I traveled to Augusta recently to join the “Maine First” effort to draw attention to the bills being hurriedly pushed through in the last couple weeks of this legislative session. I attempted to share concerns with my senator, Lois Snowe-Mello, but she abruptly made it clear that she wasn’t interested in listening.

If all of the bills being considered become law, the state of Maine will be fundamentally changed for the worse. Funding for post-secondary education will take a hit, even though “lack of a trained/qualified work force” was recently identified as the No. 1 challenge to doing business in Maine.

LD 1853 will weaken the current environmental safeguards relating to open-pit mining in the state of Maine, potentially putting at risk some of the most pristine areas of the state and the very Maine brand itself.

And the proposed tax policy changes will give $21,000-plus to those with incomes more than $750,000 per year, while the proposed supplemental budget cuts to General Assistance will create even more hardship for the most vulnerable in our state.

Instead of focusing on growing the economy to increase revenue that can be invested in education, infrastructure, job training, research and development, etc., this Republican-led Legislature has adopted the “cut your way to prosperity” tactic.

No good can come from such a cynical, backward-thinking approach to governing.

Sen. Snowe-Mello had no answer to my last question, “What about the children?”

Mary Ann Larson, New Gloucester

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