To the editor:
My husband Stan was 74 years old when he died. Caring for him after his stroke, worrying about him day after day, wondering whether he would recover or succumb, while carrying my full-time job as Attorney General, was the worst year of my life and one of the worst times for my family.
Still, we were among the lucky ones. Stan had Social Security. He had Medicare and good doctors. Many people in Maine are caring for aging relatives and ailing spouses. And so many folks rely on Medicare or Medicaid for healthcare and on Social Security to make ends meet. These programs are the foundation of our security and they will all be on the cutting board if Donald Trump is elected.
Donald Trump’s plan for a second presidency — Project 2025 — calls for cutting Medicare, Social Security and other benefits, eliminating free vaccines for Medicare recipients, criminalizing basic birth control and allowing Big Pharma to charge $2000 month for life-saving drugs.
As President, Donald Trump tried many times to repeal the Affordable Care Act and only a single vote by Republican Senator and war hero John McCain saved it. 165,000 Maine people now have health insurance because of that law.
Republican leaders all across Maine have denounced Donald Trump. They say he won’t defend our country; he avoided military service and he insults our veterans. When he talks about deporting whole populations to other countries, he reminds me of all those Acadian families who were torn apart and driven out of Canada.
In this presidential election, I am asking you to vote as if your health, your insurance, your financial security, your very life, were on the line… because they are.
When I vote on November 5th I will be thinking of my husband Stan. I will be voting to preserve health care and Social Security for all Maine people.
I will be voting for Kamala Harris.
Janet T. Mills
Governor
Augusta
