Maine Governor Janet Mills is running for U.S. Senate. After years of seeing Susan Collins fail to challenge Donald Trump, Gov. Mills is saying enough is enough. With decades as a public servant under her belt, Mills released her first campaign ad assuring that she will stand up to Trump and for the people of Maine.
Jen had the opportunity to sit down with Gov. Mills to hear her qualifications for U.S. Senate, her stance on ICE reforms, and the inexcusable arrest of Don Lemon.
Janet Mills was sworn in as the 75th Governor of Maine in 2019. Governor Mills is the first woman governor of Maine. She previously served as the Attorney General of Maine.
The following transcript has been edited for formatting
Jen Rubin
Hi, this is Jen Rubin, editor-in-Chief of the Contrarian. We are delighted to have with us Maine’s governor. Janet Mills. Welcome, Governor.
Janet Mills
Good morning, Jennifer. Nice to see you. Good afternoon, rather.
Jen Rubin
It is lovely to see you as well. You have come out with a new ad, which we are attaching below, as we post this. what’s the big overall message? You’re standing up for Maine. Is Maine being stood up for in the United States Senate right now?
Janet Mills
No, they’re not, currently. And I know you’ve interviewed Chellie Pingree, she’s a great member of Congress, and you’ve talked to Angus King, I’m sure, and maybe Jared Golden, but today, we have a senator who should have some power, who’s not wielding that power. who is always concerned, but never courageous. And that’s why I’m running for the United States Senate, because I’m more than concerned about the safety and welfare and civil rights and liberties of people in Maine.
The people of Maine have been my North Star my entire career. As the first woman District Attorney, elected District Attorney in the Northeast United States. as Attorney General for 8 years, and now as Governor for 7 years, my highest priority has always been defending the interests, the safety, and the rights of Maine people. And that’s the same fight I’ll take to the United States Senate. I’ve stood up to Donald Trump before, and I’ll stand up to him again in the U.S. Senate. That’s something that we have not seen on the part of our Senator Susan Collins.
So this ad addresses what’s top of mind to me. and top of mind to Maine people, I believe, protecting the safety and civil rights and liberties of people in Maine. When you see a band of anonymous agents come into the state of Maine and make a sweep and say they’re going to just arrest 1,800 people without identifying their targets, without saying why they’re arresting, detaining, and sending out a state, shipping them away. without saying why, what legal status, what legal documents they have, what warrants, I’ve said repeatedly. You got warrants? Show us the warrants. Nothing. Nothing. We hear back nothing. So, it’s, you know, we need steadfast, courageous leadership in Washington. We need steadfast, courageous leadership everywhere in this country. Maine people can always count on Susan Collins for voting when they don’t need her vote, but standing up for Maine people is another thing altogether.
Jen Rubin
Let’s talk about that. Although she technically voted on the floor against the big, ugly bill, she could have stopped it. She helped put it on the floor. Why is it, that she complains after the fact, and tries to make up, the damage that she has done, but yet she’s not really willing to do it when it counts.
Janet Mills
That’s a good question for her. And I keep asking that question as well. It’s often said that you can count on her vote when it doesn’t matter, when you don’t need her vote. And what bothers me more than anything is her votes on healthcare, and her votes on judgeships. These are lifetime judgeships, lifetime tenure, federal judgeships, and they’re bundling them and sending them out to the Senate floor without debate, without really vetting them. And it reminds me so much of what she did with Kavanaugh, being the pivotal vote, the deciding vote. to allow Brett Kavanaugh to take a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. And then, a few… a mere few years later, for him to… support the Dobbs decision and overrule Roe v. Wade. And now, as you know, Jennifer, a third of all American women lack reproductive health care. And we’re seeing women die on the doorsteps of emergency rooms across states, across this country.
I’ve worked very hard in the state of Maine to codify the principles of Roe v. Wade, and codify the principles behind the ACA as well, so your insurance company can’t ding you because of a pre-existing condition. I mean, life is a pre-existing condition, as we know, as we say. And… the principles of Roe v. Wade, she just has callously disregarded that. So while I’m fighting to preserve those at the state level, the federal government is disregarding that. And… We know that she said at the time she voted for Kavanaugh. he promised that he wouldn’t overturn Roe v. Wade. Well, that’s BS, isn’t it? We now know. And she also said. Not too long after that. Well, Donald Trump, I believe he’s changed. I believe he’s learned his lesson. I don’t believe it for a minute, and Susan Collins shouldn’t believe it either. She needs to have the gumption and the courage to stand up to him as his agencies violate our rights, disband the public health infrastructure, disband our educational system, public education.
