Ukrainian leadership is Zelenskyy Strong! Americans are thankful to the brave Ukrainian President for his leadership

Senator Angus King reacts to clash between President Trump & President Zelenskyy published on WABI-5:

Senator Angus King released the following statement:

“First, much was made in the Oval Office meeting by both the President and the Vice President that President Zelenskyy wasn’t thankful enough for US support. In every meeting I have had with President Zelenskyy and anyone associated with Ukrainian leadership, including a meeting with their intelligence services just this week, they (including Zelenskyy) have always begun with profound and heartfelt thanks for our support. It’s hard to believe that this did not happen in the private meeting that preceded the session in the Oval Office.

“Secondly, if you listen carefully, the point that Zelenskyy was trying make is that, based on history, Russia cannot be trusted to honor its commitments and therefore any deal must include some form of security guarantee to insure the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Unfortunately, our President insisted on talking over this point and refused to acknowledge it.

“Aside from the unpleasant tone toward any partner whose country has been fighting and dying for our values, President Trump’s concluding comments to the effect that we will abandon Ukraine if they don’t accept whatever deal he strikes with Putin (with Ukraine excluded from the process) completely ignores our vital interest in deterring unprovoked aggression, whether in Europe or elsewhere.

“I hope this unfortunate meeting will not detract from the pursuit of an agreement that ends the bloodshed, recognizes and protects the sovereignty of Ukraine without appeasing the territorial ambitions of a murderous dictator.”

Six months memorial about Lewiston Maine shooting and the shooters traumatic brain injury

Echo news from Senator Angus King of Maine:

April 25th marked the six-month anniversary of the Lewiston mass shooting on October 25, 2023, that took the lives of 18 innocent people and shattered all of us. However, even in the darkest of times, Maine people have shown unwavering strength and resiliency — coming together to support one another and help forge a path forward.

As we learn more about the events that occurred that night, we must determine the likely causes and address them responsibly. A recent analysis of the shooter's brain showed evidence of a severe traumatic brain injury. As an Army reservist, he worked as an instructor at a hand grenade training range where it is believed he was repeatedly exposed to low-level blasts.

Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) from explosive weapons — used both in the field and in training exercises — are affecting the health and quality of life of our service members and veterans.

So, together with my colleagues, we introduced the bipartisan Blast Overpressure Safety Act, a bill that will ramp up efforts to measure and treat the harm resulting from repeated exposure to blasts. This bill is a long overdue, common-sense step forward to expand access to care for those with traumatic brain injuries caused by their time in service.

Days after that bill’s introduction, I asked the Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth about the Army’s plans to better protect servicemembers from TBI at a Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing.

Lewiston Maine shrine of names at Schemengees Bar & Grille Restaurant

We owe it to the Lewiston victims and their families to expand research, provide care for TBI injuries, and follow the data and science of preventable brain damage. It’s the least we can do, and I thank my colleagues from both sides of the aisle for their work to address this critical and preventable issue.

Congressman is right to change view on banning weapons of war

Echo opinion published in the Portland Press Herald and The Post Star, a Glenn Falls, New York newspaper.

#TheNewYorkTimes reports:  "Representative Jared Golden of Maine, a centrist Democrat, called for a ban on assault weapons Thursday afternoon, reversing a long-held stance after 18 people were killed in a mass shooting in Lewiston," Emily Cochrane.

EDITORIAL:  In the devastating aftermath of the mass shootings in Lewiston, Maine, the Press Herald editorial board is calling on U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Angus King, I-Maine, to support a workable federal ban on assault rifles — however they wish to get there.

As a solemn attempt to weaken the sickening grip the threat of gun violence has on our families and our neighbors, as an acknowledgment of the consequences of decades of failure to take this action and as an act of faith in the future of our state, nothing less than an effective ban on the sale of military-style assault rifles can do.

No credible argument in favor of continuing to allow these guns onto store shelves and into our communities can be made or has ever been made.

Three of four, with Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree as the longstanding exception — until last Thursday night. Referring to "false confidence" in abstract ideas about local safety and control and "many other misjudgments," Rep. Golden stood up at a lectern and told the public that he had reconsidered his position on the accessibility of "weapons of war."

Among the memorable lines from the congressman's speech, one stood out to us: "Humility is called for as accountability is sought."

Humility is called for. In contemporary politics, any change of mind or approach is remarkable enough. In choosing to take responsibility for his failure, however, in explicitly asking for forgiveness and support from his constituents in the 2nd Congressional District, Golden went further than that. What we saw was a rare display of moral courage.

"Sometimes things happen that bring your worst nightmares to life," Golden said of his own tipping point, the mass shootings in his hometown that left 18 people dead.

Our reporting back in May, which followed the April shootings in Bowdoin and Yarmouth, was characterized as much by the delegates' reluctance to support an assault weapons ban as it was their reluctance to tell the public exactly why.

And yet, as the Press Herald reported in stark detail in May, three of four members of Maine's congressional delegation — Sens. Collins and King and Democratic Rep. Jared Golden — withheld their support for a ban, despite a majority of voters now strongly supporting it in principle.

The positions of Sens. Collins and King on an assault weapons ban are different.

Collins has previously explained that past proposals have been too broad. King has repeatedly expressed concern that the proposed bans he has encountered so far would be too weak, too easy for manufacturers to find their way around. The senator has instead been focused on placing limits on functional elements like high-capacity magazines and bump stocks.

In the immediate, emotional aftermath of a tragedy like Lewiston's, reservations about the content or form of any proposal to ban these weapons outright is particularly hard for us to accept.

