The environment is not the enemy. Decades ago, we put that charge to rest, finally understanding that we can have both “pickerel and payrolls.”

As Republican senators, we all want Gov. LePage and his administration to succeed. Yet we feel compelled to express our discomfort and dismay with the tone and spirit of some of the remarks he has made.

When athletes become stars they enter a galaxy where any light except that which shines on them is eclipsed. They are fawned over and coddled and pampered. Along the way, they can lose touch with reality.

As the snow begins to melt, many of us soon will hear the sounds of spring peepers and wood frogs calling around vernal pools — unique natural areas that have garnered much attention and confusion this legislative session.