Today's political fix: The race for Attorney General

Now that the general election is over with and recounts have been put to rest, Maine's political junkies are turning to the race for Attorney General to get their fix.  Thankfully, one candidate for the job, State Representative Sean Faircloth, has recently laced the AG race with enough excitement to satisfy most political insiders.

Maine is the only state in the nation in which the Attorney General is selected by the Legislature-practically guaranteeing the majority party the right to pick the state's top law enforcement officer.  This same process goes for Maine's other constitutional officers; the Secretary of State and State Treasurer. This year, because current AG Steve Rowe is term limited, Faircloth, and Reps. John Brautigam and Janet Mills are vying for the spot.

Usually these selections are fairly tame, with a few insiders vying for the spot with little or no outside scrutiny.  However, Maine Public Broadcasting recently aired a story on Faircloth, noting the anxiety his candidacy has created among his colleagues in the Legislature.  As noted in the report, some have charged that Faircloth inflated his resume, had made false recollections, and has acted improperly while serving in the Legislature.  For example, Independent Rep. Tom Saviello recalled occasions in which Faircloth spoke on the floor of the House in favor of a bill his wife was hired to lobby for.  Josh Tardy, the republican house leader, also participated in the story, launching several attacks on Faircloth's credibility.

It's interesting that Representative Tardy was willing to be the front guy for the Faircloth attacks, and it would have been more interesting to know who fed Tardy the information.

Part of Faircloth's problem is that the current AG, Steve Rowe, is a boy scout, generally liked and respected by everyone. Rowe's unblemished record as AG will stand in stark contrast to Faircloth's recently clouded resume.

Of course, it is ridiculous that the State's top law enforcement job is settled behind the scenes by a few politicians with no ability for the public to weigh-in.  There are no public hearings, no checks and balances -- just 100 or so folks sitting around a room picking their friends or acquaintances.  With the exception of AJ Higgins at Maine Public Radio, there has been very little in the way vetting or any real review of the qualifications for the job.  Mike Tipping, in his Downeast Magazine column, Tipping Point, was one of the few in the print media that provided any real analysis of the three candidate's qualifications or plans for the job of Attorney General. However, as noted by Adam Cote in his PolitickerME column, Representative Mike Carey did a substantial survey on each of the candidates. You can view those answers here.

Democrats will be caucusing Tuesday afternoon to determine which of the three candidates they will put up as their nominee, before the legislative vote occurs on Wednesday, Dec. 3.    It will be interesting to see how this one turns out.