Maine governor sorry for remark about ‘young white’ girls

In September 2010, LePage allegedly told a group of fisherman that after he would be elected, “As your governor, you’re going to be seeing a lot of me on the front page, saying ‘Governor LePage tells Obama to go to hell'”.

Update (12:15 P.M.): In a press conference Friday, LePage said that his comment was a “mistake”, claiming he meant to say “Maine” instead of “white“.

“Get your heads out of the sand please”. But the comments seem characteristic for a governor who, despite his own life having been profoundly shaped by addiction, has responded to Maine’s heroin crisis by cutting funding for drug-addiction-treatment programs.

“If you want to make it racist, go right ahead and do whatever you want”, he added.

That’s what Maine Governor Paul LePage did in comments made during a public forum in Bridgton, Maine, on Wednesday when asked about how he was addressing the state’s drug problem.

Paul LePage at a town hall meeting in October. These type of guys. “They come from CT and NY, they come up here, they sell their heroin, and they go back home”, LePage said.

LePage’s Wednesday comments were immediately criticized by Democrats in the state and elsewhere.

LePage also told Cathy he’s hiring 10 new drug agents, wants to spend more on educating young people about the dangers of drugs, and believes it’s time to focus more resources on treating drug addicts rather than simply throwing them in jail without making an effort to coach them off of substances.

In a news release, Michael Tyler, the Democratic National Committee’s director of African-American media, called the governor’s comments “disgusting, racist” and “the worst form of conservative politics – one that plays to the darkest elements of the Republican Party’s base”. LePage didn’t say the races of the drug dealers.

LePage’s remarks drew a strong response from Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.

In an interview with CBS the day after LePage’s 2014 victory, Christie described him “as just one of the most decent, honorable people I’ve ever met – wears his heart on his sleeve, loves his state, has an wonderful personal story”. Condemnation of LePage’s commentary has poured in from both sides of the political aisle.

LePage has endorsed, and campaigned with, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie as he seeks the Republican nomination for president. “The traffickers – these aren’t people who take drugs”. But he didn’t back down from his stance that out-of-state drug traffickers are a problem. Christie’s spokesperson declined to comment when approached by the New York Times.