Category: Jennifer Blaise
VA Funding Increases, As Does Backlog
WASHINGTON, Dec. 03, 2002–It took Jim Umble, a Navy veteran of the Korean War, more than a year, he says, before a doctor at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical and Regional Office Center at Togus could examine his lungs. And when the 68-year-old Carmel resident asked if he could have a test for his damaged hearing, he was told, he adds, that it’d be another two years before that could happen.
“The wait is the main problem at Togus,” Umble said recently.
Gene Bickford of Norway, another Korean War veteran, has had similar experiences. Bickford, 70, says he waited more than a year to see a doctor for a hearing test. At his September appointment, he learned that he needed a hearing aid for his service-connected hearing loss but that the VA could not provide him with one at that time. Since then, Bickford says he’s been billed for his visit, but is still waiting for the hearing aid.
While these veterans agree that the care they receive at Togus is good, they are plagued by the time it takes to be seen by doctors and the lack of equipment at the facilities. Togus spokespeople say hearing aid orders and supplies are not usually significant problems, although the backlog issue is a serious concern. The wait at Togus is not only long but is getting longer by the day as more and more veterans reach the age where they require increased VA medical care.
Korean War veterans are now being joined in Maine by a steadily increasing number of veterans who served in the Vietnam War. Maine not only has a high veteran population but very few facilities to offer treatment. Existing facilities are understaffed, under funded and unable to meet the demand of the growing number of patients. Congress and government agencies have been working to improve this problem.
On Nov. 22, the VA agreed to change federal reimbursement rules, which previously penalized the New England region because it has a large population of older veterans. VA Secretary Anthony Principi announced the new adjustments in the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) formula, which will help New England states by broadening reimbursement categories from three to ten specific areas to better address such states with older populations.
Dave Lackey, director of communications for Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe, said the changes in the formula will help treat Maine more fairly by taking into account older and sicker veterans. According to Lackey, Maine is fourth in the nation in the number of older veterans per capita.
The changes will also commit an additional $25 million for this fiscal year to New England VA hospitals, including Togus. The new money is intended to substantially relieve pressures the hospitals currently face, such as inadequate staffing and yearlong waiting lists for health appointments.
Republican Sens. Susan Collins and Snowe said in a recent joint statement that they expect the additional money to help reduce the backlog at Togus and other hospitals.
“Without adequate funding for VA hospitals, services and quality could slip,” they said. “This is a step in the right direction, and pending appropriations bills offer promise of additional funds that will make a real difference for veterans in Maine.”
Pending in Congress are similar House and Senate Appropriations Committee versions of bills that would provide more than $1 billion in additional funds for the VA, including health services. The new Congress which convenes in January will have a chance to act on this legislation.
“This is a must-pass piece of legislation,” Lackey said, adding that the Bush administration “has made VA health care a greater priority” than previous administrations.
Maine’s senators said they believe their October visit to Togus helped reinforce their argument that New England needs additional VA funds. At that visit Snowe addressed the problems with the backlog:
“This is the wrong message to be sending at this point in time, when we’re asking people to serve our country. Given the potential conflicts around the world, and what we’re engaged in already in the war on terrorism, we need to do everything we can to get this waiting list down.”
While Togus is eager to use the new funds to expand its medical staff, clinical services and building facilities, it is unclear whether those funds will be enough to help alleviate the growing backlog.
From October to November, the number of Mainers waiting to see VA physicians swelled from 5,400 to 5,800. Jim Simpson, a Togus spokesman, said the backlog is now more like 5,900, with the number growing by 500 to 700 a month. As a consequence, he said, veterans are waiting one to two years to get an appointment.
“Resources are being outstripped by the demand we have,” Simpson said.
Furthermore, during the next decade, the number of patients seeking care at Togus and its community-based outpatient clinics in Bangor, Caribou, Calais, Rumford and Saco is expected to rise from nearly 40,000 to more than 60,000, according to a study by the national VA CARES (Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services), a program within the VA’s Veterans Health Administration.
