|
Great January Meeting Kicks off 2008 Election Cycle
Mar 25, 2007
The Oxford County Democrats met on January 28 at the McLaughlin Auditorium at Gould Academy in Bethel, with an excellent attendance of Democrats from around the county as well as a delegation of Gould Academy students from a Government class. Congressman Tom Allen from Portland was the featured speaker. He addressed the group on the New Congress, including the initiatives passed in the First Hundred Hours, and outlined the efforts to rein in the President’s Plan for Iraq. He answered questions for nearly an hour on topics including students loans, the federal deficit, energy policy, ethics reform, and the 2008 election.
Prior to Congressman Allen’s remarks, County Chair Cathy Newell opened the meeting with a welcome and introductions. The Treasurers Report was given by Mike Broderick. who announced that all bills have been paid and reports filed for the last reporting period. Cathy Newell added that additional sponsorship contributions were received at the end of the year to cover the cost of the swearing-in event for the county candidates held on Jan. 1 at the Hotel Harris in Rumford, attended by 150 people.
The Biennial Election of Officers was held with the re-election of officers including Cathy Newell of Greenwood as Chair, Roy Gedat of Norway as Vice-Chair and Mike Broderick of Bethel as Treasurer. Mary Dube of Canton was elected as Secretary, replacing India Haynes of Waterford who did not seek re-election. Nancy Willard of Woodstock was elected as Alternate Representative to the Democratic State Committee, a new position.
Under Reports and Updates, Roy Gedat reported on planned improvements to the web site and the use of an e-newsletter. Greg Howard of Brunswick gave an update on the John Edwards Campaign, and provided information on the activities being conducted through OneCorps.com and the Days of Action. Future meetings will include regular updates from Presidential campaigns.
Under County and Legislative Updates, Sheriff Wayne Gallant reported enthusiastically on his first three weeks on the job. Rep. John Patrick reported on the legislative bus tour and on his work with the Citizens Trade Policy Committee. In Northern Maine, he found businesses concerned about transportation, energy and healthcare, far more than taxes. Rep. Tim Carter also reported on the bus tour, including a visit to UMaine’s Research and Development sites. Senator Bruce Bryant spoke about the school administrative regionalization that is the major topic in Augusta. He also spoke about his efforts to get funding for biorefineries. Scott Christiansen of the Fractionation Development Center, of which Sen. Bryant is Vice-President, spoke about the siting process for the biorefineries. Rep. Terry Hayes was unable to attend the meeting as she was assisting with the College Goal Sunday event in South Paris.
Cathy Newell announced that the next meeting of the Democratic County Committee will be held on Sunday March 25, at a location to be announced. The regular schedule of meetings will have County meetings in odd-numbered months, and regional gatherings encouraged for the even-numbered months. Meetings are open to all who are interested in electing Democrats. Anyone interested in being added to the e-newsletter list may contact Cathy Newell at cscnewell@gmail.com or Roy Gedat at royggedat@gmail.com.
|
|
