At Paul LePage’s York town hall meeting Jan. 31, I had the opportunity to ask a question about health care. What was his plan was to deal with the nearly 100,00 people who would be affected if the Affordable Care Act were repealed ​and​ if additional cuts were made to MaineCare, as he is proposing in his new budget?

I was excited to be quoted by the York County Coast Star and be on TV, but even more exciting? The story was picked up by Huffington Post! After all, it’s news when a Republican governor says he doesn’t think Washington has the courage to repeal the ACA ​and​ that he believes we are headed to a one-payer system. I didn’t get an answer about his health care plan because he doesn’t have one.

More people asked other questions and got responses that ranged from folksy anecdotes or blaming the state Legislature to alternative facts. When asked about having a more respectful discourse about immigration, Mr. LePage went off on asylum seekers, saying they are illegal, but he quickly changed course and said they had done illegal things, which was why they come here. He went on to say that 70 percent of them were deported.

I was able to ask Hannah DeAngelis of Catholic Charities (the only federally funded organization that works with refugees in Maine) about Mr. LePage’s claims. Not only are asylum seekers here legally with visas, they’re here because they are fleeing persecution from their own governments. Eighty percent of them are admitted into the U.S.

Mr. LePage’s plan to deal with asylum seekers? Sue the federal government to recoup the money the state pays to support them until they can work, while at the same time cutting General Assistance, which helps many people including asylum seekers.

So much for respect and the truth.

Beth Donohoe

York