Shame on House Speaker Robert Nutting for calling the good people of his district who disagree with him about same-day voter registration, “the extreme left-wing groups and individuals behind this signature gathering effort.”

That is the kind of read-from-the-script political nonsense that has given us a do-nothing Congress in Washington; we don’t need more of it in Maine.

What are the extreme left-wingers of Oakland and Sidney up to tonight? They are doing the same things that the extreme right-wingers of Sidney and Oakland are doing: Wondering if Grandma will be able to afford oil this winter; hoping their kids will find jobs after graduation next June; getting hay for the horses and starting to knit sweaters for Christmas.

We’re all in the same leaky boat and Nutting’s effort to convince us that we’re very, very different from our neighbors is a poor substitute for real statesmanship.

Susan Clark

Sidney