“As Maine goes, so goes the nation,” was once a maxim in U.S. politics, meaning that it was at one time a bellwether for presidential elections.

Now it risks becoming a backwater in the face of federal budget cuts imposed by President Donald Trump.

And Massachusetts is not far behind. The Maine maxim could soon read, “As Maine goes, so goes Massachusetts” when it comes to similar, but larger, elimination or cutbacks in federal funding.

Another thing in common is that both Gov. Janet Mills of Maine and Gov. Maura Healey are both progressive Democrats who are “standing up” to Trump no matter what it costs their state and the people who live there.

Their stand is a perfect example of self-indulgent politicians putting politics over common sense, particularly when it comes to supporting men in women’s sports, transgender issues, DEI and other looney, left-wing progressive nonsense.

A Maine example of what is in store for Massachusetts was no-nonsense U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s decision last week to pull funding from Maine’s Department of Correction over a man transgendering into a woman being housed in a women’s prison.

The person is serving a 40-year sentence for murdering his/her parents and the family dog.

“We will pull your funding, we will protect women in prison, we will protect women in sports, we will protect women throughout this country,” Bondi said, in reference to Mill’s stubborn defiance of Trump’s mandate banning men from competing in women’s sports.

Things will be worse for Massachusetts because, not only is there is more at stake, but the attacks on Trump have never subsided even after he was elected in 2024 in a solid victory.

In fact, they have gotten worse as Healey, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Attorney General Andrea Campbell in a triple team offense seem to be competing over who can hate and taunt Trump more.

Campbell, for instance, appears out to break Healey’s record of suing Trump some one hundred times in four years when she was attorney general.

Even before he was sworn in as president the second time around, Campbell warned that she would be “on the front lines to protect our fundamental rights” from Trump. She so far she has sued him nine times.

Mayor Wu’s attacks on Trump are a bit more understandable since she is running for reelection and is counting on anti-Trump votes in Boston, no matter how much it will cost the city by challenging Trump’s mandates, particularly on illegal immigration.

And while Gov. Healey, the third spoke in the women’s progressive anti-Trump trifecta, has said she would work with Trump whenever possible, the Trump administration is not listening, doesn’t care or does not believe her.

That is because too many bridges have been burned.

Even as Trump pulled off a remarkable pause and switch turnabout with his tariff crusade, isolated China, and saw the stock market rise to amazing heights, Healey and the Democrats had nothing good to say, except to complain about the “chaos” Trump caused.

Trump could teach Democrats a lesson in diplomacy.

While he isolated China, our main adversary, from the rest of the world and banged it with tariffs, he had kind things to say about his “friend,” Communist Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“XI is a smart guy and we’ll end up making a deal,” Trump said. “Xi is a man who knows exactly what has to be done. He loves his country.”

Contrast that to the names prominent Democrats call Trump, their adversary.

They defiantly call him Hitler, a Nazi, a fascist, a dictator and a king and then expect him to continue shower them, their states, their cities and their interests with money the way hapless Joe Biden did.

Healey, following generally accepted happy news that Trump had paused higher tariffs for most countries, except China, and that countries were lining up for a deal under Trump’s terms, was still critical of him.

“We are still left in a state of chaos and uncertainty,” she said.

But her killer quote came when she added, “At the end of the day, I wish somebody could reach the president and get him to stop, because enough is enough.”

Governor, that is your job.

Veteran political columnist Peter Lucas can be reached at: peter.lucas@bostonherald.com

Originally Published: April 14, 2025 at 5:09 AM EDT