Maine Governor Apologizes for Telling Student He’d Like to Shoot His Dad

Republican Maine Governor Paul LePage apologized Monday for jokingly telling a high school student that he wanted to shoot his father.

The 17-year-old student Nick Danby was the son of local cartoonist George Danby, who is typically critical of LePage’s governorship. At the annual gathering of the youth leadership program Dirigo Boys State, LePage realized the two were related when the younger Danby asked a critical question, and joked “I’d like to shoot George Danby.”

But a month later after the comments began picking up steam in the Maine media, LePage wrote Nick a handwritten personal apology.

The younger Danby accepted the apology. “I wanted to respond by telling you that I was not offended — I thought they were quite humorous — nor was I the one who reported the incident — I think in many respects you were simply representing the feelings of many Mainers,” he responded.

[Image via Maine Governor’s Office]
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