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QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Going into a fiscal year that is struggling … I think the commissioners ought to take a stand.”

— Waldo County Commissioner Kevin Kelley, when introducing a motion that would bar commissioners from benefits funded by the county, salary increases or biannual pay bumps on an experience-based scale. 

TODAY’S TOP STORIES

Immigration authorities have rounded up Ecuadorian roofers from Aroostook to southern Maine since President Donald Trump took office. The trend provides a window into how his administration’s deportation agenda has targeted a community quietly shaping the region’s blue-collar economy.

An annual vigil honored the members of the Bangor homeless community who have died. This year’s ceremony fell on the eve of the deadline for a homeless encampment by the train tracks near the Penobscot River to disband.

A Scarborough-based drive-thru coffee chain is spreading across the state. Aroma Joe’s has been approved to open a new location in Bucksport, among other locations throughout central and northern Maine, in the new year. 

Waldo County’s three elected commissioners have cut their own pay amid budget woes. The county doesn’t know exactly how much money it’s spent or has in its undesignated fund going back several years.

NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE

MAINE IN PICTURES

A Christmas tree outside Bangor’s Hope House holds ornaments honoring Dylan Smith, Mike Carter, Rob Reed and Zane. On Thursday, the Bangor-area shelter held its annual vigil honoring homeless community members who have died. Credit: Annie Rupertus / BDN

FROM THE OPINION PAGES

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-New York, center, flanked by Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-California, left, and Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Massachusetts, arrives to speak on the steps of the Capitol to insist that Republicans include an extension of expiring health care benefits as part of a government funding compromise in Washington on Sept. 30, 2025. Credit: J. Scott Applewhite / AP

“We cannot control what Washington does. But we can control what Maine does.”

Opinion: Maine can’t wait for Washington to fix our health care crisis

LIFE IN MAINE

A thoughtful hunter stopped and helped a doe to safety after she had gotten stuck in a river tributary.

With the winter solstice in just a few days, here’s some ideas on how to mark the seasonal transition.

Ice skating on Bangor ponds gives a spectacular view of the icy winter landscape.