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Maine Senate Debate: Max Linn cuts face mask into pieces, Internet says ‘thank you for free entertainment’

This happened during the second debate of Maine’s US Senate race on September 28

Senator Max Linn sure knows how to be in the news. On September 28, the second debate of Maine’s US Senate race took place. Maine's Republican Susan Collins, Democrat Sara Gideon and Independents Max Linn and Lisa Savage were part of it. Now, this was a point of discussion on social media because supposedly Linn cut his mask into pieces on live television.

Certified Broadcast Meteorologist at News Center Maine tweeted a photo of the debate and wrote: “Face masks litter the floor at the WAGM/WABI #MESen debate after candidate Max Linn cut them up, live on the air.”

This isn’t the first time that Linn has done something discussion-worthy. A few weeks back, as the first debate in Maine’s US Senate race kicked off on September 11, Linn shut down questions posed at him on affordable healthcare by moderators on the panel of Bangor Daily News and The Portland Press Herald, who sponsored the event. During the debate, the moderator asked Linn how he would ensure that everyone gets affordable healthcare. To this Linn replied, "I mentioned I have to be outside the box because I am competing against $100M. I am going to put your question aside and I have a bombshell to announce." However, the moderator pressed Linn to just stick to the question first before his announcement, which Linn ignored. He said, "Request Denied. I would like to say the eyes and ears and voices of people, we represent nature and the wilderness. That brings me to the CMP corridor. How many people come up to 80,000 people."

His ‘request denied’ went viral and got the Internet talking about it. And this time as well, the mask situation also created a buzz online.

One user commented, “This #MESen debate moderator really just asked "Do you support face masks?" and started with Max Linn, who's got five masks at the foot of his podium that he just cut up with scissors.” Another said, “They stopped the live feed when Max Linn started cutting up masks. I'm dead.” One user wrote: “I don't know what Max Linn was trying to say. He started off saying he support Trump's nominees and then mentioned Sara Gideon's height before protesting masks. He then proceeded to cut some masks, which led to them briefly pausing the livestream.”

A user shared a part of the debate where Linn is saying, “Symbolically I want to cut these masks, right in front of our viewers. I want to be the first Senate candidate and your first Senator in the US to say I protest government telling us what we have to wear and telling us what our businesses are necessary and what are unnecessary.” The user along with the video wrote: “Thank you Max Linn, for providing free entertainment during this debate.”  Another user said, “I refuse to believe Max Linn isn’t an SNL plant.” Another user commented, “You know, after the first #MESen debate I thought that they need to stop inviting Max Linn. I changed my mind. This guy is friggin hilarious.”  There was another comment that read: "Max Linn, an independent candidate for U.S. Senate in Maine, is literally taking a pair of scissors to a stack of face masks amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Performance art to shore up the anti-mask vote. (Linn is way behind GOP incumbent Susan Collins & Dem challenger Sara Gideon.)"

 
 

Among the other things Linn did during the debate that got Twitter talking was him yelling 'Woman up' at Gideon on stage. Another pointed this out: "Max Linn, the only man on the #MEsen debate stage, digs himself deeper into a hole of bizarre debate behavior, calling Susan Collins and Sara Gideon “weak women” for refusing to engage with his behavior. Tries to walk it back saying “there’s a lot of strong women in politics.”

"Max Linn complaining that Sara Gideon and Susan Collins won't debate him. He calls them weak women. No clue why they don't entertain him..." said another.