LePage mistakenly goes after Stephen King. King responds.

**herbertwest** · 03-19-2015 06:05 AM

LePage mistakenly goes after Stephen King. King responds :

Gov. LePage has been claiming that people move away to places like Florida because they want to reduce taxes. That flies in the face of the reality that people in cold climates, throughout the United States, no matter their state taxes, have been moving south for the winter.

I mean, after this winter, you don’t have wonder very hard why Maine people would try to escape the cold and wind, do you?

Well, in pushing for his tax plan, Gov. LePage took a shot at a number of prominent Mainers, including Stephen King. In one of his weekly radio addresses, LePage said:

Meanwhile, remember who introduced the income tax here in Maine. Well, today former Governor Ken Curtis lives in Florida where there is zero income tax. Stephen King and Roxanne Quimby have moved away, as well. [source]

But LePage is wrong. Stephen King hasn’t moved away.

I live in Bangor and frequently walk past his house on West Broadway. There are often cars in the driveway with Maine plates. I sometimes see Stephen or Tabitha in Bangor.

The Kings vote in Bangor. I’ve looked up their donations to federal candidates and they’re listed as Maine residents.

Besides the Bangor home, they also own a home in western Maine. Plus there’s a house in Florida.

And now Stephen King has responded.

Governor LePage is full of the stuff that makes the grass grow green. Tabby and I pay every cent of our Maine state income taxes, and are glad to do it. We feel, as Governor LePage apparently does not, that much is owed from those to whom much has been given. We see our taxes as a way of paying back the state that has given us so much. State taxes pay for state services. There’s just no way aRound it. Governor LePage needs to remember there ain’t no free lunch. [source]

The Kings are amazing citizens of Maine who give back in so many ways. Thank you, Stephen and Tabitha for all you do.

LePage is wrong about the Kings and should issue a correction.

>>> http://pollways.bangordailynews.com/...king-responds/

**Theli** · 03-19-2015 06:52 AM

What a dingbat. Not being overly familiar with the finer points of US politics, when I read the title I thought this was about the glue manufacturer. I was wondering how they were gonna spin poorly glued bindings as Stephen King's fault

**mae** · 03-21-2015 04:31 AM

http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=18321

Jan Freeman, "Stephen King scores a grammar win", Throw Grammar from the Train, 3/20/2015:

Stephen King, novelist and resident of Maine and (sensible man!) Florida, has refuted the Maine governor’s claim that King had left the state to escape oppressive taxes.

"Governor LePage is full of the stuff that makes the grass grow green," the best-selling author told a local radio station. "Tabby and I pay every cent of our Maine state income taxes, and are glad to do it. We feel, as Governor LePage apparently does not, that much is owed from those to whom much has been given."

For me, that boldface sentiment is the news here: In its long quotation history, it has rarely been rendered grammatically. “From whom much is given, much is expected” – from John F. Kennedy Jr. — is just one mangled example. You'd think a Bible quotation would get some respect, but it turns out the human mind has a hard time supplying the right number of prepositions and pronouns to say what this maxim intends.

This started with an anti-income-tax jab in Governor LePage's weekly radio address:

[This passage has now been removed from the official online version…]

Stephen King responded with a statement on his own Bangor radio station — Steve Mistler, "Stephen King: LePage ‘full of the stuff that makes the grass grow green’", Portland Press Herald 3/19/2015:

“Governor LePage is full of the stuff that makes the grass grow green,” King said. “Tabby (King’s wife, Tabitha) and I pay every cent of our Maine state income taxes, and are glad to do it. We feel, as Governor LePage apparently does not, that much is owed from those to whom much has been given. We see our taxes as a way of paying back the state that has given us so much. State taxes pay for state services. There’s just no way around it. Governor LePage needs to remember there ain’t no free lunch.”

The episode has gotten quite a bit of coverage, though of course the focus has been political rather than linguistic.

On the linguistic angle, Jan links to an older LLOG post, "The tangled history of a mangled maxim", 1/26/2007. This is one of those cases, like "More people have written about this than I have", and "No head injury is too trivial to ignore", where the syntax and semantics of English seem to take us beyond the computing capacity of our poor monkey brains, and most of us just have to fake it.

**mae** · 03-24-2015 10:26 AM

http://stateandcapitol.bangordailyne...-for-governor/

Earlier today, I reported here at State & Capitol that Joe Baldacci, a city councilor from Bangor, and Democratic Rep. Diane Russell of Portland, have launched attempts to recruit best-selling author and Bangor resident Stephen King to run for governor in 2018.

This came after LePage implied in his weekly radio address last week that King does not pay income taxes in Maine. LePage corrected the radio address after King said he and his wife, Tabitha, pay income taxes in Maine.

Monday evening, King responded to questions emailed to him Monday morning by the BDN. Here is King’s response in its entirety:

“I’m still owed an apology, but never really expected one. When it comes to saying, ‘Sorry, Steve, I was wrong,’ Governor LePage seems to have a problem finding a comfortable pair of big-boy pants. I’m not angry about the misrepresentation, because I’ve come to expect that from Governor LePage. What mystifies me is why he would say something this wrong when it’s so easy to check. It’s the laziness that makes me mad. It makes you wonder if anyone is driving the bus, or if it’s on autopilot. And no, I have no political aspirations. I’ll continue to support candidates who want to speak for the middle class and working poor, particularly those candidates who support raising the minimum wage, but as for me, if nominated I will not run, and if elected, I will not serve. I think somebody famous said that.”

http://stateandcapitol.bangordailyne...r-best-seller/

Stephen King has been all over the news in the past week, not for his latest best-selling novel, but because of his stand against Gov. Paul LePage over inaccurate statements LePage made about King in the original version of his weekly radio address.

