OUR REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT:

President Obama designated more than 87,500 acres of forestland in Maine's fabled North Woods as a national monument Wednesday in a historic but unilateral decision following years of fierce debate.

With the stroke of a pen, Obama created the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument - the second national monument in Maine history after Acadia National Park's precursor - on land east of Baxter State Park in an area facing severe economic uncertainty. The move is likely to delight conservation activists and infuriate local opponents fearful the designation is trading potential industrial-based opportunities in the Katahdin region for mostly seasonal tourism jobs.

The designation is a substantial yet partial victory for Roxanne Quimby, the wealthy co-founder of the Burt's Bees product line whose nonprofit, Elliotsville Plantation Inc., donated the land to the federal government this week. 

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