The Accidental Governor of Maine

I am not looking forward to this post. I really don’t like wading into politics, but certain comments by our new governor,  Paul LePage has made it necessary to offer a blanket apology to anyone who may be offended by this oaf. The election was one of those where an independent candidate split the vote into three, so the winner received his mandate with 38% of the popular vote, none of which were mine.

Paul LePage was quoted during the campaign as telling President Obama he could “Go to hell”. As if that weren’t enough, he just celebrated Martin Luther King’s birthday by telling the NAACP they could “Kiss my butt”. What a sensitive fellow.

The governor’s excuse for this behavior is apparently his humble origins. He escaped an abusive family and  lived on the streets of Lewiston, Maine, earning a living shining shoes. He’s allowed to be rude and insensitive because he started out poor and only speaking French.

I don’t know how long he can use this excuse but it appears he is not becoming more statesman-like. In a way I’m enjoying the show, waiting for Mainers to render his tenure as ineffective as possible. Sooner or later he’ll go too far, insult too many people, lose his temper and become a laughing stock. In the mean time, please don’t think Mainers are like him. He was an accident.

Late word: Stephen Colbert had a few words to say about our governor too:

A comment sent into Bangor Daily News:

northernobservor
Would this governor please spare a thought for Maine’s largest industry – tourism, when he makes such disparaging remarks? First he says that if he had been governor, he would have told Obama to “get the hell out of my state,” when he heard of the president’s vacation here last summer. Now he tells the NAACP to “kiss my butt.” As a business owner who benefits from tourism, I resent LePage’s remarks which are off putting not only to non-whites, but also to white folks who dislike bigotry. Thanks a lot to a governor who purports to support business. What a disaster this man is!

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