Now there are a couple of well-known Mainers trying to prod King into a run for governor. What’s the Master of Horror think? He says he’s not interested. But then again we’re a long way from 2018.

This isn’t the first time Maine’s most well-known resident has inserted himself into the state’s political discourse. Remember last year when he endorsed Shenna Bellows over Susan Collins in the U.S. Senate race? However, it might be the first time anyone has talked seriously about King being the state’s chief executive.

Enter Joe Baldacci, Bangor city counselor, friend of King and brother of former Democratic Gov. John Baldacci.

“I’ll be forming the Draft Stephen King for Governor campaign all those interested in helping out can get a hold of me at my office,” wrote Joe Baldacci on his Facebook page.

Seriously, Joe? Yup.

“I’d be very serious if Stephen gave it a nod,” he told the BDN on Monday. “People who know him know that he has an innate sense of intelligence that is lacking in a lot of our political leadership.”

Baldacci isn’t the only one who thinks King should launch a campaign. Democratic Rep. Diane Russell, D-Portland, on Monday launched a petition drive for the same purpose.

Seriously, Diane? Yup.

“I launched a petition today to draft Stephen King to run for governor because his vision for investing in education, first responders and infrastructure is precisely what Maine needs to create an economy that works for all of us,” she wrote in a statement to the BDN. “He knows what it’s like to be rich, but he sure as hell seems to remember what it was like growing up in Maine’s middle class.”

King running for governor — however likely or unlikely that may be — would answer a central question that has been swirling among Democrats since Mike Michaud’s loss for the race to the Blaine House in November: Who will be the their nominee in 2018? There aren’t a lot of names on that list of possibilities.

Does King have the credentials to be governor? Let’s not forget that California elected a Hollywood action hero for its governor and Minnesota, a professional wrestler.

“I think he has the qualifications without a doubt, particularly when you compare him against others who have occupied that office,” said Baldacci. “He’s a Mainer through and through and he knows this state. His mother is a single mother. He didn’t have the easiest upbringing. He’s earned everything that he’s got and he’s been giving back ever since.”

King did not respond to a call for comment, but his spokeswoman and sister-in-law, Stephanie Leonard, wrote the following on Baldacci’s Facebook post:

“Just guessing but I’m pretty sure he’ll the decline the honor!” she wrote. “He would make a good speechwriter though.”

Seriously, Stephanie?

Yup.

**Bev Vincent** · 03-24-2015 10:28 AM

Stephen King for governor: Horror story or best seller?

Does King have the credentials to be governor? Let’s not forget that California elected a Hollywood action hero for its governor and Minnesota, a professional wrestler.

“I think he has the qualifications without a doubt, particularly when you compare him against others who have occupied that office,” said Baldacci. “He’s a Mainer through and through and he knows this state. His mother is a single mother. He didn’t have the easiest upbringing. He’s earned everything that he’s got and he’s been giving back ever since.”

King did not respond to a call for comment, but his spokeswoman and sister-in-law, Stephanie Leonard, wrote the following on Baldacci’s Facebook post:

“Just guessing but I’m pretty sure he’ll the decline the honor!” she wrote. “He would make a good speechwriter though.”

Seriously, Stephanie?

Yup.

UPDATE (7:40 p.m., 03/23/15): King responded in writing Monday evening to questions posed by the BDN and said he is not interested in running for any public office. “I have no political aspirations. I’ll continue to support candidates who want to speak for the middle class and working poor, particularly those candidates who support raising the minimum wage, but as for me, if nominated I will not run, and if elected, I will not serve. I think somebody famous said that.”

**herbertwest** · 03-27-2015 04:09 AM

"LePage isn’t just refusing to apologize to Stephen King. He’s now in denial mode"
>>> http://pollways.bangordailynews.com/...AgY0Woc.reddit

"LePage offers Stephen King a deal: ‘Make me the villain of your next book’ "
>>> https://stateandcapitol.bangordailyn...our-next-book/

**Bev Vincent** · 03-27-2015 06:09 AM

A cartoonist already beat him to the punch

**mae** · 07-02-2015 05:04 AM

http://hashtagmaine.bangordailynews....age-to-resign/

On a day when people gathered in Augusta to protest Gov. Paul LePage’s governance, Stephen King joined the call on Twitter:

Paul LePage has become a terrible embarrassment to the state I live in and love. If he won't govern, he should resign.

— Stephen King (@StephenKing) June 30, 2015

On Tuesday, an anti-LePage rally at the State House drew about 200 people, and more than 11,000 people have signed a petition on the progressive MoveOn.org website calling for LePage’s impeachment.

Today, the Government Oversight Committee is scheduled to consider two requests from lawmakers who want to investigate whether LePage broke the law by cutting state funding for a charter school where Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves had recently been hired.

The Bangor horror writer hasn’t been afraid to voice his opinions of LePage in the past. In October 2014, he penned a BDN letter to the editor endorsing former Democratic Rep. Mike Michaud for governor over independent Eliot Cutler.

“Make no mistake about it: A vote for Cutler is a vote for LePage. If you feel as I do, that LePage has done a lousy job, I hope you’ll vote for Mike Michaud. It’s time to turn LePage out of the Blaine House and get Maine moving in the right direction again,” he said.

He’s also confronted LePage in the past. Most recently, in March, LePage claimed Maine’s income tax rate compelled King to move to another state. King corrected the record by saying he has not moved to Florida and that he and his wife, Tabitha, pay “every cent” of their Maine income taxes.