Maine Secretary of State, Shenna Bellows.
Nationally, only seven states in the 2020s had one conviction for public corruption. If this sounds like good news, it is not. In 2025, 38 states are one-party controlled, some blue ones for years, creating potential for public corruption and cover-ups.
As the late Senator Edward Brooke, enemy of public corruption, warned: “When people treat corruption as a routine part of the process, you have something far worse than wrongdoing or moral failing; you have a political cancer that breeds cynicism about democratic government and infects all society.”
Aesop offered this irony. “We hang the petty thieves, and send the great ones to public office.” Political crimes are always serious. Until corrected, they persist.
A 2025 study on state corruption was blunt. “Measures of corruption can be misleading, as corruption is easier to discover in states with strong anti-corruption laws…which corrupt leaders are less likely to implement.”
“Higher corruption convictions may actually indicate a state with less corruption, and a low number of corruption convictions may indicate a state with greater corruption.” Bingo!
Of the seven states with just one conviction, four were fraud, one was manslaughter, and one – the lightest of all – was a single election violation. That was Maine.
Take a deeper dive, since Maine is the poster child for one-party corruption. Maine’s secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, threw President Trump off the ballot in a fit of unhinged partisanship, unanimously reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
She admits illegal aliens are on the voter rolls, but refuses to produce the rolls when asked by the Department of Justice. Running for governor, she revels in illegality.
Early this year, a State audit revealed weak oversight for $2.1 billion in contracts, “spending riddled with oversight failures and…a profound failure of governance,” and “disturbing pattern of systemic negligence that should alarm every taxpayer,” all detailed in 500 pages of insider contracts.
Democrat politicians, put there to keep faith, did the reverse. They betrayed Maine taxpayers, stole their money, abused the “low cost service contract provision” for friends, and bypassed the bid process.
They allowed millions in “mismanaged child care funds,” putting thousands of kids at risk, permitted “fraudulent school meal reimbursements,” gave “payments to the deceased,” failed again with “unsafe foster care placements and improper payments.”
Democrat “systemic negligence” across agencies is a national disgrace, affecting children, and unquestionably costs lives. Public corruption does that.
Adding abuse to abuse, when that auditor testified before the legislature, Democrats – in total control – blocked the discussion, cut off the Republicans. The Democrat Attorney General refuses to prosecute.
Higher up the chain, Maine’s Governor, an out-of-touch national embarrassment, oversaw this corruption and even tried to crush a probe into her own drug use in 1995. At the time – yet more public corruption, she was a district attorney.
This is the same governor who refuses to accept President Trump’s tax cuts, blocks funding for schools on her unconstitutional Title IX interpretation, sues Maine schools trying to follow the law and protect girls, and refuses to prosecute tens of millions in Medicaid (MaineCare) fraud, while funding illegal aliens’ healthcare.
To these abuses, add others – millions paid to newspapers for good coverage, an ombudsman showing Maine kids at grave risk from her Office of Child and Family Services, Democrat legislators giving themselves money, one a $500,000 grant (forgivable loan) for her three-person brewery.
To cap it all, Mainers’ trying to get to the truth with their Freedom of Information requests are shut down, delayed, or blocked as “burdensome.” Indeed.
Unchecked power corrupts. “Absolute power,” to quote Lord Acton, “corrupts absolutely.” Needed is accountability. This is not policy. This is an integrity issue.
When does stealing by a one-party state like Maine stop? When voters rise in overwhelming numbers to stop it, throw the crooks out, say no more cover-ups.
Robert Charles is a former Assistant Secretary of State under Colin Powell, former Reagan and Bush 41 White House staffer, Maine attorney, ten-year naval intelligence officer (USNR), and 25-year businessman. He wrote “Narcotics and Terrorism” (2003), “Eagles and Evergreens” (North Country Press, 2018), and “Cherish America: Stories of Courage, Character, and Kindness” (Tower Publishing, 2024). He is the National Spokesman for AMAC. Today, he is running to be Maine’s next Governor (please visit BobbyforMaine.com to learn more)!
People seem to get very upset about a crooked cop, as they should. They cry “defund the police” because of one perceived instance of police brutality. But where is the cry to oust a crooked politician who is a former crooked DA, who had control of who was prosecuted for crimes they committed?
There should be crowds protesting on the steps of the state capitol building and at county court houses across the state. But conservative people rarely protest. They are at work earning a living so they can pay the mortgage, pay for their children’s support and education, trade cars to upgrade for a more reliable one, etc., and to pay taxes!!!
When the highest offices of state government are suspected of crime, it seems the Feds should investigate. They too have let us down lately.
Good luck with your campaign for Governor of Maine!
RBC, the situation comes down to this — The people NEED to STOP ELECTING CRIMINALS to public office. Now, will it happen? The nation has seen the bigger Blue states take no action except to continue to vote in criminals. Hopefully your state of Maine can reverse course and serve proper justice on the guilty.
