Wake-Up Call: Monday, August 4, 2008

With the PolitickerME.com Wake-Up Call e-mailed to your inbox, phone, Blackberry or PDA first thing in the morning, you can get a rundown of Maine's top political headlines. Sign up to get the Wake-Up Call delivered every morning.

With the PolitickerME.com Wake-Up Call e-mailed to your inbox, phone, Blackberry or PDA first thing in the morning, you can get a rundown of Maine's top political headlines. Sign up to get the Wake-Up Call delivered every morning.

August recess: Allen says go, Collins says stay

Congress was in a partisan divide this week over whether to go home for their August recess. In the House, Tom Allen, D-Portland, voted with the Democrats to adjourn. In the Senate, Susan Collins, R-Bangor, voted with the Republicans to stay. (PolitickerME.com, Jessica Alaimo)

Link: http://www.politickerme.com/jessicaalaimo/2104/august-recess-allen-says-...

President leaves Maine

KENNEBUNKPORT—President Bush and first lady Laura Bush have boarded Air Force One after their weekend visit to the family compound in Kennebunkport.

The Bushes rode in motorcade from the Walker's Point coastal estate and posed briefly with well-wishers before boarding the presidential plane at Sanford Regional Airport. (Boston Globe, AP)

Link: http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/articles/2008/08/03/president_lea...

Group protests vacationing Bush

KENNEBUNKPORT — All of President George W. Bush's visits to his parents' Walker's Point home have had a common denominator in the past few years: protesters.

And on Saturday, a group of about 75 people marching along Ocean Avenue to a roadblock near the Bush compound helped to continue that streak. (Seacoast Online, Steve Bodnar)

Link: http://www.seacoastonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080803/NEWS/8...

Obama formally opens Maine office

Democratic Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign is formally opening its Maine office in the state's largest city today. (Maine Today, AP)

Link: http://news.mainetoday.com/updates/031025.html

Medicare savings available to some

YORK— State Rep. Windol Weaver, R-York, would like to alert area residents on Medicare to a rule clarification that can save them more than $1,000 per year. (Seacoast Online, Staff)

Link: http://www.seacoastonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080802/NEWS/8...

Governor names jail oversight board

A pair of greater Portland residents have been appointed to the nine-member board created to oversee the state's county jails, the governor's office announced today. (Maine Today, Staff)

Link: http://news.mainetoday.com/updates/031007.html

Maine's budget woes expected to continue

PORTLAND—Maine managed to close a $190 million budget gap and finish its fiscal year with a small surplus, but a potentially larger shortfall is looming for the two-year budget period that begins next July 1. (Boston Globe, AP)

Link: http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/articles/2008/08/01/maines_budget...

Kittery legislative energy forum set for Aug. 13

KITTERY — The public is invited to a community forum to discuss energy-related issues and what citizens can do to prepare for the upcoming winter. State Sen. Peter Bowman and state Reps. Walter Wheeler and Dawn Hill will host the event with an invited panel of members from Efficiency Maine, Maine State Housing Authority and the local York County Community Action agency. (Seacoast Online, Staff)

Link: http://www.seacoastonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080804/NEWS/8...

City unveils timeline for comprehensive plan revision

BELFAST-- Last week, City Hall announced an ambitious 18-month timeline for overhauling the comprehensive plan. It’s not the first time the city has tried to update the lapsed document, but this time it may actually stand a chance. (Village Soup, Ethan Andrews)

Link: http://www.waldo.villagesoup.com/Government/story.cfm?storyID=123222

State may act on weatherization

AUGUSTA - Gov. John Baldacci says the failure of Congress to pass emergency weatherization aid before taking five weeks off could trigger a special session of the Maine Legislature. But legislative leaders say any measure will have to be very limited in scope to gain broad support. (Bangor Daily News, Mal Leary)

Link: http://bangornews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=167958&zoneid=500

School officials brace for fuel budget deficits

School officials across Maine are watching their fuel budgets closely, trying to anticipate whether volatile market prices will undermine their overall spending plans in the coming year.

In the Bonny Eagle school district, west of Portland, heating oil and diesel fuel are expected to cost $500,000 more than budgeted and will result in significant cuts in operations and programs, said Cindy Hazelton, a school committee member. (Portland Press Herald, Kelley Bouchard)

Link: http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story.php?id=202893&ac=PHnws

$2 billion power upgrade proposed

Maine's two largest power-distribution companies have proposed spending $2 billion to upgrade their transmission systems in projects that would widen hundreds of miles of existing power line corridors and create new ones from Canada to Maine. (Portland Press Herald, Beth Quimby)

Link: http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story.php?id=202672&ac=PHnws

Portland Press Herald Troubles 

Maine's largest city could soon be without a daily newspaper, one that just months ago was Maine's largest newspaper.

Court documents show the Portland Press Herald and its sister papers - the Morning Sentinel in Waterville and the Kennebec Journal in Augusta - could be shut down. The documents suggest if the newspapers aren't sold soon, the parent company, the Seattle Times, could default on its loans and shut down all three papers. (WGME)

Link: http://www.wgme.com/News/story_detail/story_detail_7.shtml?readmore

Gulf of Maine Census 

Scientists are cataloging the natural riches of the Gulf of Maine as the debate over offshore drilling intensifies. The international Census of Marine Life counts 3,317 species living in the Gulf of Maine. Chief scientist Lew Incze suspects there are hundreds if not thousands left to discover. The census doesn't take a stand on drilling. (WGME)

Link: http://www.wgme.com/News/story_detail/story_detail_3.shtml?readmore

With the PolitickerME.com Wake-Up Call e-mailed to your inbox, phone, Blackberry or PDA first thing in the morning, you can get a rundown of Maine's top political headlines. Sign up to get the Wake-Up Call delivered every morning.