Dear Editor:

Since before Maine was established almost 100 years ago, and up until present day, the people of the state of Maine have prided themselves on our town-meeting form of government, which many believe is the ultimate form of governing.  Maine citizens have preserved this idea over the years that government is at its best when problems and ideas are debated and acted upon locally.   Henry David Thoreau wrote in 1854 that town-meeting “is the true Congress, and the most respectable one that is ever assembled in the United States.”

Yet, Maine Democrat leadership is sponsoring two bills, LD 418 and LD 816, to join a compact with California, Illinois, New York, and others to strike down our bedrock principle of a local say in the election of the President. If adopted, these bills will let people of the most populated cities in the country, who have no geographic or economic interest in the health and well-being of the citizens of Maine, decide who is President.

These bills give away our say and offer nothing in return for the citizens of Maine.

Please join me in asking our local Democrats, Rep. Devin (HD 90) and Rep. Stover (HD 89), to let us know that they still stand for Maine’s independence and oppose this legislation. You may also offer your opposition by emailing Karen Montell, Clerk for the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs which is holding a public hearing on these bills on March 1 (VLA@legislature.maine.gov).

Hubert M. Padgett

Newcastle