Maine Gov. Janet Mills is catching serious heat from Republican campaign operatives over her push for taxpayer-funded health care for unauthorized migrants, as the Daily Caller reports.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), the campaign arm for Senate Republicans, dropped a hard-hitting ad on Tuesday morning, accusing Mills, a Democrat challenging Sen. Susan Collins, of not only expanding such benefits in Maine but also backing Senate Democrats’ tactics to prolong a government shutdown over similar national policies.
Under Mills’ watch as governor, Maine broadened Medicaid coverage -- known locally as MaineCare -- and the Children’s Health Insurance Program to include individuals under 21 and pregnant women, regardless of immigration status, back in 2022.
The NRSC’s 30-second video, first shared with the Daily Caller News Foundation, doesn’t pull punches, framing Mills as a politician ready to prioritize non-citizens over hardworking Mainers.
“In a world where Janet Mills were a U.S. Senator today, she’d join her Democrat allies and vote to shut down the government,” the ad’s narrator declares. “All to fund health care for illegal immigrants.” Let’s unpack that -- while the sentiment stings, it’s hard to ignore the optics of supporting policies that many taxpayers see as stretching already thin budgets.
Adding fuel to the fire, NRSC Regional Press Secretary Samantha Cantrell doubled down in a statement, saying, “In Maine, Janet Mills is already using taxpayer dollars to give illegal immigrants free healthcare so it is no surprise that she supports Chuck Schumer shutting down the government to give them free healthcare nationwide.” That’s a sharp jab, and while Mills’ camp hasn’t responded to requests for comment, one wonders if Mainers are ready to foot the bill for what critics call a progressive overreach.
Meanwhile, the federal government shutdown is grinding into its fourth week, with no resolution in sight as Senate Democrats, backed by figures like Mills, according to the NRSC, refuse to support a clean funding bill.
A majority of Senate Democrats have voted down such a measure a dozen times, holding out for a $1.5 trillion counter-proposal that includes nearly $200 billion to restore health care benefits for unauthorized migrants and other non-citizens, per a White House memo. It’s a standoff that’s left many Americans frustrated, wondering why essential services are hostage to policy demands.
Maine’s own senators, Republican Susan Collins and independent Angus King -- who caucuses with Democrats -- have both supported a bipartisan House-passed spending bill to end the shutdown temporarily, with Collins openly criticizing Democrats for linking unrelated health care demands to reopening the government.
As Mills campaigns to unseat Collins, recruited by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and backed by the Democrats’ campaign arm, she’s positioned as an establishment pick -- but not without challenges.
A recent University of New Hampshire survey shows her trailing far-left populist Graham Platner, an oyster farmer endorsed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, despite Platner’s campaign being mired in controversies over past Reddit posts and a tattoo resembling a troubling symbol. It’s a messy primary for Democrats, and Mills might find her policy record a tougher sell than expected.
The NRSC, unsurprisingly, is gearing up to fiercely defend Collins’ seat, especially as Democrats view Maine as critical to their slim hopes of flipping the Senate in upcoming elections.
Collins, notably the only Republican senator from a state that supported the Democratic Party's presidential nominee in recent cycles, remains a formidable opponent with a track record of bipartisan cooperation -- something Mills’ critics argue she lacks with her health care stance.
For now, the debate rages on, with taxpayers caught in the crossfire of a shutdown and a Senate race that’s as much about national priorities as local concerns.
While Mills’ intentions may stem from compassion, the question remains whether Maine voters will see her policies as practical or a step too far in a time of tight budgets and frayed patience.
