An American statesman once said, "I can think, personally, of no worse punishment than somehow to be permanently confronted with one's own cowardice."
Senator Collins ought to contemplate that over this Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend along with Senators Murkowski, Romney, Alexander, Lee and the rest of their Republican colleagues as they weigh cultist fealty to Donald Trump against the Constitution of the United States and its fundamental precept that no one is above the law.
The relative value of those two considerations ought to be crystal clear. Up to now, unfortunately, it hasn't been.
16
It's disturbing when the Times can't get a subhead right. Ms. Collins didn't vote against Mr. Clinton's impeachment. She voted against conviction.
That said, I hope she will be independent enough to truly weigh the evidence against Mr. Trump, after having voted to have witnesses at this trial. A trial without witnesses is nothing more than a debate.
4
Awww, you mean she'd rather stay in her job, or rather work for her job than to do what is morally and ethically correct and best for the country? She's definitely a charter member of the current GOP.
3
Collins brings home the bacon for thousands of well paying, non-tourism, defense and construction jobs. Good paying, Maine jobs, for high school grads, north of Portland, are scarce. Low and middle income blue collar workers and families are indebted to Collins. Many Mainers cannot afford to analyze Collins’ politics when food and shelter are their first priority. That is the reality in Maine. It will take an avalanche of Democrat and Independent voters to unseat her. Mainer’s probably won’t vote for a crook like Trump, but Collins is still respected. In other words, the independent Maine voter will likely vote to remove Collin’s “problem” (Donald Trump) rather than Collins herself. My bet is she’ll survive another election whether she votes to impeach Trump or not.
4
Susan Collins is the most careful cowardly nontransparent Senator of all. She deserves no respect for her lack of courage on any issue. Apparently she has no truth of her own, making decisions according to how it will affect her reelection. She deserves no respect or the amount of attention that she receives in the press.
4
I moved back to Maine from Illinois (a very blue state) just so I can vote against Collins. Beware GOP a tsunami is coming.
9
"Ms. Collins’s position as a centrist..."
Senator Collins is not a centrist. She just plays one on TV.
12
When push comes to vote, she’ll fall in line. There are streets named after her...”One Way”.
5
As Harvard professor Lawrence Tribe (and Justice Roberts' constitutional law professor) said on MSNBC last week, it is time for Republicans to stop caring more about re-election but rather to care about upholding the Constitution and perform the scared duty of their oath. Although the evidence against Trump appears overwhelming - especially since Trump shut down all cooperation with the House inquiry (who does that?), the senators should insist on getting it all out into the open, hear the additional evidence and give Trump a chance to defend himself, if he can.
2
Collins' rhetoric doesn't match her voting record. She talks a good moderate game, reaching across the aisle, but she invariably falls into line with the GOP when the rubber meets the road.
8
I am not suggesting that people should not work past their retirement age if they so wish but so many politicians are out of touch with much of their constituents and don't adequately represent those they truly need to be representing (i.e. future generations). The reality is only 20% work past their retirement age and in many cases the other don't because they can't because of health or inability to find work. The current average age of both the House and Senate is one of the oldest in our history. Perhaps this will change over the next couple of decades as boomers die off and/or millennials start voting more as clearly the current Congress doesn't want to solve any of the issues facing millenials and Gen Z and beyond. Even many Gen X'ers are going to be hit hard by lack of decision making for key issues. It isn't like the majority of Congress doesn't have the means to step aside if they wanted!
1
I for one admire an independent thinker. Sen. Collins reminds me of another conservative leader, Winston Churchill he too was in his country's conservative party and often voted for liberal causes.
I am a Democrat and like to think that I can think for myself and not hop on every liberal bandwagon. Thoughtful deliberation is what this country needs more than anything not knee-jerk reactions to any and all events that ruffle our delicate feathers.
Is there anyone else here who thinks Senator Susan Collins would make a good, if not terrific president? She just might get my vote.
1
As a near neighbour to Maine; it has been a constand puzzle trying to figure out Susan Collins. She certainly must be considered a moderate in the hyper polarized and fanatical G.O.P. under Trump. She clearly marches to her own drummer; which I respect. And Yet? It is impossible for me and millions around the world how anyone ; let alone a moderate; could ever possibly defend a man like Trump. If she is to truly fulfill her oath to put country ahead of party; something most Republicans will never do: then she has no choice but to demand facts, witnesses, and Truth ahead of any stinking political expediency. The whole world is indeed watching Susan Collins. For God`s sake; do the Right Thing.
1
she is loathsome
here is my wish
some enterprising progressive should troll after her for all her public appearances in maine and yell "Kavanaugh" at her at every possible opportunity
make her not forget
i hope the first line of her political obituary includes the word brett kavanaugh
she deserves to lose and to pay the price for her behavior - vote her out !
61
@j What public appearances in Maine? She's not held a town hall meeting in decades.
