Bill aims to prevent Casco Bay oil spills

A Portland lawmaker wants to stop ships from transferring heavy fuel in Maine waters without protective devices meant to block the spread of oil in the case of a spill. the practice, Rep. Ben Chipman, a Democrat, has proposed a bill to bring regulatory oversight to ship-to-ship fueling.

The Trump who spoke to Congress was a lot less fiery than the Trump who stumped in Maine

Republicans are in celebration mode and Democrats are saying Republican President Donald Trump focused on pandering and not details Tuesday night in his first address to a joint session of Congress. Trump’s speech – which unlike most of his previous public appearances adhered tightly to the script – was remarkable for its departure from Trump’s usual gloom-and-doom characterization of everything from violence in U.S. cities to our country’s role in upheaval in the Middle East.

Maine pulp and paper trade group dissolves after half a century

In what appears to be a sign of the times, the Maine Pulp and Paper Association has announced that it is disbanding effective immediately. Conna Cassese, the association’s chair, sent an email on Friday informing members that in the wake of ongoing mill closures, the 50-year-old trade organization no longer had enough support to continue its mission of representing the state’s pulp and papermaking companies, according to an online post by Maine Environmental News.

To celebrate inaugural or not?

The sharp divisions over President-elect Donald Trump’s election have politicians, celebrities and even high school students debating whether taking part in the inauguration is a political act that demonstrates support for the new president and his agenda or a nonpartisan tribute to democratic traditions and the peaceful transfer of power. Among critics of the president-elect, everyone from Hillary Clinton and Hollywood A-listers to the band director at tiny Madawaska Middle/a High School in northern Maine and singers in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir is wrestling with this issue – and reaching different conclusions.

Top story of 2016 in Maine: Legalized marijuana

In this Dec. 19, 2016 file photo, Lorry Fleming, center, of Bath, Maine, a supporter of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, shouts at Donald Trump supporter Tom Thompson, left, of Topsham, Maine, outside the State House in Augusta, Maine, where the electoral college was meeting to elect the president. The split of Maine’s presidential electoral votes for the first time was among the state’s top stories in 2016.

Top story of 2016 in Maine: Legalized marijuana

In this Dec. 19, 2016 file photo, Lorry Fleming, center, of Bath, Maine, a supporter of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, shouts at Donald Trump supporter Tom Thompson, left, of Topsham, Maine, outside the State House in Augusta, Maine, where the electoral college was meeting to elect the president. The split of Maine’s presidential electoral votes for the first time was among the state’s top stories in 2016.