Defenders of the right to access to automatic and semi-automatic rifles do the same thing when they wring hands about regulatory overstep that would deprive gun owners of choice, or quibble about what qualifies as a modern sporting rifle, as if it were a term that could not reasonably be defined.

The upshot of staying in the weeds is that our elected representatives have been at odds about what a ban on assault weapons should or should not look like for years on end. All the while, new assault weapons are being sold into our towns and cities — more than 20 million are now in circulation. 

That is not to say that there is not critical detail and definition that needs to be carefully negotiated. But at some point, and we firmly believe that point is now, lawmakers must set aside differing ideals and get real about putting an end to the availability of these guns.

Responding to the events in Lewiston, President Biden urged lawmakers in Congress to "end immunity from liability for gun manufacturers."

In calling for our senators to lend their support to a ban on assault weapons, we are urging the same. Until that happens, it should not be hard for anybody to say that these guns simply do not belong in people's hands. And how best to achieve that end? By instituting a federal ban on their sale.

Experiencing justifiable anxiety resulting from mass shooting slaughters

MaineBiz reports by Alexis Wells: For Mainers, a sense of trust and safety has been shattered, while parents may be unsure how to speak to their children about the violence and help them feel safe. Resources are available for those struggling with mental health or trying to cope with loss.

“The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) encourages anyone affected by the violence in Lewiston to reach out and connect with behavioral health support,” the department said in a statement.

Senator Angus King newsletter: On Wednesday, October 11, Maine the county were horrified by the terrible news about the deadly tragedy in Lewiston. 

And given that the murder suspect remains unfound, we cannot yet move beyond fear to grief.

Eighteen precious lives were senselessly taken during this shocking act of violence, with more than ten injured for doing nothing more than living their lives on a Wednesday night — and my heart is heavy for the families who are mourning this unthinkable loss.

I took the first flight I could get yesterday morning to do everything in my power to support the Lewiston community and everyone impacted by this tragedy. I met with the Governor, the Mayors of Lewiston and Auburn, city councilors of both cities, first responders and medical professionals — sharing my deepest gratitude for their exhausting work and commitment.

If you are in an area currently under shelter in place orders, I ask that you please stay indoors and report any suspicious behavior to local authorities.

This is a challenging time for everyone who calls this great state home, and I want you to know that my thoughts are with you right now. Maine is a big small town connected by long roads — and in times like these, we go the extra mile to look after one another and give comfort and reassurance in any way we can.

I also want to share a few resources below for anyone in need of support in the wake of this tragedy:

If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please call 911.

If you or someone you know is talking about suicide or feelings of hopelessness, please seek help immediately and call or text 988.

Teens and young adults can text The National Alliance on Mental Illness’ Teen Text Line at (207) 515-8398 for support.

Clinicians, educators, and first responders can call The FrontLine WarmLine at 1-800-769-9819 for support managing the stress of responding to disasters.

And if you are outside of Androscoggin County and looking to help the community during this time, please use this link to find your nearest American Red Cross blood donation location.

Please take care and stay safe,

Angus

Fentanyl Awareness free public concert in Portland Maine's beautiful Deering Oaks Park

Echo report by Aysia Reed for Maine WGME-TV in Portland Maine

PORTLAND, ME (WGME) - An afternoon filled with live music, connections, and awareness on how to potentially save someone’s life.  The program was co-sponsored by the City of Portland with the Rotary Club of Portland, Maine, to raise awareness about the Fentanyl Crisis.

Afternoon concert in Deering Oaks Park helps bring awareness to fentanyl crisis

Community members packed the event, all with one goal: to show support.  Ron Springel being one of them.

Deering Oaks Park in Portland Mine the location for the Sunday, May 7, 2023, Fentanyl Awareness Concert with the Don Campbell Band.

“Really allowing people to understand that they don’t have to live in isolation with their addiction,” said Springel, a community member. “They can come out and get the help that they need.”

Portland Rotary Club Members and the Department of Health and Human Services put on Sunday’s event at Deering Oaks Park to raise awareness about the fentanyl crisis in the state.

“Our main purpose here today is to save one life,” said event organizer Tom Ranello. “If we can save one life, we did what we needed to do. And we’re hoping that we can help people to better understand what goes on with fentanyl.”

Rotary Club of Portland Maine with (center) Don Campbell, the award-winning singer and songwriter who performed live with the Don Campbell Band in Deering Oaks Park on May 7, 2023.

Ranello says he hopes the information at the event will educate folks on the matter and how they can help.

Booths were set up with Narcan, guidance on how to get help, and resources to reach out to.

Surprise guest who attended the May 7, 2023 live concert in Deering Oaks Park was Maine Senator Angus King and his wife Mary Herman.  From left pictures Juliana L'Heureux (aka- Maine Writer) with Senator Angus King, President of the Rotary Club of Portland Maine Bruce Jones and Mary Herman. 

One of those booths is the Portland Recovery Community Center.

“We offer multiple paths to recovery,” said Laura Chritton with the Portland Recovery Community Center. “Wherever someone might be on their path to recovery. Whether they’re not sure, or they’ve been in recovery for years, wherever they might be, they’re welcome to come.”

Award-winning Singer-Songwriter Don Campbell performed with the Don Campbell Band at Deering Oaks Park in a public concert to raise awarenessa bout the Fentanyl Crisis.

According to Maine.gov, 77% of deaths due to drugs were caused by fentanyl in 2021.

Some attending the event have had loved ones struggling with addiction and are at the concert to show support.

Rotary Club of Portland "Rotarians at Work" (left) Paul Tully and Portland Rotary Club President Bruce Jones.

