After a poll showing his race with Jared Golden is neck-and-neck, Poliquin released an ad attacking Golden. Now, Paul Paul Ryan is coming to Poliquin’s rescue with more attacks on Golden after Poliquin blanketed ME-02 with taxpayer funded mass mailings
Westbrook, MAINE - In case you missed it, Congressman Poliquin and the race for the ME-02 Congressional seat have been the subject of several stories in both Maine and national media outlets over the last two weeks, and none of the news has been good for Congressman Poliquin.
After a poll showed Poliquin losing to Jared Golden when factoring in ranked choice votes, he issued his first ad of the campaign—and he’s going negative and attacking Golden right out of the gate. Speaker Paul Ryan’s Super PAC has also started attacking Golden instead of defending Poliquin.
“Congressman Poliquin doesn’t have a record that he can defend to his constituents, and that’s why we’re seeing him go on the attack,” said Maine Democratic Party Chairman Phil Bartlett. “He’s attacking Jared Golden in his first TV ad rather than talking about about his own accomplishments, and that’s because his votes on health care have harmed the people of his district.
“Jared Golden wants more people to have access to affordable health care, and Bruce Poliquin voted to take health care away from thousands of his constituents—that’s the choice Mainers have in front of them this November,” Bartlett continued. “Paul Ryan and Bruce Poliquin can run all the ads they want, but Poliquin has already shown Mainers where he stands—and it’s not with them.”
Poliquin’s heightened use of taxpayer funded mailings has also been in the news, just as it was in when he spent more taxpayer money on mass mailing to constituents than any other Member of Congress before the 2016 election.
“There’s a reason that Members of Congress aren’t allowed to send these mailings within 90 days of an election—it’s because it gives them an unfair advantage, and that’s why Poliquin squeezes in all of the mailings he can before the cut-off,” said Bartlett. “If Congressman Poliquin is as concerned about communicating with his constituents as his spokesman claims, then he should stop spending taxpayer money on mass mailings that are designed to help his re-election and instead unlock the doors to his offices and start talking to constituents. Rather than run away when Mainers try to ask him questions, he should start listening and explain his record.”
Below is a sampling of the recent reporting on Poliquin and the ME-02 race:
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Sun Journal: Poll shows Jared Golden has a shot at winning 2nd District congressional race - 8/3/18
“The poll...found that 42 percent of 2nd District voters view Poliquin favorably while 44 percent see him unfavorably. Asked about his job performance, 58 percent saw it negatively, the poll found, while 33 percent had a positive view.”
Sun Journal: Bruce Poliquin issues the first attack ad of the campaign - 8/10/18
“U.S. Rep. BrucePoliquin’s campaign issued its first television advertisement Friday assailing his chief opponent, Democrat Jared Golden...Golden is among the many Democrats who have expressed support for Medicare-for-All...Fact checkers generally agree, though, that the proposal would not change Medicare. It would merely expand the eligibility for it to those younger than 65.
ThinkProgress: Republican congressman launches extremely dishonest attack on Medicare-for-All - 8/13/18
“Golden would transform Medicare from a program that only covers some Americans in one that covers all Americans. That’s hardly a reason for seniors to sternly shake their heads at him.”
Maine Beacon: ‘He just disappears’: Constituents share stories of Rep. Poliquin’s serial avoidance of voters - 8/13/18
“Senators King and Collins, and Congresswoman Pingree’s offices invited us into conference rooms to discuss the bill,” Betts said in an e-mail. “Congressman Poliquin’s staffer sat us in the reception area. She grabbed a pad (no pen) and listened for a few minutes and then thanked us and said she would pass on our concerns to Bruce.”
“Ask him any question. If it may make him look bad, he will block you. Quite the representative,” wrote Joe McPhail of Edmunds in a comment on Facebook. “I approached him at the Maine Snowmobile show in Augusta a couple years ago. I asked about his tree growth property in Georgetown. He ran inside the building and hid.”
Bangor Daily News: Poliquin’s health care vote will come back to haunt him - 8/13/18
“Poliquin has continued to burnish his reputation for being unavailable to listen to the concerns of health care advocates, veterans, seniors and ordinary Mainers. He avoids public appearances, dodges the press and has made face-to-face constituent appointments a virtual impossibility. Anyone who took seriously the cheerful “ Please stop by and say hello” message when Poliquin’s Bangor office moved last year encountered a different one at the door: “Meetings by appointment ONLY.”
Sun Journal: Bruce Poliquin floods his Maine district with taxpayer-funded mail - 8/14/18
“Two years ago, Poliquin spent more taxpayer money on mass mailings to his 2nd District constituents than any other member of the House during the final weeks leading up to an August deadline for sending off any more pre-election letters...It appears the two-term Maine Republican didn’t scale back this time around.”
Roll Call: Poliquin Again Amps Up Mailings Ahead of Election Deadline - 8/14/18
“Members are banned from sending franked mailers to constituents within 90 days of November elections or before their primaries. An analysis by Roll Call in 2016 found Poliquin spent more than any other member, reporting $166,000 on franking and advertising in the third quarter of that year.”
Sun Journal: Paul Ryan's Super PAC takes aim at Democrat Jared Golden in new TV ad - 8/15/18
“The Fund, which has strong ties to House Speaker Paul Ryan, a Republican from Wisconsin, is a Super PAC that can raise unlimited amounts of money and spend whatever it raises to support candidates it likes or oppose those it does not.”
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