Welfare Reform

by Paul LePage

Our entire welfare system is designed to breed dependency - once you've become skilled at milking the system, breaking free is almost impossible. If you want to know how destructive and corrupt welfare is, ask anybody who's on it. As a result, the state's general assistance program as managed by the state and municipalities needs immediate reform.

My proposals include establishing a statewide residency requirement for general assistance and a lifetime benefit limit to five years. I propose expanding the workfare program which provides municipalities the right to require general assistance recipients to work in exchange for benefits, and to mandate that all recipients perform valuable community service such as working in libraries, community centers, meals on wheels, etc... or for private sector employers. Recipients with disabilities would be required to perform community services within the scope of their respective ability.

We need a welfare system that encourages recipients to seek better wages without the consequences of immediately losing all of their benefits. Therefore, I propose establishing a five tier income system beginning at the state poverty level to the state earning wage level. Once a recipient reaches the next tier of income, the tier of benefits drop by only 20%, until they reach the next tier where benefits would drop by another 20% and so on until they reach the state's earning wage.

Finally, Maine's urban communities which tend to have an excess of rental housing units are shouldering the majority of the property tax burden for general assistance recipients. As more folks move from rural to urban communities there is a disproportionate burden on a minority of taxpayers for general assistance recipients. We should enforce our current state law which requires all communities to pay for the general assistance of their respective residents who choose to move from one community to another for the first thirty days after moving. 

Paul LePage is General Manager of Marden's, Mayor of Waterville and a Director of Maine Taxpayers United.  He is a Republican candidate for Governor of Maine. His web site:

https://www.lepage2010.com
 

  Tax Day Tea Party

               April 15th, Capitol Park, Augusta, 3 PM    to 7 PM                  

Maine ReFounders/Paint Maine Red is again Joining forces with the group, Maine Patriots, to hold an Tax Day Tea Party at Capitol Park in Augusta from 3 PM till 7 PM.

It is our intention to create a grassroots coalition of Americans and provide a platform to unite around a common goal of stopping the socialistic liberal agenda, seek out and support individuals with True Conservative Values. We are also here to let our officials know that RINO's are on the endangered species list here in Maine and will soon be extinct. If done properly, we will create the foundation and structure for rebuilding the conservative movement and restoring constitutional leadership to our State and Nation.

The Augusta Tax Day Tea Party 2009 was a huge success; almost 1000 fellow Mainers from over 163 towns showed up to tell our officials that we will be silent no more. Lets make it 5,000 this year!!!

Our goal is simple keep the grassroots movement on fire. "We want to keep Patriots excited and pumped up, we want them to continue to pound on the door of Congress and the White House."

Help wanted with many different tasks:

 We need people willing to man information and sign in tables, set up and clean up etc.. Also we need donations to cover insurance, porta potty's, flyer's and so on. Please donate today! Any amount will help. We also need help with providing Pocket Constitutions for everyone who attends. Please go to your local stores and talk to the owners, ask them if you can post a flier in there store And asked them for a donation of goods or services. We will be holding a raffle to help cover the cost of pocket constitutions and this event.

Please attend and donate a little time and money to make this bigger and better than the last one.

If anyone has any suggestions or talents that they would like to share please contact me.

If You are interested in speaking let me know. It is our intention to hold this event for WE THE PEOPLE! This is not going to be a campaign rally for candidates running in 2010. This event is all about the Constitution and letting our voices be heard. We will not be inviting any politicians or candidates to speak, as far as I am concerned if they wish to speak to we the people, they can come to us.

You can send me an e-mail at PaintMaineRed@gmail.com

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http://maineteaparty.blogspot.com
http://www.teapartypatriots.org

The Real Tea Party Conventions - April 15th

Dear Fellow Tea Party Patriots,

Tea Party Patriots, an organization with a reach of millions of members and over 1,000 voluntarily affliated tea party and 912 local groups asks: WHY WOULD 600 PEOPLE AT A RALLY CREATE A MEDIA FREENZY?

