Will Mills' confrontation with Trump be a prologue for a US Senate campaign?
Feb. 24—Gov. Janet Mills' tense exchange with President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday is fueling questions about whether she will run for the U.S. Senate or another office when her term expires next year.
More than 500 supporters, including prominent Maine authors such as Stephen King and Richard Ford, signed a letter thanking Mills for her stand and pledging to back her if she seeks office again.
And the Maine Democratic Party blasted out a fundraising appeal highlighting the dust-up between Mills and Trump. The subject line of the email was, "See you in court."
But opponents of Mills and critics of Maine's policy allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls' high school sports are also energized. They're hoping that last week's faceoff is a sign that the Trump administration is going to bring about changes that Republicans are calling for.
The incident comes as a new poll released by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center on Monday found growing discontent with Mills' performance as governor, with 49% of people polled disapproving of Mills' handling of her job and 48% saying they approve.
The survey was conducted between Feb. 13 and 17, before the tense public exchange between Mills and Trump on Friday that made national headlines, and had a margin of error of 3.4%.
It's the highest disapproval rating the governor has seen since she took office in 2019, according to the researchers who conducted the poll.
More than half of people who disapproved of Mills' handling of her job cited the state budget and finances as the reason for their disapproval. Fifty-five percent cited that issue as their top concern, followed by 5% citing housing and 5% citing immigration.
Those who approved of Mills — who is halfway through her second and final term as governor — cited abortion rights and her handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by her handling of the budget and finances, as their reasons for supporting her.
Three percent of respondents said they neither approve nor disapprove or were unsure how they felt about Mills' performance.
WILL SHE RUN FOR SENATE?
The exchange between Mills and Trump wasn't surprising for those who know Mills, though it did raise her profile nationally, said Mark Brewer, professor and chair of the political science department at the University of Maine in Orono, on Monday.
He said it's likely to reinforce how people in Maine were already feeling about Mills — those who support her will applaud that she stood up to Trump while those who disapprove of her will appreciate Trump calling her out.
"We know, at least in Maine, that Janet Mills is not a shrinking violet," Brewer said. "She is not afraid of conflict and we know that from her time serving as attorney general under Gov. Paul LePage, and also her own time serving as governor."
Brewer said he doesn't believe the exchange with Trump is likely to change how Mills weighs a future run for political office, such as a challenge to Republican Sen. Susan Collins in 2026. Mills is prevented from running for governor again because of term limits.
But Brewer said last week's confrontation could help Mills with national fundraising efforts, should she choose to run for another office. "It gives her a hook if her and her team want to go out and raise money from a national donor base rather than a Maine donor base," he said.
Mills told the Press Herald in November that her focus currently is on her last two years in office, but she didn't rule out a 2026 Senate run. Her office did not respond Monday to questions about the governor's future plans.
James Melcher, political science professor at the University of Maine Farmington, said the confrontation with Trump — especially his prediction that Mills would never again hold elected office — could nudge her toward challenging Collins for her U.S. Senate seat.
Trump concluded the exchange with Mills by saying, "Enjoy your life after governor, because I don't think you'll be in elected politics."
Melcher drew a parallel to when former President Barack Obama mocked Trump to his face at the White House Correspondents Dinner in 2011, when Trump was raising doubts about Obama's birth certificate.
"Some people think that was a motivator for (Trump's presidential campaign)," Melcher said. "Well, I could see completely where this could be a motivator for Janet Mills.
"It certainly isn't the only factor she'd consider," Melcher said. "You have to think that, with somebody who is as competitive as she is and as willing to clap back at people, I think that's entirely possible it might nudge her in that direction."
Mills is 77 years old, while Collins is 72. But Melcher noted that Angus King, an independent, was reelected to the U.S. Senate last fall at 80 years old.
SUPPORTERS ENERGIZED, BUT SO ARE CRITICS
The exchange with Trump has energized some of Mills' supporters.
Debra Spark, a novelist and Colby College professor, said Monday she has collected more than 500 signatures on a letter of support for the governor.
Among those who signed the letter are several notable Maine authors, including Stephen King, Monica Wood, Richard Ford and Richard Russo.
"Janet Mills, we will be supporting you if you run for elected office again, and greatly appreciate you speaking frankly when others have been cowed into silence," reads the letter, which Spark said she has emailed to the governor's office.
"Who knows what her future is or what she wants to do," Spark said. "I want her to know that ... you did the right thing and that everyone I know, and tons of people I don't know, are so proud of her."
But critics of Mills and Maine's policy allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls' sports are also energized.
More than 5,200 people have signed a petition asking the Maine Principals' Association, which oversees high school sports, to change the policy.
The petition appears to have been organized by a group called Maine Girl Dads, which offers a way for people to sign it online and has promoted it on Facebook. The group did not respond to a Facebook message Monday asking to discuss the petition and Mills' response to Trump.
Rep. Laurel Libby, R-Auburn, whose critical social media posts helped thrust Maine's policy on transgender athletes into the national spotlight and prompt Trump's threat to cut off funding, posted on Facebook Monday that she has seen an overwhelming response from people who don't agree with Maine's current policy, or with Mills.
"Governor Mills just had her first real challenge in years," Libby wrote.
"In a public clash with President Trump this past week, she told him, 'See you in court.' But this time, she may have met her match," Libby wrote. "While she has steamrolled her way through Maine politics with little resistance, she now faces a formidable opponent who is willing to fight back."
Staff writers Randy Billings and Eric Russell contributed to this report.
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