4
Dear reader: Volunteer to campaign on behalf of Collins' opponent or a week or so next fall in lovely Maine. Getting out the vote matters in a close race.
43
@semaj II - :) I have never even been to New England and don't even know who her opponent is. Could be worse, for all I know.
@tom harrison I have never been to Washington (state), yet I know who your local, state and federal solons are. Also, I know that your governor is not the progressive he claims to be (to wit: how he is letting the orcas starve to death by not breaching the dams).
1
After her disgraceful behavior during the Kavanaugh hearings where she ended up going way over the line in her strong endorsement of him, I lost all respect for and trust in Susan Collins. She deserves to be voted out this November and I'll even contribute to her opponent's campaign.
1842
@Paul Wortman
While many of us were disgusted by Kavanaugh's behavior during the hearings, the facts remain there was, as Susan Collins noted, “the lack of corroborating evidence.” I was just as disappointed in Democrats for being too "easy" on Kavanaugh during the hearings. With a nomination that important, Democrats should have been unrelentless in their grilling of Kavanaugh.
27
@Paul Wortman My family spends enough time on holiday in Maine that I feel qualified to head up from MA to canvass against her. She needs to go.
182
@Tom The bottom line was that Kavanaugh lied a lot during his hearings. Leaving aside the quite credible charges from Blasey Ford, Kavanaugh lied about numerous parts of his past, including his willingness to bend and distort facts for the Republican party. (Not to mention that Devil's Triangle was a drinking game.) Open lying should be disqualifying for a Supreme Court Justice.
331
Susan Collins is no moderate, she just plays one in the Senate. Like her Kavanaugh vote, bets are she will fail her moderate base yet again. Do her Maine constituents even know what she got in exchange for that vote? Time to show this lady the door!
47
Apparently republicans have their own version of the US constitution
The fox and friends version.
46
From afar I would say Susan Collins is a politician who has been balanced, pragmatic and reasoned in her voting history and I expect that will not change any time soon.
39
@Tony Francis
I guess you have not been paying attention. She is not pragmatic, balanced or reasoned, and she is most certainly not honest.
103
@Tony Francis Why from afar? Are you speaking geographically?
14
@Tony Francis Seems like you're really afar. Collins unfortunately seems to be beholden to modern political U.S. warfare. Take a stance on the side of an issue that will mean the least amount of collateral damage on your next reelection's chances. Regardless of how the candidate really feels. At least for now, centrist candidates' influence are almost extinct. Note how many Congressional candidates are opting not to run again, they'd rather not be put in a corner.
3
She is not a moderate Republican. When it comes down to it she always supports the treasonous Republicans over the Patriotic Democrats. She is a disgrace to America and needs to be treated as such
Do not hold your breath on Ms. Collins.
2
She’s no Margaret Chase Smith.
4
True to the NY Times always describing Collins as "moderate" as if her parents gave her that for a name.
She has NEVER been moderate in her voting.
Her public statements are not how you are to describe a politician.
Again and again and again NY Times you do a great disservice to your readers and the country with your continual narrative creation that Collins is anything but a slick conservative voter.
3
Has Lucy ever let Charlie Brown kick the football?
2
Collins is to Democrats as Lucy is to Charlie Brown and his football.
2
Is Susan related to Chris Collins?
Is anyone writing about Senator Collins pro life? I guess, from the comments, that Mainers are solidly behind abortion, at any time, for any reason. If this is true, the democrat contender, who is not a Mainer, should win in a landslide.
Another useless Republican liar; all consternated and perturbed then votes with McConnell in the end.
No Republicans 1n 2020. None. Not one.
3
Just another miserable Republican puppet, but without the pearls to clutch.
Senator Collins can redeem herself only if she is willing to "do the right thing for her country, and vote to impeach a gangster in the White House."
She's a New Englander, and thus knows full-well how disgusted, appalled and ashamed most New Englanders are that this obnoxious, self-dealing lout is their president.
So needless to say she's between a rock and a hard place.
1
Susan Collins is an opportunist and a deeply confused individual. There is nothing profound in her deliberations nor wise in her historical votes. She was right that President Clinton’s lies under oath about having a sexual affair did not rise to the level of high crimes and misdemeanors. But she will be a fool to think that Trump’s flagrant violation of the law in withholding Congressionally-approved aid to Ukraine is equivalent to Clinton’s mistakes. In the end I really don’t care about Collins - she is sadly, at best, only a means to an end in my mind.
4
True moderate republicanism died just after Nixon.
1
Susan Collins always seems to be "concerned". It is actually we, the decent people, that should be concerned that Collins is still in office. She is horrible. Horrendous. Hypocritical. Time for her to go!
4
Same old Collins tap dance, right up the party line. A quick wink at "moderates," then a little hop and she's over it.
6
Susan Collins, recently named the most unpopular senator in the USA among her constituents.
She is a quizzing and a coward.
She can’t be voted out of office soon enough...
That is IF we ever get to freely elect anyone again after 2020.