“One of my friends of mine had an overdose, her son, out in Seattle right in their apartment,” said William Higgins. “Luckily, they had naloxone there and were able to save her son’s life.”

Rotary Club of Portland Maine (left) Past President Laura Young, Past President Bowen Depke, and Rotarians Roxane Cole and Zach Newell.

“I’m a nurse and so I wanted to come, both to learn more, and how I can help the families I work with,” said nurse Sydney McMillen.

And this message was echoed throughout the event: the opposite of addiction is connection.

The Salvation Army provided free refreshments to the audience and accepted small donations.  

"Hate evil, love good and establish justice at the gate," Amos: 5:15

 Remarks by President Biden on Protecting the Right to Vote

JANUARY 11, 2022
Atlanta University Center Consortium
Atlanta, Georgia

THE PRESIDENT of the United States Joe Biden: 

In our lives and the lives of our nation — the life of our nation, there are moments so stark that they divide all that came before from everything that followed. They stop time. They rip away the trivial from the essential. And they force us to confront hard truths about ourselves, about our institutions, and about our democracy.

President Biden speech about voting rights, speaking in Georgia

In the words of Scripture, they remind us to “hate evil, love good, and establish justice in the gate.”

Last week, [Vice] President Harris and I stood in the United States Capitol to observe one of those “before and after” moments in American history: January 6th, insurrection on the citadel of our democracy.

Today, we come to Atlanta — the cradle of civil rights — to make clear what must come after that dreadful day when a dagger was literally held at the throat of American democracy.

We stand on the grounds that connect Clark Atlanta — Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and near Spelman College — the home of generations of advocates, activists, educators and preachers; young people, just like the students here, who have done so much to build a better America. (Applause.)

We visited the sacred Ebenezer Baptist Church and paused to prayed at the crypt of Dr. and Mrs. King, and spent time with their family. And here in the district — as was pointed out — represented and reflected the life of beloved friend, John Lewis.

In their lifetimes, time stopped when a bomb blew up the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham (Alabama) and murdered four little girls.

They [Time] stopped when John and many others seeking justice were beaten and bloodied while crossing the bridge at Selma, named after the Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan.

They stopped — time stopped, and they forced the country to confront the hard truths and to act — to act to keep the promise of America alive: the promise that holds that we’re all created equal but, more importantly, deserve to be treated equally. 

And from those moments of darkness and despair came light and hope.

Democrats, Republicans, and independents worked to pass the historic Civil Rights Act and the voting rights legislation. And each successive generation continued that ongoing work.

But then the violent mob of January 6th, 2021, empowered and encouraged by a defeated former president, sought to win through violence what he had lost at the ballot box, to impose the will of the mob, to overturn a free and fair election, and, for the first time — the first time in American history, they — to stop the peaceful transfer of power.

They failed. They failed. (Applause.) But democracy’s — but democracy’s visi- — victory was not certain, nor is democracy’s future.

That’s why we’re here today to stand against the forces in America that value power over principle, forces that attempted a coup — a coup against the legally expressed will of the American people — by sowing doubt, inventing charges of fraud, and seeking to steal the 2020, election from the people.

They want chaos to reign. We want the people to rule. (Applause.)

But let me be clear: This is not about me or Vice President Harris or our party; it’s about all of us. It’s about the people. It’s about America.

Hear me plainly: The battle for the soul of America is not over. We must stand strong and stand together to make sure January 6th marks not the end of democracy but the beginning of a renaissance of our democracy. (Applause.)

You know, for the right to vote and to have that vote counted is democracy’s threshold liberty. Without it, nothing is possible, but with it, anything is possible.

But while the denial of fair and free elections is un-democratic, it is not unprecedented.

Black Americans were denied full citizenship and voting rights until 1965. Women were denied the right to vote until just 100 years ago. The United States Supreme Court, in recent years, has weakened the Voting Rights Act. And now the defeated former president and his supporters use the Big Lie about the 2020 election to fuel torrent and torment and anti-voting laws — new laws designed to suppress your vote, to subvert our elections.

Here in Georgia, for years, you’ve done the hard work of democracy: registering voters, educating voters, getting voters to the polls. You’ve built a broad coalition of voters: Black, white, Latino, Asian American, urban, suburban, rural, working class, and middle class.

And it’s worked: You’ve changed the state by bringing more people, legally, to the polls. (Applause.) That’s how you won the historic elections of Senator Raphael Warnock and Senator Jon Ossoff. (Applause.)

You did it — you did it the right way, the democratic way.

And what’s been the reaction of Republicans in Georgia? Choose the wrong way, the undemocratic way. To them, too many people voting in a democracy is a problem. So they’re putting up obstacles.

For example, voting by mail is a safe and convenient way to get more people to vote*, so they’re making it harder for you to vote by mail.

The same way, I might add, in the 2020, Election, President Trump voted from behind the desk in the White House — in Florida.

Dropping your ballots off to secure drop boxes — it’s safe, it’s convenient, and you get more people to vote. So they’re limiting the number of drop boxes and the hours you can use them.

Taking away the options has a predictable effect: longer lines at the polls, lines that can last for hours. You’ve seen it with your own eyes. People get tired and they get hungry.

When the Bible teaches us to feed the hungry and give water to the thirsty, the new Georgia law actually makes it illegal — think of this — I mean, it’s 2020, and now ’22, going into that election — it makes it illegal to bring your neighbors, your fellow voters food or water while they wait in line to vote. What in the hell — heck are we talking about? (Laughter and applause.)

