The Lincoln County Republican Committee (LCRC) met November 13 at the Wiscasset Town Office and were updated on state and national Republican activities by Rick Bennett and Bruce Poliquin.

Poliquin, former Maine State Treasurer and candidate for the open Second Congressional seat, got a warm welcome from the crowd. He spoke briefly about the impact of the Afordable Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare) and its failures and then went on to say why he was running for the congressional seat — namely, to help bring fiscal responsibility to Washington.

He cited his role as treasurer in exposing corruption in the Maine Turnpike Authority and Housing Authority of Maine. It's not just Obamacare, he said, but it is debt and unfunded liabilities that threaten this country. "These problems didn't fall from the sky," Poliiquin said. "We don't need to have them." He added that he had zero tolerance for wasting other people's money.

Poliquin was followed by Rick Bennett, recently elected chairman of the Maine State GOP and a former State Senate President and member of the Republican National Committee. As chairman, he is responsible for growing the party, recruiting candidates and providing candidate support. He feels it's tremendously important to bring the party together and harness the existing energy.

Bennett followed up on Poliquin's fiscal concerns, noting that unfunded liabilities in Medicare and Social Security far surpass the national debt. He said the government is being funded with borrowed money. Bennett said that if one were to spend a million dollars a day starting with the birth of Christ until today, you would only have spent $734 billion, far short of a trillion and the U.S. is $17 trillion in debt.

Right now, said Bennett, the Republicans are the only organized political entity in the way of financial disaster.

Bennett went on to say that at the state level it was imperative to see that Gov. Paul LePage is reelected and the Republicans gain a majority in the legislature. He spoke of the many past accomplishments of the LePage administration and the Republican-led 125th Legislature from passing the biggest tax cut in Maine history to significantly reducing the state's unfunded pension liabilities, to paying down money the state owes to hospitals, and to ending Maine's reputation as a sanctuary state. Today, he said, Medicaid accounts for 25 percent of the state's budget.

Bennett also described some of the changes being made by the state GOP, including building a more professional staff and party, collecting more data to make informed decisions, and making better use of modern technology.

Jason Savage, Maine Republican Party Executive Director, addressed the packed meeting room about the "Count ME In" program. People can sign up and give $8.25 per month to help the party. He noted we are fighting against “Big Corporations” and “Big Money” from out of state and every dollar helps.

The next meeting of the LCRC will held December 11. Location to be announced. Guest speaker will be Blaine Richardson, a candidate for the Second Congressional district.

For more information, contact Stuart Smith at 207-370-7058 or stuart@stuartsmith.us.