3
Trump owns the GOP, including her vote, as demonstrated in the Kavenaugh debacle.
1
Susan Collins revealed her lack of sensibility and decency when she gave that ridiculous tightrope speech justifying her vote for Kavanaugh. Every time I read about her, I'm reminded to make a donation to her opponent. She is a disgrace. It's time to send her back to Maine, but I'm not sure they want her back.
4
She can’t be trusted. Isn’t it obvious!
5
You either have an ethical core or you do not.
Doing anything to get re-elected indicates that you do not have an ethical core.
I believe she took and oath of office as did all the other spineless toadies on parade.
“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God.”
Sure Susan, show us your goods.
2
wow. Can progressive Dems. stoop any lower? Can't believe the misogyny directed toward this trailblazing Senator. Sad.
1
We've all seen this Lucy & Linus cartoon before, we know the stars and we know the outcome, yet we still think their behaviors will change. We're addicted to this continuous insanity until it becomes harmful, boring or somewhere in between. Now's the time to put it all to rest, provided there's not another lardon salad
of military largesse on the menu. Good luck with that!
This article brought back memories of Margaret Chase Smith, another U.S Senator from Maine, a number of years back. Comparing Sen. Colins against Sen. Smith makes wishy-washy Collins come out as less than pathetic.
Please dump her, Maine voters, next November .
4
I’m fascinated by the disparity between the comments section, which represents the views of the readers, and the article, which represents the views of the NYT (no, it’s not neutral - every article has a viewpoint). Put simply, commenters see Collins’ centrism as a sham, while the NYT mostly sympathizes with her as the lone sensible person in a rabid, extreme political environment. Personally, I believe the commenters have it right. It’s time for the NYT to take a long hard look in the mirror and realize that “centrism” is actually an irrational and unexamined bias rather than a virtue in our current political climate. Professional centrists are enabling our slow but inexorable slide into authoritarianism.
4
Susan Collins must not be re-elected, because she was the deciding vote on an anti-choice, very conservative, and pretty
immoral Kavanaugh. Glad to read she wasn't always so, but putting someone on the Supreme Court for a lifetime who is a sexual abuser and anti-abortion disqualifies her from any other backing from all but misogynists and fellow sexual abusers. Please look at supporting Sara Gideon to run against Collins. Thanks.
2
I hope that the voters of Maine are tired of Senator Collins' pearl-clutching persona.
2
I think we all know how Susan Collins will vote on Trump's impeachment.
1
Collins will fold. She always folds.
1
She needs to leave the Senate. Spineless.
1
Time for her to go.
1
I continue to be very disappointed in Collins, and I suspect that won’t change. She aids and abets a criminal president. Vote her out in November.
2
Yes, Susan is not a Nelson Rockefeller moderate. More an opportunist moderate
You can consult as many people as you like, but if they are all funded by the Koch Brothers SO WHAT
1
I don't live in Maine, but how refreshing it would be for Sen. Collins to be finally held to account for skating by on her risk free, faux moderate stances and then ultimately towing the Trump line. More than anything, her legacy (and great shame) should be that she helped put a sexual predator on the Supreme Court. That is something all of us will have to live with for a very, very long time.
3
Reminds me of Rome, Caligula and the spineless Senate. Little boots is now played by little hands. And we though we were unique. What a laugh!
2
Her political life would have been so much easier if she had the courage to change party affiliation to Democrat years ago. For her entire career, she has been fighting an uphill battle against a political party that's contrary to her personal views. Maybe I'm wrong - in which case, she is another craven Republican that is absurdly inarticulate and embraces hypocrisy.
2
Stop calling her “moderate”.
1
Wishy washy is a good description of Susan Collins. I once believed her but can no longer abide her tortured vacillations. And as others have noted, her vote for Kavanaugh revealed who she really is.
4
Unfortunately, for both law abiding honorable Democrats and Republicans, Susan Collins showed us during the Kavanaugh proceedings that she believes in nothing but re-election. Sheldon Addelson’s funding of her current re-election campaign is primarily facie evidence of who she really is.
Ira Checkla
1
"Overturn an election" - what a ridiculous statement. Nothing will ever change the fact that he was elected. This is about what happened afterwards. You are awarded a drivers license, then you get drunk and run over somebody and the court takes your drivers license away. Does the judge fret over the fact that she is overturning a drivers license?
4
Collins says a lot...and in my opinion...to appeal to moderates...but she never falls thru. She is untrustworthy and I do not believe she has any the the so called values she pretends to espouse
If you are honest you demand testimony and the release of all documents. There's only one reason to block evidence. Then you have the fact that Trump admits to all the things he is accused of but thinks what he has done is perfect.
This is not an uncomplicated case. If you have sworn to uphold the constitution and you vote to acquit you are a liar who doesn't believe in rule of law. You are unfit to hold public office.
1
Wanted to trash her but was reminded that she saved the Affordable Care Act, hence:LIVES.
