PORTLAND, Maine — Opponents of NECEC, the Central Maine Power transmission line corridor project have gotten the green light to collect signatures for a referendum campaign to block the project.
NEWS CENTER Maine political analysts John Richardson and Phil Harriman say this question will surely garner enough signatures to get on the ballot.
Harriman says "CMP has not handled this well from the beginning."
And Richardson says a lot of people have lost confidence in CMP. "You can't run a service organization like this."
Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) is expressing concerns about the lack of transparency in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' review and permitting process for the 145-mile transmission corridor.
Harriman says Golden is doing his job. "He's using the influence of his office to bring the Army Corps of Engineers to the table to say, 'look, Maine people, particularly in the second district need to know whether this is vital, whether it's being done right.'"
Richardson agrees, saying "He's reflecting how people on the second district view this particular issue. He is showing leadership, and he's showing courage. It's about time somebody did that."
Both analysts acknowledge the possibility that prolonged outages from last week's nor'easter could bring a political price, as some legislators push for Central Maine Power to become a state-owned utility instead of a private one.
Maine's 2020 U.S. Senate race is sure to be an expensive one. Democrat Sara Gideon, the Speaker of the House, announced she raised $3.2 million in the 3rd quarter.
John Richardson, a former Speaker, says that gives Gideon a big advantage in her primary race. "You sit under the dome as the Speaker of the House and you think everybody knows you. I have firsthand knowledge of this. But the fact is, with that $3.2 million you're going to be able to go out and tell your story in an effective way."
Phil Harriman points out that Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) has more than $7 million campaign cash on hand. And he says of Gideon, "While she may have $3 million, she is burning it as we speak because she's already on the air."
And while both campaigns will trade jabs over how the other side raises its cash, and whether so-called dark money sources are involved, our analysts say most voters are more likely to listen to the messages of the campaigns than to worry about where all those millions came from.
Richardson says both Gideon and Collins are getting money from out of state sources. "This has become a national race because it may tip the balance in terms of the majority."
Political Brew airs Sundays on The Morning Report.