“The numbers speak for themselves,” Simpson said. “We’re confident that people will look at this and realize that this is a problem.”
Although the hospital still awaits additional money, some internal funds from the region’s network have been available for backlog reduction, Simpson said. This money has been used to add doctors and other medical professionals at Togus and Saco and to increase support staff at the Bangor clinic.
But those funds don’t stretch far enough to shrink the expanding waiting line. The last addition at Togus was a wing added in 1991, which, Simpson says, is not large enough to meet the outpatient demand. More money is needed to increase space for primary care, he says.
According to Helen Hanlon, a nurse at Togus and the president of Local 2610 of the American Federation of Government Employees, Togus also hasn’t had equipment replaced since 1991.
“We’ve been shortchanged for a number of years, and with the sense of being understaffed, it’s wearing,” said Hanlon, who noted that the tension level rises this time of year among employees who face mandatory overtime and cancelled vacations. Hanlon added that a current wave of retirements among veterans is bringing many new patients to Togus and that there isn’t enough staff to handle the influx of new patients who are usually elderly, hypertensive and in need of thorough check-ups.
“Veterans understand the bureaucracy and try to be patient, but with rescheduling, waiting and worrying, I’m sure it must be difficult,” she said. “We worry too about what happens to these people who are waiting a year. I certainly wouldn’t want someone from my family to be put in that position.”
On Oct. 3, the VA announced new regulations to provide priority treatment to veterans with service-connected disabilities who have been diagnosed and rated in the top half of all VA patients. The new policy was instituted to ensure that severely disabled veterans receive prompt treatment in VA facilities instead of continuing to rely on the former first-come, first-served basis.
Gail Goza-Macmullan, network communications officer for the VA’s New England Health Care System, said that the policy, which is currently being implemented at Togus, was intended in part as a response to the growing backlog.
“Waiting lists are a fairly new phenomenon, and the extra workload is a recent problem for us,” Goza-Macmullan said in October. “This policy ensures that severely disabled veterans have priority access to care.” She noted that veterans with medical emergencies will continue to receive priority treatment in any VA facility regardless of their disability status.
Ron Conley, national commander of the American Legion, says it takes time and resources to diagnose the thousands of patients and determine which priority group they belong to. Right now Togus is working with a shortage of staff, all of whom are overworked, Conley said.
“VA health care is superb, it’s quality care,” he said in October. “But the problem is, not enough veterans are able to get into that hospital to receive that care.”
Conley also suggested that veterans be allowed to use Medicare to cover costs at VA facilities. Currently, neither Medicare nor Medicaid coverage is accepted. Simpson explained that VA facilities treat service-related disabilities free of charge and accept payment from private insurance companies for non-service-connected treatments.
“VA care is provided in VA facilities,” Simpson said, although he noted that in some cases the patient is referred to a community clinic. This means that many Maine veterans have to drive hours to Togus because they have no other option for free or subsidized care. Under VA standards for access to primary care, veterans should live within 30 minutes or 30 miles of a VA facility, which is not the case in Maine.
In any event, Togus administrators admit that the newly enrolled still are waiting close to two years for their first appointment at Togus.
Similar backlog problems run far and wide in other New England states. Democratic Rep. Bill Delahunt of Massachusetts, an advocate for veterans’ benefits, said in an October statement: “Veterans already face maddening delays at medical clinics from Quincy to Hyannis…. The least we can do is make good on basic commitments to those who sacrificed the most.”
Until the promise of funds turns into dollars in hand, Togus will be operating as usual and working with internal funds. And Jim Umble and Gene Bickford may be happy to hear that Togus is now installing a new hearing test booth.
“We have been backlogged,” Simpson said of the increased demand for hearing tests now that the eligibility for hearing aids has expanded. “But we have made inroads, and we’re clearing it up.” The new hearing test booth, along with the decision to send some patients to Boston for hearing tests, have helped lift the burden, but Simpson said Togus is still not as timely as it would like to be.
