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| 📷 Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, listens during a Senate armed services subcommittee hearing on March 14, 2023, in Washington. (AP photo by Alex Brandon) |
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✋ A Maine senator wants the high court to write a code of conduct.
◉ Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, answered recent ethical questions about Supreme Court justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch with a Wednesday proposal to mandate the high court to come up with its own code of conduct and appoint someone to review complaints to the court. Read it.
◉ Thomas and Gorsuch, two conservative members of the court, have been criticized for different disclosures over the last two weeks. For years, Thomas has accepted luxury trips from a Republican megadonor who also bought property from the justice. This week, Politico reported that Gorsuch sold property to the head of a law firm with lots of business before the court.
◉ Experts have said Thomas' conduct may have violated disclosure laws, although the justice has said he did not think he had to disclose the trips. Gorsuch's conduct does not appear to have violated laws or court policies.
◉ But the cases have highlighted the lack of a code of conduct for the high court, which stands in contrast to judges in lower federal courts. King's proposal, which is a collaboration with Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, aims to bring the court into line.
◉ "A healthy democracy requires trust: trust in systems, trust in institutions, and trust in leaders," King said in a statement.
💰 A first step on a federal budget will dictate Maine politicians' next moves.
◉ The Republican-led House of Representatives is expected to vote as soon as Wednesday on a proposal from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-California, to raise the nation's debt limit through next May in exchange for spending cuts that Democrats oppose.
◉ It has no chance of passing the Democratic-led Senate, and McCarthy may not even be able to get it past his own party in the House. But he wants to pass it to get leverage to negotiate with the other party and President Joe Biden, who has said the debt ceiling is non-negotiable. Practically speaking, the sides are going to have to get together on something before the U.S. defaults in June, something that has never happened.
◉ Among the key players on spending issues are Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat from the 2nd District. Both have said the president and House Republicans are going to need to negotiate.
◉ Collins is the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, while Golden is a centrist who put out his own framework for how the parties can resolve this. The issue lies with House Republicans and the president for now, but McCarthy's success or failure could draw these Mainers more into talks. |
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What we're reading
📺 After his firing, Tucker Carlson is appreciated in his Maine summer town. Read the piece from Bryant Pond in the Sun Journal.
🚬 New BDN reporter Billy Kobin explains how Maine may ban flavored tobacco.
🐶 Lawmakers spiked a bill to allow dogs in criminal court.
🔭 Drones helped spot seven people accused of illegally entering Maine from Canada.
👵 Groups scattered across Maine find ways to help seniors thrive.
🦃 A new era for Maine hunting begins this weekend. Here's your soundtrack. |
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