Liliana and I would like to share our sincerest gratitude with each and every one of the so many people we met along the campaign trail over the past 16 months. We are truly humbled by all the support you showed us!
The farmers, fishermen and foresters. The doctors, lawyers and teachers. The veterans, retirees and college students. First responders, police, active-duty servicemembers. Engineers, rocket scientists and stone masons. It feels like we’ve taken a crash-course in studying the backbone of Maine, and we’re happy to report that the spine of Maine is strong!
But it also needs to be protected from the relentless assault coming at it by many forces. The policies of our current leadership are creating unchecked inflation. Their purely ideological decisions are putting basic necessities like heating oil and building supplies out of reach for everyone.
A lack of common sense and honest risk assessment is putting Maine’s iconic lobster industry on the verge of total collapse. They are merely giving our lobstermen and women enough money to buy their own handcuffs for a crime they haven’t committed. This failure of leadership is inexcusable. Now is not the time to throw our hands up in defeat and walk away from the fight.
We need to rebuild the Republican brand in Maine, and the nation. If we are to live up to the vision of the GOP as the Party of The Big Tent, we’ll need to embrace and welcome all those who embrace the responsible freedoms outlined in our Declaration of Independence and protected by our Constitution.
In that spirit, we’re excited to continue the work of bringing people together, to meet them wherever they gather, and to listen to their concerns and ideas. This fight is not over! While we may have left it all on the field, we are still at the far end of the pitch. There is plenty of work to do. If you are able to do so yourself, run for local office. Find and support strong candidates. Earn a seat on your local school board to ensure that our children are getting an education that meets both your expectations and your values. Keep engaged, and encourage those around you to do the same.
We all sacrificed much for this campaign. Many took time off of work to volunteer – Collecting signatures, attending events, entering data and compiling lists, knocking on doors, staffing booths at fairs and the convention, being "the driver", putting up and waving signs and flags, joining endless Zoom meetings, making phone calls, writing letters and sharing posts, poll watching and counting ballots, and so much more! Many donated their hard-earned money. To each of you, our entire family says, “Thank you!”
We have also put a considerable amount of our own savings into this effort.
If you can find it in your hearts, and your personal budgets, to kick in one more time, we would be grateful. We plan to continue in this important battle for our state and our nation, and would be able to move forward on much more solid footing with your continued support. Our campaign donation page is now a debt-cancellation page.
Thank you for considering making one more visit there.
For those of you collecting our many thousands of lawn signs, we will be collecting them this Saturday at the Maine Republican Party State Committee meeting in Augusta. The location is the
Calumet Club, 334 W. River Road. While the meeting itself is open only to committee members and their guests, we’ll be there with the campaign trailer between 10:00 am and Noon. You’ll notice that we elected not to place the year 2022 on the signs. If they’re in good shape, we’ll store them for potential future use. Or you can reach out to your GOP County Chair, or simply keep them safe in your own garage should we need them later.
Again, thank you all from the bottom of our hearts! We fought the good fight, but it was only the first.
The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday!
Sincerely,
-Liliana and Ed Thelander
