Maine's Political Pulse

Follow Maine's Political Pulse
Share on
Copy link to clipboard

A new series of talks on Morning Edition, Maine's Political Pulse taps into the expertise of our top political reporters, Steve Mistler and Mal Leary. Loading...

Maine Public staff


    • May 16, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • monthly NEW EPISODES
    • 13m AVG DURATION
    • 217 EPISODES


    Search for episodes from Maine's Political Pulse with a specific topic:

    Latest episodes from Maine's Political Pulse

    May 16, 2025: Rewriting Jan. 6, a possible primary challenge for Jared Golden

    Play Episode Listen Later May 16, 2025 10:06


    Nearly one year after President Donald Trump's supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in the hopes of stopping certification of the 2020 election, the Maine House of Representatives debated a resolution commemorating the assault on Congress that ultimately led to the conviction of more than 1,270 rioters.

    April 14, 2025: Where Maine's federal lawmakers stand on Donald Trump's tariff policy

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 14, 2025 6:51


    Some members of Congress, including most of Maine's delegation, are increasingly uneasy with President Donald Trump's tariffs — but efforts to curtail his power are likely going nowhere.

    April 4, 2025: Title IX, tariffs and the other stories driving Maine's political frenzy

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2025 9:54


    Welcome to April and a political news cycle that never stops. This week we're going to focus on a few developments with the goal of providing a little clarity and context that isn't always achievable when news breaks and deadlines loom.

    March 14, 2025: As Trump makes the trade war about Canada's sovereignty, Maine hopes it won't pay the price

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 14, 2025 8:27


    Trump has said repeatedly he wants Canada to become the 51st state. It's a statement sometimes laughed off in the U.S., but viewed as deadly serious in Canada.

    Feb. 21, 2025: Maine's new 3-day waiting period law could become test case in new legal landscape on guns

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 21, 2025 11:11


    Maine's new, three-day waiting period on gun purchases passed the Legislature by the slimmest possible margin last year and narrowly averted a veto from Democratic Gov. Janet Mills. Now, gun rights advocates think the law could become the vehicle to erase waiting period laws in Maine and roughly a dozen other states.

    Feb. 7, 2025: For years, RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine rhetoric has found receptive ears in Maine

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2025 8:27


    Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has continued to push the long debunked claim that childhood vaccines cause autism. He has also argued that the COVID-19 vaccine was part of an elite plot to prolong the pandemic and shun other unproven or debunked remedies.

    Jan. 31, 2025: Trump's funding freeze and the clarion call for Maine, national Dems

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 31, 2025 9:49


    Democrats' response this week to President Donald Trump's attempt to freeze all federal grants and loans already approved by Congress was a rare moment of swift, unified and urgent condemnation.

    Jan. 17, 2025: Janet Mills' plan to fill Maine's first budget hole in over a decade

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 18, 2025 12:24


    The tax and fee changes that Gov. Janet Mills put forward last week in her budget only add up to about $150 million in a two-year state spending plan that tops $11.6 billion. But new taxes and fees are always controversial, even when they are narrowly “targeted,” as Mills argues in this case.

    June 12, 2024: Political Pulse primary elections recap

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 12, 2024 8:59


    A look back at Tuesday's results and what they mean.

    primary elections political pulse
    June 7, 2024: A primary primer as parties prepare to pick politicians at polls in Maine

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 7, 2024 7:56


    Tuesday is primary election day in Maine (again) as voters head to the polls to select party nominees for Congress, the Legislature and local offices.

    May 2, 2024: Here are the major takeaways from the 2nd session of the Maine Legislature

    Play Episode Listen Later May 2, 2024 8:56


    While lawmakers will return to the State House next week to take up the governor's vetoes, the 131st Legislature has already left its imprint on some of the issues and challenges confronting the state.

    March 29, 2024: Maine Democrats make last-minute push for 'red flag' gun law

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 29, 2024 9:47


    Republicans have described the proposal as a late-session ambush designed to catch gun rights groups and the public off guard.

    March 15, 2024: Politics roundup: Gun bills, Netflix tax

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 15, 2024 13:19


    Maine lawmakers are plodding toward a mid-April adjournment with a slew of contentious issues to resolve, including gun safety and a new spending plan. Meanwhile, a divided Congress continues its obsession with the November election in its quest for historically unproductive governance.

