“I have voted for Susan Collins since 1996 [...] She fooled me for 24 years, but no more.”
“I’ve voted for Susan Collins in the past; I cannot do so again.”
As Senator Susan Collins and her Washington Republican allies have failed to deliver on coronavirus aid, Mainers are speaking out against Collins’ continued refusal to hold Trump accountable. Letter writers to papers across the state, many of whom have voted for her in the past, blasted Collins for casting party line votes against Mainers’ interests and playing the blame game while federal aid runs out.
It’s clear that voters aren’t buying Collins’ finger pointing and are looking for a Senator who won’t retreat “to her partisan corner” when Mainers are in need.
Lewiston Sun Journal: Albert Sargent: Vote for Sen. Collins? Never again
I have voted for Susan Collins since 1996 because I thought that she was a common-sense politician working in the best interest of Mainers. She fooled me for 24 years, but no more. First, she voted for the failed and irresponsible Trump tax cuts. See non-partisan Congressional Research Service report of May 31, 2019. Second, she abandoned Mainers by voting to put Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court where he has already opined against Maine people’s interests. Finally, she voted to acquit Trump in his impeachment trial. The acquittal has emboldened Trump to take vengeance on his enemies and to further disregard the rule of law.
Portland Press Herald: Peter Vose: History will judge Collins harshly
Sen. Collins’ failure to hold Trump to account contrasts markedly with the way her mentor, Sen. William Cohen, responded to Richard Nixon’s travesties. While serving his first term in the House, Cohen was among the Republicans who investigated President Nixon. In a 2014 Watergate retrospective, Cohen told C-SPAN that he had been “preparing to lose” because he was ready to impeach Nixon. Sen. Collins has often expressed her disapproval of Trump’s actions and rhetoric, but she has done nothing significant to oppose his unconstitutional actions. History will judge Collins harshly. Maine voters should do the same by voting her out of office this November.
Kennebec Journal: Robert Nelson: Collins one of Trump’s key enablers
I worked on my first Republican campaign in 1968 and was a delegate in Washington state in 1980. I’ve voted for Susan Collins in the past; I cannot do so again. She’s no longer moderate. She’s followed her party increasingly to the authoritarian, reality-denying right. She touts her “bipartisanship” when all she does anymore is smile occasionally at Democrats. [...] Trump needs to be removed from office in November before he destroys America. Collins, one of his key enablers, needs to follow him out the door into retirement.
Portland Press Herald: Dr. Michael McCarten: Failure to press Trump on bounties shows Collins’ lack of backbone
Time and again, Donald Trump has proven that he is unfit to lead this country. And time and again, Susan Collins has shied away from any real action to stop him, and has, in fact, enabled Trump in his shameful failures. As Mainers and Americans, it is our duty in November to send someone to the United States Senate who has the backbone to confront any leader as cowardly as Trump. Susan Collins has to go.
Bangor Daily News: Robb Cook: We can’t afford the blame game
Government in Washington can no longer afford to play the blame game — the game demonstrated so well by Sen. Susan Collins. Her blaming the Democrats for holding-up the economy’s rescue might possibly get her a few more votes. Is her struggling to keep her seat in the Senate really what the majority of Mainers worry about these days?
Portland Press Herald: Steve Painter: Collins’ history shows she’s no ‘swing voter’
Sen. Susan Collins is not “a potential swing vote.” She voted the party line over 90 percent of the time in the 115th Congress (2017-18), according to ProPublica’s Represent database. Almost none of the remaining votes were close. Ms. Collins’ vote did not determine the outcome. The outcomes were a sure thing – a safe time to vote contrary to her party to give the appearance of independence. Ms. Collins’ voting history proves that she is a partisan voter, not a swing voter. Elected officials must be judged by their voting record – not by what they claim.
Kennebec Journal: Charles Sawyer: Former Collins supporters flock to Gideon
I am one of hundreds of other former supporters of Sen. Collins who now support Sara Gideon. Collins voted for the Republican tax bill that benefited corporations and wealthy individuals, and she continues to support and confirm unqualified judges. She told us many times that she didn’t approve of something the president said or did; she also told us she thought he learned from his mistakes. How’s that going for us?
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