According to Staff Writer Gillian Graham, author of “More Mainers struggle to feed their families as agencies fear worst to come” (Sept. 13), 173,080 people in Maine struggle with hunger, and 47,460 of those people are children. Further, it has recently been reported that the two major 2020 Maine U.S. Senate candidates have collectively spent more than $63 million as of Sept. 13. These figures are a disgrace beyond comparison, at least in the state of Maine.
It must be noted that Sara Gideon has committed to support overturning Citizens United. Sen. Susan Collins refused to support such an effort, claiming it wouldn’t make any difference. We know that is untrue.
When 1 in 8 Maine residents, including 1 in 5 Maine children, is struggling with hunger issues, it is well past time for the U.S. Congress to consider serious reform of election campaign laws.
Political candidates should not be allowed to campaign more than 60 days prior to an election, and the money allowed for each campaign should be capped; certainly no more than $1 million per candidate, and even that large a figure is absurdly disgraceful. In all future debates featuring U.S. congressional candidates, those debating should be asked if they would support such a call for reform.
Jerry Genesio
Scarborough
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