Adding booths is just one of the many steps needed to close the gap between resources and demand. More medical staff, physical additions and new equipment are crucial to places like Togus, where veterans from the Korean War are being joined rapidly by Vietnam veterans, inflating the waiting list by the hundreds every month.
A town meeting on Thursday (in the Theater, building 210 at Togus, from 1:00-2:00 PM) will discuss the national VA CARES study. Simpson said the focus of the meeting will be on the dramatic rise in the number of enrollees expected in the coming decade and the resources needed for the next 10 to 20 years, such as additional buildings and new equipment.
“Our purpose is to provide information and get questions from veterans,” he said. “We’ll be looking at redistributing resources within VA and where we might be able to place more clinics.” Plans are to be developed with input from Maine veterans.
“Vets are coming to us in increasing numbers-they need and want VA health care,” Simpson said. “We focus on their needs and we can treat them, from post-traumatic stress to prosthetics. We can provide them with help. We just need more resources.”
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
When the Tide is High
WASHINGTON, Nov. 24, 2002--"I never really wanted to be Jacques Cousteau," William Brennan confesses.
Appointed deputy assistant secretary for international affairs at the Commerce Department's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) last spring, Brennan's now working in an agency he says is, "by definition oceanic and atmospheric…. You can't get more globally focused than that."
Brennan, married to his hometown sweetheart, Heather, and the father of Will, Tyler and Hayley, has temporarily left his family and Topsham home to ride the tide that's taken him into the Bush administration. Growing up in Castine with a father who worked at the Maine Maritime Academy, Brennan says that living always by the ocean helped prepare and inspire him to reach greater waters.
"I had spent time working in the Merchant Marine and some time working on commercial fishing vessels," he says, "and that's what helped generate my interest in the ocean and in marine resources, which is different than you know, wanting to be Jacques Cousteau."
Gainfully employed now in the nation's capital, Brennan is grateful "to be working with people of [NOAA's] caliber and to be dealing with what are some capstone issues of our time."
His initial challenge is to develop a coordinated and functional international affairs office, which means lots and lots of traveling. Trying to rise up on the learning curve of certain issues, Brennan is catching on quickly to everything but sleep. Often jet-lagged from the job, Brennan commutes home to see his family every two weeks if he's lucky. Taking a look at his fall calendar, Brennan recalls how in 12 days he went from Washington to India, Spain and Ireland.
"It's kind of neat in one respect, but it's not like I'm going on sightseeing trips," says the man who represents the United States at frequent international meetings on matters like the conservation of Atlantic tuna and climate change. "I'm not saying I don't like it, it's just the nature of it, so for any readers out there who say, 'This is great, for at the government's expense this guy gets to go hang out at resorts around the world,' [it's not really like that]."
Learning how to live on international time zones, deal with exit taxes and convert currencies are all new to Brennan, but because it's all still new, he says he finds it fascinating and exciting. In addition, he says, the work is rewarding and he's practicing the marine policy he's always hoped to do.
"I've been involved with marine education over the years, and I know at the collegiate level, the kids' interest in the marine world is formed by the images they grew up with, Jacques Cousteau, Flipper or whatever. I had more of a work orientation towards the ocean because of the commercial vessels, the commercial fishing industry and the Merchant Marine. I loved the working waterfront and the activity that's associated with that-the human relation to the marine environment."
Brennan's gone full circle in his laps of employment and says he's thrilled, "at this stage of my life and career, to have been offered this kind of opportunity to, in essence, come back to a place that I started working for in 1977 at the top of the organization."
"I started out my career with the [National Marine] Fisheries Service (a branch of NOAA) and now I'm one of the top five people managing this agency, which has a $3.3 billion budget and tens of thousands of employees all around the world," he says.
After graduating from the University of Maine with a degree in marine biology, he worked on Soviet ships for the Fisheries Service, at laboratories in Sandy Hook, N.J., and Woods Hole, Mass. While working as a scientist on the ships, which he called a "microcosm of society," he realized that he was interested less in marine science and more in policy, leading him to the University of Rhode Island for a master's degree in marine policy.