 For the last year, Tea Party Patriots have come together in every state across the nation, held tea parties in larger cities to smaller towns and nearly 2 million tea party patriots showed up in DC in September to rally together for the cause of liberty. Where was the media then?

Why did the media choose to show up at a tea party rally in Nashville that marketed itself as a "national convention" with only 600 participants who claimed to speak on behalf of the movement?

Why would the media show up just because a national figure was asked to speak? National figures spoke all over the country in local tea party rallies all year and in DC on September 12th. We believe the answer to "Why?" is this:

There are heavy efforts underway to align us to a political party. There is great concern that the Tea Party Movement will become a third party. The media did not do their homework on this "national convention" and is now creating misinformation on the movement. The Tea Party Movement started because of these tactics and we will not be used like this. We are smarter than that and we will call out any one and any organization who tries to undermine the grassroots movement known as the Tea Party Movement. Our challenge regarding this misrepresentation:

For the media: While we appreciate the national spotlight, we challenge you to do your homework on press releases and marketing strategies of groups and individuals. Had you given the National March on Washington the same coverage you gave this "convention" it would have been more realistic of the voice of the people. During that march, it was evident what the people of the movement wanted our platform to be: LIBERTY.

We challenge the media to show up in their individual cities and towns on April 15th as we gather for our "regional conventions" and Stand Up for LIBERTY once again.

For the politicians: We believe the thrust of our effort has been and will continue to be providing proper forums for all Americans to voice their opinions about their existing government and the changes that are necessary to restore the country to a constitutional footing. We do not dictate to our members. They get enough of that from the parties and from our government.

They want the freedom to find facts, participate individually and act accordingly.

We the People are smart and will not buy any tactics by politicians to use or co-opt us or the movement.

For the people: Become well-informed citizens and know the tactics that will be used against us - especially in 2010. This is an important year politically and we will do our best to inform and educate you on issues. We will also alert you to tactics used by political parties and outside interests to hijack the movement. We ask you to do the same thing on a local basis so we can stop the madness and right our country to common sense decision-making.

If you have not joined a local Tea Party, find one and get involved. This is where you can meet up with like-minded individuals who love their country and want to protect it. To find a local tea party group, go to http://teapartypatriots.org/Search.aspx.

Tea Party Patriots is a grassroots organization represented by ordinary citizens standing up for LIBERTY and dedicated to reclaiming America's founding principles. You are the heart and soul of the Tea Party Movement.

Thank you for promoting the causes of fiscal responsibility, constitutionally limited government, and free markets with us! Tea Party Patriots are just ordinary people reclaiming America's founding principles.

Your Tea Party Patriots National Coordinator Team:

Debbie Dooley, Mike Gaske, Kellen Giuda, Ryan Hecker, Jenny Beth Martin, Mark Meckler, Sally Oljar, Diana Reimer, Billie Tucker, and Dawn Wildman

Jenny Beth Martin (jennybethm@gmail.com, 770-878-1550)

Dawn Wildman (dmwtpp11@yahoo.com)

Mark Meckler (mark.grassroots@gmail.com)

Debbie Dooley (debbie0040@yahoo.com) 

Tea Party Patriots

1025 Rose Crk, Ste 620-322

Woodstock, GA 30189

December 5th, 2009

Maine Taxpayers United Endorses Paul LePage

MTU Board of Directors, meeting on Saturday, December 5th, voted unanimously to endorse Waterville Mayor, Paul LePage, for governor of Maine. Mayor LePage is in his third term, and has reduced city employees, expenses, and taxes by 13% during his tenure in office.

Paul LePage is the general manager of Marden's Discount chain, which involves thrteen stores across the State and employes over 1,000 people. He is also a director of Maine taxpayers United.

For more information, please visit Paul's web site: www.lepage2010.com