Choose change with Harris/Walz

I am a person of faith and I am so ready for change! I am a minister who has served communities and families across Maine for decades. Most of all, I am a mom of three beautiful daughters. The communities, families, seniors, teens and children I know desperately need a new beginning this November. We are not all of like mind but we all need change! This election means a choice between: lifting up the dignity of each person vs. demeaning those who are different from you. It means respecting our veterans vs. belittling their sacrifice (i.e. Sen. John McCain.) It means reducing the cost of groceries vs. untargeted tariffs that will increase prices for things we buy every day. It means supporting small business and entrepreneurs in our communities vs. ballooning the debt to give large businesses more “welfare.” It means respecting women’s wisdom and autonomy vs. government control in doctor’s offices. It means seeking unity across our differences vs. exploiting division for selfish gain. Most of all, it means making hope-filled, powerful choice for our democracy (for which people have fought, sacrificed and died) vs. finding ourselves once again stuck in tired playbooks that seek to divide and are at the ready to instigate violence for political gain.

As a person of faith and hope, I urge you to cherish our democracy. Let’s choose change with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.

Rev. Allison C. G. Smith,
Harpswell

Trump from A to Z

Autocratic. BSer. Cruel. Disparaging. Egotistical. Felon, Greedy. Hateful. Ignorant. Judgmental. Kindless. Liar. Megalomaniac. Narcissist. Offensive. Psychopathic. Querulous. Racist. Selfish. Tyrannical. User. Vulgar. Wily. Xenophobe. Yapper. Zany.

Voters — are these your values? Are these traits you want in your next president?

Sigrid Fischer-Mishler,
Harpswell

Sally Cluchey for House District 52

No one knows everything about everything. What I need in a legislator is someone with a keen and open mind, one who is truly willing to listen and learn. That person is Sally Cluchey.

When she was elected to her first term, she was not familiar with the Byzantine system of care for adults with disabilities, but she knew that was the most important issue for me and my family. So she invited me to her office, where we spent hours talking about the difficulties families like mine face getting the care our adult children need. She attended our meetings and hearings, even though she does not serve on any of those legislative committees, because she is dedicated to representing everyone in her district.

When she doesn’t know an answer, she finds it out. When she isn’t the best person to intervene, she finds the one who is. And she is not constrained by artificial barriers of party politics — she is more than willing to work across the aisle to get the job done.

Most recently, when I was about to lose a three-month battle for my daughter’s critical disability benefits, she offered the one piece of advice that truly saved the day.

Sally Cluchey doesn’t just represent us in Augusta, she WORKS for us. Voting for her will be the easiest thing I do on Nov. 5.

Lisa Wesel,
Bowdoinham

On Nov. 5, I will head to the polls in Bowdoinham where I will, with pleasure. vote for Sally Cluchey for reelection to be my state representative for Maine District 52. I like that she is smart, tough, funny and ethical. I like that she lets her hair stay prematurely gray (and she looks great). She does wonders along with the other volunteers at the Bowdoinham Food Pantry. Her education and work history are impressive and her kids may be her best recommendation. (Her husband Jeremy’s OK, too … )

I hope lots of my fellow citizens of District 52 will join me in reelecting Sally Cluchey, this fine representative, who by the way and
importantly, also works across the aisle.

Judy Gray,
Bowdoinham

Melanie Sachs for House District 102

My wife and I are 86 and have advocated for various political and community causes in our lifetime. We have NEVER encountered the extraordinary responsiveness that Melanie Sachs has demonstrated in regards to any inquiry we have directed to her. She is a model of the best of representative government and is informed and honest in her responses to us. We are proud to vote for her again as our state representative for House District 102, Freeport, and we urge you to do the same this fall.

Mark Peterson,
Freeport

I write in support of the reelection of Melanie Sachs as state representative for House District 102, Freeport. I appreciate the rational thought and careful attention she brings to her leadership role in Augusta as House chairperson of the Joint Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee and as a member of the Maine Climate Council. I frequently see her at Freeport community meetings and events, where she listens to the concerns and interests of townspeople to better inform her legislative work, and she effectively communicates to her constituents what is happening at the state level. When I reach out to her directly for support on issues important to me, such as women’s health care rights and gun safety, she responds quickly and respectfully. I ask Freeport voters to join me in reelecting Melanie Sachs on Nov. 5.

Kim Anderson True,
Freeport

Vote no on PAC flyer

A flyer from a political action committee (PAC) called American Dream arrived at our house in the mail on Friday. The major funders of the PAC named on the flyer consist of other political advocacy groups, all of whom support a political right ideology.

The flyer offers no proposals for public policy and endorses no candidate. It simply attacks Denise Tepler, a candidate for state Senate District 24, which includes 11 communities in the Midcoast region. The flyer was likely sent to every household in the district, or at least to those where records indicate that the residents have gone to the polls to vote in the past.

The logic in the flyer is that Denise is guilty of associating with a political party that does nothing about the rising cost of living for Maine families. If what they say is true, then why doesn’t the flyer describe all the things that their party and their candidate have done for Maine families?

The reason is simple. They haven’t done anything.

Let us examine the issue raised in this misleading attack on a candidate for public office.

The reason that the cost of living is rising for most Maine families is that the supply of basic necessities such as housing, food, clothing, transportation, heat and so on are in shorter supply relative to demand than they were a few decades ago.

That is because the wealth of the richest members of society relative to the rest of the population has continued to increase at a staggering rate. It is simply more profitable and easier for businesses to provide products and services for the rich than for the lower classes. Why work harder to make less money?

Voters in Maine Senate District 24 should toss this flyer into the trash. Empty rhetoric is simply not useful in a democratic process where different ideas about the role of government must be worked out in a slow process of compromise and change.

Gary W. Fogg,
Topsham