LePage, Collins and Maine GOP disgrace themselves and democracy

My dictionary defines “jackass” as a word for “a foolish or stupid person” or a “nitwit.” Former Maine Governor Paul LePage proved recently just how entitled he is to such a sobriquet (Is that word too big for you, Paul?) when he joined forces with Maine Republican leaders to stand firmly against the democratic principles that helped make our nation a beacon for the rest of the world

According to a report in the Lewiston Sun Journal, LePage and Maine’s Republican elite combined threats and personal pressure to force Derek Levasseur of Fairfield, who had mounted a Republican primary challenge to U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, to end his five-month-old campaign. Levasseur reportedly told the newspaper that LePage recently warned him to quit the contest because “I’m coming after you” otherwise. The Sun Journal also reported that, according to Levasseur, a young staffer on his campaign was told by the former governor to quit the team or LePage would “destroy” his political future. Levasseur also provided the newspaper with screenshots of messages he exchanged with Maine Republican Party executive director Jason Savage related to the GOP’s decision to cut off his access to voter data until he promised not to criticize the party’s leaders.

Levasseur, a backer of Donald Trump’s “America first” policies and a former police officer, had his own personal baggage when he announced his candidacy. He had been involved in a 2012 incident at his wedding reception in which he was charged with assaulting four people, including a daughter. At the time, newspaper reports said that he was charged with domestic violence and other counts of assault after the fight resulted in minor injuries. Levasseur reportedly blamed the incident partially on post-traumatic stress disorder, and after complying with the terms of a one-year deferred disposition on several charges, he has no criminal record resulting from the incident.

Whether one might or might not find Levasseur worthy of support for a seat in the U.S. Senate, it appears he followed the appropriate procedure to mount a legitimate candidacy for the nomination and Republican voters should have been allowed to make their own choice. But instead, LePage and members of the GOP establishment went after him. Many of us here in Maine learned during his two terms as governor just how repugnant LePage is capable of behaving, but in his zeal to protect Collins (who hasn’t even yet formally announced that she will seek re-election), the worst governor in Maine’s history achieved a new low, trampling on the entire concept of a truly democratic process.

Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/lepage-collins-and-maine-gop-disgrace-themselves-and-democracy/