Maine Gov. Janet Mills expressed confidence on Thursday that the state will prevail in a discrimination lawsuit brought by the Trump administration over a state policy that allows transgender athletes to participate on girls' sports teams. She also said President Donald Trump is targeting a vulnerable minority group to distract from his policies that will hurt Americans.
Mills used a gaggle with reporters in Bangor to reiterate that her confrontation with the president in February is rooted in the rule of law, adding that the president cannot bend states or others to his will via executive order and intimidation.
She said last week's decision by a federal judge temporarily barring the U.S. Department of Agriculture from freezing federal funds for alleged Title IX violations likely foreshadowed that the state will ultimately prevail in court.
"We welcome the litigation," she said.
And while Mills said her battle isn't about athletics, she believes Trump is targeting transgender people to draw attention away from economic policies and gutting of programs like Social Security.
"But again, to target one small group of people in America in order to divert attention from these other real issues, to target a minority group — who are already targeted ... in other unfair ways — is a sad and cruel distraction," she said.
Mills was alluding to the moves the Trump administration has made against transgender people, including a ban from serving in the military.
She also acknowledged that Maine has been singled out in some ways since her confrontation with Trump in February, but that other states will also be in his crosshairs.
The governor's comments about cuts to Social Security come from stated plans by billionaire Elon Musk's team to cut 7,000 staff jobs at the Social Security Administration. Mills said hollowing out staff that administers the program and processes benefits is the same thing as cutting the program.
The Social Security Administration pays out $1.4 trillion in benefits to more than 73 million elderly Americans annually.
The governor also shared some additional detail about her confrontation with the president on Feb. 21 at the White House, saying she wanted to ask him why he was threatening Canada with tariffs and annexation. Mills went on to emphasize Maine's close partnership with Canada, particularly the maritime provinces and Quebec. She said that audience members had a chance to ask Trump questions, but despite raising her hand, he never called on her after the two clashed over Maine's law allowing transgender athletes to participate in girls' sports.
