Border Dispute Between New Hampshire and Maine Inches Closer to War

Seavey's Island is an island in the mouth of the Pisquataqua River. It is within sight of the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. This 0.43-square mile island is the home of a US Navy base and is the focal point of a long-standing border dispute between New Hampshire and Maine.

You see, New Hampshirites see the island as their rightful territory--one occupied unlawfully by Mainer interlopers. In New Hampshire Journal, Ian Huyett says, "Maine stole our land when we weren't looking" and lays out the case for New Hampshire's irredentism.

Two days ago, the New Hampshire State House of Representatives passed a resolution reaffirming that state's claim to Seavey's Island.

So far, Governor Kelly Ayotte has not said that she would call up the New Hampshire National Guard to forcibly return Seavey's Island to New Hampshirite control. But she hasn't also said that she wouldn't.

-via Commander Salamander


The larger border dispute, highlighted clearly in the posted image, is that the "artificially drawn lines" around Maine indicate that it should obviously be part of Canada. Vermont and New Hampshire would make sense as well, I suppose. And basically Upstate New York, for symmetry sake.
They'll all like it, I'm sure. There's poutine.
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May 29, 2001
The long-standing border dispute between New Hampshire and Maine ended Tuesday when the U.S. Supreme Court granted Maine's motion to dismiss New Hampshire's claim that the shipyard belongs to the Granite State. The opinion, delivered Tuesday afternoon, was written by Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg.
Justice Ginsburg wrote that "judicial estoppel bars New Hampshire from asserting that the Piscataqua River boundary runs along the Maine shore". Under the judicial estoppel doctrine, "Where a party assumes a certain position in a legal proceeding, and succeeds in maintaining that position, he may not thereafter, simply because his interests have changed, assume a contrary position, especially if it be to the prejudice of the party who has acquiesced in the position formerly taken by him". Put simply: Since New Hampshire had agreed in 1977 that the border runs along the middle of the river, New Hampshire may not now claim that the border runs along the Maine riverbank. Wrote Justice Ginsburg: "New Hampshire's claim that the Piscataqua River boundary runs along the Maine shore is clearly inconsistent with its interpretation of the words 'Middle of the River' during the 1970s litigation." New Hampshire appealed the dismissal and requested the Court to reconsider its dismissal, but the Court denied the motion to reconsider.

Here's what I think. New Hampshire is hoping to catch the eye of the Trumpster because it's well known he does not like Maine's current Governor due to her in your face "see you in court" comment she made to him over transgender rights.
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