Investigation: LePage, education department threatened Good Will-Hinckley funding

[jpak]

Source: Bangor Daily News

AUGUSTA, Maine — A long-awaited report on how Gov. Paul LePage and the Maine Department of Education interfered in an employment contract between Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves and Good Will-Hinckley has found strong evidence that LePage took steps to withdraw state funding for a charter school for at-risk students.

The Legislature’s Government Oversight Committee received the 27-page report Tuesday morning in Augusta from Beth Ashcroft, director of the nonpartisan Office of Program Evaluation and Government Accountability.

The purpose of the probe was to investigate whether LePage improperly threatened to withhold $530,000 in state funding for Good Will-Hinckley, an organization that among other things runs the Maine Academy of Natural Sciences in Fairfield, to force the firing of Eves.

Eves’ contract was rescinded by Good Will-Hinckley in June. LePage, who objected to Eves’ hiring because he said Eves was not qualified for the position, has publicly admitted that he threatened Hinckley’s board of directors. Eves has filed a civil lawsuit against LePage in which he accuses the governor of blackmail. The suit is still pending.

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Read more: http://bangordailynews.com/2015/09/08/politics/investigation-lepage-education-department-threatened-good-will-hinckley-funding/

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impeach

yup

[magical thyme]

1. ayup.

We need to get rid of that sacko'crap, and the sooner the better.

[edhopper]

2. So the good voters of Maine

will probably give this horror show of a Gov. a third term.

[jopacaco]

3. Not for awhile

Maine Governors are only allowed to have 2 consecutive terms. He would have to wait 4 years to try again. He has expressed interest in Angus King's (I) Senate seat. LePage's only hope is another 3 way election. I hope that his 1/3 of the voters see the light with all of this crazy behavior but I have my doubts.

[edhopper]

7. good news for the Gov. seat

bad news for the rest of us if the idiots there send him to Washington.

[Gormy Cuss]

4. Impeachment would be a good start.

Even better would be for a Marden's-like chain to make him an offer he can't refuse and thus get his horrid, paranoid ass out of politics.

[erronis]

5. There should be a bit of shame placed on the school and the foundation too

While I understand that the school was in danger of losing all state funding because of lepage's temper, I felt that the school should have pushed back a bit more.

Also the Harold Alfund Foundation was rather quick to threaten to pull its funding. Couldn't there have been a bit more flexibility?

[gregcrawford]

6. Lepage is a malicious bully...

... and a pathological liar. Doesn't say much for the people that voted for him. The people of Maine got screwed.

[Ford_Prefect]

8. Impeach?? Arrest him for gang related activity!