Paul LePage is standing by comments he made about black and Hispanic drug dealers in the state, saying his statement wasn’t racist and neither is he.
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To prove the point he was making months ago, the governor said he’s been collecting pictures of drug dealers in a three-ring binder.
LePage has been a lightning rod for controversy during his tenure as governor and his unconventional style of politics sometimes mirrors the approach of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
LePage made the comments Wednesday on a program hosted by Boston radio personality Howie Carr.
“Let me tell you this, explain to you, I made the comment that black people are trafficking in our state”. Khan said in his speech, directing his words at Trump and pulling a pocket-size Constitution from his jacket.
LePage accused Khizr Khan of using his son’s death to his own advantage.
When asked about those comments in a town hall Wednesday night, LePage doubled down.
Both LePage and Carr, on the other hand, have proudly endorsed Trump, who has moved away from his Khan line of attack since replacing embattled campaign manager Paul Manafort with former Ted Cruz booster Kellyanne Conway. LePage, who’s white, says he’s not racist. “In fact, in nearly every single picture is a white ME girl in the picture”.
The American Civil Liberties Union in ME says their numbers don’t seem to match the governor’s. In addition to his repeated and overtly racist comments, the governor has always been a staunch proponent of the War on Drugs, which disproportionately targets blacks and Hispanics.
“If the governor is looking for something productive to do with his time, he should focus on ending Maine’s drug crisis by giving law enforcement the resources they need to crack down on drug dealers, help stop addiction before it starts by providing education at an early age and make treatment services with a proven track record of success available to Mainers suffering from addiction”, said Eves, a frequent opponent of the governor.
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CNN has reached out to the governor’s office to provide the specific information that LePage was referencing and has not yet gotten a response. LePage is in his second term as governor. “Go look at the graves of the fearless patriots who died defending America-you will see all faiths, genders and ethnicities”, Khan said.