I mean, think about it. (Applause.) That’s not America. That’s what it looks like when they suppress the right to vote.

And here’s how they plan to subvert the election: The Georgia Republican Party, the state legislature has now given itself the power to make it easier for partisan actors — their cronies — to remove local election officials.

Think about that. What happened in the last election? The former president and allies pursued, threatened, and intimidated state and local election officials.

Election workers — ordinary citizens — were subject to death threats, menacing phone calls, people stalking them in their homes.

Remember what the defeated former president said to the highest-ranking election official — a Republican — in this state? He said, quote, “I just want to find 11,780 votes.”

Pray God. (Laughter.) He didn’t say that part. (Laughter.)

He didn’t say, “Count the votes.” He said, “find votes” that he needed to win.

He failed because of the courageous officials — Democrats, Republicans — who did their duty and upheld the law. (Applause.)

But with this new law in Georgia, his loyal- — his loyalists will be placed in charge of state elections. (Laughs.) What is that going to mean? Well, the chances for chaos and subversion are even greater as partisans seek the result they want — no matter what the voters have said, no matter what the count. The votes of nearly 5 million Georgians will be up for grabs if that law holds.

It’s not just here in Georgia. Last year alone, 19 states not proposed but enacted 34 laws attacking voting rights. There were nearly 400 additional bills Republican members of state legislatures tried to pass. And now, Republican legislators in several states have already announced plans to escalate the onslaught this year.

Their endgame? To turn the will of the voters into a mere suggestion — something states can respect or ignore.

Jim Crow 2.0 is about two insidious things: voter suppression and election subversion. It’s no longer about who gets to vote; it’s about making it harder to vote. It’s about who gets to count the vote and whether your vote counts at all.

It’s not hyperbole; this is a fact.

Look, this matters to all of us. The goal of the former president and his allies is to disenfranchise anyone who votes against them. Simple as that. The facts won’t matter; your vote won’t matter. They’ll just decide what they want and then do it.

That’s the kind of power you see in totalitarian states, not in democracies.

We must be vigilant.

And the world is watching. I know the majority of the world leaders — the good and the bad ones, adversaries and allies alike. They’re watching American democracy and seeing whether we can meet this moment. And that’s not hyperbole.

When I showed up at the G7 with seven other world leaders — there were a total of nine present — Vice President Harris and I have spent our careers doing this work — I said, “America is back.” And the response was, “For how long?” “For how long?”

As someone who’s worked in foreign policy my whole life, I never thought I would ever hear our allies say something like that.

Over the past year, we’ve directed federal agencies to promote access to voting, led by the Vice President. We’ve appointed top civil rights advocates to help the U.S. Department of Justice, which has doubled its voting rights enforcement staff.

And today, we call on Congress to get done what history will judge: Pass the Freedom to Vote Act. (Applause.) Pass it now — (applause) — which would prevent voter suppression so that here in Georgia there’s full access to voting by mail, there are enough drop boxes during enough hours so that you can bring food and water as well to people waiting in line.

The Freedom to Vote Act takes on election subversion to protect nonpartisan electors [election] officials, who are doing their job, from intimidation and interference.

It would get dark money out of politics, create fairer district maps and ending partisan gerrymandering. (Applause.)

Look, it’s also time to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. (Applause.)

I’ve been having these quiet conversations with the members of Congress for the last two months. I’m tired of being quiet! (Applause.)

Folks, it’ll restore the strength of the Voting Rights Act of ’65 — the one President Johnson signed after John Lewis was beaten, nearly killed on Bloody Sunday, only to have the Supreme Court weaken it multiple times over the past decade.

Restoring the Voting Rights Act would mean the Justice Department can stop discriminatory laws before they go into effect — before they go into effect. (Applause.)

16th Street Baptist Church, Birmingham Alabama 

The Vice President and I have supported voting rights bills since day one of this administration. But each and every time, Senate Republicans have blocked the way. Republicans oppose even debating the issue. You hear me?

I’ve been around the Senate a long time. I was Vice President for eight years. I’ve never seen a circumstance where not one single Republican has a voice that’s ready to speak for justice now.

When I was a senator, including when I headed up the Judiciary Committee, I helped reauthorize the Voting [Rights] Act three times. We held hearings. We debated. We voted. I was able to extend the Voting Rights Act for 25 years.

In 2006, the Voting Rights Act passed 390 to 33 in
the House of Representatives and 98 to 0 in the Senate with votes from 16 current sitting Republicans in this United States Senate. Sixteen of them voted to extend it.

The last year I was chairman, as some of my friends sitting down here will tell you, Strom Thurmond voted to extend the Voting Rights Act. Strom Thurmond.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Wow.

THE PRESIDENT: You can say that again: “Wow.” You have no idea how damn ha- — how darn hard I worked on that one. (Laughter and applause.)

But, folks, then it was signed into law, the last time, by President George W. Bush.

You know, when we got voting rights extended in the 1980s, as I’ve said, even Thurmond supported it. Think about that. The man who led the longest filibu- — one of the longest filibusters in history in the United States Senate in 1957 against the Voting Rights Act [Civil Rights Act]. The man who led and sided with the old Southern Bulls in the United States Senate to perpetuate segregation in this nation. Even Strom Thurmond came to support voting rights.

But Republicans today can’t and won’t. Not a single Republican has displayed the courage to stand up to a defeated president to protect America’s right to vote. Not one. Not one.

We have 50-50 in the United States Senate. That means we have 51 presidents. (Laughter.) You all think I’m kidding. (Laughter.)

