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| 📷 Republican Sens. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, center, and from left, Susan Collins of Maine, John Cornyn of Texas and John Barrasso of Wyoming prepare to meet with Swedish media at the Grand Hotel in Stockholm on May 15, 2022. (TT News Agency photo by Anders Wiklund via AP) |
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🐘 The top Senate Republican didn't mention Maine in a rundown of top races.
◉ Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, detailed his party's plans to not "screw this up" in a recent interview with CNN about the 2024 election cycle. Poor candidate quality for Republicans and unexpected Democratic durability during last year's election left McConnell's caucus in the minority for the second straight cycle in 2022.
◉ Maine was a top battleground in 2020 with Republican Susan Collins on the ballot at the charged end of former President Donald Trump's era, but McConnell did not mention it to CNN with Sen. Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, likely to be on the ballot in two years.
◉ King has attracted the ire of Republicans in Maine lately, particularly after a list of "suspicious" accounts that his 2018 campaign flagged for Twitter was leaked in February. State Sen. Eric Brakey, R-Auburn, who ran against King then, has been the most vocal member of his party on the issue since that disclosure, but no big-name Republicans are making noise about running.
🔴 Republicans advertise against Maine's congressman on the debt ceiling.
◉ House Republicans' campaign arm released ads on Tuesday targeting U.S. Rep. Jared Golden of Maine's 2nd District and 34 other Democrats in closely divided districts on Tuesday for opposing a plan from Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-California, to slash spending and raise the debt ceiling.
◉ Golden has been one of the most outspoken rank-and-file members on the issue, urging President Joe Biden and McCarthy to drop hard negotiating lines and putting forward a centrist plan of his own that mixes spending cuts and new revenue in an effort to cull deficits.
◉ A long-awaited meeting between Biden and McCarthy on the topic comes Tuesday with the U.S. less than a month away from defaulting on the national debt for the first time in history. For now, the parties are insisting on their positions, which is leading Golden to be lumped in with other Democrats for Republican campaign purposes. A path forward may soon be clearer. |
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What we're reading
📁 The House speaker wants to shield court records of children accused of the most serious crimes.
📌 Bangor eyes aggressive action to force owners to use vacant properties.
🎒 More struggling Maine kids get clothes from their schools.
🦃 Most turkey hunters are using the state's new online tagging option.
🔨 A Maine man switched tags to defraud Home Depot of thousands of dollars, court records said. Here's your soundtrack. |
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