Mainers across the state are calling out some of the biggest lies and attacks they heard on the debate stage from Donald Trump last night.

Trump made clear on Thursday night that he has no plans to contain the spread of COVID-19 or ensure Mainers get the health care they need. Instead, he refused to take responsibility for his dangerously incompetent pandemic response and claimed that we’re “learning to live” with the virus and “rounding a turn,” even as cases spike around the country for a third time. He also doubled down on his commitment to “terminate” the Affordable Care Act, leaving more than 100,000 Mainers without health insurance.

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“I was shocked when I heard Donald Trump say that Obamacare is no good, and that what he would like to do is terminate it. If Trump is successful and Obamacare is repealed, millions of Americans will lose their health insurance, including tens of thousands of Mainers. I have a spinal cord injury, and people like me with pre-existing conditions will be extremely vulnerable to losing health insurance. And the worst part is, despite four years of claiming that he was going to get us better health care, he clearly has no replacement plan.”

David, Scarborough
 

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“At last night’s debate, Donald Trump talked about how we’re “rounding the turn” on COVID-19 and that he wants to terminate Obamacare. All this shows is how little regard this President has for the health and safety of Americans. COVID cases are spiking around the country. More than 220,000 Americans have died, and that number could soon double. And the response of this President is not to form any coherent plan to contain the virus. It’s to say “we’re learning to live with it” while simultaneously trying to take away health care from millions of Americans.”

Pauline, Old Orchard Beach
 

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“We should not have to learn to live with a deadly virus that many other countries have found a way to control. And sadly we are not rounding the bend in terms of the virus [...] President Trump also said that ‘not a lot of teachers are going to have to die’ because of COVID. Well I’m a teacher, and I don’t think any teachers should have to die. We need a leader who has a plan––a scientifically based plan––for getting the virus under control.”

Meghan, Yarmouth