Hired to be the legislative assistant of then-1st District Rep. John McKernan, Brennan handled matters before the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee and eventually addressed other issues, including energy and judiciary, which ultimately made him McKernan's senior legislative assistant.
"When [McKernan] was elected governor, he gave me the best recommendation that I ever could have received because he asked me to come back to Maine with him and be the commissioner of marine resources…which is basically like a mini-NOAA," Brennan says.
After working with McKernan for 12 years throughout his terms in Washington and Maine, Brennan moved on to begin his own private marine policy and consulting practice in Portland. During that time he was appointed the Sawyer Professor of Ocean Studies at the Maine Maritime Academy, which gave him the opportunity to research and teach for the academy. He also went back to school to receive his doctorate from the College of Environmental Sciences at the University of Maine last May.
"When I left the commissioner's job, I had realized that after eight years of managing marine resources in the state of Maine (and the New England area as well) that there were a number of issues that needed to be addressed…. There were gaps in my understanding on some of the issues that really drive fisheries management, the human element."
Those gaps gave Brennan the momentum to pursue his doctoral degree. He spent the time studying and doing homework with his kids, then in middle and high school, and competing for grades.
"I'd like to think it was beneficial to them as well to realize that education is a long-term experience," he says. "You shouldn't look at education as something you finish when you get out of high school or even college. [It's] something to do throughout your life."
As he neared completion of his studies, people in the industry approached Brennan and asked him if he was interested in going to Washington and parlaying his background and experience at the state and regional levels into the national level.
"I wanted to get to a higher level. I wanted to look at the policy. I didn't want to get mired in the trees of running the agency and not be able to look at the forest from a broad perspective," he says.
When he decided to put his name forward for a high-level position with NOAA, Brennan began a networking campaign. McKernan, members of Congress, friends in Maine's fishing and political establishments and family members--including his mother-in-law, who previously served as a Republican National Committeewoman--helped put Brennan's name forward.
"There were people who had trust and faith and experience in me, and I guess they must have had enough respect for what I had done before that they saw it would be worth supporting me," he says.
"Bill was a great fit from the first time we talked," says McKernan. "Throughout my public career I needed someone who really understood Merchant Marine issues to be able to adequately represent Maine…he was committed to public policy and actually had experienced working in fisheries and boats."
McKernan says Brennan's new job is a "great progression" and that there's no better way to govern international activities than by applying such real life experience. Brennan, he says, can offer NOAA both the academic approach and the real world approach to understanding and addressing international issues.
Instrumental to his career, Brennan says, have been both McKernan, for his confidence and guidance, and Heather Brennan, for her support and commitment to "manage a family separated like this."
"It's difficult to deal with on an emotional level as well as physically to not have him here, but it's doable and we're making it work," Heather says. "He's getting the support from us up here and support down there [from colleagues and other relatives]."
He also credits fishermen and fishermen's wives in Maine for helping him gain the understanding of and perspective on what managing fisheries is really all about.
"You don't manage fish," he says. "You're really managing human activity, and consequently you're managing human behavior."
Finally, his father, Bill, who "always figured hugely in his life," had the water-associated career that gave Brennan the ingrained exposure to the ocean, which he says is responsible for taking him to a level where he thinks he can really make a difference.
"If you looked at my resume, it looks like I set out one day to become something, and nothing could be further from the truth," he says. "It really was a matter of serendipity and happenstance with an ocean-related theme."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
Mike Michaud Settles Into His New Digs
WASHINGTON, Nov. 21, 2002--Democratic Rep.-elect Michael Michaud eagerly steps up and chooses lucky number 39 out of 53 in Thursday morning's housing lottery, an event organized to determine the order in which new congressional members select their offices for the 108th Congress. Michaud and his chief -of staff, Peter Chandler, then spend the morning checking out what's available, and deciding--down to the wall coloring and floor carpeting--what would best suit the congressman-elect's new digs.
