Sen. Matthew Pouliot, R-Augusta, wrote on Aug. 16: “I’ve always been committed to civil discourse . . . The situation . . . requires more from us all than mudslinging . . . we need to avoid political bickering.” (“False attacks on Legislature,” letter).

But he also wrote: “I will not stand by and watch the session be used for a Democrat majority to force through partisan legislation and frivolously spend taxpayer money. I will also not stand by and watch the session be used as political theater.”

This is not the language of someone committed to “civil discourse.”

First, the word “Democrat” in place of the officially and grammatically correct adjective “Democratic” is a deliberate, childish sneer, more suited to a playground bully than to an adult who wants to make laws for the rest of us.

Secondly, Sen. Pouliot’s party refused to come back into session unless the agenda was to remove the governor’s emergency powers. Since the minority party doesn’t have a prayer of passing such legislation, the demand was the purest, most grandstanding sort of political theater.

Sen. Pouliot should quit projecting, stop the theatrics, drop the empty threats, and persuade his fellow legislators to come in off the playground and get to work. Admittedly they haven’t been given — by the people of Maine who elected so few of them — many options other than to try to influence the majority by effective policy arguments. If Sen. Pouliot’s letter is the best they can do, they may in fact have to “stand by” while other people get the actual work done.

Mainers elected a Democratic governor and gave her party more than 60% of the seats in the legislature. One could be forgiven for thinking that the “partisan legislation” the Democratic majority might pass is exactly what most Mainers want.

Janie Matrisciano

Readfield