State Rep. Heather W. Sirocki (“Maine Voices: In a time of tight budgets, Legislature buys taxpayers a summer place,” July 23) heaps shame on the Legislature for spending $200,000 of the $6.3 billion budget to acquire the Perkins Homestead in Newcastle, even though it was approved by more than three-quarters of both houses of that deliberative body.
It is unclear whether she is more upset that Frances Perkins is “from away” or that Ms. Perkins favored progressive, pro-labor policies as secretary of labor and architect of Social Security. (I wonder if there is a portrait of Ms. Perkins on state property that should be taken down.)
In response to Rep. Sirocki’s displeasure with Rep. Peggy Rotundo’s advocacy for the Perkins Homestead budget item, I ask: How did Rep. Sirocki vote on the bill to end the same-day loan provision of the New Markets tax credit program, which has already cost Maine taxpayers $16 million with no apparent benefit?
Did Rep. Sirocki – as Gov. LePage did – receive campaign contributions from the out-of-state speculators who benefited from that manipulative fleecing?
Expansion of Medicaid in Maine would provide hundreds of millions of dollars for the health care of the most needy. Did Rep. Sirocki accept any campaign contributions from out-of-state super PACs that advocated against that expansion (which the last Legislature voted to support by nearly two-thirds of both houses)?
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