PORTLAND, Maine — It was another busy week of politics in Maine and across the country.
From what the CEO of Central Maine Power has to say about the Question 3 victory to the commission formed for the Lewiston shooting to a date set for the New Hampshire Primary, our political analysts weighed in on the key issues.
CMP CEO speaks out after Q3 fails
CEO Joe Purington sat down for an interview with NEWS CENTER Maine one week after voters struck down Question 3. Purington avoided questions related to the political effort but said he is looking to continue to strengthen the company's reputation.
PHIL: "I think the fact that Central Maine Power Company prevailed in that vote was an opportunity for them to reset their relationship with the public. I would have been a little bit more humble, and I would have directly answered your question. They did spend a tremendous amount of money, but they felt they needed to do that to get their message out across the state, and they just should have owned it."
CYNTHIA: "You know, I thought the response by the CMP executive was fine. I mean, I think that the vote, the lopsidedness of the vote, the 70 percent of Maine voters rejecting Pine Tree Power, was it was a big win, and it was a big investment. And I also think that what he demonstrated is what a lot of people are looking for in leaders, and that is stability, strength."
Lewiston shootings commission meets this week
The seven-member commission formed by Gov. Janet Mills will meet this week to discuss how to investigate the response to the Lewiston shootings and what could have been done to prevent them. In the meantime, bills have been rolling in to be addressed in the next legislative session in Augusta.
PHIL: "[I want to] compliment the governor for constituting this investigation or review, if you will. We need to know in detail what happened when, what decisions were made. Why not? Not in an effort to play 'gotcha' with law enforcement or the governor but rather to make sure that we know what we can do in the future to prevent something like this from ever happening again."
CYNTHIA: "You know, it's going to be interesting to see this kind of concurrent investigation by the Maine State Police and other law enforcement agencies into the shooting alongside with this independent commission. And I'm curious to hear if Phil thinks that the chair of the commission, Daniel Wathen, at age 84, is too old. But we have some very institutionalized people in this independent commission that have a little bit of a political tone to it in the sense that they're mostly elected judges and just people instituted."
New Hampshire sets primary date
President Joe Biden is the first sitting president to not appear on the New Hampshire primary ballot. The Granite State official set its primary date for Jan. 23, 2024, in defiance of the DNC. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican, said he thinks it will hurt Biden's chances.
CYNTHIA: "You know, Joe Biden didn't need New Hampshire the first time around. And I don't think Joe Biden needs New Hampshire the second time around. And as the, you know, the head of the Democratic Party, there's only so much he can do. New Hampshire has a state law that mandates that they have the first primary. And I think this is a wink and a nod. Joe Biden's not going to be on the ballot in New Hampshire. But in South Carolina, you know, he will be on the ballot, and New Hampshire gets to do their thing, and South Carolina gets to do their thing, and we'll see how the cookie crumbles."
PHIL: "Well, you know, I think it's important to remember that we are represented to a Republic. Each of the states have their own autonomy, if you will, within the federal government and for the state of New Hampshire to say by law, as Cynthia references. We will have the first primary, and they're holding on to that status. Good for them, but it's not going to be without pain or penalty. My understanding is that the Democratic National Committee may restrict the number of delegates that New Hampshire can bring to their convention. So there's more to this story that will unfold."
You can watch Political Brew every Sunday on The Morning Report at 6 a.m. You can also catch it any time on NEWS CENTER Maine Plus.