Maine Gov. Paul LePage, a Tea Party Republican who serves as a frightening example of what a Donald Trump presidency could look like, on Tuesday said the United States might need someone like the GOP nominee to show "authoritarian power" and "bring back the rule of law."
LePage made the comments on local radio station WVOM, where he also downplayed recent outrage over Trump's taped 2005 remarks about women and blasted fellow Republican and Maine Sen. Susan Collins.
"We need a Donald Trump to show some authoritarian power in our country and bring back the rule of law," LePage said, perhaps unwittingly lending credence to critics who said Trump's debate threat to "jail" Hillary Clinton if he's elected was "dangerously authoritarian"—and not in a good way.
Puzzlingly, he also accused President Barack Obama of being an "autocrat," under whom "we're slipping into anarchy."
And when asked about leaked video in which Trump is heard speaking in a demeaning and predatory manner about women, LePage—as Trump has done—brought it back around to former President Bill Clinton.
"And you know, the bottom line. The bottom line is this," LePage said. "Is he a slimeball? I'd be the first one to say, not a guy ideally I'd want my daughter going after. But I will tell you one thing, as the head of state, is he going to protect our nation and fight the debt or is he going to go after interns? That's the bottom line."
He added of former President Clinton, "I'm sorry guys, but there was smudge on the blue dress! And that was by a president of the United States of America."
Just last week, Full Frontal host Samantha Bee dedicated an eight-minute segment of her show to LePage, calling him "the beta version of Trump."
"Like Trump, the governor and his core supporters see his unfiltered mouth garbage as a feature, not a bug," Bee said.
After ripping into LePage's history of racist, xenophobic, and ignorant remarks, Bee declared: "Let Maine be a warning for the rest of us, because as they say, those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Or in this case, are just plain doomed."
Watch the full clip below:
LePage, like Trump, is familiar with political fallout from unfiltered remarks. Last month, LePage was called to resign after leaving an unhinged voicemail for a state legislator who had criticized his latest divisive drivel.
As Maine writer Benjamin Corey wrote last month: "If you want to know what the next 4-8 years would be like with a President Trump, just google 'Paul LePage' and read a few things that come up. People with uncontrolled temperaments might be amusing to watch, but they are completely incapable of effectively leading—we tested the theory, and know how it all works out."