"Settling in is overwhelming because they throw so much at you," confesses Michaud, who looked at more than a dozen offices before committing to his new address: 437 Cannon House Office Building. While touring the building, Michaud cheerfully introduces himself to the current occupants and asks questions about the office space. Most important to him is not the view or the shininess of the furniture but how few minutes it would take him to get to the floor for votes.
It's been a week since Mr. Michaud went to Washington and he's definitely had his hands full with decisions and to-do lists. In addition to the pile of books and papers handed to the freshmen at their many orientation meetings and receptions, each new member was issued a new cell phone, laptop and BlackBerry organizer for emailing-technologies he's still figuring out and learning to love.
Michaud demonstrates how the BlackBerry displays his schedule and explains that the programmer was intended to smooth over communications during emergencies like Sept. 11, 2001, when many cell phone lines were down. The organizer can vibrate, send and receive messages without any interference, unlike cell phones (which often don't work in the Capitol), and the congressman-elect says he's "getting used to it all."
The congressman-elect and Chandler have been living in the Hyatt hotel on Capitol Hill while working out of a temporary cubicle in the Rayburn House Office Building. He's planning on renting right on Capitol Hill to beat the traffic, but prices, he says, "are a lot more than what I'm used to in Maine."
Meanwhile, while searching for his other home away from home in the Cannon building, Michaud jokingly says to Chandler that the storage cage across the hall could be the chief of staff's office. The two chuckle like two college freshmen picking out their dorm room and then get back to business, examining their list of real estate.
While he won't have departing Rep. John Baldacci's old office as desired, Michaud is still hoping to have some members from Baldacci's staff join him by January 7 when the new members are sworn in and Congress convenes. Baldacci, a Democrat, won his gubernatorial bid Nov. 5.
"There's so much to do with the 2nd District to get Maine moving forward," says Michaud, who adds that he won't have to miss the Pine Tree State because he'll be making many visits home. "I want to go back and focus on the district and talk to people about issues."
Michaud admits he never dreamed of being in politics, but river pollution and local issues pushed him into legislative positions for the past 22 years. Instead of complaining he wanted to make a difference. Now he says, "we can only do so much on a state level but the federal policies and federal government have a huge impact on the state of Maine."
Now working under the roof where federal policies are made, Michaud isn't too concerned whether he chooses slate blue walls or navy drapes; he says he's just very excited about being in Congress, even if it's in the minority.
"I would have loved to have been in the majority but that's not the case," says Michaud in regard to the Republican sweep. "But one thing about Maine's congressional delegation is that it's small and we'll work [together] closely."
Offering his optimistic smile, Michaud adds, "You just have to work with whatever hand you're dealt."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
VA Establishes Priorities in Health Care Access
WASHINGTON, Oct. 22, 2002--The Department of Veterans Affairs is implementing new regulations that give priority health care access to severely disabled veterans.
According to Gail Goza-Macmullan, network communications officer for the VA's New England Health Care System, the new policy will assure that severely disabled veterans are treated promptly in VA facilities instead of on the former first-come, first-served basis.
This policy, currently being implemented at the VA Medical and Regional Office Center at Togus, provides priority treatment to veterans with service-connected disabilities that have been diagnosed and rated in the top half of all VA patients. Goza-Macmullan said such veterans will be cared for at centers like Togus for any ailment, from lost limb problems to post-traumatic stress.
She said the new regulations, announced Oct. 3, are in part a response to the enormous growth of veterans needing care. In Maine, 5,400 veterans are on a waiting list to see a doctor.
"Waiting lists are a fairly new phenomenon, and the extra workload is a recent problem for us," Goza-Macmullan said. "This policy ensures that severely disabled veterans have priority access to care." She added that regardless of disability status, veterans with medical emergencies have always been and will continue to be the first ones treated in any VA facility.
Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe visited Togus on Monday with American Legion national commander Ron Conley. Snowe, along with Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Democratic Reps. John Baldacci and Tom Allen, said earlier this year that ensuring the highest quality health care for Maine's veterans is a priority for the state's congressional delegation. During her visit, Snowe expressed the delegation's commitment by addressing the backlog issue:
"This is the wrong message to be sending at this point in time, when we're asking people to serve our country. Given the potential conflicts around the world, and what we're engaged in already in the war on terrorism, we need to do everything we can to get this waiting list down."
