The governor of Maine, Janet Mills, minimized the uproar about the State’s transgender inclusion policies in the sports of girls and women on Monday and said he was “horrified” by the demands of the Trump administration against his state in the middle of a battle over federal funds.
Mills appeared in “Morning Joe” of MSNBC to discuss his battle with several departments of the Trump administration, which began when the State refused to comply with the executive order of “No men in female sports” of President Donald Trump who prohibited biological men in girls and women’s sports.
The State did not comply with the order, which began the problem.
“The Constitution requires that the executive director be careful that the laws are executed faithfully, not to make the laws, not to invent the laws or reinterpret the laws by tweet or post instagram post or press release or executive order. It is not allowed to do so.
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The governor of Maine Janet Mills and President Donald Trump. (Getty images)
“Then, when title IX reinterpreted … I support title IX. I have spent most of my career protecting the rights of women and girls in medical care, in employment, housing credit and the like and I am horrified. I was horrified for its interpretation that he can reinvent the law.”
Mills recalled the letters he received from the Department of Education, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Human Health and Services. She described a letter of April 2 by USDA secretary, Brooke Rollins, as “quite frightening” and said some described him as a “rescue note.”
In the letter, the Administration threatened to cut funds for Maine due to the continuous subsidy of the state of biological men in girls and women’s sports.
“The next day, because there are perhaps as two transgender athletes that compete in the Maine schools at this time, they decided to close the funds for our school nutrition program, the school lunch program, completely, in which 172,000 Maine schoolchildren trust their school meals. That made no sense,” said Mills.
He added that the demands against the State “were not rational.”
A federal judge granted Maine a temporary restriction order and ruled that the freezing of funds should be lifted.
Governor Janet Mills attends an event, on March 11, 2022, in Augusta, Maine. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, Archive)
“This temporary restriction order confirms that the Trump administration did not follow the rule of law when it reduced the funds of the program that are going to feed vulnerable schoolchildren and adults,” said Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey, in a statement. “This order preserves Maine’s access to certain funds assigned to Congress by prohibiting an illegal freezing by the administration.
“No one in our constitutional republic is above the law and we will continue to fight to make this administration count.”
Maine ‘Maga’ silenced at the meeting of the School Board during the speech that opposes trans athletes in girls’ sports
The USDA “must defrost and release immediately to the State of Maine any federal financing that froze or failed or have refused to pay due to the alleged breach of the State of Maine in complying with the requirements of Title IX,” said the ruling of the Judge of the John Woodcock District Court.
The administration was also “prohibited to freeze, end or interfere with the other way with the future federal financing of the State of Maine for alleged violations of title IX without complying with the legally required procedure.”
Maine has refused to comply with Trump’s executive order to prohibit biological men from women and women’s sports. Initially, Trump promised to reduce federal funds to the State if he refused to comply with the order during a speech on February 20.
Maine’s officials filed a lawsuit against USDA last week after the agency’s decision to freeze funds to the State.
President Donald Trump walks on the southern grass of the White House in Washington, DC, on Sunday, April 13, 2025. (Photo AP/José Luis Magana)
The State accused USDA of “retaining the funds used to feed children in schools, child care centers and programming after school, as well as disabled adults in congregated environments”, an argument with which the judge agreed. The judge pointed out that the freezing was due to violations of Title IX, but restricted the capacity of “provid[e] Meals to vulnerable children and adults. “
Meanwhile, Maine residents have announced their opinions when they were transgender athletes in girls and women’s sports.
A March survey showed that 64% of Maine’s residents believe that transgender athletes “should definitely not” or “should probably not” participate in girls and women’s sports. Only 29% of Maine’s residents believed that transgender athletes “should probably” or “should” compete against girls and women in sports.
The survey also showed that 56% of Maine’s Democrats believe that transgender athletes should be able to compete in girls and women’s sports.
When it came to promulgating policies to combat the issue of transgender participation in sports, the survey showed that 50% of Maine’s residents wanted it at the federal level, while 41% believe that politics should be left in the United States.
Maine is also among the states that were warned about housing prisoners by biological sex or face a financing limit.
