State GOP questions Obama's leadership

As Democrats are gathering in Denver for the Democratic National Convention, Republicans in Maine are saying they're skeptical of the man the Democrats are expected to name their presidential nominee.

In a statement Tuesday, Maine GOP chairman Mark Ellis said U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) was not ready to lead the nation. 

“Barack Obama’s record speaks for itself – he is not ready to lead,” said Ellis said. “When it comes to taxes, Obama voted for tax increases 94 times during his short tenure in the Senate.  He even supported raising taxes on those making as little as $42,000.  The last thing Maine families and Maine small businesses need in these tough economic times are higher taxes.”   

Ellis also criticized Obama's stated reluctance to expand off-shore oil drilling as a method for bringing down gasoline prices, saying presumptive Republican nominee U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) offered better solutions.

"Obama opposes common sense solutions like offshore drilling and nuclear energy, while John McCain has the right idea in proposing comprehensive ‘all of the above’ solutions to our energy crisis.  The bottom line is Obama is wrong on the economy and wrong on energy.  Barack Obama does not have the judgment or the experience to be President of the United States.”