Gov. Mills: I’ll comply with the state and federal laws
Trump: We are the federal law. You better do it because you’re not going to get any federal funds.
Gov Mills: See you in court
The president and Maine’s governor had a heated exchange Friday, in which the president threatened to withhold funds unless Maine complied with his executive order.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills and President Donald Trump had a heated exchange Friday at the White House.
The president directly threatened Mills over the state’s refusal to comply with a recent executive order that would bar transgender athletes from competing on women’s sports teams.
Mills and governors from around the country were gathering in D.C. when Trump reportedly asked whether anyone in the group was from Maine.
The Maine Principals’ Association, which is a private nonprofit, organization that includes oversight of high school sports in the state, has stated it would not be enforcing the president’s executive order, “Keep Men Out of Women’s Sports.”
The following exchange occurred:
- Trump: “Is Maine here? Is the governor of Maine here? Are you not going to comply with it?”
- Mills: “I’m complying with state and federal laws.”
- Trump: “Well, we are the federal law. Well, you’d better do it. You better do it, because you’re not going to get any federal funding at all if you don’t. And by the way, your population, even though it’s somewhat liberal, although I did very well there, your population doesn’t want men playing in women’s sports. So you’d better comply, because otherwise you’re not getting any federal funding.”
- Mills: “See you in court.”
- Trump: “Good, I’ll see you in court. I look forward to that. That should be a real easy one. And enjoy your life after governor, because I don’t think you’ll be in elected politics.”
According to a report from the Associated Press, Trump addressed a group of governors Thursday and said he “heard men are still playing in Maine” and that he would pull funding because of it under the terms of an executive order he signed this month.
“We’re not going to give them any federal funding. None, whatsoever, until they clean that up,” Trump said.
Maine’s Attorney General Aaron Frey vowed to “defend Maine’s laws and block efforts by the president to bully and threaten us.”
Prior to the verbal exchange with Trump on Friday, Mills also said in a statement that the state “will not be intimidated” by Trump’s threats.
“If the president attempts to unilaterally deprive Maine school children of the benefit of federal funding, my administration and the attorney general will take all appropriate and necessary legal action to restore that funding and the academic opportunity it provides,” Mills said in a statement.
