Maine Advocate Condemns Biden for Inviting Ex-husband Don Mclean to White House Dinner

A Maine citizen who advocates for domestic abuse survivors chastised President Joe Biden on Tuesday for bringing her ex-husband, singer Don McLean, to a White House state dinner last week, which Gov. Janet Mills also attended.

Patrisha McLean founded Finding Our Voices, a support organization for victims of domestic abuse, after her ex-husband was accused of beating her at their Camden home in 2016. A plea deal the following year resulted in no jail time. He paid $3,600 to resolve the high-profile case, and Patrisha McLean has a 10-year restraining order against her ex-husband.

The artist, known for his 1971 song “American Pie,” was one of the notable attendees at last Thursday’s state dinner hosted by Biden and first lady Jill Biden for Kenyan President William Ruto and his wife. Ruto became the first Kenyan president to visit the White House in two decades. It was the first state visit by an African leader since 2008.

“Shame on President Biden for broadcasting to Kenya and the rest of the world that domestic abusers are welcome in the White House and that domestic abuse victims do not matter in the United States,” Patrisha McLean wrote in an emailed statement on Tuesday. Don McLean argued throughout the court and subsequently that he never assaulted his ex-wife. The most serious domestic violence assault charge was withdrawn as part of a delayed disposition arrangement reached with Maine prosecutors.

He has forcefully defended himself in public, threatening a local newspaper in 2019 after it covered a Finding Our Voices display. After his adult daughter told Rolling Stone in 2021 that he abused her mentally and emotionally, he told The Daily Mail that he had disinherited her.

Don McLean attacked his ex-wife as a “#MeToo hustler” in a statement released by his publicist on Tuesday, but did not mention his presence at the state banquet. Governor Mills, a Democrat who has claimed to have been assaulted by a boyfriend as a young woman, was also in attendance. Mills has backed Finding Our Voices by sitting for a portrait for an ad campaign highlighting survivors and signing legislation to safeguard domestic violence victims and limit the early release of abusers from local jails.

On Tuesday, her office did not respond to a request for comment on Don McLean’s participation at the state dinner. White House spokespersons did not reply to a request for comment on Patrisha McLean’s criticism of Biden.