PORTLAND, Maine (NEWS CENTER) - Attorneys representing Maine’s governor and his political rival squared off in federal court.
A judge must decide whether or not Speaker of the House Mark Eves civil lawsuit against Governor LePage should be thrown out. Eves’ filed the suit after a threat by LePage to withhold funding from the Goodwill-Hinckley School led school officials to fire Eves as President.
LePage's attorney is pushing to have Eve's lawsuit dismissed, claiming he has immunity because the case involves money in a proposed budget that was subject to legislative action and governors are protected under that action.
When the Republican governor found out that the charter school was hiring the Democratic Speaker of the House, he threatened to withhold $1M in state funding from the school. Eves sued LePage claiming he blackmailed school officials into firing him. In court today Eves’ attorney told the judge LePage was waging a war on Democrats and what better way to send a message than getting their leader fired.
LePage's attorney argued the money was never appropriated. It was in a proposed budget subject to legislative approval and that alone should lead to the suit being dismissed.
Eves’ attorney says the threat by the Governor is the issue in this case.
"You can't say I won't give money to organizations that have Black leadership or Female leadership or Catholic leadership or that have a Democrat because I don't like Democrats. Those are out of bounds in our democracy and that's what the courts are there to enforce", said Eves’ attorney David Webbert.
LePage's attorney declined to comment after the hearing.
Federal Judge George Singal told both sides he would attempt to be diligent and render a decision in the very near future.