The American Legion's Conley added: "VA health care is superb, it's quality care. But the problem is, not enough veterans are able to get into that hospital to receive that care."
Jim Simpson, public affairs officer at Togus, says the new policy will help, but "it's not a panacea for the problem."
"We're still dealing with the major gap between resources and the backlog of those waiting for care," he said.
With expected additional federal funding to expand the staff and open more community-based clinics, Simpson said, Togus hopes to reduce the waiting list, but it remains unknown how much money Maine will receive in this year's appropriations. Snowe's office said that Togus will continue to operate at its current budget level until at least mid-November, when Congress returns to act on appropriations.
"To be honest with you, I don't think we should have adjourned before completing the appropriations process, which included the veterans budget," Snowe said at Togus.
Appropriations waiting to be passed by Congress for the current fiscal year include a $2.5 billion increase for the Department of Veterans Affairs. The House has passed the bill and it is pending in the Senate.
Conley said he hopes that aside from appropriations and new regulations, the American Legion's recommendations will "fix the system, not put a Band-Aid on it." He suggested that veterans be allowed to use Medicare to cover costs at VA facilities and that a low-cost VA health plan be offered to veterans who are without health insurance.
According to Conley, the shortage of staff and the lack of funds to hire more people has led to overworked employees and possible safety concerns. Furthermore, veterans with combat-related injuries are still waiting 30 days to see a doctor, and if a new veteran came to Togus, the earliest he might get in is a year.
Conley says that with the enormous backlog, including thousands of claims to be processed and the time it takes to diagnose everyone who falls into the 50-percent-or-greater profile, the new policy won't work.
"Besides the feel-good PR, the VA has internal problems that need to be addressed," he said. "While the idea of a combat-related injured veteran jumping ahead of the line sounds good to the public…in reality it doesn't happen."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
President Bush Stumps for Maine GOP Candidates
WASHINGTON, Oct. 16, 2002--President Bush is scheduled to be in Bangor Tuesday for a rally supporting Republican candidates for office.
According to Chuck Mahaleris, campaign manager for House candidate Steven Joyce, the president will be at Hangar 12 at the Bangor International Airport at 6 p.m.
Mahaleris said he expects people from all corners of Maine to attend the rally, which will support Republican candidates, including Sen. Susan Collins, gubernatorial candidate Peter Cianchette and House candidates Kevin Raye, running in the 2nd District, and Joyce, running in the 1st District. Last week, former President Bill Clinton held a rally for Democratic candidates at the Augusta Civic Center.
Although the White House had not formally announced the president's travel plans as of Wednesday afternoon, Cynthia Bergman, communications director for the Maine Republican Party, confirmed Bush's plan to attend the rally and said Vice President Dick Cheney was expected to be in Portland on Monday. Cheney was scheduled to hold a fundraiser for GOP candidates at the Sheraton in South Portland at 11:30 a.m.
"A visit from the president and the vice president with less than three weeks to go is a huge boost to our candidates and our supporters as well," Bergman said.
Campaign managers for Collins, Cianchette and Raye had no comment Wednesday afternoon on Bush's rally plans. Joyce's office alone is distributing 500 tickets for what they call "a big win for Maine."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
Treasury Department Announces Maine Member of Taxpayer Advocacy Panel
WASHINGTON, Oct. 10, 2002--The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service has named a Corinth woman to a newly created nationwide Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP). Catherine Kelly, the only Maine appointee, will join 101 other volunteers on the new panel created to represent the concerns and issues of taxpayers to the federal government.
Kelly, 65, a former U.S. postal service worker in the town of Kenduskeag and state coordinator for the American Association of Retired Persons Tax-Aide says her experience and her ability to handle taxpayer problems won her appointment. Kelly also worked for the former Northeast Banking and Trust Company and H&R Block, while also juggling a full house of six children and now seven grandchildren.
