Letters from Augusta
By Gary Friedman
Commentary printed in the Mount Desert Islander
What’s the big deal about vision?
Well, I think every elected official should be able to answer the question: “What are my values and policy priorities — and how do these reflect my vision and the needs of my constituents?”
As I campaigned for the State House last fall, I heard across this district that people want to address:
- Affordable housing
- Rapidly escalating property taxes
- Affordable health care
- Affordable child care
- Affordable energy
- And of course, education; a sustainable economy; and the environment/climate change.
I have been working on these issues over the last eight months and have written previously about the Maine Legislature’s accomplishments this year. What about the Congress and the administration in Washington – what are they doing to address these critical issues?
Early in my political career I was told by an old hand, “Show me your budget and I’ll know your values.” The Republican’s Big Beautiful Bill and 2026 spending proposals do nothing to address the priorities articulated by the majority of residents in my district. Instead, the GOP is pursuing policies that:
- Cut taxes for the wealthiest individuals and corporations
- Raise costs for working and middle income families
- Cut support for healthcare, education and food assistance
- Provide $150 billion — more than most countries’ military budgets – to build a massive new government police force and walled camps for detaining undocumented immigrants, many of whom have worked and paid taxes in the United States for decades.
The tipping of our economy to favor the wealthy has gutted Maine’s middle class and stagnated wages that have not kept up with inflation. In Hancock County, 31% are experiencing financial hardship despite having incomes that are above the federal poverty level, but not enough to afford basic living expenses. That’s up by 1/3 since 2010. Three-quarters of single mothers with children and households under 25 years old are experiencing financial hardship.
I vote with the progressives on my Committee on Taxation to cut income taxes for working and middle class families, while ensuring that millionaires and the largest corporations pay their fair share.
We passed a bill to levy a 1% tax on the largest real estate transactions — property sales over $1 million— to generate $30 million every year for affordable housing.
We are working to to protect the most vulnerable, to give a hand up to the disadvantaged, to welcome immigrants who will help build our State’s economy, to make affordable childcare available to all families, to assure access to quality healthcare, and to lower costs for working families.
Right now, ICE agents (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), wearing masks, are raiding cities, farms and work places across the country. They hide their badges. They snatch people off the streets in silence. They disregard mayors, governors, Congressmen and Senators. They answer only to Kristi Noem, Stephen Miller, and Donald Trump.
These unconstitutional acts are a grave threat to our Democracy. We can’t let that happen anymore. When federal agents start acting like secret police, as we have seen in cities like Los Angeles, they do not reflect American values.
A new group called the Save America Movement is launching a bold initiative to acquire a fleet of sprinter vans, hire camera crews, and follow ICE raids in real time — to film them and expose what they’re doing to our communities.
In the legislature I worked to pass LD 1971, An Act to Protect Workers in the State by Clarifying the Relationship of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies with Federal Immigration Authorities. This bill would prohibit State and local police from acting as arms of ICE. It passed in the House 74-73 on June 18 and prevailed in the Senate 20-14 but has not been signed by the Governor.
The legislature starts every morning with the national anthem sung by a talented Mainer. It’s inspiring to hear them belt out the Star Spangled Banner, reverberating from the high ceiling of the House of Representatives.
Then everyone in the chamber recites the pledge of allegiance, which concludes with these words: indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
That’s what I believe in, the values on which our country was founded.
Gary Friedmann represents House District 14 — the people of Bar Harbor, Mount Desert, Lamoine and the Cranberry Isles — in the Maine Legislature.
Rep. Gary Friedmann
Maine State House District 14
207.460.7362