It's easily missed but someone stood up to Trump and embarrassed him in front of a group of other governors, and it was caught on camera.
Gov. Janet Mills of Maine was having nothing of Trump's racist ban of trans in women sports. He had made the NCAA capitulate, got the Dept. of Education to toe the line, and was working on the Olympic committee, when he got blindsided by Mills and responded like the ogre he is.
Trump: I understand Maine, is Maine here? The Governor of Maine?
Mills: Yeah. I'm here.
Trump: Are you going to comply with it?
Mills: I'm complying with state and federal laws.
Trump: Well, we are the federal law. 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 sports. So ... you'd better comply, because otherwise you're not getting any federal funding.
Mills: I'll 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.
One stand out in the exchange was when Trump said, "We are the federal law." As in the royal "we." What a pompous ass.
After the exchange, the Dept. of Education civil rights division, in a total reversal of what civil rights mean, said they were going to investigate Maine for ignoring Title IX discrimination law that it is violating the ban on trans athletes. How twisted is that?
But Mills was previously Attorney General of Maine. She stuck to her guns. In response to the Dept. of Education's investigation, she responded:
"No president --- Republican or Democrat --- can withold Federal funding authorized by Congress and paid for by Maine taxpayers in an attempt to coerce someone into compliance with his will. It is a violation of our Constitution and our laws, which I took an Oath to uphold."
"This is not just about who can compete on the athletic field, this is about whether a President can force compliance with his will, without regard for the rule of law that governs our nation."
"In America, the President is neither a king nor a dictator, as much as this one tries to act like it --- and it is the rule of law that prevents him from doing so."
The die is cast. The rule of law must prevail. But the twisted reading of Title IX to discriminate against trans is exactly the opposite of its original meaning.
The current Maine Attorney General, Aaron Frey, said that any cut in federal funding "would be illegal and in violation of federal court orders. It is disturbing that President Trump would use children as pawns in advancing his political agenda."
Rep. Chillies Pingree of Maine said, "The courts have repeatedly ruled that the federal government cannot withhold federal funding arbitrarily or use it as leverage to undermine established civil rights protections, including those enshrined in Title IX."
But the Dept. of Education's misuse of the civil rights division was only the start with inquiries into Maine Dept. of Education and the student's school district.
The same day, the Dept of Health and Human Services also started an investigation into the Maine Dept. of Education and the state's university system.
Then the Dept. of Agriculture got into the act with the Maine university system. On Feb. 25th, the university said the USDA had halted funding as it investigates "prospective" civil rights violations.
The U.S. Dept. of Justice sent a letter that said "Maine should be on notice" that the agency was ready to sue.
NOAA withdrew $4.5 million for marine research. 33 other similar grantees were untouched.
This was followed by the Social Security Administration canceling contracts that allowed hospitals to report deaths and funeral homes to report deaths.
The Social Security contracts were reinstated and the state can reapply for the marine research funding.
The attack by six federal agencies on Maine with only two trans girls competing in sports seems like overkill. It's an obvious attempt at intimidation orchestrated by the Trump administration. This how our tax money is squandered, while wholesale slaughter of agency's personnel to save money is going on. What's left gets used like this.
This is probably Maine being used to test how to proceed across the country. Making an example. No different than protester Mahmoud Kahlil being snatched by ICE.
Maine state officials are choosing their words carefully when they do speak and have been declining interviews from reporters. Even Gov. Mills hasn't challenged Trump since the original confrontation and publicity.
The DOJ has sent letters to California and Minnesota threatening to sue if they don't ban trans from women sports.
The Dept. of Education's acting assistant secretary for human rights Craig Trainor said, "It is shameful that Governor Mills refuses to stand with women and girls. Her rejection of the anti-discrimination obligation that Maine voluntary accepted and it agreed to receive taxpayers dollars is unlawful."
After the Dept. of Education began, Gov. Mills said, "I imagine that the outcome of this politically directed investigation is all but predetermined." She has since declined to discuss Maine's trans athletes policy. But she also said that Trump cannot force the state to violate its own law, the Maine Human Rights Act, which prevents discrimination based on gender identity.
What happens in Maine could determine the game plan of the Trump administration. They could refine what they're already doing or add new tactics. Trans are being targeted because Trump is trying to outlaw their existence. It works so well with the racist MAGA crowd, less radical Republicans and members of Congress.
Everybody seems to hate trans except actual caring human beings.
It's all about civil rights, and the DOJ has stopped pursuing any cases about real human rights and changed it to enforcement of anti-DEI, the new civil rights cause, because white people are now oppressed.
I hope Maine and Gov. Mills still fight back and she wins in court. It's the only right thing to happen.
