Paula Sutton

Republican

Candidate’s Links:

Office Sought: Representative – District 95
Age: 53
Occupation: Sales/Project manager at Eastern Horizons
Education: Graduated Maranacook High School, Becker College graduate 3.8 GPA, business and economic courses at USM, Wilderness First Responder
Family: Married
Hometown: Warren

Political experience

Member Planning Board of Appeals Warren; Founder of political action group, Mainers Against Welfare for Politicians
Republican candidate 2014 for SD 12; Campaign manager for Jim Kalloch to Maine Legislature
Former Knox County Republican vice Chair; Fundraising committee Knox County Republicans
ormer Deputy Registrar Town of Warren
Satellite Director for Knox County Republican Headquarters , 2012 election cycle
Volunteer with Bruce Poliquin for US Senate /Congressional campaigns
Knox County Volunteer Co-Coordinator for Paul LePage

Why are you running for office?

I still believe in the American dream. If a person works hard and plays by the rules they will be able to get ahead. The factories and mills where my grandfather worked provided families with decent jobs and opportunity to provide for future. Now they are closed. Today we are struggling as a state partly due to a lack of good paying jobs and many of our children have left the state in search of more favorable economic climates. I am running because I love our state and I want to make sure that this generation and generations to come have the same freedoms and opportunities I had growing up here. I wish to help create a more jobs friendly environment so that our children can come back home and be in a more favorable positon to provide for themselves and their families. We have an aging demographic and for our future success, it is vital that we find new and better ways to attract young families to our state and also to retain our precious youth. We need to focus on the issues we have direct control over.
In Augusta I will work to reduce waste and duplication of services, promote sustainable fiscal policies, and foster more government transparency. We must prioritize spending and be diligent in our efforts to first and properly take care of our most vulnerable citizens. I may not have all the answers but the people of Maine do and I am listening.

• Income Tax: Gov. LePage would like to lower Maine’s income tax rate and eventually eliminate it, by increasing the state’s sales tax and expanding it across a broader range of goods and services. Do you support this proposal?
  • Other

    I wholeheartedly support lowering the income tax. If Maine were to lower its income tax to zero we would enhance our reputation and desirability as a location to reside in and to create jobs. Eliminating income tax results in an instant raise in everyone’s paycheck and reduces stress on April 15th. Many individuals currently claim residency in other states to avoid Maine income tax and consequently spend less than 6 months of the year here. I believe if they were no longer penalized with income tax they would stay within our borders much longer and while here participate in (ie volunteer at charities) and contribute to our communities (ie tax revenue on meals, movie tickets and fuel) . Eliminating income tax will also reduce the size, scope and cost of government.
    I do not support raising sales tax on common essential items such as car repairs, groceries, medical and heating fuels.

• Background Checks: Do you support background checks for privately sold firearms in Maine?
  • No

    When I was in high school I was robbed at gunpoint at a local convenience store where I worked. It was a two man job and both had prior felony records. Luckily I had been taught not to resist in that type of situation and willingly surrendered the contents of the cash drawer. It was a terrifying experience to have a masked man point a gun in my face. After the event it never crossed my mind to blame the gun or demand stricter gun laws. I knew then and still believe today that it was the evil man holding the gun that was at fault and all the gun laws in the world would not stopped what happened from occurring. Armed robbery is illegal, felons having guns is illegal and criminals do not follow laws. We do not have a gun problem we have a people problem.

• Minimum Wage: In light of the ballot question facing voters this fall, do you support raising the state’s minimum wage from $7.50 to $12 an hour by 2020?
  • No

    Minimum wage is a starting point for unskilled labor and was not designed to be living wage. One troublesome and mostly overlooked aspect of the current proposal as written is that it seeks to eliminate the tipped credit utilized by wait staff and restaurant owners would be forced to pay more in hourly wages. . I have owned restaurants in the past and have also waited tables. As a former restaurant owner I can tell you I could not have paid more in wages because profit margins are razor slim. As a former waitress I can tell you that I made an excellent hourly wage and was satisfied with the wage formula. I have serious concerns that if this legislation were to pass it would force the closing of many restaurants. It does not make sense to hurt small business which makes up roughly 80% of Maines economy.

• Marijuana: Do you support legalization of marijuana for recreational use?
  • No

    At the present time we do not have an accurate way to test toxicity levels while operating vehicles. I am concerned about the safety of our children, fellow drivers and pedestrians. I recently read an article in the WSJ that said that the legalization of pot has contributed greatly to the heroin epidemic in this country. In a nutshell the article claimed that due to decreased demand for pot grown in Mexico because of increased US pot production in part due to legalization, and lenient enforcement by police the drug lords in Mexico had a dilemma. The distribution networks they had in place were not being fully utilized so they transitioned their product base to heroin. Then they drastically dropped the price of heroin to effectively compete with the high price of prescription pills and created a huge market for their high quality low priced heroin to draw customers.

• Addiction/Overdoses: Do you believe the state is doing enough in response to the rise in heroin/opiate addiction and overdoses? If not, what else should be done?
  • I really don’t know if the state is doing enough but I do know is that the problem is worsening. I believe that the possession of heroin should be a felony so law enforcement can have leverage to get a person into treatment. Right now when faced with a misdemeanor or going to rehab individuals generally opt not to enter into a painful and difficult stay at rehab but if they were facing a more serious felony charge they would be more likely to choose rehab which could help steer them away from a life on drugs. If we truly care wouldn’t we utilize every opportunity to try and get them treatment? There is only so much government is capable of achieving and this is one area I feel is indicative of the overall weakening of society, lessening of personal responsibility and people’s inability to cope with growing pressures of life. We, as neighbors and members of society should seek spiritual guidance from sources that suit our beliefs. Parents need to consistently parent their children while holding them accountable for their actions. We, as a community need to continue to love and support. Tough love when necessary.

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