Can deal with the rest.
As a Mainer, I despise Collins. Her grandstanding, fence-sitting style is meant to gain attention and little else. She's a real do-nothing who's become a millionaire for her efforts ... for corporate America, not for the people of Maine. She'll fail in her bid for re-election and hopefully retire to Potatoville and obscurity.
4
Sen. Collins will, once again, show that she has no spine and no allegiance to the US Constitution.
So many will be remembered as despised.
1
Does she have any principle? Chameleon is what Sen. Collins is.
Why does Ms. Steinhauser, author of this article, refer to Sen. Collins as a moderate when she is anything but. She is a Republican Senator and votes the Party line. She rarely strays across the aisle.
2
“I would anticipate that it is likely that I would vote.....” says it all.
1
It's time for the long-running Collins show to be shuttered. She's a Republican hack whose only real skill is pretending to be moderate. She can be counted on to betray her voters again and again.
1
When Susan Collins was asked why she voted for the trump 2017 tax scam she replied, “I am a republican”. That is how she will vote. She works for the party not her country or her constituents l.
2
Senator Collins:
Be honest about your intentions. (It would be GREAT if you would also be honorable). At the very least, don’t dangle your “independence” and then fall in line lock-step with your GOP comrades.
In Maine right now. Loving the bumper sticker, “Bye, Bye Suan”
2
Collins doesn’t owe the totally unified Dems her vote. Projecting shame on her or other GOPs is a clever political farce.
1
on many cars bumper stickers here--- ByeBye Susan
2
Her given name is Susan?
Funny, I could have sworn it was Lucy.
Wow, talk about trying to influence an election and vote on impeachment. It's ok for liberals to intimidate and attack Republicans because their only rule is to win at all costs.
I might move to Maine just to vote against her.
1
Collins will not
Defend
Again - health care
Again- Supreme Court
Again- impeach
Let's start with a couple quotes from the article:
1) A Republican constituent at the time of the Clinton trial said “I can’t believe you let him off the hook,” he told Ms. Collins. “I am never, ever voting for you again.”
Well, obviously, this un-vote did NOTHING to harm her support, because she went on to be re-elected many times!!
2) “I, too, was furious at President Clinton and felt that he had lied under oath, but it didn’t reach the constitutional test of high crimes and misdemeanors, and was not sufficient to overturn an election and throw him out of office,” she said in an interview on Thursday in her Capitol Hill office.
A vote to convict is NOT overturning an election!! A vote to convict is to remove someone who has committed crimes against our nation. If Trump is convicted and removed, Mike Pence becomes President. Anyone who voted for Trump, voted for Mike Pence. Mike Pence is a member of the same party. The Republicans will still hold the office of the president, the same administration will remain, the Senate will still have its Republican majority. NOTHING changes, except a criminal is removed from government.
1
I agree with most of the commentators that Collins makes a big show but toes the party line and only breaks with her party when it will not lead to overall Republican loss of power. Bu let us acknowledge that she and her staff and family have received appalling harassment that no one, senator or not, should ever face.
You think she is a terrible senator, please VOTE her out, contribute to her opponents campaign, write to the local newspaper, protest peacefully, this is *still* a democracy. But don't stalk her, send her fake-poison, and harass her staff. Indecent electorate breeds indecent politicians.
I’m sick of her and of her hypocritical stance of “bipartisanship”. I hope the people of Maine give someone else the chance to represent them more in more honest fashion.
I am sick to death of the GOP politicians, who have enabled a corrupt criminal sitting in the White House, in his attempt to drive our precious American democracy off a cliff. Collins is the epitome of this.
Has the US lost its moral compass so completely that the GOP truly believes that our best most enlightened path forward is with Trump!? Our ancestors would roll over in their graves.
The Republicans serving in the House and in Congress are spineless cowards turning a blind eye to the emperor without clothes in their quest to hang onto power and to their jobs.
Collins is the worst of them. Because she is a big huge phony. She ALWAYS pretends she will do the right thing, waltzing right up to the last minute saying she will do the moral and integritied thing-- but in the end, she follows the GOP boy leadership in doing things that hurt Americans and that will take us right off the cliff into the deep dark abyss.
Her confirmation vote for Kavanaugh was a dark day for my cohort of friends from the legal and academic world.
If Collins does not vote to call witnesses at the impeachment trial-- if she does not show an ounce of moral courage and backbone-- I am sending a large contribution to her opponent, along with EVERY woman I know.
2
Please don’t call her a moderate. We Mainers don’t call her that...she lost that “honor” long ago.
1
Please, stop the centrist talk. She votes trump, time after time. Sure she wrings the pearls and takes the camera to the fainting couch, before voting trump. Collins is no moderate.
Collins won her last election with 70%. The Kavanaugh debate galvanized voters and was the main reason the senate remained Republican.
She voted against Clinton’s impeachment and she may even support the President’s current motion to throw out the articles as unconstitutional on their face.
