Joseph Avila prays while holding flowers honoring the victims killed in the shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

The May 26, 2022, edition of the Portland Press Herald reported that Republican candidate Heather Sprague from Cushing blamed liberal teachers for the Uvalde school shooting, saying they had brainwashed the shooter into thinking he was gay, resulting in a mentally ill person who subsequently went on a school shooting spree.

When Maine Republican Party Executive Director Jason Savage was asked to comment, he did not reject candidate Sprague’s statements. Instead, he said “we believe it is appropriate to have time to gather the real facts of this case before drawing any conclusions.”

What facts could possibly legitimize candidate Sprague’s homophobic and irresponsible statement?

Jo Myers
Waldoboro