First I blame our corporate media, as no reporting, investivative or otherwise, and then the voters. But many in this state does not know the extent of the lawlessness, IMO.Thanks to AMAC, for this report
Only one response will solve this: You want federal money, cough up the data. Otherwise, nothing goes to that state. Period.
Send DOGE to WA. #1 blue stupid state. Corruption beyond! Hurry!!!
Robert, if you do manage to become governor will you be able to overcome the liberal legislature? They must be complicit in the fraud and corruption.
Out with Bellows, in with Robert Charles. Wish I could vote for you, but Wisconsin (my state) has plenty of concerns of our own. I and my friends are routing for you before the Lord!
I’m sorry but California leads corruption at every level with veto proof democrats holding the majority and a state attorney general carrying the governor water. Democrat mayor’s holding all the biggest cities in check while mismanagement runs rampant. Couple that with the ninth circuit court upholding every infringement issue and you have the whole package. The evidence is obvious: Highest electricity, gasoline, DMV, sales taxes, income taxes, payroll taxes, property taxes and insurance costs. Tack on the state imposed highest minimum wage and businesses exodus and you’ll wonder if these vipers are themselves exempt from paying them. Let’s not forget about public safety where entire communities have gone up in smoke and prohibited everyday things getting banned without a thought of the aftermath. Did I forget free health care and food for illegals? Not bad for the 7th largest bankrupt economy in the world. Now it’s illegal in California to ask for an ID to vote. Happy Holidays!
We have been warned in the Bible about all this for some 1000 years.
Sadly, as long as there are democrats and RINOs, there will always be corruption, and they’ll never be prosecuted.
I’m afraid this is a case of burning down the house to kill off the roaches.
All government entities and school districts are monopolies. No competition, no one coming up in the rear-view mirror to eat their lunch. Monopolies eventually breed inefficiency, complacency, and people who have risen to their level of incompetence. Many go there to die, and/or build little empires. They need to be run like a business, and if the bottom line doesn’t zero out, then heads need to roll. Bloat has become a way of life, and with no accountability. it will continue.
Purge Blue State City Govts then or NO change
Until we rid society of 95+% of ALL Democrats and their voting supporters and 100% of RINOs, the best plans to eliminate greed, corruption and evil will only scape the sub-surface of the DEEP-ROOTED, CANCEROUS CORRUPTION. It’s like using an eye-dropper to empty the Pacific Ocean or using a paper Dixie cup to bail the Titanic.
And even you could rid the country of the evil cancer mentioned above, those maggots would simply be replaced by new mega corrupt, greedy, power-hungry, self-centered, moral-less scum. There are simply too many ignorantly arrogant DUMBA$$ voters.
Whenever you find problems with Democrats in control of Programs they’re never willing to address it but always ready to make excuses, especially blaming others, lie, cover up, deflect and the list goes on! Too often, Democrats make their circumstances worse because they lack the ability to properly fix a problem, whether due to DEI appointment, Nepotism, the individual bought their position by a personal money donation or a promise of commitment later when and if called upon, ect. They egregiously are inept, unqualified, uneducated, no experience in that field because it wasn’t about Merit through personal experience, ect. If, they’re caught dirty, oh well, it makes no difference, we’ll look into it! However, if the opposing side makes a mistake, it’s burn the house down! There’s a Great Divide between Democrats and Republicans on the whole, with it being a detriment to the Democrat Party! Evil will never-ever win, so long as this is the Democrats stance!
The fault is with us, the voters for being complacent ,lazy and not alert enough to stir ourselves to go to the polls and vote in the right candidate, as long as we are undisturbed all is well. Truth is seldom pleasant and comforting, reality is harsh, rather than facing it we put in the office a crook who promises the greatest comfort. We look up in the sky looking for the promised pie, it’s not there and we still don’t get it.This mess looks Augean sty look like pristine chapel
IF YOU ARE ELECTED GOVERNOR WILL THERE BE A BUNCH OF CORRUPT MAINE POLITICIANS AND BUREAUCRATS IN JAIL FOR WHAT THEY HAVE DONE?
AMERICA HAS A SERIOUS PROBLEM WITH CRIMINAL POLITICIANS AND BUREAUCRATS. THEY MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE AND SPEND MUCH TIME IN JAIL.
Why do so many who leave failing blue states and then go to a red state still and vote for the radical liberals? How do they think these liberals got into government and ruined their state??? Are they stupid?? In Arizona this started happening several years ago and now our peaceful conservative state is turning blue!! It is disgusting to think that Gallego and Kelly are the senators from AZ. They are both as radical as the liberals get and Kelly is now a traitor because he and his co-senators want the military to refuse military orders!
Cut off any federal funds until they comply with the audit of voter rolls.