Politics

Vance takes fraud fight to Maine

Published

2 months ago

May 14, 2026

BANGOR, Maine — Vice President JD Vance took his fraud-fighting tour to Maine on Thursday, attempting to cast President Donald Trump and Republicans as responsible stewards of Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars in a pivotal purple state swing district.

The speech provided an opportunity for Vance — one of the administration’s top communicators — to throw out red meat to the MAGA base. He blasted Maine Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, blaming a rise in fraud in the state on her and former President Joe Biden. He claimed Maine was “maybe the bronze medalist” for fraud in the U.S., trailing only Minnesota and California.

“Thankfully, one of them has already been kicked to the curb and one is on her way out the door,” Vance said, speaking in a hangar at the Bangor airport steps away from Air Force Two.

But hanging heavy over Vance’s remarks — and unsaid in them — was the growing discontent voters feel as Trump’s war with Iran propels inflation to a three-year high, and the White House pushes for an unprecedented $1.5 trillion in Pentagon funding from taxpayers.

Gontran Jean, who came to see Vance speak, told Blue Light News he’s “not happy about” rising prices stemming from the war — but added, “we don’t really have a choice.” He said he would back Vance if he runs for president in 2028.

Vance also used his visit to offer an olive branch to Maine GOP Sen. Susan Collins — a frequent Trump critic who earlier this week voted with Democrats to try and rein in Trump’s war powers. Back in January, Trump thrashed Collins and other Republican senators who voted with Democrats to curtail his Venezuela incursion, saying they “should never be elected to office again.”

Collins wasn’t present for Vance’s trip, with a spokesperson citing her perfect attendance for Senate votes. But Vance wasn’t bothered — and even heaped praise on the moderate senator.

“Here’s the thing I’ll say about Susan Collins, is sometimes I get frustrated with Susan Collins, I almost wish that she was more partisan,” Vance said. “But the thing I love about Susan is she is independent, because Maine is an independent state. And frankly, if she was as partisan as I sometimes wish that she was, she would not be a good fit for the people of Maine.”

It’s the latest example of a needle Vance attempts to thread between Trump’s impulses and the political realities on the ground. Collins faces a tight-looking general election contest with populist Democratic candidate Graham Platner that could partly decide the balance of the Senate.

Vance’s speech was also the latest in a series of recent visits the presumed MAGA heir made to key states ahead of a potential 2028 presidential bid, including Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina and Arizona. Vance maintains he’s thinking only about the present and not future political ambitions.

Bangor sits in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, which broke for Trump by more than 9 points in 2024 but has been held by Democratic Rep. Jared Golden since 2019. Last year, Golden announced he would not run for reelection, opening up a crowded primary for Democrats and a seat Republicans tabbed as a high chance to flip despite mounting headwinds for the party.

Vance in his remarks shouted out Paul LePage, Maine’s former Republican governor and the frontrunner in the district, and used the opportunity to hammer home his fraud-busting message.

The vice president called LePage “the biggest advocate for your tax dollars and the biggest threat to fraudsters that ever existed in the state of Maine.” Vance said “fraud has festered in Maine because this guy is no longer the governor.” In his speech before Vance took the stage, LePage vowed a renewed push to end fraud, which received raving enthusiasm from the audience.

“Let’s kick Janet Mills to the curb, and let’s send Paul LePage to Washington,” Vance said.

Politics

When a World Cup exit becomes a political crisis

Published

10 hours ago

July 3, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Many of the countries that failed to advance in the World Cup are seeing the normal cycle of accountability: angry fans, finger-pointing media, fired coaches. Uruguay’s sports officials have gone further, reportedly cancelling a team charter plane and making players take commercial flights home as a form of punishment. In Turkey, where a stunning crash-out was greeted with rage from many fans, the nation’s football boss has asked the justice minister to imprison citizens who criticize the team.

Yet nowhere have the political recriminations gone further than in South Korea, where the president has called on the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to investigate the country’s failure to advance to the round of 32, one of South Korea’s most disappointing World Cup campaigns in decades.