I’ve been pretty good at working with senators my whole career. But, man, when you got 51 presidents, it gets harder. Any one can change the outcome.

Sadly, the United States Senate — designed to be the world’s greatest deliberative body — has been rendered a shell of its former self. It gives me no satisfaction in saying that, as an institutionalist, as a man who was honored to serve in the Senate.

But as an institutionalist, I believe that the threat to our democracy is so grave that we must find a way to pass these voting rights bills, debate them, vote.

Let the majority prevail. (Applause.) And if that bare minimum is blocked, we have no option but to change the Senate rules, including getting rid of the filibuster for this. (Applause.)

You know, last year, if I’m not mistaken, the filibuster was used 154 times. The filibuster has been used to generate compromise in the past and promote some bipartisanship. But it’s also been used to obstruct — including and especially obstruct civil rights and voting rights.

And when it was used, senators traditionally used to have to stand and speak at their desks for however long it took, and sometimes it took hours. And when they sat down, if no one immediately stood up, anyone could call for a vote or the debate ended.

But that doesn’t happen today. Senators no longer even have to speak one word. The filibuster is not used by Republicans to bring the Senate together, but to pull it further apart.

The filibuster has been weaponized and abused.

While the state legislatures’ assault on voting rights is simple — all you need in your House and Senate is a pure majority — in the United States Senate, it takes a supermajority: 60 votes, even to get a vote — instead of 50 — to protect the right to vote.

State legislatures can pass anti-voting laws with simple majorities. If they can do that, then the United States Senate should be able to protect voting rights by a simple majority. (Applause.)

Today I’m making it clear: To protect our democracy, I support changing the Senate rules, whichever way they need to be changed — (applause) — to prevent a minority of senators from blocking action on voting rights. (Applause.)

When it comes to protecting majority rule in America, the majority should rule in the United States Senate.

I make this announcement with careful deliberation, recognizing the fundamental right to vote is the right from which all other rights flow.

And I make it with an appeal to my Republican colleagues, to those Republicans who believe in the rule of law: Restore the bipartisan tradition of voting rights.

The people who restored it, who abided by it in the past were Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush. They all supported the Voting Rights Act.

Don’t let the Republican Party morph into something else. Restore the institution of the Senate the way it was designed to be.

Senate rules were just changed to raise the debt ceiling so we wouldn’t renege on our debt for the first time in our history and prevent an economic crisis. That was done by a simple majority.

As Senator Warnock said a few weeks ago in a powerful speech: If we change the rules to protect the full faith and credit of the United States, we should be able to change the rules to protect the heart and soul of our democracy. (Applause.) He was right.

In the days that followed John Lewis’s death, there was an outpouring of praise and support across the political spectrum.

But as we stand here today, it isn’t enough just to praise his memory. We must translate eulogy into action. We need to follow John Lewis’s footsteps. We need to support the bill in his name.

Just a few days ago, we talked about — up in the Congress and in the White House — the event coming up shortly to celebrate Dr. King’s birthday. And Americans of all stripes will praise him for the content of his character.

But as Dr. King’s family said before, it’s not enough to praise their father. They even said: On this holiday, don’t celebrate his birthday unless you’re willing to support what he lived for and what he died for. (Applause.)

The next few days, when these bills come to a vote, will mark a turning point in this nation’s history.

We will choose — the issue is: Will we choose democracy over autocracy, light over shadows, justice over injustice?

I know where I stand. I will not yield. I will not flinch. I will defend the right to vote, our democracy against all enemies — foreign and, yes, domestic. (Applause.)

And the question is: Where will the institution of the United States Senate stand? Every senator — Democrat, Republican, and independent — will have to declare where they stand, not just for the moment, but for the ages.

Will you stand against voter suppression? Yes or no? That’s the question they’ll answer. Will you stand against election subversion? Yes or no? Will you stand for democracy? Yes or no?

And here’s one thing every senator and every American should remember: History has never been kind to those who have sided with voter suppression over voters’ rights. And it will be even less kind for those who side with election subversion.

So, I ask every elected official in America: How do you want to be remembered?

At consequential moments in history, they present a choice: Do you want to be the si- — on the side of Dr. King or George Wallace? Do you want to be on the side of John Lewis or Bull Connor? Do you want to be on the side of Abraham Lincoln or Jefferson Davis?

This is the moment to decide to defend our elections, to defend our democracy. (Applause.)

And if you do that, you will not be alone. That’s because the struggle to protect voting rights has never been borne by one group alone.

We saw Freedom Riders of every race. Leaders of every faith marching arm in arm. And, yes, Democrats and Republicans in Congress of the United States and in the presidency.

I did not live the struggle of Douglass, Tubman, King, Lewis, Goodman, Chaney, and Schwerner, and countless others — known and unknown.

I did not walk in the shoes of generations of students who walked these grounds. But I walked other grounds. Because I’m so damn old, I was there as well. (Laughter.)

You think I’m kidding, man. (Laughter.) It seems like yesterday the first time I got arrested. Anyway — (laughter).

But their struggles here — they were the ones that opened my eyes as a high school student in the late — in the late ’50s and early ’60s. They got me more engaged in the work of my life.

And what we’re talking about today is rooted in the very idea of America — the idea that Annell Ponder, who graduated
from Clark Atlanta, captured in a single word. She was a teacher and librarian who was also an unyielding champion of voting rights.

In 1963 — when I was just starting college at university — after registering voters in Mississippi, she was pulled off a bus, arrested, and jailed, where she was brutally beaten.

