I received this from Becca Glaser, the original author, who told me she wants us to pass it on. — Nancy Galland
Scroll down to sign on to register for King’s virtual Town Hall on April 9, TOMORROW – and when you do, there will be a form to fill out with your questions.
We Mainers need to talk more about Angus King, and the fact that he may not be the “Maine treasure” many Democrats still seem to believe he is.
King is taking part in a carefully curated virtual Zoom Town Hall this Wednesday, April 9th at 5PM hosted by Cumberland County Indivisible.
It’s time that people start focusing on the ways King has failed us, question why so many Democrats are still giving him the benefit of the doubt, and start giving him a much harder time for his pro-Trump votes.
He’s been making strong-sounding speeches on the one hand, while on the other, voting for 1/3 of Trump’s 2025 Cabinet members and standing out FOR being one of only two non-Republicans who voted for the recent Republican continuing budget resolution which stripped hundreds of millions of dollars for Maine projects, beefed up ICE and the military, and gave more power to Trump/DOGE.
 CALL HIM OUT AT TOMORROW’S TOWN HALL (IF THEY LET YOU…). TOWN HALLwith Senator King WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9TH @ 5 PM – ONLINE REGISTRATION REQUIRED Register here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSenM4FFJ5GszlLG2_wT9wNCa2L4T9t2MI0VuVrnJseoknr0Jg/viewform I routinely see LOTS of emphasis on Susan Collins—At a recent anti-Trump Rockland protest, someone was handing out “Where’s Susan?” flyers. But when I asked him about Angus’ recent vote FOR the Republican continuing budget resolution, he was unaware. At this weekend’s giant Hands Off protest in Augusta, I saw plenty of “Susan, Speak Up” and “Susan, Grow a Spine” signs, but not a single one calling out Angus King. Why the different treatment? Susan Collins, after all, IS a Republican. That is her party. Why would we expect anything more from her? Her values align with them most of the time. Despite saying she would not support Trump, and despite taking a few mostly-performative votes against the Trump agenda, she never left the party. That’s what she stands for. We should still keep pushing her to do better, but be aware in the end, that is who she is, despite the media’s constant refrain about her supposedly being a “moderate” Republican. But what about Angus King? Why do I see posts like this one: “Angus is a treasure and we’re lucky to have him on our side.” Another: “Angus is an amazing human. We in Maine are especially lucky to have him…”Or, after King’s outlier vote for the Republican CR budget, someone saying, “Angus is always so reasoned and smart. This makes us wonder if there is a good reason for his vote.” I ask you, the next time you think about giving King the benefit of the doubt like this, ask yourself, “Why am I giving him the benefit of the doubt? Why when he and Susan Collins vote the same, do you give King a pass? Is there a chance it could be because he is MALE? WHITE? Speaks in a CLEAR, WHITE, RICH, MALE “REASONED”-SOUNDING VOICE that we have been trained to associate with rationality and caring? How about how wealthy he is? Do we really think he is in touch with what most Mainers are going through, and will go through? Should we keep letting him off the hook?” A FEW FACTS ABOUT ANGUS KING’S RECENT PRO-TRUMP ACTIONS: He is one of only TWO non-Republicans to VOTE FOR the Republicans’ recent continuing resolution budget. ABC News: “Sen. Angus King, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen voted in favor of the bill. All other Democrats voted against it.” Let me be clear. He voted NOT just to move the bill forward, but FOR the Republican budget itself. He is one of the ten non-Republican Senators who, along with Sen. Schumer’s about-face on the Republicans’ continuing budget resolution, to vote to move the bill forward, in order to make a Democratic-filibuster impossible. The Republicans’ continuing budget resolution which King went OUT OF HIS WAY to vote for, heavily beefed up the military and ICE even more, it gave MORE power to Trump/DOGE to further control congressional spending, which they have otherwise been illegally usurping, AND it broke trust with the House Democrats, who had had an agreement with the Senators to filibuster and therefore be able to negotiate at least something or other from the Republicans. The budget King voted for REMOVED hundreds of millions of dollars for incredibly important projects that had previously been earmarked. SOME OF WHAT MAINE LOST WITH KING & COLLINS’ VOTE FOR THE REPUBLICAN BUDGET RESOLUTION (focused on Midcoast Maine): |
