Fellow Republican Legislators,
As you are most likely aware by now, the Maine Legislature has secured legal counsel in the upcoming court case between the Governor and the Legislature over the fate of 65 disputed bills that were passed by the Legislature at the end of June.
Next week, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court will hear oral arguments in the case, and I thought I would take this opportunity to share with you the reasoning for hiring Timothy Woodcock to represent the Legislature in this matter.
First and foremost, as Senate President, I am responsible for defending the actions and maintaining the integrity of the Maine Senate.
Following our sine die adjournment of the First Regular Session, the administration submitted to the court a request for a solemn occasion to have the court weigh in on the status of the bills in question. The court has agreed to take up the matter expeditiously and requested the Legislature select counsel to submit written briefs and appear before the court for oral arguments. Following that request I contacted Attorney Timothy Woodcock to represent the Maine Senate in the matter.
Many of you may know Tim Woodcock; he has been active in our party for years. Tim is an accomplished attorney who has worked for Senator Bill Cohen, served as Mayor of Bangor, and represented Maine Republicans numerous times in his private practice. In 2002 Tim ran for US Congress and lost the Republican nomination in a close primary.
After Tim was hired to represent the Senate, I was approached by House Speaker Mark Eves who inquired about sharing legal counsel. Instead of having two attorneys, one representing the Senate and one representing the House, we could save taxpayer money by selecting one attorney. After consultation with the Senate’s attorney I agreed to share legal counsel, so long as it was Tim Woodcock.
Should it be determined by the court that the bills in question have become law, I know many of you, including myself, will be very disappointed with the end result of some of those bills. Make no mistake: There were several bills that had previous roll call votes that showed a veto of those bills would have likely been sustained by either chamber.
Should the court rule in favor of the Governor, I pledge that I will immediately begin working on how the Legislature will handle the vetoes submitted to us on July 16th.
I appreciate your taking the time to read this letter. I thought it was important that I share with you the decision process as we proceed forward. The decision to hire Tim Woodcock and allow the House to join with the Senate’s counsel was not a political decision as some have insinuated. I take my responsibility for the Maine Senate and the Legislature very seriously.
If you have any questions about this matter, please feel free to contact me. I am happy to meet with folks regarding this or any other matter.
Respectfully yours,
Michael D. Thibodeau
Maine Senate President