Augusta - Governor Paul LePage called off his meeting with Democrats on Tuesday morning.

Governor LePage says the Maine Democratic Party hired a cameraman to follow him at all public events.

LePage released a statement saying it did not bother him until the 'tracker' followed him to a meeting with an elderly Maine veteran who is in bad health. " There was no need to have filmed this private discussion for political purposes. The people of Maine are not props and I will not allow these special interest groups to use them to score political points," said LePage.

"I was scheduled to return to Augusta from an event the so-called 'tracker' attended and meet with Democrat leadership about putting politics aside and working together for all Mainers. However, until the Democratic leadership calls on its party organization to remove the 'tracker,' I will not have that meeting. If Democrats truly want to work together, they will publicly call for an end to this distasteful practice. Actions speak louder than words," added LePage.

The incoming presiding officers of Maine's 126th Legislature released a statement shortly after LePage called off the Tuesday meeting.

"We're disappointed to see the governor take this approach," said Speaker-Elect Mark Eves, D. "We have very serious fiscal challenges before us and we were looking forward to meeting with the governor to get to work. The problems we face are too big for one party to solve alone."


"We continue to stand ready to work with the governor," said Senate President-Elect Justin Alfond, D. "We have to put party politics aside if we are going to get to work on strengthening our economy and rebuilding our middle class. The task is too great to be squandered by fighting before we even get started."

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