"I hope I can make a difference," says Kelly who will be asked to devote over 300 hours of volunteer time per year to the job. For now she plans to serve at least two years.
Kelly hopes to raise a number of issues with the panel including the general public's inability to understand certain IRS forms, notices, publications and tax laws. The earned income tax credit is another matter Kelly wants the panel to discuss. Kelly's goal in serving on the panel is to raise issues important to taxpayers and make them more comfortable about bringing their questions and problems to the IRS.
"Hopefully I can make people see that the IRS is there to help people, not hurt them," says Kelly. "I encourage anyone to contact me. I do not work for the IRS; I'm here and I can help you."
Kelly and the other new TAP members spent the early part of this week in Washington D.C., for meetings and orientation. Treasury Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy, Pam Olson also met with them and applauded their commitment.
"The President has spoken of the value of volunteerism in America and he has urged Americans to volunteer to help their neighbors, their communities, and their government. Never has this been more important," Olson said to the group on Tuesday. "You have all volunteered to serve and your work is essential to ensuring a more taxpayer-friendly IRS."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
Maine Representative Vote ‘No’
WASHINGTON, Oct. 10, 2002--Democratic Reps. Tom Allen and John Baldacci both voted no on the resolution the House passed Thursday to grant President Bush the power to attack Iraq unilaterally. The Senate was expected to vote on the resolution Thursday night or Friday.
The Maine representatives were in the minority as 296 of the 435 members voted to authorize the president to use military force if he determines it necessary to protect the United States against the threat posed by Iraq. The resolution allows Bush to enforce U.N. Security Council resolutions on Iraq and requires him to notify Congress before using force.
In speeches earlier this week on the House floor, Allen and Baldacci expressed their support for an alternative resolution, which would, according to Allen, have authorized "the use of force through the United Nations" but would "provide no blank check for unilateral military action."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
Collins Supports Iraq Resolution
WASHINGTON, Oct. 10, 2002--As the Senate prepared to vote on its resolution to authorize U.S. military action against Iraq, Republican Sen. Susan Collins announced Thursday that she would support the measure. Collins, who had been publicly undecided, said she was persuaded ultimately by an extensive recent conversation with Secretary of State Colin Powell, who said that a credible threat of the use of force was necessary to effectively disarm Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
"In my view, there are times in dealing with a tyrant when the best-indeed, perhaps the only-chance to avoid war is to express in unmistakable terms your willingness to wage it. And this, Mr. President, is one of those times," Collins said in remarks prepared for delivery on the Senate floor later Thursday.
In her statement, Collins addressed the catastrophic risks that she believes lie before the United States if action isn't taken against Iraq. Stating that the threat is "clear and chilling," she added, "The price we may have to pay today to eliminate it will prove modest compared with the price we will have to pay tomorrow."
"While none of us can predict for certain whether or when Saddam would strike, there are far too many warning signs in his past behavior and present undertakings," Collins said in her text. "His cold-blooded willingness to use chemical weapons against his own people as well as his enemies, his aggressive invasion of two nations, his blatant defiance of international sanctions, his continued efforts to procure materials to build a nuclear bomb, and his determined progress in developing a better means of delivering chemical and biological weapons-all strongly suggest an intention and an ability to use these weapons."
Collins, along with others in the Maine delegation, said she hopes military force will be the last resort in disarming Iraq. In her text, she said she wants disarmament, rather than regime change, to be the focus of U.S. policy toward Iraq. The Senate was expected to vote Thursday night or Friday on the resolution. Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe expressed her support for the resolution Wednesday.
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
Maine Delegation Takes the Floor on Iraq Resolutions
WASHINGTON, Oct. 9, 2002--Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe went to the Senate floor Wednesday morning to voice her support for the proposed Senate resolution to authorize U.S. military action against Iraq. Snowe said disarming Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein is imperative because, "we simply can't afford the risk to humanity."
She added: "As many of my colleagues as well as my constituents in Maine expressed-the use of force should be the last resort. Diplomacy must constitute our first line of defense."
