Gov. Paul LePage says he made a mistake when he told a Bangor radio station Republican Donald Trump should use “authoritarian power” if elected president. But in a rare news conference he again blamed the press for the fallout from those remarks, and called President Barack Obama a “dictator”.
LePage stood behind a lectern with five Russian nesting dolls arranged in front of it. The biggest doll was a likeness of former President Bill Clinton, the smallest of his wife Hillary Clinton. The others, arranged in between, were Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky and two other women linked to Bill Clinton’s alleged past sexual misdeeds.
LePage used the props to parrot Trump’s renewed attacks against Hillary Clinton, who Trump claims is complicit in her husband’s behavior. The governor also attempted to use the dolls to clarify his remarks to a Bangor radio station Tuesday that Trump should use his “authoritarian power” to bring “back the rule of law.”
What he meant to say, he told reporters Wednesday, is Trump is authoritative — he commands a presence. Clinton does not, he said, and he gestured to the dolls.
“I received that as a gift when I was in Russia, by a Russian. That’s what they think of our leaders. And you notice the smallest one could become the most powerful woman in the world,” he said.
Russian views of Trump are a source of some suspicion. Last week the U.S. government accused Russia of attempting to interfere in the 2016 election by hacking the Democratic National Committee and Clinton’s campaign. And the real estate mogul and TV personality has spoke fondly of Putin.
That may be why LePage’s comments to WVOM Tuesday in Bangor quickly caught the eye of the national news media. By saying Trump should show authoritarian power, the governor played directly into a national narrative that the self-described law and order candidate seeks to rule like Putin.
But the governor says it was a mistake. The press, he said, got it all wrong.
“I called him autocratic yesterday, but let me be very clear. I believe the president of the United States of America, Barack Obama, is a dictator,” he said.
LePage’s attempt to pivot and clarify his earlier remarks included a defense of his own controversial use of executive power, which he said was different than Obama’s. And, as he has countless times in the past, he blamed the media for the fallout from his statements.
“According to your writings, I’m about the biggest dumbass there is on the face of the Earth. And coming from you all, it’s a compliment,” he said.
He was later asked whether he planned to hold regular press briefings from now on. His answer? An unequivocal no.
“I wouldn’t speak to you if you guys wouldn’t have made such a big deal about a missed word,” he said. “I have no respect for you at all. Make no bones about that. I think you all live in a world of words and your life is to destroy people.”
LePage has held just three press conferences this year, each to clarify, apologize or restate comments that drew negative national media attention. His last press conference was in late August to apologize for an obscenity-laced voicemail he left for a state lawmaker.
LePage’s criticism of Obama centered on the president’s use of executive power, which on at least two occasions has been successfully challenged in court.
LePage has been accused of wielding his executive authority to withhold voter-approved bonds, circumvent the Legislature and use the withholding of state funds to prevent the hiring of Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves at a private nonprofit in Fairfield.
LePage said Wednesday that Obama has failed to work the Republican-controlled Congress. But the governor’s six years in office have been similarly marked by his inability to cooperate with a Democratic-controlled Legislature between 2012 and 2013, and most recently with a Legislature divided between a Republican-controlled Senate and the Democratic-controlled House.
He has threatened to prevent his commissioners from testifying before legislative committees and, in 2015, vowed to veto all bills sponsored by Democrats. He later attempted to veto over 60 bills after failing to do so before the constitutional deadline.
LePage took the fight to the Maine Supreme Court, which ruled that he had erred. The bills became law.
LePage acknowledged Wednesday that Congressional gridlock had made its way to Maine, but he placed the blame on the Legislature.
LePage also reiterated his criticism of U.S. Sen. Susan Collins. On Tuesday he told WVOM radio station in Bangor that he’s “no fan” of her. On Wednesday he said he was upset with Collins and other Beltway Republicans for publicly denouncing Trump.
The latest GOP exodus from the Republican nominee was spurred by the release of a tape in which the TV personality and real estate mogul bragged about groping women and using his celebrity to force himself on them.
“I have my own personal feelings about politicians in my party, but you don’t see me going out and getting in front and criticizing them,” LePage said.
The governor’s comment about criticizing fellow Republicans came on the heels of his comments about Arizona U.S. Sen. John McCain, a veteran who was captured during the Vietnam War. LePage criticized McCain for leaving his wife after he was freed from captivity.
“He spent his time in Vietnam. He had a lovely wife here who held everything together, and when he got released he dumped her. I mean, that’s not the Great Generation,” LePage said.
Trump is expected to hold his fourth rally in Maine when he visits Bangor on Saturday. LePage said he would agree to introduce Trump if he’s invited to do so.
