Joanne Twomey has a t-shirt that says, “Well-behaved women rarely make history.”
The former Biddeford mayor and state legislator proved she can wear the tee and make the noise as she demonstrated on Thursday night when she let?Maine Gov. Paul LePage hear her opinion about his state budget plan with a very eloquent Vaseline jar tossing.
During her time in Augusta and as Biddeford’s mayor, Twomey distinguished herself with passionate speeches about the environment and issues that affect children, seniors and people living in poverty.
As a state lawmaker, Twomey served on the State and Local Government, Natural Resources, and Agriculture Conservation and Forestry committees. She also served as chair of the House Standing Committee on Engrossed Bills sponsoring bills that sought to reduce prescription drug costs, establish a living wage, require fingerprinting and background checks of school employees, and create a single-payer system for universal health care.
A True Democrat.?Of course the Tea Party LePage wants none of it.
Disappointed with lack of leadership during the Bush presidency. Twomey became an independent in 2005 and has kept fighting to get the government to deliver major tax reform and provide more Mainers with health care.
The retired grandmother said she had researched the governor’s proposed budget before Thursday’s meeting and was hoping to speak. She planned to hand the Vaseline to the governor as a symbol of how he treats people but was not surprised when she was not called to ask a question during the Town Hall meeting.
The Vaseline connection comes from a comment from Gov. LePage who, in 2013, used sexual innuendo to criticize Democratic Sen. Troy Jackson saying:
?Sen. Jackson claims to be for the people, but he’s the first one to give it to the people without providing Vaseline.?
As she tried to make her point and was constantly interrupted by LePage, Twomey finally loses her patience and throws the Vaseline jar at him, after which, she was removed from the site and the meeting was considered over.
This morning, Twomey was busy fielding phone calls and reporters about #VaselineGate:
?People can say whatever they want about me, but this isn’t about me. It’s about the big picture and a governor who doesn’t have a heart… How can I regret speaking up for people who can’t? How can I regret standing up to a governor who is going to hurt people? I haven’t lost my spine and I make no apologies. I just don’t agree with his budget. I don’t agree with shifting the burden from the wealthy to the poor. The people who should pay should pay. I don’t mind paying my fair share.”
LePage didn’t comment.
Nobody knows if he kept the Vaseline, but I am tweeting this story to Stephen King. We may see a novel soon entitled Lubbing the Lily?and Playing With Semantics.