    March 1, 2024: What to know about Maine's primary elections ahead of Super Tuesday

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 1, 2024 7:56


    Next Tuesday, voters in Maine and more than a dozen other states will cast ballots during the single-largest primary day of the 2024 elections.By presidential primary standards, this year's Super Tuesday contests are relatively anti-climactic because the Republican and Democratic tickets are pretty much set at this point. Absent some ground-shaking legal or political developments, the nation appears headed for a Biden-Trump rematch this November.But electors are still at stake in Maine. And for the first time this year, thanks to Maine's switch to a “semi-open” primary, independent voters can join the proverbial party without literally having to join a party.

    Feb. 9, 2024: What the immigration bill's spectacular collapse means for Maine

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 9, 2024 11:30


    Bowing to pressure from former President Donald Trump, a majority of Republicans in the U.S. Senate this week helped torpedo the bipartisan immigration bill that would have restricted and overhauled the asylum process while giving the president clear authority to close the border.The failure to advance the bill after four months of negotiations ensures that immigration will remain a key campaign issue in the 2024 presidential and congressional election with possible implications for down ballot contests in state legislatures.Maine's Political Pulse was written this week by State House correspondent Kevin Miller and produced by digital news reporter Esta Pratt-Kielley. The theme music was performed and recorded by Rob Holt.

    Feb. 1, 2024: With new proposals, Janet Mills treads lightly into charged gun debate

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 1, 2024 9:24


    Gov. Janet Mills reset the political debate over guns in Maine on Tuesday by unveiling a suite of policy proposals that she says were shaped or inspired by conversations since October's mass shooting in Lewiston.

    Dec. 29, 2023: The fallout from deciding to keep Trump off Maine's primary ballot

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 29, 2023 6:49


    Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows has decided to keep former President Donald Trump off the state's Republican primary ballot. Here's why.

    Nov. 8, 2023: Maine election results

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 8, 2023 6:58


    Chief political correspondent Steve Mistler joins Morning Edition host Irwin Gratz to discuss Tuesday's election results in Maine.

    Oct. 5, 2023: Here's everything we know about the referendum to replace CMP and Versant with Pine Tree Power

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 5, 2023 15:19


    Question 3 in November proposes a dramatic overhaul of who is responsible for delivering electricity to the majority of Mainers. In this state and across the nation, it's unmatched in manner, scope or known outcomes.

    Sept. 28, 2023: Pine Tree Power requires the state's largest-ever borrowing package. Will Maine voters allow it?

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 28, 2023 9:00


    Supporters say Question 1 is a necessary “safety valve” to prevent electric customers in Maine — who are already paying some of the highest rates in the country — from being saddled with massive amounts of debt. But opponents say it's just another attempt to sabotage the push toward what they contend would be more reliable, lower-cost electricity for most Maine residents.

    Sept. 21, 2023: What is 'right to repair,' and why are Maine voters being asked to weigh in on it?

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 21, 2023 7:35


    Maine would become the second state in the nation to require automakers to make onboard repair and diagnostic information available to independent mechanics if voters approve Question 4 in November.

    Sept. 14, 2023: What you need to know about Question 2, which would ban foreign electioneering in Maine elections

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 14, 2023 8:54


    Question 2 aims to close a loophole in state law that currently allows companies and organizations owned by foreign governments to spend money to influence voters on state referendums. In doing so, it taps two populist sentiments about U.S. elections: first, that money plays an outsize role in determining outcomes, and second, that entities controlled by foreign governments should not be allowed to influence voters.

    Sept. 7, 2023: Questions about November's ballot measures? The Political Pulse crew has some answers

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 7, 2023 10:56


    Here's a look at the four proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot this November — we'll tackle the four citizens initiatives separately in later editions of the Pulse.

    pulse measures ballot political pulse
    Aug. 4, 2023: Why a donation by a deep-pocketed conservative group could intensify dark money battle in Maine

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 4, 2023 11:07


    The $50,000 donation from The Concord Fund, formerly known as the Judicial Crisis Network, appears to be the first publicly disclosed contribution to a Maine PAC from the group, which is associated with a network of nonprofits connected to Leonard Leo, the chairman of the Federalist Society.