In her cell, next to her, was Fannie Lou Hamer, who described the beating this way, and I quote: “I could hear the sounds of [the] licks and [the] horrible screams…They beat her, I don’t know [for] how long. And after a while, she began to pray, and asked God to have mercy on those people.”

Annell Ponder’s friends visited her the next day. Her face was badly swollen. She could hardly talk.

But she managed to whi- — whisper one word: “Freedom.” “Freedom” — the only word she whispered.

After nearly 250 years since our founding, that singular idea still echoes. But it’s up to all of us to make sure it never fades, especially the students here — your generation that just started voting — as there are those who are trying to take away that vi- — vote you just started to be able to exercise.

But the giants we honor today were your age when they made clear who we must be as a nation. Not a joke. Think about it. In the early ’60s, they were sitting where you’re sitting. They were you. And like them, you give me much hope for the future.

Before and after in our lives — and in the life of the nation — democracy is who we are, who we must be — now and forever. So, let’s stand in this breach together. Let’s love good, establish justice in the gate.

And remember, as I said, there is one — this is one of those defining moments in American history: Each of those who vote will be remembered by class after class, in the ’50s and ’60s — the 2050s and ’60s. Each one of the members of the Senate is going to be judged by history on where they stood before the vote and where they stood after the vote.

There’s no escape. So, let’s get back to work.

As my fath- — my grandfather Finnegan used to say every time I walked out the door in Scranton, he’d say, “Joey, keep the faith.” Then he’d say, “No, Joey, spread it.”

Let’s spread the faith and get this done. (Applause.)

May God bless you all. And may God protect the sacred right to vote. (Applause.) Thank you. I mean it. Let’s go get this done. Thank you. (Applause.)

*"In Maine, we have no voter ID laws, we have same day registration, we have no-excuse absentee voting, we have mail-in voting, we have early voting, we have 24/7 drop boxes. And we have virtually no fraud. Expanding ballot access doesn't encourage fraud; it encourages VOTING," Senator Angus King.

Chris Christie as Trump apologist

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has an obsession with Donald Trump.  He has become a Trumpian apologist. In boisterous political style, he speaks out of both sides of his mouth.

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie

"But our leaders of today have decided it's more important to be popular, to say and do what's easy, and say yes rather than to say no, when no is what is required," Chris Christie. (Maine Writer: "If only.....")

The only fraud in the 2020, presidential election is the false allegation that it was fraudulent! (Quote attributed to Maine Senator Angus King.)

This following echo opinion was published in The New Yorker by David Remnick:

For a long time now, the American electorate has been resigned to a “permanent campaign,” an unceasing carnival of exploratory committees, chicken dinners, and cable excitements. The 2024, campaign for the Presidency is unique in that it kicked off at around 2 a.m. on November 4, 2020, with a brazen act of seditious rhetoric broadcast live from the East Room of the White House.

With the outcome still in question, Donald Trump declared “fraud.” And, when all the votes were counted with Biden as the winner, Trump set about fomenting the insurrection that ended with a mob of his delusional loyalists storming the U.S. Capitol.

Trump remains unapologetic, even serene, about those events. He told the journalist Jonathan Karl that he recalls January 6th as “a very beautiful time with extremely loving and friendly people.” Five people died as a result of that “very beautiful” moment, and nearly seven hundred of the “loving” marauders have been charged with various crimes. No matter. Just as pro-slavery Southerners refused to accept Lincoln as their President after the election of 1860, millions of Americans have been convinced by Trump and the social-media swamp that Joe Biden’s Presidency is illegitimate.

Even as Trump is threatened with prosecution, he could run again. And he could win. Or he might step aside for one of his maximalist imitators: Ron DeSantis, of Florida; Josh Hawley, of Missouri; Ted Cruz or Greg Abbott, of Texas. The recent gubernatorial race in Virginia, however, hints at another sort of Republican future. Glenn Youngkin, a demi-billionaire, who made his pile in private equity, defeated the Democrat, Terry McAuliffe, an echt Clintonian, by carrying out a shrewd strategy of maga lite. Youngkin, a sober cynic, recognized that, in a state such as Virginia—which went for George W. Bush twice, then Barack Obama twice, then Hillary Clinton, in 2016, and Biden, in 2020—he would do well to gesture in Trump’s direction without mimicking his most lurid tactics. Youngkin never quite endorsed Trump’s election-conspiracy theory but said that he would vote for him if he got the Republican nomination in 2024, and that he was all for “election integrity.” He made a point of vowing to ban critical race theory in schools, even though it’s not part of the state’s curriculum. This kind of slick signalling allowed him to hold on to the Trumpian purists in rural areas, while luring back just enough swing voters in the suburbs. Youngkin beat McAuliffe by two per cent in a state that, just a year before, Biden won by ten.Last week, Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, published “Republican Rescue,” a book that seeks, in effect, to take the Youngkin strategy national. Many erstwhile members of the Trump circle have written books or blabbed to receptive journalists in the hope of cleansing their reputations. Christie is going to the literary laundromat because he may want to run for President in 2024. It’s hard to see how he has enough detergent.

Chris Christie’s hypocritical transformation

Christie has been Trump’s friend, dinner companion, and adviser for two decades. He endorsed Trump early, wrote memos for him, prepped him for debates with Clinton, and encouraged him to appoint right-wing judges and to follow the path of America First. He ran Trump’s transition team—until Jared Kushner and Steve Bannon pushed him out. In fact, he writes, “very few people were as publicly invested in the success of Donald Trump as I was.” (Maine Writer: Obsession?)

Christie wants Republicans to accept him as the one member of Trump’s circle who always gave him unvarnished advice, who was always out for the good of the country and the Administration, never for himself: “I told him hard truths when no one else would.” 

