AUGUSTA, Maine (NEWS CENTER) — A federal judge has thrown out Speaker of the House Mark Eves' civil lawsuit against Governor LePage.
Eves sued LePage after the governor threatened to withhold a million dollars worth of state funding from the Goodwill-Hinckley school over hiring Eves as its president.
That job offer was later rescinded.
In court, Eves' attorney argued the threat by LePage is the issue in the case, and that the governor is waging a war on Democrats.
The attorney for Eves says an appeal will be filed, and Eves will have his case reviewed by three judges on the Court of Appeals in Boston.
Attorney David Webbert issued a statement saying:
"We are confident that the Court of Appeals will agree that Governor LePage violated the basic rules of our Constitution when he used taxpayer money to blackmail a private organization into firing his political opponent for partisan purposes."
He says "Mark Eves is determined to hold Governor LePage accountable for his abuses of power that undermine our democracy."
Governor LePage hasn't said anything publicly about the ruling yet.
*UPDATE* – The governor's attorney, Patrick Strawbridge, released a statement Tuesday night:
"The Governor is pleased with the result, and appreciates the careful attention and decision of the Court. We remain confident that this case is without merit, and will continue to defend it vigorously should the Speaker decide to appeal. We will have no further comment on this pending litigation."