On Tuesday Jan. 9, a motion was made in the Maine House of Representatives to establish a House Special Investigative Committee to investigate the Secretary of State to determine whether cause exists for impeachment. What follows are the remarks I made on the floor in response to that motion.

"Here in Maine we are no longer free to vote for whom we choose. I can't believe I just said that. Never in my wildest nightmares would I have ever dreamed that my right to vote for the candidate of my choice would be taken away from me, especially here in Maine.

“We have established requirements for candidates in our state, they are well defined so as to open the opportunity to be elected to all who are willing to serve. Creating additional requirements belongs with the legislature not the Secretary of State. Whether it stands or not, does not change the fact that our Secretary of State has taken upon herself to prevent us, the citizens of Maine from voting for the candidate of their choice. That vote is a fundamental right to being free.

“At the very least, the Office of the Secretary of State has been tarnished. Is this action a violation of her oath of office?

“What has the Sovereign State of Maine become? Are we no longer required to follow the rule of law? Allegations are now convictions. Innocent until proven guilty has become guilty when accused. Due process is no longer allowed. The end justifies the means is now the standard.

“We should not minimize the implications of her decision. What does my vote in this chamber mean here today? What does your vote mean? Here and now each of us, today, will tell the people of Maine where we stand. Do we stand for the people's right to vote for the candidate of their choice or not? Do we agree that the Secretary of State has authority to make that decision for us?

“If allowed to stand we are no longer free. This decision is indicative of the direction our State is moving. For decades we have watched our freedoms nibbled away. This is a big bite out of our rights. It tells the people of Maine they will no longer have a choice, they will vote as they are directed.

“The ‘way life ought to be’ is changing. They desire to even change our flag. Has Maine had enough? Was this a step too far? The citizens of Maine will decide this November."

I cast my vote for the motion. I saw my vote as support for the right of the people of Maine to vote for the candidate of their choice. As expected, the motion failed along party lines, 60 votes yea, 80 votes nay.