Maine Governor's Decision To Remove Labor Mural Stems From A Single Anonymous Letter

Posted: 03/24/11 05:12 PM

As you may have heard, Maine Gov. Paul LePage jumped into the nationwide "UNION THUGZ ARE HISTORY'S GREATEST MONSTERS" thought-craze by ordering the removal of a mural from the main lobby of Maine's Department of Labor, because it suggested that fighting for labor rights was a good thing, or something. At the time, LePage said that he was spurred to these actions because "some business owners" had "complained it was hostile to business." Why didn't they just ask LePage to burn the Department of Labor down to its joists? Because "some business owners" just aren't thinking big enough right now, so it's no wonder no jobs are being created.
But who complained? Over at ThinkProgress, Alex Seitz-Wald reports that it all seems to have been instigated by a single anonymous letter, in which a "secret admirer" urges LePage to "TEAR DOWN THIS MURAL" because it reminded him/her of "communist North Korea where they use these murals to brainwash the masses." (Really? Is that North Korea's game changing secret?)
Here's an important clarification, however. Lots of early reports, including Seitz-Wald's initial post, said that this missive came in the form of a fax transmission. LePage's office now says that it was "a letter, not a fax." If true, there's no reason to be concerned about the fact that there wasn't a fax transmittal timestamp on the released document. However, this point from Seitz-Wald still stands: "But more importantly, why is LePage making policy decisions based on a single [letter] from an anonymous 'Secret Admirer'?"
It's a good question! Fortunately, it's one that we can test. LePage's office address is #1 State Hall Station, Augusta, Maine, 04333. So send him your letters! Demand that he flood the streets of Bangor with delicious chowder! Insist that the Whoopie Pie should not be Maine's state dessert. Order him to send the Maine Army National Guard to annex New Brunswick. If LePage stays true to form, pretty soon Maine will be up to its waist in bonkersauce.
(For best results, sign your letters, "Love, the Koch Brothers," obviously.)