    What the Maine Legislature accomplished in a session that dragged on and on

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2023 7:10


    The 2023 legislative session here in Maine finally wrapped up this week, more than a month later than originally planned.

    June 30, 2023: Can Maine Democrats get the legislative session across the finish line before the wheels come off?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 30, 2023 15:35


    Democrats controlling the Maine Legislature are securing key policy victories during the halting and chaotic close to the legislative session. However, they've also left questions about intraparty comity and whether they've sown the seeds for a minority Republican comeback in next year's election.

    With so much work remaining, can the Maine Legislature wrap up its session this week?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 20, 2023 11:01


    The Maine Legislature is headed into what is supposed to be its final few days of the 2023 session. But lawmakers still have a long list of major issues that they've yet to resolve.

    June 6, 2023: The focus is on Gov. Mills as lawmakers ready votes to pass Maine family leave bill

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 6, 2023 7:28


    Democratic Gov. Janet Mills will likely be forced to choose between allowing a paid family leave bill to become law or risk a statewide referendum on the issue next year, financed by progressive megadonors.

    May 26, 2023: How a federal debt default might affect Maine

    Play Episode Listen Later May 26, 2023 19:57


    The Mills administration says it's preparing for the possibility that the U.S. government will default on its debt, an outcome that it says will have “serious implications” for the state economy and Maine residents.

    May 19, 2023: CMP transmission project opponents rekindle debate over Quebec electricity supplier

    Play Episode Listen Later May 19, 2023 14:00


    A group of Maine lawmakers has called on Quebec Premier Francois Legault to “help dispel the myth that Quebec has so much power that it doesn't know what to do with it all, which is clearly not accurate.”

    May 12, 2023: Tax cut prospects look even bleaker following Janet Mills' revised budget proposal

    Play Episode Listen Later May 12, 2023 13:57


    There are no proposed tax cuts in the governor's proposal — and the omission, while not surprising, isn't sitting well with Republican leaders in the Legislature.

    May 5, 2023: How opponents are hoping to defeat Gov. Janet Mills' abortion rights expansion bill

    Play Episode Listen Later May 5, 2023 11:39


    Democratic Gov. Janet Mills' bill expanding abortion access beyond the state's current fetal viability restriction appears poised for passage in the Maine Legislature. But it has also energized abortion opponents, who might test voters' willingness to overturn it if it passes.

    April 28, 2023: Maine lawmakers have begun a review of the attorney general's office romance. Here's what we know

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 28, 2023 15:43


    When Democratic legislative leaders announced two weeks ago that they had hired a private firm to conduct a “workplace assessment” following the controversy over Attorney General Aaron Frey's romantic relationship with a subordinate, they left out many details about the manner, scope and purpose of the review.

    April 14, 2023: Seventeen months after voters blocked CMP, nine jurors could decide corridor's fate

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 14, 2023 8:52


    The odyssey of the $1 billion transmission project through western Maine has been playing out in painstaking detail this week during a jury trial that could determine whether the project is ever completed.

    April 7, 2023: Democratic leaders float probe as controversy over Maine AG swirls

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 7, 2023 11:14


    Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey's romantic relationship with a subordinate employee continues to generate questions about his sudden decision to publicly disclose it and how the state's top lawyer navigated policies designed to insulate workers from harmful office dynamics.Maine's Political Pulse was produced this week by Kevin Miller. Esta Pratt-Kielley is the digital producer. The theme music was performed and recorded by Rob Holt.

    March 31, 2023: Maine lawmakers have passed a budget. Are tax cut talks over or just beginning?

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 31, 2023 16:26


    One week after budget negotiations suddenly broke down, Democrats in the Legislature passed a $9.8 billion spending plan late Thursday that will keep government offices open after July 1 but that left Republicans fuming.

    March 24, 2023: What you need to know as the state budget talk intensifies

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 24, 2023 11:30


    News out of the State House has been increasingly dominated by discussions over the state's next two-year budget, and more specifically, whether Democrats will use their majorities to enact a spending plan without Republican support.

    March 17, 2023: Wounds old — and new — spotlighted in historic tribal address to Maine Legislature

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 17, 2023 14:23


    In many ways the address mirrored the first one that took place 21 years ago. This time, however, the tribes addressed state lawmakers who are far more receptive to their main goal — greater self-governance — than the legislators who preceded them.