- Rockland Marine Access Improvements: To upgrade access related to Rockland’s working waterfront and public pier. $5,100,000
- The Landing Place: To construct a new building to accommodate youth programming. $600,000.00
- Penobscot Bay YMCA: To repair and replace the critical infrastructure of the Rockport YMCA branch. $906,000.00
- Matinicus Island Plantation: To publicly acquire the Matinicus Island Airstrip and rights of way from private ownership. $90,000.00
- City of Rockland: To renovate the Fire Station and to build an addition to the existing building for the Police Department. $3,012,000.00
- City of Belfast: To fund the construction of the superstructure (above ground portion) of a new City of Belfast Public Safety Building. $3,965,000.00
- Town of Northport: To construct an upgraded, energy-efficient town office and community center. $1,750,000.00
- City of Belfast: To retrofit and upgrade the Waldo County Court House building’s exterior and interior. $1,870,000.00
- Healthy Acadia: To purchase and upgrade a property in Machias to be the Safe Harbor Recovery Residence for Women and Children. $421,000.00
- Island Institute: To support microgrid deployment in Maine’s coastal and rural communities. $995,000.00
- Midcoast Youth Center & Skatepark: To support the renovation and expansion of Midcoast Youth Center. $1,500,000.00
- Town of Friendship: To demolish, dispose of and reconstruct the town Wharf. $975,000.00
- William A. Farnsworth Art Museum and Library: To reopen and preserve the historical Olson House in Cushing, ME. $1,094,000.00
- South Thomaston Library and Community Center: To build a modern, energy efficient facility to house a Library and Community Center. $2,595,000.00
- Regional School Unit 13: To construct a Performing Arts Center. $1,513,000.00
- Northport Community Center and Town Office: To construct a consolidated facility to house the town office and community center, which would also serve as an emergency shelter. $2,325,000
- Owls Head STEM Community Center: To construct a STEM community center and public spaces for educational and professional programming. $1,533,000
- Maine Veterans’ Homes Facility and Equipment Upgrades For facilities upgrades and equipment to support care for aging veterans. $2,946,000
- Vassalboro Sanitary District for Wastewater Infrastructure Improvements To upgrade wastewater infrastructure in Vassalboro. $363,000
- St. George CTE Makerspace Building To purchase equipment and tools for the Career and Technical Education Makerspace Building. $272,000
- Town of Waldoboro Ambulance: To purchase a new ambulance $306,000
- Searsmont Storage Upgrades: To construct a salt and sand storage facility. $950,000
- Maternal Delivery and New Infant Project: To replace and modernize equipment across hospitals with labor and delivery units. $1,555,000
- Gulf of Maine Ocean Observation System: To expand the ocean observation system in the Gulf of Maine, which is used by the maritime industry. $8,000,000
- FOR THE ENTIRE LIST, LOOK THROUGH THIS BANGOR DAILY NEWS ARTICLE: https://www.bangordailynews.com/2025/03/12/politics/washington/congress-may-cut-millions-in-maine-earmarks-to-avert-shutdown-joam40zk0w/
King voted to APPROVE SEVEN of Trump’s 2025 Cabinet Members (that’s a 1/3 support rate). Sure, the ones he supported don’t have the same flashy name recognition as some of the worst we all worked so hard to stop, but can anyone plausibly argue that ANY of Trump’s 2025 appointees are not explicitly part of a horrific fascist agenda? A vote for ANY of these sickos is too many. Seven means that King is trying to still play the fascists’ game. Or could it be he just doesn’t have the same values we like to think he does? Our Maine federal representatives (except Chellie Pingree, though she needs to do so much more) are completely and utterly shameful and causing tremendous harm. I for one am completely despondent about how little our supposed reps are protecting us. Once again, it comes down to US. So, please take really good care of yourselves right now, and reach out when you need support.
<3, Becca
TOWN HALLwith Senator King WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9TH @ 5 PMONLINE REGISTRATION REQUIRED REGISTER NOW!
On April 9th, Senator King will be in Washington DC, but has agreed to meet with Indivisible Cumberland County via Zoom. Given the anticipated interest in the event, we are moving to a fully online format. In order to participate, you will need to register. We are asking for questions ahead of time (they can be submitted through the registration form).