Don’t get your hopes up, NYTimes readers.
1
The most offensive thing about Collins is not how she votes but her hypocrisy and insincerity -- how she manages her image as a reasonable centrist by making statements that imply she will do one thing, and then, when it comes time to act, she inevitably does the opposite. It's a pattern and it's obviously a deliberate shtik.
1
Susan Collins has a pattern: make it look like you are a key figure, hint that you will actually follow your conscience, that you are a swing vote, thereby garnering lots of publicity. Then knuckle under. She will do here as she did with Kavanaugh. Senator Collins, I’d love to see you prove me wrong. Stand up for truth.
1
It's like Lucy, Charlie Brown and the football.
Collins will pretend to be undecided, Democrats will believe her, and then she will vote like every other Republican.
AAUGH!
Susan Collins is not a moderate Republican. She just plays one on TV.
1
By not foaming at the mouth, Collins has a much better reputation than her record deserves. She's not a "moderate," she's a Republican who very occasionally strays from the party line. She get the reputation because most of he caucus has no backbone and no scruples.
I hope she will exhibit the same patriotism of her predecessor The late Senator a Margaret Chase Smith.
1
Collins never misses an opportunity to do the wrong thing.
1
How many times do I have to read from “publications with integrity “that these GOP senators are breaking with Mr. Trump? They are breaking with the constitution that they swore to uphold! Plain and simple!. You’re either for the constitution or you’re not. Clearly this president is not and if they side with him and don’t allow a fair trial they’re also not, this is a choice between America democracy or no democracy. Plain and simpleGood luck America
2
Senator Collins show true grit to vote for Kavanaugh. The Democrats knowingly tried to smear him with false allegations they knew were not true. Blasey Ford was not credible at any point.
Democrats were trying to frame Justice Kavanaugh as unworthy of being appointed because they hate Trump. Collins will be re-elected as she is not willing to allow someone not allowed to to have due process with includes the presumption of innocence. The Kavanaugh hearings are a stain on the Democrats who tried to smear this man with unfounded allegations.
When you look at Sen. Collins’ votes on federal judge appointments under this administration, you will see that she’s not as moderate as she pretends to be.
Dear NYT:
A transparently partisan headline:
"The Times Impeachment Trial Puts Susan Collins, Stung by Kavanaugh Backlash, Under Scrutiny."
A lot of people thought Sen. Collins displayed ethical valor in standing up to the relentless, unfair partisan attacks associated with the Kavanaugh smear. And what about D senators facing even more profound impeachment scrutiny, such as Joe Manchin and Doug Jones?
It seems like editorial decisions re coverage, framing, and even internal story structure all reflect a progression of Democrat taking points.
The Times (along with other liberal media, including the Post, CNN and MSNBC) has been doing its best to stoke interest in this sad, partisan impeachment, which history will almost certainly record as another in a series of debunked anti-Trump conspiracy theory.
Why not just play it straight, follow the newsworthy narratives and let the facts fall where they may?
It is time for Sen Collins to vote from her heart, not the brain - Clinton should have been guilty, as should Trump: Both disgraced the hallowed office of the USA.
I believe her decisions are not purely politically motivated; and I think she will vote for additional information and against impeachment—applying what she will regard as a similar standard to Trump that she did to Clinton. My problem is that the Kavanaugh vote is simply unforgivable. The death threats and stalkers are sick, but frankly the neighbor and therefore constituent, who called her a “rape apologist” was exercising his right of free speech and offering a principled critique of his elected representative. I’m sure that was not the Senator’s intent but really her decision can have no other outcome than to make women less likely to come forward, especially when the attacker is white and powerful. She used the entirely wrong standard in deciding her vote on Kavanaugh—using the criminal conviction standard for what is essentially a job interview. If she had even applied the civil case standard—still more stringent than the job interview standard—she still would have had to vote to not confirm since the preponderance of the evidence was against Kavanaugh. She set back the cause of women against assault twenty-five years (right back to Anita Hill) and she will have to live with that choice. I cannot forgive her for that.
It seems she is perceived as a moderate because why? What is her voting record? Where was her voice after the massacre of twenty first graders? After the slaughter of fifty-nine concert goers? Calling Collins a moderate is like calling Manchin a Democrat.
All she wants is to be re-elected.
Collins knows what is right, and what is wrong. What I didn't know was over a million in Pharma donations as her "quid pro quo".
Maybe, if she capitulates as she did in the Kavanaugh nomination, her electorate will hopefully terminate her in favor of a new Senator who will represent those who can't be bought off, as easily as she has been!
I stopped listening, and only believe the votes. Sen Collins votes like a MAGA senator.
Maine, vote her out! She supported Kavanaugh, after that she's
toast. She'll vote with the Trumpsters. Vote her out.
If only there were Term Limits in the Senate for people like Collins.
Susan Collins is one of those people who always "could have made a difference", but she never seems to be able to rise to the occasion. She is weak.
