It was literally yesterday morning when Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) publicly said he may resign before the end of his term. Late yesterday, he dismissed the “rumors” the governor himself initiated, and this morning, as the Boston Globe reported, LePage shot down his own idea.
“I will not resign,” Governor Paul LePage of Maine said Wednesday morning, a day after he had floated that possibility in a radio interview.The combative governor made the declaration after meeting with Drew Gattine, the Democratic state representative whom he had berated in an obscenity-laced voicemail message and mused about shooting between the eyes in a duel.
LePage also said he would not seek “professional help,” but rather, would rely on “spiritual guidance” with his wife and children going forward.
Asked about other possible changes he’s prepared to make, the beleaguered Republican governor said, “I will no longer speak to the press ever again after today. And I’m serious. Everything will be put into writing. I’m tired of being caught in the gotcha moments.”
It’s worth noting for context that when LePage left his threatening, expletive-lacked voicemail message last week, the governor specifically told his Democratic target, “I want you to record this and make it public.”
In other words, a media “gotcha” moment it wasn’t.
As for LePage’s future, we talked earlier about Republican leaders in the state House preferring to do nothing about the governor’s offensive and erratic conduct, but the Portland Press Herald reported that GOP lawmakers in the state Senate have adopted a slightly different posture.
Senate President Mike Thibodeau …. said in a statement Wednesday that his members have “clearly stated that we need an acceptable plan for corrective action before the determination of whether the Legislature should convene is made.”The governor said Wednesday that he was aware of the disconnect between House and Senate Republicans, but he seemed unfazed. “I think the House is behind me. I believe the Senate would like me to leave,” LePage said.
Note, in the state House, Republicans are in the minority; in the state Senate, Republicans are in the majority.
Watch this space.
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Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."