Gov. Paul LePage’s attempt at shaming Democratic legislators for not approving a redundant bill to guarantee uniformed military recruiters access to schools was unwarranted, and he is the one who should be ashamed.

It was completely uncalled for when LePage said, “Democrats’ blatant rejection of this bill sends a message to all military service members ”“ past and present ”“ that they are not welcome in Maine’s public school system,” in his weekly radio address last Friday.

Before the Legislature’s session ended, the proposed bill ”“ which would have mandated schools institute policies providing uniformed military recruiters the same access to students as other college and career recruiters ”“ failed by a handful of votes, according to an Associated Press article published earlier this week.

The bill was unnecessary, though, and most supporters likely only voted for it to keep up appearances. After the mistreatment of returning Vietnam War veterans, the country has done a 180 in its treatment of military personnel, both of those returning from wars and conflicts and those serving here in the U.S.

Although we’re pleased people are supportive of military members regardless of how they feel about war, one way we can go too far is to allow military recruiters access to schools that goes beyond that of their education and workforce counterparts.

Military recruiters, however, are often a regular presence in schools, and often seem to be granted more access than others who are looking to recruit youth, such as business owners and managers, or college and trade school representatives. People looking to sign up students for campus tours or job interviews are typically only found on school grounds during job and college fairs, which may be held once or a couple of times per year, if at all.

It’s unlikely that LePage’s claims that military personnel were declined access to schools is 100 percent accurate. After all, it’s required by federal law to allow military recruiters access to public schools, and beyond that, the National Defense Authorization Act requires that public high schools provide military recruiters the names, addresses and telephone numbers of juniors and seniors. If schools stand in the way of these requirements, their federal funding could be in jeopardy, per the No Child Left Behind Act.

This is another reason why the Maine bill was unnecessary. The state does not need to duplicate efforts when there is already a federal law in place requiring schools to allow equal access for military recruiters and college and career recruiters.

The state also does not need to increase access for the military ”“ granting it special rights above college and career recruiters. If anything goes on the books in Maine, it should be granting equal access to all.

If there have been or are issues in the future with schools that give military recruiters a difficult time, those recruiters should contact the state Department of Education to get the issue worked out. No principal or superintendent wants their funding to be in jeopardy, and would likely correct any issue brought to their attention. With that said, military recruiters need to respect the boundaries of the students’ learning environment and only be at the school at the approved and appropriate times ”“ just like other recruiters.

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Today’s editorial was written by City Editor Robyn Burnham on behalf of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski by calling 282-1535, Ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.