Snowe brought up evidence of Saddam Hussein's violations-from rebuilding biological weapons facilities to producing chemical warfare agents-and illustrated how history has a way of repeating itself with terrorist attacks. In presenting a series of dangerous scenarios in which Saddam Hussein could strike, Snowe expressed her belief that the United States needs to act now.
Quoting former Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger's September 26 warning to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Snowe said, " 'We are only at the beginning of global proliferation,' and thus we need to 'consider not only the risk of action but the consequences of inaction.' "
"Therefore, I believe the world must disarm Saddam Hussein now, when the development of his capability is imminent, not waiting until it is imminent he is about to strike," she said.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins was scheduled to speak on the floor Thursday morning and did not have a statement ready for press time.
Democratic Rep. Tom Allen joined Democratic Rep. John Spratt of South Carolina on Tuesday in offering an alternative resolution that would authorize President Bush to work with U.S. allies and the United Nations in efforts to disarm Iraq, keeping war as a last resort.
Allen said his substitute has four principles: disarming Iraq of all weapons of mass destruction, imposing rigorous U.N. inspections supported by Congress, using force if sanctioned by the U.N. Security Council and adopting a separate fast-track congressional authorization for the use of force if U.N. action is insufficient.
"Our resolution authorizes the use of force today through the United Nations, but it provides no blank check now for unilateral military action," Allen said.
Democratic Rep. John Baldacci also said he supports the Spratt-Allen substitute, stating that its principles echo the president's Monday address on Iraq. Baldacci was scheduled to speak on the floor Thursday, and he plans to reiterate that Congress must continue to stay closely involved with the decision-making process. Baldacci said he finds the Spratt approach to be the best workable resolution.
"I believe that a multilateral approach offers the best chance to effectively disarm Saddam Hussein and put an end to his chemical and biological weapons programs," he said. "It's important for our government to work with other nations and ensure that all non-military avenues have been exhausted before taking action on our own."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
Gwadosky Discusses Election Reform in D.C.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 3, 2002--Maine Secretary of State Dan Gwadosky met with U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft today on behalf of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) to discuss ways to head off a possible repeat of what happened in Florida two years ago. He also went to Capitol Hill to urge Congress to move forward with legislation that would help pay for election reform.
Gwadosky, who serves as president of NASS, said the Ashcroft meeting was intended to facilitate conversation and begin a relationship between the Justice Department and NASS. Together, he said, the department and the association may be able, in advance of the next month's elections, to address issues such as voters' rights and the potential for election fraud on Election Day. "We think if there are issues with voter fraud then it ought to be handled expeditiously and as quickly as possible so that there's a strong deterrent for others who might be contemplating such a thing," Gwadosky said. (Ashcroft's office was unavailable for comment).
Gwadosky told the attorney general that another Florida situation could be likely, "just because a lot of states have been waiting for Congress to act on the national election."
Gwadosky spent the morning on the Hill working with members of Congress who are on the conference committee that is trying to reconcile differences between the Senate and the House over election reform legislation. He offered to provide assistance and urged them to act on the bill.
He said Maine has advantages that help contribute to some of the highest voting turnouts in the nation, such as absentee voting for any reason, provisional ballots for those whose right to vote are challenged, Election Day registration and central election authority.
"In the case of a recount, it's not like Florida," Gwadosky said, "where each county does their own thing; we pool the ballots into Augusta, and we have central authority to recount them."
According to Gwadosky, Maine is one of 12 states waiting for federal funds to improve their electoral machinery. The congressional conference committee has before it a bill that would give Maine up to $11 million to implement a central voter registration system and purchase optical scanning voting machines.
He noted that 28 states will still be using the kinds of punch card voting machines next month that were used in Florida two years ago. Most states have upgraded their machines or adopted legislation to install advanced systems, but nearly every state is in need of federal financial help.
"We have 42 states that are in deficits right now," he said, "and they're counting on a one-time opportunity from the federal government to make this investment."
Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.