    March 10, 2023: Wabanaki leaders to deliver 'State of the Tribes' address for first time in two decades

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 10, 2023 11:28


    The address comes after several years of what tribal leaders say has been measurable progress on issues important to their communities. But those leaders could also use the address to continue their push for greater self-government and state recognition of tribal sovereignty.

    March 3, 2023: What's in a name? Little detail in stack of draft bills

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 3, 2023 12:14


    “Concept drafts” are essentially placeholder bills that are often little more than a title and a vague description of what the sponsor hopes to achieve. Two examples: “An Act to Reform Education” or “An Act to Reduce Electricity Rates.”

    Feb. 24, 2023: Recapping a quiet week in Maine politics — aside from Angus King's 'Twitter Files' run in

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 24, 2023 15:01


    Notwithstanding independent U.S. Sen. Angus King's inclusion in the very online “Twitter Files” hullabaloo, the final full week of February was relatively quiet in Maine politics. For that reason, this week's edition of the Pulse will be brief as we empty the notebook.

    Feb. 17, 2023: The big issues Gov. Mills will sway, but didn't mention during her budget speech

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 17, 2023 11:20


    There were a few hot topics that the governor did not mention despite her potentially pivotal role in the policy outcomes.

    Feb. 10, 2023: Potential ballot initiative looms large over State House debate on paid family leave

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2023 11:09


    In this week's Pulse: the debate on paid family leave, Mills to address the state next week, Penobscots ‘open for business' as Biden emphasizes American-made, and a ballot battle update.

    Feb. 3, 2023: So far Maine lawmakers are long on big ideas, but short on public details

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 4, 2023 11:46


    Maine lawmakers have started the 2023 legislative session by introducing an unusually high percentage of placeholder bills that purport to tackle big issues, but are void of any details that might inform the public of their purpose, price tag or impact.

    Jan. 27, 2023: Maine's Legislature is cooperating, for now. But big battles loom

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 27, 2023 16:22


    The calendar will soon flip to February. It's time to empty the notebook with a look back and ahead.

    Jan. 20, 2023: Red states are banning abortion. Maine could become a refuge

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 20, 2023 12:28


    Gov. Janet Mills and Democratic legislative leaders this week previewed a slate of priority abortion bills that expand and further safeguard access to the procedure. Among the proposals is one that would waive Maine's current abortion restriction after fetal viability — about 24 weeks — if approved by a medical professional.

    Jan. 13, 2023: Mills' $10.3 billion, two-year budget revives perennial tax versus spending debate

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 13, 2023 10:02


    As expected, Gov. Janet Mills didn't propose sweeping new initiatives or massive expansions of existing programs as part of her two-year budget proposal. Instead, it was the total dollar figure of the governor's budget proposal — $10.3 billion — that drew the most initial attention.

    Jan. 6, 2023: With rhetorical nods to Maine's past and future, Mills outlines 2nd term plans

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 6, 2023 12:32


    Gov. Janet Mills, all white in suffragette-style and wearing a pair of iconic “Bean Boots,” gave an aspirational inaugural address, front loaded with accomplishments and backfilled with a to-do list for her next four years in office.

    Dec. 22, 2022: Rounding up the year in politics

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 22, 2022 16:56


    A wild year in Maine politics is coming to a close, setting the stage for 2023 that isn't expected to feature any big candidate elections but plenty of legislating and ballot campaigns.

    Dec. 16, 2022: Gov. Janet Mills on the election and what's next

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 16, 2022 15:20


    Democratic Gov. Janet Mills discussed the election and a range of other issues during a 30-minute interview with Maine Public this week.

    Dec. 9, 2022: The fallout from the failed emergency energy and housing assistance bill

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 9, 2022 12:44


    It took less than 10 hours for the smiles, back-slaps and warm-and-fuzzy feelings on the opening day of the session Wednesday to fade away and for partisan tensions to rear up in the Maine Legislature.

    Claim Maine's Political Pulse

    In order to claim this podcast we'll send an email to with a verification link. Simply click the link and you will be able to edit tags, request a refresh, and other features to take control of your podcast page!

    Claim Cancel