It is heartening to see the country finally figuring out that Susan Collins is among the worst of those representing this great country. ME please vote her out and vote in a blue WH and Senate!!
1
As Senator Susan Collins is facing a very tough reelection campaign in a bid to win her fifth six-year term in November, it’s still too early to tell whether she would be “applying the same standard” in impeaching Trump, who is known for being vindictive and unforgiving.
In a video during the 1999 Clinton impeachment trial, Collins called for “more evidence” and “witnesses,” in order to “get to the truth,” and to fulfill the Senate’s “duty to do impartial justice.” She later acquitted Clinton.
But times are different in 2020. Republicans throw their weight behind Trump, despite his divisive policies and moral turpitude.
Collins has proved herself loyal to her party many times. Don’t be surprised if she bows to partisan pressure again.
1
The real scrutiny must be focused on the aberrant, rambling, bewildered mentation and defective character of Pelosi, Schiff, and Nadler whose obsession with hatred of President Trump wastes American tax money and undermines the good things Trump has done.
It is difficult to find a person who I respect less than Donald Trump, but then there's Susan Collins. Collins is a true wolf in sheep's clothing. Her conscience would make great wind-sock.
Imagine the difference if the final vote on Trump in the Senate were by secret ballot. How many Senators are grandstanding for him on camera—to suit the Fox viewers and the partisan donors—yet know in their hearts he is a big orange albatross?
A secret vote would allow them to chop this traitor loose before he brings down the entire GOP. All you need are 4 Senators to call for that procedural vote.
Senators should be freed to vote by conscience and deliberation, rather than be compromised by the fear of Trump’s Twitter feed.
1
First of of all, I would submit that the description of Collins by the NYT as a moderate Republican is to say the least, laughable. There are no moderate Republicans anymore, otherwise there would have been dissenting votes on many of Trumps "hair brained" and sometimes heartless policies.
If there was any backbone at all in any Republicans, just in the first few months of Trump being in office, his violation of the Emoluments Clause would have been enough to start
Impeachment proceedings.
Clinton's impeachment was a nonstarter like Trump's, since he was not going to be convicted in the Senate, so Senator Collins risked almost nothing voting in Democrats favor. This vote will be closer only because the Senate is almost evenly divided and she will vote not guilty. Her strong suit, one for which we should be grateful considering the knee jerk Republicans who don't bother with even the appearance of doing so, is her ability to look as if she is thinking before deciding. But since she almost always decides along party lines, it's meaningless. She is not an independent.
Why can't any of these people just do the right thing? And they all know what it is. No more Mavericks or Lions. How sad.
I have friends from the Maritimes and I don't think they would put up with a double dealing politician like Collins for one Canadian minute.
Susan Collins expresses "concern" or "disturbance" when she sees the republic coming apart of the seams.
But make no mistake: when the chips are down, she tows the party line.
"Moderate" Republican? You be the judge.
Collins came from poverty, and had never seen the kind of riches that she now enjoys.
Never bite the hand that services you.
1
Collins is completely two-faced, but THIS time she won't get reelected. She might be investigated.
She doesn’t tell the truth and is shady about it and people are tired of these antics at last
Collins is a great argument for term limits.
2
Re: "...Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, during a break in the Clinton impeachment trial in 1999. She was among the moderate Republicans whose votes could have altered the trial’s trajectory..."
I consider myself / my family quite fortunate: we have NO Republican_politicians to be directly, affected by!
Politicians vote with one thing in mind, what is going to keep me in office?
Her act is a good one, pretend to have decency but the truth is in her votes and her fundraising. What happened to her pledge to only serve two terms? Money and schoolyard bullying is all the GOP care about.
1
Susan Collins might have been right in excusing Clinton . His "crime" could be seen as a sexual fling that did not harm national interests . His lie about the affair an attempt to preserve his family. True, an indecent act , a threat to family stability but not a threat to the nation.
But the same cannot be said for Trump, whose erratic and bizarre behavior poses a threat to the nation's survival , is guilty of "high crimes and misdemeanors." More than 15,000 lies , lies on a daily basis, shows contempt for the public and the nation. Using his office for personal gain and not for the nation's benefit is nothing less than a high crime.
I do sometimes wish I could trade the senators of my birth state of Maine - Susan Collins and Angus King - for those of my home State of Texas - Ted Cruz and John Cornyn. Other times I only wish I could trade Ted Cruz for Angus King.
.
Ever since the Kavanaugh confirmation, it’s been the latter.
If she doesn't do the right thing, the people of Maine are responsible for removing her from office.
I'm tired of the propaganda fueled "Democrats are trying to overturn an election" argument.
Regardless of motives, Democrats FOUND a reason to impeach trump, and his actions happen to be impeachable.
Get over it.
