ED THELANDER IS RUNNING BY SWIMMING FOR CONGRESS

On Sunday, July 3^rd, Republican candidate for Maine’s 1^st Congressional District Ed Thelander brought his unique experience as a 21-year veteran of the Navy SEAL Teams to the campaign trail. In what may be a first in American politics, Thelander was “swimming for Congress”, in contrast to the more traditional concept of running for Congress.
 
At a fundraising concert held for the Maine Lobstermen’s Association on the wharf on Chebeague Island, Thelander swam among the boats anchored offshore to listen to the music, support the MLA, and enjoy a beautiful day on the coast of Maine.
 
Brogan Teel, candidate for Maine Senate District 23, who accompanied Ed on the water, said of the effort, “Ed took campaigning to a whole new level and actually swam from boat to boat talking to everyone. If that doesn't SEAL the Deal for our District 1 voters, I don't know what will!”
 
The Maine lobster industry is under unprecedented attack from multiple fronts. First, there are increased pressures from new regulations handed down by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The regulations, claiming to be designed to protect the Right whale, despite there not having been an incident in nearly two decades, have cost Maine lobstermen striving for compliance huge amounts of time and money.
 
Next is the mounting activity surrounding the proposition of offshore wind projects, which promise to gobble up large tracts of fertile fishing and lobstering grounds, further impinging on the ability of these iconic Maine industries to survive and thrive.
 
Thelander said of his day swimming among the boats, “I swam to more than 50 boats and met hundreds of people. After their initial reaction of surprise that someone was actually campaigning from boat to boat, I got very welcoming receptions. The people who make their living on the water are feeling threatened and unrepresented. I told them all that, as their representative in Washington, I’ll have their backs. Contrast that with my opponent, Representative Chellie Pingree, who enjoys a 97% lifetime score from the League of Conservation Voters, a DC-based group that has pushed the Right whale regulations currently strangling the lobster industry.”

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Ed Thelander is a United States Navy veteran. Use of his military rank, job titles and photographs in uniform does not constitute or imply endorsement by the Department of the Navy or the Department of Defense.
Paid for and authorized by The Committee to Elect Ed Thelander for Congress, Inc.