AUBURN — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Libby Mitchell defended some claims in her campaign commercials in a talk Wednesday morning to area Rotarians.

A member of the audience said, “I saw a commercial on television last night that said Paul LePage does not want $180 million for education and that you do. Is that the whole truth? Are there no strings attached to that money?”

She responded with some details about where the quotes by Paul LePage, her Republican opponent, came from.

“What he said was that we should not take more from the federal government than we send to Washington.” She added that $183 million “is what we would not have gotten this year if we had left all federal money on the table.”

“He may not have meant to imply that, but that’s what that is based on,” Mitchell said.

Commenting on TV ads from the opposition, Mitchell said, “You will also see an ad that shows me saying ‘Fed up with taxes. What does that mean?’ And then it cuts me off” without showing her explanation. She also said there is a brochure that states “Libby Mitchell hates tourism” because she tried to tax tourism. She told the Rotarians the statement failed to tell that her position was related to a tax reform package and negative income tax consequences for Maine citizens.

“You are right to ask the whole question,” Mitchell told the questioner.

She also said a new internal poll done by her campaign office shows she is closing the gap with her opponent. Her poll now gives LePage 38 percent of the upcoming vote and she is at 34 percent.

“People become more engaged as we get closer” to the election, she said.

Mitchell also talked about fiscal policy and said that bonds are necessary to fund major needs in Maine such as highways and environmental protection. She said, “I believe a reasonable bonding approach is appropriate. My opponent does not.”

“We have got to change our strategy for growing our economy,” Mitchell said. That will require opportunities for businesses to access more venture capital, she said, emphasizing that she believes locally-grown foods and locally-processed fish products should be utilized as much as possible.

She also talked about diminished federal funds and its effect on education budgets.

“Just as government has got to reform, so do schools,” she said. “We all have to find new and better ways for doing things,” and she added, “you can’t do this without assistance from the federal government.”

The address was given at the United Methodist Church on Park Avenue at a weekly meeting of the Auburn-Lewiston Rotary Breakfast Club.