Will the Greens support the Republicans? There are rumblings that the Maine Greens could back the petition for a people’s veto of Baldacci’s budget BY SAM PFEIFLE

Republicans, including South Portland state Representative Kevin Glynn, made news this past week when they filed papers to begin a people’s veto of the $450-million borrowing portion of Governor Baldacci’s budget, passed last week.

Maine Republican Party Chairman Randy Bumps press-released that "Governor Baldacci has locked arms with State House Democrats to borrow against Maine’s future to pay today’s bills. Thousands of Mainers visited the Party’s www.maineveto.com Web site to urge against the Governor’s shortsighted borrowing of $450 million to pay for current expenses. Today, Governor Baldacci defied them, avoided the tough decisions expected of a leader, and indebted our children and grandchildren for decades to come. This wholly irresponsible action will echo well into the state’s fiscal future, and was entirely unnecessary."

Not to be out-press-released, Pat Colwell, chair of the Maine Democratic Party, and former Speaker of the House said this: "This latest scheme is a reckless shot at our seniors, our children in school, and every taxpayer in the state. Clearly, the radical agenda of the Maine Heritage Policy Center is the de facto GOP plan for state government. Just when we thought Maine people would see more than $300 million in property tax relief, with more funding to education than we’ve seen in 25 years, Republicans want to tear down state government. The truth is Republicans can’t stand that Democrats passed a responsible budget."

So, to summarize, Democrats want to saddle our children and grandchildren with decades of debt, while Republicans want to tear down state government. Sounds about right.

But what about the Greens? They haven’t been vilified by anybody lately.

Matt Tilley, co-chair of the Maine Greens, says that the Green Party will likely take an official stance on the Republicans’ attempts to veto the borrowing after their next committee meeting May 1. However, "I think that bonding for current operating expenses is a ridiculous idea," says Tilley. He says that he would "definitely" sign the Republicans’ petition to put the people’s veto on the ballot if it were put in front of him.

What would the Greens do instead? "I think if you look at the last couple gubernatorial campaigns," says Tilley, "both Jonathan Carter and Pat LaMarche looked at spreading out the tax burden, whether that’s by expanding the sales tax or looking at the whole taxation situation in general. We need to be looking at that. We’re overly reliant on the property tax right now, and we need to look at a way to relieve that burden on towns."

Didn’t the Greens’ sole representative in the Legislature vote for the current budget plan, though? That would have been a chance for the Greens to align themselves with Republicans publicly on this matter. "I think [Representative John Eder] made a decision based on his own particular situation," says Tilley. "Personally, if I was in his place I might have taken a slightly different position, but I respect him for doing it for the reasons that he did it." Eder, for example, secured $500,000 for a creative-economy incubator in Portland and $200,000 for Portland’s ESL programs before voting for the budget that included the $450-million borrowing program.

After May 1, we may discover what the Greens can get for supporting either the Democrats and the current budget or the Republicans in their efforts to enact the people’s veto.