And she voted for Linda McMahon, she voted for Robert F. Kennedy Jr, And these people who are tearing away the fabric of our Constitution. I have to believe that the U.S. Constitution is not just a suggestion box. It means it is a moral imperative for due process and equal rights, and the fact that the federal government needs to stand up and stand for the people who cannot defend themselves, and they’re not doing that now, and Susan Collins is only enabling this president.
Jen Rubin
You did have, really an unprecedented sweep in Maine. I was not aware that Maine had a huge undocumented immigrant problem. Do you have any idea, did they ever tell you why they were targeting Maine, why they felt it necessary to send people to rip people out of cars and homes and smash windows and the like?
Janet Mills
No, I mean, of course they first said, oh, we’re looking for the worst of the worst. Well, we have not heard about people… we have heard about people who are not, in any sense of the word, the worst of the worst. We’ve seen corrections officers in two different counties being apprehended without any due process, without a court hearing, without a habeas petition being able to be filed. Because what they’re doing, too, is taking them out of the state. We have about 18 cases pending in federal court right now, in front of a Republican-appointed judge. Senior Judge Woodcock. who’s saying, do not remove them from the state. We’ve seen this happen before. They’re removing them from the state of Maine, taking them to New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and when habeas petitions are filed there, then they remove them to Texas and other states.
And it’s been impossible to track these people accurately, and to determine, to tell their families and their employers, their communities, when will they be returned. They have not committed a crime, they’re not accused of a crime. These are people who are working and supporting their families here, and contributing to our communities and to our economy. And it makes no sense. In fact, the Maine State Chamber of Commerce wrote a letter two days ago to the congressional delegation saying, don’t do this to us. It’s so disruptive to our economy. And local organizations and businesses have written to the same effect, don’t take these people away from us. They’re working in the hospitality industry, healthcare, construction, transportation, food processing, etc, etc. And it’s damaging to our economy. I don’t hear Susan Collins saying anything about that. All she’s saying is, well, I called Kristi Noem. She should never have voted to confirm Kristi Noem. Kristi Noem has no law enforcement experience, no law enforcement aptitude or ability. And she’s the wrong person for the job, and this Congress, this U.S. Senate today, needs to stand up and say, we can’t fund ICE a minute more until there are concrete, substantive guardrails on their behavior, and accountability for what they have done, accountability for what they continue to do without answering to the people of America.
Jen Rubin
The United States Senate finally decided they were going to pull the DHS funding out, but Susan Collins was all for this, and was prepared to keep going, keep spending the money with only the most minor changes. You have a different view. What are the kind of changes you think are necessary, in ICE and DHS, so that the people of Maine are not terrorized any longer?
Janet Mills
Well, look, I think we know good law enforcement here in Maine, and I’ve had the privilege of working with law enforcement officers most of my career as district attorney for 3 counties for 15 years, as attorney general for 8 years, and as governor. And our law enforcement are highly trained, minimum of 18 weeks, plus more if you’re a state trooper, etc, and they… we expect high standards of them. And we enforce those standards and those expectations. Our law enforcement do not wear masks to conduct law enforcement activities. They do not do this anonymously. They are free to identify themselves, and when something bad does happen, if there’s a use of deadly force, which we investigate, and we have an outside agency investigate. They identify, we identify the law enforcement officers involved, and there’s no shame in that. We do this objectively. And we know good law enforcement, and this is not good law enforcement. I’ll tell you something else. The legislature passed a bill, and I let it go into law. to say to local law enforcement, you shouldn’t cooperate with ICE. You shouldn’t be enforcing immigration law. And they all know that.
They don’t want to be enforcing immigration law They don’t want to be party to any of the acts they’ve seen in Minneapolis that have resulted in injury and death. Death on at least two occasions. Because, you know what? J.D. Vance can stand there and suggest that there’s absolute immunity for them, but we know there isn’t. there isn’t absolute immunity, and there’s no absolute immunity for anybody who might assist them or participate with them. So the kinds of guardrails that this Senate should be looking at immediately are those that almost every state in the country, enforces on its law enforcement activities. It’s simple, common sense.
Jen Rubin
The seizure, the arrest of Don Lemon. other journalists for simply covering the event in Minneapolis, the seizure of ballots in Georgia. This administration seems to be ramping things up, as we march towards something that does not resemble the United States. What was your reaction to the arrest of journalists, and what would and should the Congress be doing, if you were in it, to ensure these basic civil liberties, like the First Amendment?
Janet Mills
Clearly, that’s a wrongful arrest. And clearly, there will be a lawsuit, I strongly suspect. I read both of Judge… Chief Judge Schultz’s, letters to the Eighth Circuit this weekend, and they’re appalling. Here’s a gentleman who was, I think a Bush appointee, who clerked for Scalia. You know, not exactly a progressive jurist, and he wrote these letters saying, what am I supposed to do? There are anonymous, unidentified petitions filed.
