Amid calls for national unity, Maine voters range from worried to hopeful

Jul. 20—Following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump last weekend, leaders from both political parties have expressed concern about political violence and a divided nation leading into the presidential election. Both candidates have called for unity in these turbulent times.

The Press Herald interviewed a diverse group of southern Mainers to hear their thoughts about the national discord and the desire for unity. Most were disheartened and pessimistic, saying that divisiveness is inescapable in the current political climate. Others said they are hopeful, or that they find unity in smaller communities rather than at a national level.

"It could use some work. I'm a diverse person. I believe all walks of life deserve to be treated equally.

"I do witness racism and things like that. It's always there, unfortunately. Unity should be the goal. People should be more kind and open-minded."

"It's human nature to try to get someone to see your point of view ... I'm a registered Democrat, but I prefer to keep my options open as far as what I believe and certain parties' platforms. I think Republicans have some really good ideas, and I think Democrats do.

"I think when one person jumps on board completely with one party's ideology, it's a recipe for disaster.

"I rather enjoy having a conversation with someone with completely different perspectives or points of view than I have because oftentimes things come to light and they're not as far off as I thought they were. Nowadays, things are so one way or another, there's not enough middle ground. I think that's where we start to lose it as a society.

"You can be unified and still not believe what other people believe. You just have to be able to work past things and let things go. Let people say what they want to say. Unfortunately, we're moving in the opposite direction with how divisive things are. I'm afraid there's probably no cure."

"It's divided but I think it's getting better.

"Some people are just too quick to jump on other people because their opinions are different. That and what people see on TV influences them a lot.

"I personally don't watch the news but when the news is pushing certain narratives, people tend to act as if that's really the case. But if you actually go out on the street and talk to people, you'll find out it's really not. People see something on TV and they tend to believe it instead of seeing for themselves."

"It's rough. With everything going on, it's hard to find unity. But for me, I find it in the communities I belong to, whether that's queer communities, small towns like this, family, things like that.

"I think a lot of people are starting to rely more on their respective smaller communities for unity because it's not so much there at a national level. It's difficult, especially when you're trying to have a greater sense of national unity when it's apparent that there are many people who that's not a goal for them at the present moment."

"After Trump's speech last night, I think (the sense of unity) is pretty high. I think he did a wonderful job uniting the country and we cannot survive unless we are united. We need to all come together and do the best we can for the country, regardless of which political party you are in, it doesn't matter at this point.

"People need to be able to sit down and have a discourse. They need to be able to sit and talk without getting upset, screaming and yelling. Not everybody can do that.

"We are living in crazy times right now in this world and that it's not right against left, it's good against evil. And I'm not saying the left is evil, and not everyone on the right is good either. Both sides have got their bad actors. We just need to be able to say, 'You like this guy, I don't,' 'I like this guy, you don't,' but are they good people or not? Some of the rhetoric going on is very hateful. It's got to stop.

"I think the mainstream media is one of our biggest problems. I think they are nothing but a propaganda arm. I know you think I probably sound like a conspiracy person. I don't even care at this point. We need to hear the truth. I don't care what your personal opinion is. Give me the facts, give me the news, and then shut up. Let me make my own opinion. I personally think that the mainstream media, right down to the local news, is not necessarily telling the real truth."

"I think there are certain currents that have been building for decades like the rise of populism, which increases and then wanes.

"I think there are other currents like people who are interested in a very radical conservative agenda who have been working for a really long time to undermine the rule of law, the way our justice system works and fundamental rights of people, especially people who do not happen to be white men. I think those people have been brilliant at using people who have truly sincere beliefs to further a political agenda that actually does not even benefit the people with the sincere beliefs.

"I'm not sure unity ever needs to be the goal. I think a democracy is based on a lively and sometimes heated debate and conversation about what is the best way forward. In order to have a lively and heated debate where everyone has a voice, you have to rely on certain fundamental principles ... I think we need to work back toward everyone accepting those fundamental values and then we can have a legitimate conversation about what is the best way forward in any given area.

"Everything that is legitimately in the Constitution would not be a bad place to start."

"If we're going by my metrics, (unity) is a system where people can vote for who they want to vote for and it isn't bogged down by a two-party system that chooses between not everything someone wants versus more of not everything someone wants.

"I think there will always be some lack of national unity in a democracy when you are voting for one of several people. There's probably a healthy range, and I think we're probably outside of that. Both sides hate each other and that's not good. It's because there's a two-party system, there's a very hard line that people draw and a lot of people do draw."

"I'm a firm believer in the Constitution, and that should be the law of the land.

"When I see that being pushed around and being reinterpreted, it makes me alert. I pay attention, make sure to vote and find out what the issues really are and who's behind them.

"It's usually a crisis that sets us with national unity, but the more we talk about the separation, the more it's going to exist. The press has a huge role in this. When they focus on the separation, then that's what everyone's going to focus on and what the algorithms on your phone are going to show. You're only getting fed what you believe."

"It's definitely getting harder for people to see eye to eye on simple things that we can all agree upon. People struggle to talk to family members or be friendly with others who don't share the same values or opinions."

To him, unity is "having equally open mind to understand each other's point of view."

He said he's not registered to vote and he doesn't plan on voting in November because "I don't see any good options."

"I don't think we're unified at all. I think that there's a really big divide between conservatives in rural areas and coastal communities, between the educated and uneducated.

"I think the division is a problem. I think we should be working together on these things and not running to our separate camps. But when there are people who are stoking fear and panic, that's what you get. The Republicans talk about all this unity in the convention but their speeches are doing the opposite."

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