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News and notes
— At the center of furor over the leaked Supreme Court decision that would overturn Roe v. Wade, Sen. Susan Collins is poised to again oppose a Democratic effort to codify abortion rights that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, is expected to bring up next week. Collins and Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, two Republicans who support abortion rights, have called the proposal too sweeping. They have introduced a rival proposal to codify Roe's protections that they want a vote on, but Democrats see it as too limited. Collins is unwilling to break the filibuster and Democrats are unmoved, so the status quo is the likeliest bet on the topic as of right now.
— State Rep. Lois Reckitt, D-South Portland, floated the idea of a right to abortion in Maine to the Portland Press Herald this week. The problem? Three times in the last five years, Reckitt has been unable to win the needed two-thirds support in both chambers for an equal-rights constitutional amendment due to Republican concerns that it could enshrine an implicit right to abortion. An explicit one would be dead on arrival even in the current Legislature.
— There is a Maine political connection to this Saturday's Kentucky Derby. Among the part-owners of Mo Donegal are Augusta Mayor David Rollins and Keith Luke, the city's economic development director. The horse is owned by Iowa-based Donegal Racing, a partnership in which owners buy shares in different stables. Mo Donegal is tied for fourth in the Derby odds now at 10-1. But he starts in the foreboding No. 1 inside position, which no horse has won from since 1986.
— The Democratic Governors Association announced $5 million in TV ad reservations Wednesday on behalf of Gov. Janet Mills in her campaign against former Gov. Paul LePage. The group said it is "all in to protect our incumbents," while its Republican counterpart called the allocation a sign that Mills is vulnerable. |
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What we're reading
— ICYMI, the BDN's Caitlin Andrews has a delightful profile of the outgoing (but for how long?) Rep. John Martin. Stay for the never-before-told stories.
— A hunting group linked to rocker and archconservative activist Ted Nugent is funding a lawsuit seeking to overturn Maine's Sunday hunting ban.
— Sports betting will be legal in Maine. It may also take two years to go live, leading to tribal criticism of regulators' slow roadmap.
— Readers told us housing is a major issue facing all types of Maine communities. Help us fine-tune our coverage of the crisis. |
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| 📷 Lead photo: Sal Bartolotta of Bremen poses with his 2007 Toyota Tundra given to him by his father with the vanity plate "KISMYAS" on May 7, 2021. His license plate may be barred under a new Maine law to limit "vulgar" license plates. (BDN photo by Caitlin Andrews) |
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