Senator Collins has always played both sides but voted for one. This is especially true today. She said she agonized over Kavanaugh and voted him, despite evidence of his unsuitability, to the Supreme Court. She dangled hope and it was very likely a forgone conclusion all along. She's a liar and is getting worse now that Trump is in office. She wants to be loved by all but she only stands for herself.
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Karma. You don't have to believe in it from a religious perspective; the process of life itself offers us opportunities for "do overs."
What you might notice about this phenomenon is that your "opportunities" become increasingly challenging, increasingly important...perhaps even critical.
As this one is to Senator Collins.
I confess, I personally feel that Senator Collins "opportunity" with regard to Brett Kavanaugh was important enough...the well-being and rights of women for generations to come.
And now, here we are with the rights and well-being of an entire nation - a democracy, a people - at stake.
I sincerely hope Senator Collins takes full advantage of this "opportunity," to learn, grow, and evolve as a human being and a a representative of the people of this country.
If not...I wouldn't want to contemplate her Karma.
The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.
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How many times will Ms. Collins do her pretend act before she bows down and votes for whatever Mitch McConnell tells her to vote for? Remember, McConnell has already publicly announced that he has the votes to prevent an actual trial in the Impeachment. He could not say that without having Ms. Collins and her vote in his hip pocket. That is because it would take 3 Republican Senators to force a trial and Ms. Collins is one of them. Hopefully, Maine voters will not only not re-elect her but do so with a whipping that will remind her for the rest of her days that to pretend to have a conscience when you really don't has consequences with voters.
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Lucy with the football. “This time it’ll be different.” But it never is.
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Why are people upset about Senator Collins vote? Was she automatically supposed to vote in support of Ms. Ford, literally groomed by Democratic Senators?
Ms. Ford could not even remember what house the supposed incident occurred. Her own witnesses did support her story. For some odd reason, she even fibbed about the two front doors on her house, with a concocted story of “fear”.
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Dr. John; You can draw all the inferences your political views lead you to regarding Ms. Ford and the evidence she proffered. But, what you cannot rationally defend was the ill-considered, ill-tempered and completely inappropriate statement of Mr. Kavanagh himself before the vote to confirm. Anyone listening to that statement, regardless of their political perspective, who could then vote to confirm that man, is clearly putting loyalty to party over any kind of a conscience.
In fact, Mr. Kavanagh's demeanor during that oration demonstrated why defense lawyers don't want their guilty clients to testify at trial. Their mien serves to tell the jury that they are lying or, in Kavanagh's case, that he did not and does not have anything close to the judicial temperament that should be a sine qua non for a Supreme Court judge.
One thing I do give Kavanagh credit for: he wholeheartedly adopted the Trump methodology, i.e., when you are lying or being unreasonable, sound angry and offended like it is you who are being picked on or exploited. This causes many people to think that you must be telling the truth and be righteous for it to make you look and sound so angry, instead of them thinking you are a liar and have profound emotional problems.
The U.S. needs term limits for members of Congress!!! 12 years in the House or Senate. Maybe 18 years max in both. That's it. There are thousands of American's who are qualified to be in Congress. We don't need Senator Collins or Senator McConnell in office for decades. The financial advantages of an incumbent are undemocratic. Let's get this changed in 2021.
Remember when Collins said she wouldn't vote for Trump? Ha, and she claims to be a person of conscience.
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This story demonstrates one more reason why congress should have term limit of one term only. (Length of the term to be decided)
Why should Susan Collins, or any other human being, have to go through this more than once (one term)
Columnist, Jennifer Steinhaur explains that in America, running for another term in office can actually become a matter of life and death. Just ask Susan Collins.
I am one of the Maine women who went to D.C. to beg Susan Collins to vote No on Kavanaugh, only to have her give that awful, degrading, smug speech when she announced her intention to do what we knew she would do all along.
I am now working on the campaign of Betsy Sweet, who is running to unseat Susan Collins as U.S. Senator from Maine.
My car also bears one of the thousands of “ByeBye Susan” bumper stickers that will be rolling around this state until she is unseated in November.
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@Aria I've already got my 'Bye Bye Susan' sticker on my car.
The horror writer Stephen King lives very near Collins and hired a truck with a billboard on the side that Collins has to look at every day she's home. It says Trump is a criminal and Collins should vote to impeach him.
Stephen King knows a bad man when he sees one. He has said that Trump is even more dangerous than the evil politician portrayed in his book, The Dead Zone.
I agree.
Susan, help us end this national horror show. Help us impeach and remove Trump.
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That's Sen. Collins all right, good historic view. I notice nothing was mentioned about her comments last week, disparaging the House, why?
Her blaming 'The House' was a dig at Pelosi. Her reason(s) for her lashing were undeserved, is it the fault of 'The House', that the Parma's docs were delayed, by Trump's DOJ ?
As a subscriber, I'd like to have heard about Sen. Collins', very recent statements, and esp., whether or not, she apologized, to 'The House'.