As a prosecutor, as a lawyer, as an attorney general and a governor, I’ve never seen When a magistrate denied a finding of probable cause, I’ve never seen an official try to appeal that, because it’s a fact-finding. And for them to go overboard and overreach to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals and find this guy in California whose only offense to them was to… Document what was going on, and ask questions. questions in a peaceful, non-aggressive, non-controversial manner is an outrageous offense to the First Amendment. Absolutely. There will be consequences. There must be consequences. And the Congress of the United States should stand up to this administration and say no to violating people’s First Amendments right. It’s not only Don Lemon’s First Amendment rights, First Amendment rights. It’s our First Amendment right to know things, to be informed, to find out what’s going on. That’s what the press does, and that’s why this is such a terribly dangerous move on their part.
Jen Rubin
Absolutely. You are a border state, but your border is with Canada, and the tariffs, have wrecked havoc on the economy there. I know that you and the other New England governors have complained because of the decrease in tourism. Talk to us a little bit about how the foreign policy of this administration is affecting us domestically, in addition to the wasted money and all the rest of it. That has real consequences for people’s livelihood here at home, doesn’t it?
Janet Mills
Right, and we’re hearing this week that a lot of Canadians don’t want to come across the border because they might be one of those civilians, those non-citizen people who are attacked and waylaid by Border Patrol or ICE, and that fear is… is… damaging to our economy, and damaging to our… our long-standing, sense of community with the people of New Brunswick and Quebec.
I went to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia back in July, trying to make peace and say, you know, I know he’s been offensive to you, but look, he doesn’t like me either, don’t blame my state. Come here, we welcome you. We put… we put big signs up at every border crossing, 13 border crossings, saying, bienvenue Canadian, you know? Please come, we welcome you, we miss you. And they said, it’s not your fault, but we’re just not even buying American goods. Andy Beshear was beside himself. They took Kentucky bourbon off the shelves. And it’s not Andy Beshear’s fault, nor is it mine.
But the damage to our international relations Is so deep. And so appalling, and it’s going to be… it’s going to take a long time to repair, even with Canada, for goodness sakes. And, God bless. from Prime Minister Kearney for his outspokenness, and I know that he’s getting attacked on that account as well.
Jen Rubin
Maine is a famously independent state. Like, one of your senators is an independent, and Maine folks, do not like to get lock-stock, behind one party or the other. That’s the reputation that Susan Collins cultivated, to get herself elected and stay in office, and as you point out, it has not worked out that way. Tell us and tell the voters how Mainers know that you will stand up for them, you will be independent, whether it’s a Democrat or a Republican in the White House.
Janet Mills
Well, look, I think I’ve won two statewide elections by increasing margins. I had a seven-way primary first time I ran for governor, and then a four-way general election, and I won those by hard work, I have to say, a lot of retail politics, which I love. But it’s… you’ve got to get out there and talk to the people. So I’ve done that more than twice, actually, because when I ran for Attorney General, I went around the state and talked with legislators and candidates and whatnot, and campaigned with them. So… People know me, they have voted for me before, and they know that they might disagree with some things I do, and agree with a lot of others, but I think they know that with me, what you see is what you get. They know I’ll always listen to them, I’ll talk with them, they can talk to me.
And that’s what I value about campaigning, it’s what I value about governing. And that’s the way I will campaign this year as well. I’ve delivered for Maine people. We delivered free school meals for all public school children, breakfast and lunch. We delivered in terms of increasing teacher pay. We delivered in terms of free community college for recent high school grads. We’ve delivered in addressing climate change, climate action, as much as we possibly could as a single state, and working with the Climate Alliance, which I co-chaired, U.S. Climate Council. We’ve delivered in so many respects, reduced our reliance on heating oil, expensive heating oil. this time of year, and elsewhere… otherwise. And so. People know that I mean what I say, and I get stuff done. I think, you know, I know what Gretchen Whitmer says, and we all say the same, we get stuff done.
Jen Rubin
Fair enough. Not a lot of that going on in Washington, or the stuff that’s getting done is not so, good. Thank you so much, Governor. We really appreciate your taking the time. Best of luck. Obviously, yours is one of the crucial Senate races, and without that seat, the Democrats really have no choice, no chance, rather, to take the Senate. Now there seems to be a path.
Janet Mills
I’ll say one more thing, and just… just this. I have a primary, and I have a general election, I hope. I believe I’m going to be able to unseat Susan Collins I’m the only person who has actually stood up to Donald Trump. And I will do so again in the United States Senate, without hesitation. Thank you, Jennifer.
Jen Rubin
You’re very welcome. Thank you so much, Governor. It was a pleasure talking to you. Take care now.