But, the portrait he paints of his friend is laughably selective. He ignores or doesn’t much care about the racism, the cruelty, the assault on voting rights, the authoritarian impulses. He describes Trump’s fits and furies as quirky charm—“norm-busting behavior.” As governor, Christie revelled in his own tantrums. And so, when he allows that he admires Trump’s “let-’em-squirm fearlessness,” he is also admiring himself.

Christie finally reaches his limit when Trump refuses to accept the election results and helps provoke the January 6th insurrection. Not that Christie, for all his insider status, had thought it was in Trump’s character to do so. The night before the election, he assured a Canadian interviewer that Trump and Biden were “both responsible men” and that, should Biden win, there was “no question in my mind that President Trump will participate in a peaceful transition of power.” Rather than admitting that he was wrong all along about Trump, he touts his own bravery when he tells George Stephanopoulos, on ABC, that “I disagree” with Trump’s seditious course. This is rather like disagreeing with the assault on Fort Sumter.

Christie is a canny narrator. He maintains over-all fealty to Trump, but wants you to know that he understands what kind of human being Trump is. In the waning months of the Administration, Christie was invited to the White House to attend the Rose Garden introduction of Amy Coney Barrett as a Supreme Court nominee and to help prepare Trump for a debate with Biden. Christie confirms how heedless Trump and his Administration were about COVID—masks were scorned in the White House—and, predictably, many officials and visitors, including Trump and Christie, got sick. While Trump was hospitalized at Walter Reed, he called Christie, who was suffering at a hospital in New Jersey. The President wanted to know one thing: “Are you gonna say you got it from me?”

Christie doesn’t blame Trump. He doesn’t dare. He lets him off the hook. “And that was the last call I got in the hospital from Donald Trump,” he writes.

Christie will never say bluntly what he knows to be true: that Trump’s Presidency had dire consequences for the country. Trump was impeached twice, yet Christie does not grapple much with that record. Instead, he insists that the Republicans must look forward. They must part ways with the militia crazies and the conspiracy theorists, to be sure, but above all they must wage battle with Biden, an “anticapitalist” who is imposing critical race theory on “unsuspecting” children. The climate catastrophe, the menace of authoritarianism at home and around the world—the biggest challenges that we face seem to interest Christie no more than they do the political party he hopes to lead. In “Republican Rescue,” he is asking the G.O.P. to support him because he was by Trump’s side until the ugly coda, when he wasn’t. The campaign slogan that comes out of this book might as well be “Vote for Chris Christie. Saner than Rudolph Giuliani.” Not exactly “Tippecanoe and Tyler too,” but it’s what he’s got. 

Published in the print edition of the November 29, 2021, issue, with the headline “Reputation Laundering.”

What are scaredy-cat Republicans afraid of?

Maine's Senator Angus King's statement about the Senate GOP blocking the creation of a bipartisan 1/6 Commission Legislation.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King issued the following statement after the majority of the Senate Republicans voted to block bipartisan legislation that would create a bipartisan commission that would examine the facts surrounding the Capitol insurrection of January 6th:

“On January 6th, the world watched as those who sought to interfere with and invalidate our electoral process attacked the U.S. Capitol, leaving law enforcement officers dead and injured in the wake of their insurrection,” said Senator King. “This was one of the darkest moments in American history, the worst attack on our democracy since the Civil War, and we need to understand what went wrong so we can prevent similar crises in the future. This bipartisan legislation was negotiated by both parties in the House, and is closely modeled after the successful, bipartisan commission that was created to uncover facts surrounding the September 11th, attacks.

“However, and obviously, the majority of my Senate Republican colleagues made it clear that they have little interest in looking at the facts; instead, they’d rather ignore or minimize the whole event.

Moreover, some of them have openly acknowledged that they think this commission would be bad for their political messaging, but what is the message we send to enemies of democracy, at home or abroad, by failing to ask hard questions and confront the truth? 

When people are moving heaven and earth to block an investigation, you’ve got to ask what it is they’re afraid will be revealed.”

Protecting health care workers during the coronavirus pandemic and beyond

 A letter received from Senator Angus King of Maine:

Senator Angus King of Maine

Dear Juliana,

One of our top priorities in the battle against coronavirus should be protecting all healthcare providers, including physicians, nurse practitioners, physician’s assistants, pharmacists, medical students, nurses and home-care workers while they care for us during this pandemic. This virus has put us into a new healthcare frontier and the way I see it, we should be utilizing healthcare expertise from all relevant fields to combat it. I was pleased that the most recent economic stimulus package contains provisions to help medical students and small business healthcare providers receive financial support during this time, including small business loans, student loan payments and interest deferrals, and retirement account withdrawals.

To help keep our providers safe, I joined a number of my Senate colleagues in a letter urging President Trump to invoke his authority under the Defense Production Act powers to help address widespread shortages of medical equipment, including personal protective equipment, diagnostic test kits, and lifesaving ventilators. He did so within a day of his receipt of the letter. I also worked with the rest of the Maine delegation to urge the rapid disbursement of protective equipment from the Strategic National Stockpile that was funded in the recent stimulus package. Additionally, I have been focusing on finding ways to increase access to healthcare even as we socially distance ourselves, and I worked with my colleagues to ask the Federal Communications Commission and the Senate Appropriations Committee to prioritize funding for telehealth initiatives. I also cosponsored the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act, S. 4349, which provides much needed support to address the mental health and well-being of health care professionals.

