Benghazi
“loosing”? – spelling challenged?
LOL
But Rmoney sez government can’t create jobs…
Never mind.
Yessah
Oh yeah – one word response – Iraq
Perhaps the President will in kind, tell LePage to kiss his butt.
Geez, I guess government really DOES create jobs!! Whoda thunk it!! Guess I better go back and watch some Fox reruns to see where I got off track with that silly idea. That Mittens, always pullin little zingers to see if we’re paying attention. (He’s such a cut up….or cutter..depending on where you’re employed!)
Dear Penguin:
It was YOUR Tea Party that forced the fiscal cliff crisis upon us .
It was YOUR Tea Party the threatened to allow the Federal Government to default on its debt – to save their stupid Bush era tax cuts to the rich.
It was YOUR Tea Party that agreed to those massive defense cuts.
Do not attempt to lay blame elsewhere.
Yessah
Well, Gov., more layoffs coming, Newsweek magazine just announced they will stop producing their printed magazine. I’m sure you can blame the Dem’s… Oh, and if the rich need money to produce jobs, you’ve had two years…
It was Newsweek…
It is Newsweek that is stopping production of thier magazine, the parent company was Washington Post,until they sold it to Sidney Harman in 2010 for $1. The demise of Newsweek was decreased demand.
We GOT this AND we’re keepin’ it!
Obama 2012
Gov LePage, here’s a way to prevent any jobs lost due to a budget that doesn’t get passed. Instead of admonishing President Obama, how about sending letters (texts, emails, phone calls, tweets) to your GOP buddies urging them to work on a bipartisan compromise? I’d do that if I was the governor of a state whose party is part and parcel of the reason nothing is getting done in Congress.
Uh oh, the pot & kettle are arguing again.
What bothers me is how can a sitting President, sworn to uphold the Constitution and laws of the United States tell companies to break the law? And, further, state that public monies will be used to pay fines for breaking those laws? It seems to me that I have been seeing example after example of LAW being broken by the Obama Administration. Fast and Furious? Lying to the American People over Benghazi and, once again, shifting blame anywhere other than the Presidency to which it truly belongs? The several mideast and African nations that had simultaneous Islamic violence occur on September 11th described as “coincidence?” Fort Hood designated “workplace violence?” Federal agencies, through administration decree ORDERED not to use the terms “terrorism,” or” Islamic fundamentalist terror” in reports or news releases?” And then, Obama giving Americans the “crotch salute” kinda tops it off for me…
Concerned about using tax dollars but is wasting our tax dollars.
Let’s hope this is simple enough to understand:
If you are not looking forward to complementing your retirement funds with Social Security, and also receiving additional help for medicines and hospital services from Medicare, or, Obama Care (Universal Health Care) – you need not worry.
Romney and Ryan have sworn to kill or strangle each of these programs in which people have contributed to, and continue to do so, even in retirement.
R&R have pledged an end to these so-called much appreciated entitlement programs, without which, many would be pan handling at the Bangor Mall.
Fortunately, Lord Ryan has pardoned those of us above the magical age. Not to worry, says his lordship. You will be spared….however. Pity those poor Baby Boomers, almost there, many hoping that their weekly deductions will help feather them over the pill counter, and past the doctor’s door. No way, say the “unbeatable” duo, you’ll get a Voucher and have to find your own doctor and pharmacy willing to give you a deal.
Seems simple enough to me and many more of my age. Why worry? All I can say is God help those unable to see beyond the this duo, whose promises to us 47 per centers are something like a pair of trousers, with no belt to keep them up.
Must be blessed with incredible fortunes.