House candidate trying 30 jobs in 30 days

ROCKLAND – Maine 1st District congressional candidate Charlie Summers found himself in an entry-level job at Amato’s Sandwich Shop as he spent lunchtime Friday at the counter taking orders.

Summers – a Republican running against Democrat Chellie Pingree of North Haven – was at Amato’s as part of his “30 jobs in 30 days” tour of the district that is aimed at finding out what is on the mind of the working public. Friday’s stint behind the counter was the 18th job Summers of Scarborough has filled so far.

“I’ve cut wood and worked a skidder, picked corn and beans, worked with a biodiesel manufacturer, washed hair at a beauty salon, cleaned out fermentation tanks at a brew pub, delivered fuel oil, and been a beekeeper,” Summers said. “It’s been very interesting. One of the great things you get from this is you’re out with the people, you’re communicating.”

Amato’s owner Jake Barbour said he spoke to Summers when he marched in the Maine Lobster Festival Parade in August. When the candidate told him about his “30 jobs in 30 days” plan, Barbour offered him a slot behind the counter.

“We said, ‘Come on in,'” Barbour said. “He seems to be doing a good job.”

Summers said the double Es of energy and the economy are foremost on the minds of the workers and customers he has encountered. He said people were concerned about how they will get by this winter and about what Washington intends to do about the economy.

“They are telling me, ‘Either I pay for my meds, I pay for my food or I pay for my oil, but I can’t do all three,'” Summers said. “This economy has people worried sick, and people are angry.”

Summers said the debacle on Wall Street has left people concerned about how the government intends to handle it. He said the people he encountered “want to make sure Congress is not bailing out some fat cats.”

Summers said he tells people that cooler heads can prevail provided both parties stop their bickering and work together. He said that the “he said, she said” back and forth has got to stop.

“We’ve got to put the country first,” he said. “I have no interest in going to Washington to do stuff like that.”

wgriffin@bangordailynews.net

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