I am extremely disappointed, however, at the slow and somewhat confusing actions of the Administration in taking the steps necessary to successfully fight the pandemic. Although, as noted, the President invoked the Defense Production Act, he has been reluctant to use it effectively to provide the necessary resources to fill gaps in PPE, test kits, and other scarce supplies. In addition, the President’s inconsistent statements in his daily press briefings with regard to opening the economy have led to confusion among our citizens as to the seriousness of the virus and the importance of maintaining precautions such as social distancing. I fear the statements exacerbate the spread and prolong the period we are now in.

We have a responsibility to do right by those who are undertaking great personal risks to fulfill their professional duties and protect their communities, and I’m glad to see meaningful plans coming together to take better care of each of them. I appreciate your input and support on this matter, and I will continue to look for opportunities in future legislation to further ensure we are properly protecting all healthcare providers and utilizing all medical experts during this pandemic. 

Best Regards,

ANGUS S. KING, JR.
United States Senator

Donald Trump's latest coronavirus political stunt is "unconstitutional slop"- In other words "nothing burger"

Senator Angus King of Maine Challenges President’s Executive Order 

King: "Donald Trump is attempting to use powers he doesn’t have to push a relief plan that won’t work”

Statement from the Senator Angus King newsroom:
Senator Ben Sasse a Republican from Nebraska called Donald Trump's irresponsible executive action "unconstitutional slop".

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement, criticizing the President’s executive orders on unemployment insurance and the payroll tax as a severe overreach of executive power, which will also fail to meaningfully address the challenges facing the American people:

“In the midst of one the most serious economic and health crises in a century, Donald Trump is attempting to use powers he doesn’t have to push a relief plan that won’t work.

“If the President’s unconstitutional executive orders are allowed to proceed, they would accelerate the erosion of Congress’s fundamental powers and lead us further down the path to the undermining of the American experiment in self-governance. This maneuver effectively ignores our system of checks and balances – and Congress retaining the power of the purse –and instead is moving us toward an elected monarchy. I wonder if those who cheer this action now will feel the same when a Democratic president wields these kinds of powers based upon this precedent.

“The legality of these orders is far from their only flaw – critically, they just won’t work.

“President Trump’s order, for example, would provide $300 of federal funding for unemployment benefits, cutting the current lifeline of struggling Americans who have been counting on these funds just to keep a roof over their head, food on the table, and their bills paid. The money in this shell game comes from emergency funds already set aside for natural disaster response, so when the next hurricane hits, this cupboard will be bare.

“The order also calls for states to contribute $100 to the enhanced unemployment benefits; these are the same local governments nationwide confronting dire deficits as they face a steep decline in tax revenues from lack of commercial activity. Our states and municipalities desperately need relief, not additional expenses. States will either ignore this baseless order, or hasten their spiral into financial insolvency without federal aid through a real coronavirus relief package. The result will be cuts to essential services and massive layoffs in state and local governments; not exactly helpful heading into a recession.

“And then there’s the suspension of the payroll tax, which, by its very nature, will only benefit people who have jobs – and, by the way, is being funded by taking money away from Medicare and Social Security. Seniors, take note.

“These orders are the latest unserious approach to a deadly serious problem. From the Administration’s ineffective leadership to get the virus under control to Mitch McConnell’s decision to wait to start bipartisan negotiations until the week before these vital benefits were set to expire, these failures of federal leadership are inexcusable, especially at the very moment we need it most.

“Finally, the President’s low-octane posturing does nothing, nada, zip, to support still-hurting small businesses, help school districts struggling with the added costs of coping with the pandemic, address the looming insolvency of the Postal Service, mitigate the continuing strain on our healthcare system, or improve our woefully ineffective national testing program.

“The House of Representatives passed the HEROES Act on May 15th, which should have opened negotiations but continues to collect dust on the Majority Leader’s desk to this very day. The American people are hurting – let’s cut the games, negotiate in good faith for the people who sent us here, and help them weather this storm. I am urging all parties to go to the table and resume good-faith negotiations to confront this growing emergency. History tells us that half-measures at moments like this only prolong and deepen the crisis; I deeply hope we don’t repeat that tragic mistake.”

Maine goes sour on Senator Collins - a harbinger of trouble for blind, deaf and dumb Trumpzi supporters

Collins ranks as least-popular senator in new poll

Fake Moderate Susan Collins Is Now The Most Unpopular Senator In America

Senators Mitch McConnell and Susan Collins both have to be voted out of office. #VoteBlue!

On the other hand....
Collins’ colleague Sen. Angus King, a Maine independent, ranks as the fifth-most-popular senator, with an approval rating of 58% in the poll.

Portland Press Herald by Rachel Ohm- 
The poll from the Morning Consult finds a 52% disapproval rate for Collins among Maine voters surveyed.

A new poll ranks U.S. Sen. Susan Collins as the least popular senator.

The poll, released Thursday by the Morning Consult, found a 42 percent approval rate for Collins and 52 percent disapproval rate among Maine voters surveyed.

The fourth quarter ranking represents a 10 percent drop in Collins’ net approval rating.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R – KY, ranked as the second least popular senator with 50 percent of Kentucky voters disapproving of his performance.

The rankings are based on a survey given to 494,899 registered voters nationwide between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31. Participants could answer whether they strongly approve, somewhat approve, somewhat disapprove, strongly disapprove, or don’t know/ have no opinion on their U.S. senator.

Collins is up for re-election and faces what is expected to be the most expensive campaign of her career. She has recently come under scrutiny for her vote to support Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and has faced pressure from both sides as President Trump’s impeachment trial unfolds.