Politics and Other Mistakes: Don’t expect too much

6 mins read

 

“You have to have appropriate fiscal management to allow the state to do the rest of the work of the Legislature and the governor.”
     – David Lemoine, shortly before being sworn in as Maine state treasurer, Kennebec Journal, Jan. 4, 2005

 

“State Treasurer David Lemoine said the department will no longer invest tax dollars into such risky ventures.”
     – news story in which Lemoine explains how, in August 2007, his office invested $20 million in Mainsail II, an offshore fund backed by subprime mortgages, which failed 12 days later, a failure he did not disclose for over three months, Lewiston Sun Journal, Nov. 21, 2007

 

“We think we will be paid. We think we will be paid in full.”
     – Lemoine, predicting the state will recoup all of its $20-million investment, Kennebec Journal, Nov. 27, 2007

 

“[Lemoine] said he believes the state will be paid back the $20 million, plus interest – but that it’s impossible to know when.”
     – news story, Morning Sentinel, Nov. 28, 2007

 

“It’s probably safe to say if we had known we would not have allowed that investment to proceed.”
     – Lemoine, explaining that a Merrill Lynch broker failed to disclose the risks associated with Mainsail II before the state invested, Kennebec Journal, Nov. 29, 2007

 

“We have a three-tiered screening process for figuring out where these funds go, and that process was in operation.”
     – Lemoine, explaining how his office guards against questionable investments, Bangor Daily News, Nov. 29, 2007

 

“This was in no way a subprime investment …. It now seems accurate to say that the Mainsail situation is the result of last summer’s subprime investment concerns, but the situation developed despite the high quality ratings applied to both the company and its underlying assets …. I am confident the state will recoup the investment, so long as we do not succumb to panic selling.”
     – Lemoine, op-ed, Lewiston Sun Journal, Dec. 2, 2007

 

“Lemoine said he initially thought the state would get its money back relatively quickly and that he didn’t see it as an emergency.”
     – news story, Lemoine, testifying before a legislative committee, explaining why he waited three months to reveal the problem, Morning Sentinel, Dec. 13, 2007

 

“Treasury had some of the most qualified professional advisers in the nation working with us when the Mainsail II investment was made last August.”
     – more Lemoine legislative testimony, Associated Press, Dec. 13, 2007

 

“Mr. Lemoine says he believes Maine will get all its money back with interest – eventually, and ‘perhaps in more than one step.'”
     – editorial, Bangor Daily News, Feb. 18, 2008

 

“Lemoine said Mainsail II still has assets that can be sold and the state’s chances of getting its money back depend on what price those assets are sold at.”
     – news story, Lewiston Sun Journal, April 10, 2008

 

“Lemoine believes the state is in a good position among those owed money from the Mainsail II fund but he said he ‘dare not’ predict when the matter will be resolved.”
     – news story, Capitol News Service, May 15, 2008

 

“The state’s $20 million investment last year in a mortgage-backed fund that went from a top credit rating to junk bond status almost overnight was worth less than $7 million at the close of the fiscal year June 30. Barring a dramatic increase in the Mainsail II fund’s value, the state would have to write off more than $13 million if it were sold today.”
     – news story explaining that those assets will likely be auctioned off in September, Statehouse News Service, July 31, 2008

 

“Fire this guy’s assets.”
     – Me. Right here. Right now.

 

I wanna be your dog

“What is happening in this state is like Gestapo methods of controlling people and kennels, breeders, pet centers …. Frankly, I’m afraid of this department [the state Animal Welfare Program]. Very afraid.”
     – State Sen. Lois Snowe-Mello of Poland, criticizing the AWP for seizing nearly 250 sick and injured dogs from a Buxton kennel, Lewiston Sun Journal, Sept. 14, 2007

 

“As a dog owner I believe fully in the old adage that you can judge a person by how they treat animals. It is our responsibility to care for the well being of our pets and we must ensure that those who mistreat animals of any kind are made accountable for their actions.”
     – Snowe-Mello, now running for re-election, claiming that during the last legislative session, she favored giving the “Gestapo” stricter controls over kennels and breeders, in a posting on Maine Hometown News.com, July 21, 2008

 

Used and abused

“People are vicious. I’m sick of it.”
     – Susan Hopkins, at-large member of the Portland School Committee, on why she isn’t seeking re-election this fall, Forecaster, July 31, 2008

Got something quotable to say? E-mail me at aldiamon@herniahill.net.

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