Recap of October 23 Meeting
Guest Speaker Robert B. Charles
Robert “Bobby” Charles founded The Charles Group in 1999 upon leaving service as Staff Director and Chief Counsel for the National Security, International Affairs, and Criminal Justice Subcommittee in the House of Representatives from 1995-1999. Charles also served as chief staffer to The Speaker's Task Force on a Drug Free America from 1997-1999 and as top staffer to the Bi-Partisan Drug Policy Group from 1995-1999. The Charles Group is a Washington D.C. based consulting firm that specializes in Federal Business Development, Policy Development and Legislative advocacy. Mr Charles also was a Naval Intelligence Reservist for ten years, and served on active duty at the Pentagon immediately following the September 11th attacks.
A former litigator in New York and Washington, Charles clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and taught both Government Oversight and Cyberlaw at Harvard University Extension School from 1998-2001. In the first Bush administration, Charles served in the White House as Deputy Associate Director, Office of Domestic Policy and served as a temporary appointee in the first-term Reagan White House during three stretches of 1981, '82 and '83.
Additionally, Mr Charles is a National Spokesman for AMAC (Association of Mature American Citizens). AMAC is the conservative version of AARP.
Bobby spoke about growing up in rural Maine and his early education at Maranacook High in Readfield. His mother pushed him to achieve his big dreams and through a combination of hard work and ambition, he achieved great success. "Envision the impossible and make it happen" was the phrase he used to describe it. He recalled how in his youth, Maine students were among the best in the nation. Now we they are among the worst. He noted the exceptionally high income taxes and how little we get for our tax money, especially in the field of education. The top 8 highest paid members of the Maine Teachers Union are all making over $200K and we have nothing to show for it.
Bobby also recalled many of the humorous and serious times during his work as a young man in the Reagan and Bush administrations. He stressed the importance of getting back to good leadership. "Envision, Believe, Work" is his motto.
Bobby has a new book - "Cherish America, Stories of Courage, Character and Kindness". It's 56 short stories about about exceptional Americans.
Here is the link of a Fox Bangor interview regarding the publishing of Charles' most recent book: https://www.foxbangor.com/news/local/maine-author-writes-stories-of-inspiration/article_1b7df058-8b1f-11ef-aa50-8b7f329aa2c6.html
Recap of September 25 LCRC Meeting
Guest Speaker: Larry Lockman
Larry is the cofounder of the Maine First Project. The MFP is a conservative non-profit focusing on Maine’s worsening illegal immigration crisis and the failure of Maine’s government to run K-12 schools to teach the basics and respect parental rights. Larry served in the Legislature from 2012 to 2020. He worked for 18 years as a territory manager for the National Federation of Independent Business. He believes in peaceful, patriotic and political warfare.
Larry agrees that Maine is in deep trouble. We are being governed by radical leftists, socialists and special interest groups. He noted Janet Mills has allowed ten to twelve thousand illegal aliens and she has stated she intends to import another seventy five thousand. Larry feels it is time to go on offense and over the last seven years, his organization has trained over one thousand Mainers to be candidates and campaign workers.
Larry also stressed the importance of creating competition to educate Maine students. Competition that would result from a school choice option for parents where educational funding would follow the student. He also discussed the housing situation in Maine and recalled that while over twenty five thousand Mainers are on a wait-list for housing, in Brunswick illegal aliens have been giving housing priority and are placed into brand new housing projects.
You can learn more about the Maine First Project at https://mainefirstproject.org/
