Westbrook, MAINE – In case you missed it, Republican gubernatorial nominee Shawn Moody bailed on a Bangor Daily News forum aimed at finding solutions to Maine’s opioid crisis, which claims the life of one person a day on average in the state. Why? To show off a NASCAR stock with his campaign’s slogan on it. “Republican Shawn Moody initially committed to attend but recently bowed out because of an event unveiling his campaign advertisement on a NASCAR team’s race car,” the Bangor Daily News reported. Instead, Moody sent his campaign manager, Lauren LePage, in his place – something he also did during the Republican primary. Meanwhile, Democratic nominee for Governor, Janet Mills, attended the forum and spoke about her plans to address the crisis. She is the only candidate in the race for governor who has outlined a complete plan to do so.
Maine Democratic Party Chairman Phil Bartlett issued the following statement:
“The opioid epidemic is the biggest health crisis facing Maine, taking the life of one person a day. But rather than attend a public forum focused on how the state can save lives, Shawn Moody backed out so he could hold a self-promotional media event instead.
“The contrast in priorities between Janet Mills and Shawn Moody couldn’t be clearer: Janet has done everything in her power to tackle the opioid crisis as Attorney General. She has saved nearly 500 lives by purchasing and distributing naloxone to police departments across the state. She has released a 10-point plan on what she will do as governor. Meanwhile, Shawn Moody can’t be bothered to attend a community forum and instead sends his handlers to speak for him. How can Mainers have any faith that he is ready to solve this crisis if elected?
“Janet Mills is ready to tackle this issue head-on as our Governor. The same can’t be said of Shawn Moody. Shawn Moody isn’t ready to lead on this issue, and he isn’t ready to lead our state.”
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