The media was captivated last week by President Donald Trump’s high-profile meeting with New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.
Trump had bashed Mamdani as a communist while Mamdani has continued to call Trump a fascist. At the White House, the meeting was cordial. While reporters tried to put distance between the two, Trump praised the incoming mayor, calling him “a very rational man.” Mamdani tried to keep the focus on costs and issues they could work on together.
Some fellow progressives questioned Mamdani’s relatively warm approach to dealing with Trump. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu notably said she wasn’t interested in a “bromance” with the president.
Across the political spectrum, two Maine mayors had their own ideas about how they would address the president. Two had no ideas at all. Here’s what they said.
Mark Dion, Portland
The mayor of Maine’s largest city was elected over more liberal Democrats in 2023. But he said has gripes with how Trump is treating people in Portland.
He said he would be assertive in voicing those concerns, focusing on immigration enforcement.
“[Trump’s] policies create chaos and fear for every person in this city, citizens [and] new Americans. America should be welcoming,” he said. “Yes, immigration is broken, but let’s work together to fix it, not destroy families.”
If a Mamdani-style meeting were arranged between himself and Trump, Dion said he would be direct, but not confrontational, saying his personal feelings about the president as an individual would be second to the interests of his constituents. He would “open the door” but not “roll over.”
He added a note of personal advice he would bring to the president.
“Be humble,” he said. “You have a lot of power. Exercise it with some mercy.”
Marty Grohman, Biddeford
Biddeford Mayor Marty Grohman, a former state legislator and congressional candidate, has only days left on the job after losing this year’s election to City Council President Liam LaFountain.
But the independent said he could find some common ground with the president.
He would bring up policies impacting homeless people and touted his city’s progress on reducing homelessness, saying the country needs “a full-court press on mental health and substance use.”
If Trump were to visit, the mayor said he’d show him around town. There’s one thing in particular that he thinks the gold-loving president would enjoy.
“We just re-guilded the dome on top of city hall,” he said.
Jenn Morin, Brewer
Brewer Mayor Jenn Morin, a former Republican state legislative candidate, said she’s not focused on federal policy. So she wasn’t exactly sure as such what she would say to Trump in a hypothetical meeting that she sees as unlikely for someone leading a city of less than 10,000.
“I’m more dialed into what’s happening in our immediate area and here more so in the state of Maine, and I think probably because I have some ability to shape some of those things, versus at the federal level,” she said.
Jeff Harmon, Auburn
Auburn is much bigger than Brewer, with a population of 24,000 people. But the city’s Democratic mayor, who was unopposed for a second term this year, is similarly unprepared for an unlikely presidential meeting.
“We’re focused on the real world, everyday issues and challenges that take place in the city, and I haven’t given [a Trump conversation] any thought at all.”
Daniel O’Connor is a Report for America corps member who covers rural government as part of the partnership between the Bangor Daily News and The Maine Monitor, with additional support from BDN and Monitor readers.
