Until today, I have never spoken publicly about the death of our son, Sloan, 12 years ago.

But Gov. LePage’s ridiculous (and wrong) comment, in which he called Khizr Khan, father of slain Army Capt. Humayun Khan, a “con artist” for “using ‘the death of his son’ to go after (Donald) Trump,” prompted me to write this.

The governor has embarrassed his family, the state of Maine and himself. That he would say out loud – or even think – that he believes someone would exploit the death of their child for political objectives is absurd.

Of course, I don’t presume to speak for everyone who has experienced such a terrible loss, but my guess is they would agree. Even most people who haven’t lost a child probably will agree.

Unfortunately, Mr. LePage probably doesn’t know what he should do next, assuming he wants to set things right with those he has offended.

This governor clearly needs help, and those closest to him – his family, his staff and his political allies – should be held accountable if they don’t take action now to help him. Not next month or this year, but now, for Mr. LePage’s sake and for the sake of Maine.

David Critchfield

South Portland


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.