The unions are coming! Steel workers donate $300,000 to help Michaud

Phil Harriman (BDN photo by Gabor Degre)

Phil Harriman (BDN photo by Gabor Degre)

Perhaps you’ve heard the adage, “Some people watch things happen. Others make things happen. And most people wonder what happened.”

For Republicans to win back the Maine Legislature and Gov. Paul LePage to be re-elected, they must make things happen — starting yesterday.

Why? Look at the February political contributions report. There you’ll see that the United Steel Workers donated $300,000 to the Maine Democratic Party.

Now, ask yourself. How many United Steel Workers members live in Maine? There’s a few in paper mills I suspect. Then ask yourself, why did they donate such a huge sum?

Answer: They owe Mike Michaud, and they despise Paul LePage.

One mega contribution is noteworthy (if the media even reports and follows this), especially when it’s spent on salaries and benefits for the staff at headquarters, community organizers and social media.

I predict this is just the beginning of a well orchestrated and multi-level political invasion of cash. The obvious intent? To reduce support for LePage among the 39 percent or so of Mainers who support him because he represents for them the Maine that we used to know when government was affordable, jobs were available and those who could work did.

Republicans must be prepared for one big labor union after another paying homage to Michaud via these kinds of massive donations to the Democratic Party.  Remember, as well, that big labor wants to pave the yellow brick road for Hillary Clinton. Maine’s four electoral votes in 2016 are relatively inexpensive to buy compared with other media markets around the country.

Unions spent money to force you to enroll in Obamacare or be fined while the president promised that if you like your doctor you can keep your doctor. Unions insist that government expand welfare, also known as Mainecare, to another 70,000-100,000 people in Maine. Unions also push hard to expand government, which creates more jobs (er, members) for themselves.

Michaud agrees with them; LePage doesn’t. So too do Mark Eves, Speaker of the Maine House, as well as Justin Alfond, President of the Maine Senate.

And donations like these will make sure they won’t forget for decades to come.

Time for Republicans to make things happen, or they will wonder what happened.