The Robinson Report

Tom Shattuck, Steve Robinson, Jon Fetherston, Seamus Othot and Graham react to federal health care fraud indictments. Othot says owner Noora Abd and five others were charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and making false statements to law enforcement, and the panel replays his April visit to the company's South Portland office. The panel explains how federal Medicaid claims data flag...

Tom Shattuck, Steve Robinson, Jon Fetherston, Seamus Othot and Graham cover early voting at Lewiston City Hall. Fetherston says three complaints have been filed with the Lewiston Police Department over the Maine People's Alliance's activities at City Hall, and he and Othot show video from their day in Lewiston. Fetherston also interviews a Lewiston business owner who is building a wall to protect...

Gateway Community Services started out billing MaineCare for translation and grew into a Medicaid agency doing about $5 million a year. It was audited three times, found to have overbilled Medicaid every time, and never paid it back. Along the way, Gateway and its founder, Somali-American refugee Abdullahi Ali, became a cornerstone of the Maine Democratic Party’s “Get Out the Vote” strategy in Por...

Tom Shattuck and Steve Robinson walk through Troy Jackson’s letter blaming Republican news sites for his legal trouble. The panel covers Jackson’s Augusta District Court letter after his suit over an Augusta home purchase was dismissed, including his claim that opposing counsel threatened media exposure and later fed Republican online news sites. Steve Robinson says Maine Wire’s reporting did not...

Tom Shattuck, Steve Robinson, Jon Fetherston and the panel cover Sanford PD’s response to the mill video. Graham Pollard, Joe Sokol and Seamus Othot join as Fetherston describes an overnight look inside Sanford’s abandoned mill; the panel says Sanford police then secured the area and the city moved people off the sidewalk, with a street shutdown notice following. They also cover Joe Sokol’s Bangor...

Tom Shattuck, Steve Robinson, Jon Fetherston, Graham Pollard and Seamus Othot on the Susan Collins-Troy Jackson debate. The panel says Jackson’s answer on the FHA loan for his Augusta house, that he was there five days a week, contradicts how he described the house when defending his mileage reimbursements. They also play MS NOW host Jen Psaki’s interview with Jackson in Maine. Robinson says absen...

Steve Robinson and Jon Fetherston delve into the closure of Quality Care Access and We Care Residential Services. Plus, a Lewiston City Councilor is accused of sexual misconduct. This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subscribe

William Turton is the Pro Publica investigative reporter who released a report this week alleging that Sen. Susan Collins and several members of her staff engaged in an elaborate conspiracy to funnel defense appropriations money into a federal contractor in return for campaign contributions. He joins us on The Robinson Report to talk about the credibility of his primary source for the story — conv...

Host Tom Shattuck welcomed Shawn Packard onto Maine Wire TV alongside the panel as the show dug into Bobby Charles’s 10-part plan to fight addiction. Packard described citizen cleanup work in Waterville near the Two Cent Bridge—needles, trash, and encampments in places that show up on local “things to do” lists—and pressed the gap between syringe service programs and what residents actually see on...

After four shots rang out in Lewiston and a massive police presence flooded the scene, Jon Fetherston reported from the ground with eyewitness accounts of youths running from the area. A school bus later dropped young children near what reporters described as an active crime zone. On the same episode, the panel reacted to a ProPublica story claiming the FBI had eyed Sen. Susan Collins over a defen...

A Chinese national who worked as a U.S. Customs and Border Protection supervisor in Calais was arrested after FBI agents said he altered computers at three Maine border facilities. The case raised new questions about DHS hardware security, CBP oversight and how 46 modified machines were allegedly put back on the agency’s network. This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support...

Bangor is spending big on park upgrades while residents are still asking why public spaces are not safe, clean or under control. This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subscribe

Cortes praised Lewiston’s Basilica as a symbol of faith and hard work, but Jon Fetherston said the scene nearby tells a darker story of drug deals and youth violence. Ashley Webb later joined Maine Wire TV to discuss her write-in campaign for Senate and whether Maine media will treat serious candidates fairly. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subscribe

Webb’s return as a declared write-in candidate brings unusual policy ideas and possible protest-vote complications. Meanwhile, Susan Collins told Jon Fetherston she accepted four debate offers and was ready to debate before early voting begins. This raised questions as to why Jackson is pushing town halls while refusing scheduled face-offs. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport....

Quality Care Access charges more per patient than any autism residential care provider in the country, at nearly $40,000 monthly for each patient. Every single dollar comes from the American taxpayer. In return, they promise to provide Mainers who have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Intellectual and Developmental Disorders (IDD), or traumatic brain injuries (TBI) with a comforting, home-like envi...

After Jon Fetherston interviewed a whistleblower about claims of bedbugs, sleeping staff, stolen client money and workers bouncing between multiple homes, Steve Robinson said Quality Care Access fits a broader pattern of MaineCare funded group homes being used as migrant crash pads. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subscribe

After WGME aired a report on Paradise Residential Services, Steve Robinson questioned why the station did not credit earlier Maine Wire reporting on Aleister Blade, Dr. Oz, DHHS records and the company’s MaineCare billing. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subscribe

The debate over Flock cameras exposed a split between public-safety benefits and concerns about government surveillance. Also, Trump’s $100 fee on foreign visitors at major national parks became another example of Democrats opposing a policy that the Maine Wire said is already working. This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid sub...

Jon Fetherston connected the Saco River encampments to a wider decline in Portland, Bangor and other Maine communities where public drug use and homelessness are increasingly visible. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subscribe

Maine’s $56 million Meta settlement sparked a debate over whether big lawsuit payouts actually help residents or simply create new pools of money for left-wing causes. Furthermore, Jon Fetherston had a live confrontation in Kennebunk that turned into a revealing exchange over Trump, immigration and whether Maine Wire’s reporting is “propaganda.” Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonre...

What began as Gov. Janet Mills’ $300 relief check program has become another example of state records that appear to include people who should not be receiving taxpayer payments. Maine Wire reporter Seamus Othot said a check was sent to the estate of a dead person, while arguing the same process may also be sending money to inmates, noncitizens and anyone who appeared in the state tax-filing data....

Despite Graham Platner’s Senate campaign appearing to end, his supporters may still write him in as a protest vote. Additionally, after Maine People’s Alliance mailers reportedly reached people who were dead, questions arise where the group obtained its voter data. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subscribe

JD Vance credited Maine Wire and Paul LePage with raising fraud concerns long before Washington took serious notice, calling LePage one of the strongest advocates for protecting taxpayer dollars. Vance also took aim at Matt Dunlap, saying Maine should not promote someone who failed to protect taxpayer dollars while the state became what he called a fraud capital. Get full access to The Robinson Re...

The discussion contrasted the resistance to data centers with Maine’s embrace of wind and solar projects, arguing that green-energy subsidies have raised costs while rewarding politically connected interests. Nuclear power, natural gas access and data centers could offer a more serious path to lower electricity prices, new investment and long-term economic growth. Get full access to The Robinson R...

A Maine mother said she was offered free Narcan at her baby’s appointment. The form shows a disturbing sign of how widespread fentanyl and opioid exposure have become. This raises new questions about Maine’s drug crisis, harm reduction and whether families now need overdose medication in the same first-aid kit as Band-Aids. Get full access to The Robinson Report at robinsonreport.substack.com/subs...