Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R)
Political life in Maine has been tumultuous ever since Republican Paul LePage assumed the governorship four years ago, but things up there just got a whole lot crazier. On Wednesday, a charter school called Good Will-Hinckley rescinded a job offer to state House Speaker Mark Eves, who was set to become its next president in just a matter of days. (Legislators in Maine only serve part-time, so most must find outside employment.) In an explosive charge, Eves, a Democrat, accused LePage of
threatening to withhold half a million in state funding for the school, in order to pressure it to withdraw the offer to Eves, a move he called "blackmail."
The combative LePage didn't even dispute the claim. In fact, he embraced it in an official statement, saying he "reaffirmed his opposition" to Eves' appointment as president of Good Will-Hinckley, because Eves is allegedly an "an ardent foe of charter schools" and his hire was the result of a "back-room deal" that constituted "political corruption." As for the school's funding, LePage was clear as day that it had been in play:
To provide half-a-million dollars in taxpayer funding to a charter school that would be headed by Maine's most vehement anti-charter-school politician is not only the height of hypocrisy, it is absolutely unacceptable.
Eves adds that LePage even
sent a handwritten note to the school threatening to pull its funding. The chairman of the school's board acknowledges receiving such a letter but claims it "may have been discarded." Eves says he is considering a civil lawsuit against LePage.
More dramatically, lawmakers in the state House, which is controlled by Democrats, are considering impeachment proceedings. LePage's abusive behavior has been unending throughout his tenure—on Wednesday, he "joked" that he'd like to shoot a political cartoonist he doesn't care for—but one pro-impeachment representative, independent Ben Chipman, says his colleagues "are fired up like I've never seen before."
If the House does impeach LePage, the Senate would hold a trial, where a two-thirds majority would be necessary to remove the governor from office. The upper chamber is held by Republicans, so it would be a difficult task to oust LePage, but he's alienated members of his own party almost as much as he has Democrats, so anything is possible. Indeed, state Senate President said he was "shocked" by the allegations (though note that he's the guy who would take LePage's place, but only until a special election could be held next year). We'll definitely be hearing more in the days to come.
3:30 PM PT: It gets worse. According to a new report on Thursday evening, LePage halted a routine $100,000 transfer to Good Will-Hinckley on the very same day that Eves' appointment was announced. Again, this is a school for at-risk youth, whose mission LePage endangered by denying it money it expected to receive. Making this all the more galling, in an earlier letter fulminating against Eves' hiring, LePage cited his own difficult upbringing; in spite of that, he didn't hesitate to jeopardize a school for kids just like him in order to punish a political enemy.