“I feel not just confusion but utter bewilderment at this unexpected outcome,” President Lee Jae Myung wrote on X on Sunday. “I am deeply sorry for causing such profound disappointment to the public over this absurd affair. We will swiftly push forward with reforms to sports administration to ensure such a thing never happens again.”

The issue at hand is clear, according to Lee’s post: “When favoritism and cronyism take precedence over competence in selecting a commander, the result is as predictable as fire burning paper,” he wrote — pointing back to head coach Hong Myung-bo’s controversial appointment in July 2024.

The selection of Hong sparked speculation about favoritism because the Korea Football Association abruptly selected him after months of pursuing foreign candidates. Critics questioned the transparency of the hiring process, and a government audit later found that the KFA had violated several of its own hiring procedures, fueling allegations of preferential treatment. The audit, however, did not conclude that Hong himself had acted improperly, and Hong himself denied receiving special treatment.

Ultimately, Hong remained as head coach because the authorities concluded that while the appointment process was procedurally flawed, there was no legal basis to cancel his contract. But it explains why the public’s criticism against their national soccer team has been so concentrated on the coach, whom many view as an illegitimate appointment. Hong has already announced his resignation, but that hasn’t soothed the ire of Korean fans. Many believe that the results would have been different if a coach had been selected through a proper hiring process — and it seems the president may believe so as well.

While the political repercussions of South Korea’s team losing may seem shocking, it isn’t an unreasonable overstep: Public funds account for about 30 percent of KFA’s budget. In addition, one of the defining goals of Lee’s presidency has been to strengthen transparency and accountability in both private and public sectors, which is why the opaque procedures of KFA were more likely to catch the administration’s eye. Despite Korea’s political divisions, lawmakers from across the political spectrum have voiced their common desire to reform KFA.

While South Korea is the most far-reaching example of political fallout from a World Cup exit, it is not the only country where politicians have become involved in the messy aftermath. In Turkey, football federation president İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu reportedly called on Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç to prosecute fans who insulted the national team following its elimination.

The incident also came after the national team’s official account shared a promotional video from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party, prompting accusations that the federation had blurred the line between sport and politics. The team’s elimination only deepened that political entanglement.

The two cases reflect different understandings of accountability, but with one common denominator: the belief that the World Cup is more than just a run-of-the-mill sporting event.

Politics

The European sports host with the most

Published

10 hours ago

July 3, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Switzerland is busy selling itself as a premier venue for international sports competitions — and the government is throwing its weight behind the effort.

In June, Bern backed plans to fund international sports competitions from 2027 to 2029, and two weeks ago, it approved $247 million in funding for the 2038 Winter Olympics, which it is moving toward securing the right to host.

Ruth Metzler-Arnold, president of Switzerland’s Olympic committee, said at the time that the 2038 bid “is bringing everyone together behind a concerted vision that will bolster Swiss sport in the long run and inspire generations to come.”

Switzerland already has a sizable sporting footprint. Many international sports organizations — including FIFA, the International Olympic Committee, European football governing body UEFA and the Union Cycliste Internationale — are already headquartered in the Alpine country.

In early June, the Swiss approved more than a million dollars each to support the 2027 World Rowing Championships in Lucerne and the 2028 European men’s Handball Championships in Zurich. Government money will also flow to swimming, figure skating, basketball and bobsled championships.

Switzerland is currently in a “privileged dialogue” with the IOC over its 2038 Winter Games bid, meaning that it holds exclusive rights to organize a bid until the end of next year. Karl Stoss, the chair of the IOC’s Future Host Commission ‌for the Olympic Winter Games, said in February that a host election could happen as soon as April 2027.

On the soccer field, Switzerland hosted the 2025 Women’s European Championship and co-hosted the 2008 men’s European Championship. Progress in its long-shot 2026 World Cup campaign — which continues tonight in Vancouver against Algeria — will only bolster Switzerland’s sports credentials.