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I’m terrified of Trump’s hardcore gun-toting supporters if he’s removed. Republicans in Congress are too, which is why they won’t. They know he’s guilty. “I could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and they’d still vote for me” rings as true now as ever. Trump’s language denouncing the impeachment as “dangerous” does not shed light on danger, rather it creates it. The danger is Trump and his defense team lying that he was seeking to root out corruption in Ukraine. Even the simplest analysis of the evidence, his history as president, and his life before, indicates that his actions are as self-serving as they come. Why the obsession with Ukraine AT ALL if not for his interest in undermining his political rival? If he wanted to root out international corruption, he’d focus on Russia first, as they pose the biggest threat to our democracy. This is truly the framers’ worst nightmare. Even Nixon was introspective enough to regret and resign. His supporters couldn’t care less.
I would bet big money Trump couldn’t define corruption if he were asked. He’s been able to do whatever he wants since the day he was born. He simply can’t determine right from wrong. It doesn’t compute in his mind. He was never taught it and never learned it. The worst of it is his lack of compassion and empathy, for literally anyone. His staunchest supporters do not care. Trump knows this and is perfectly content with the prospect of unleashing them and their guns on society to keep himself out of a jail cell.
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I would like to know what someone at 67 and has been in office for basically an entire adult lifetime thinks she can do in a small population state that has not already been done?
At what point does the fate of the nation, future generations and carriage of justice matter more than a political career?
as a Democrat myself, i have to admit that our party failed to make the case to deny Brett Kavanaugh a seat on the Supreme Court. The process simply turned into a mud-slinging fest that embarrassed everybody and was exploited by Donald Trump to fire up his base. For the Dems to use Susan Collins, who is probably the least Trumpian Republican senator, as a scapegoat for this mess is not reasonable. Collins has consistently been one of the strongest voices in the Senate on defending the US from Russian hybrid attacks, and i hope she gets re-elected.
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@Richard Ralph Ralph, Susan Collins like other republicans is following the leadership of the Republican party. The truth is we have a president tearing apart our constitution and a Republican led Senate reinforcing the destruction of our republic. Does Susan Collins shift for her political advantage or because of her beliefs?
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@Richard Ralph:
Forget the bribery charge; how can she or any Senator vote against the Obstruction of Justice charge, with everything Trump did to block and obstruct justice? As in Nixon’s case, how can it NOT be obstruction of justice?
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@Richard Ralph the Democrats failed to make their case because the FBI failed to investigate, and that was on the orders of King Trump. Regardless, I listened to Christine Blassy Ford and when she was asked how certain she was that it was Brett Kavanaugh that assaulted her and her answer was “100 percent”, I knew she was telling the truth. Brett Kavanughs sniveling, angry, Trumpian outburst was disgusting and revealing. He is not fit to sit on the court. But I digress.
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The act Senator Collins and Senator Flake did during the Kavanaugh hearing was worthy of an Academy Award. Flake was smart enough to quit after they towed the party line Collins wasn't. Collins has definitely been made aware people are not falling for it anymore. Trying to play both ends against the middle has caught up to her. Being a United States Senator must be one of the best jobs in the world because no one ever wants to do something else. Trump's presidency has exposed what our representative are willing to do to stay in office. Sacrificing ones integrity and country for a guy like Trump is bewildering.The Right drunk with its power act like the festivities are going to last for ever. When they finally wake from the bender they have been on with Trump the hangover is going to be overwhelming.Collins has become expert in saying something that is really not saying anything. I guess the chickens have come home to roost for we have seen this play before.
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Susan Collins made one of the most eloquent statements of any participant in the Clinton impeachment process.
"To remove a popularly elected president for the first time in our nation's history is an extraordinary action that should be undertaken only when the President's misconduct so injures the fabric of democracy that the Senate is left with no option but to oust the offender from the office the people have entrusted to him."
She has been too fine an example of a public servant trying to do a difficult job that she is certain to lose her seat. And of that she should probably be happy.
It is not the political center of the country that is shrinking, it is merely the political center in politics. Most of the country is paying scarce attention to the proceedings as they enjoy record markets, record low unemployment for minorities, and rising wages.
The greater income increases among the upper classes are due mainly to profit on their investments in this long bull market. When the market finally crashes, it will bring the income of these investors down with it.
The left is also being either stupid or dishonest when the hold out the threat of Roe v. Wade being overturned. The decision in that case was 7-2. If that case were overturned, It would fall back on the states to determine abortion rights. And most already have abortion support on the books. To the few holdouts, large states like New York and Illinois are preparing the means for their women to get abortions.
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@Bill Keating Let me see if I can sum up your observations. Susan Collins, who is essentially a Trump supporter as she eventually comes down on the President's side even when it is something as disgraceful and disgusting as voting to confirm Kavanagh after he spoke at length before the Judicial Committee in such a manner that he made it crystal clear that he did not have the temperament to hear traffic infractions.
Since she supports the greatest President in modern history and your 401K plan is doing well, she should be re-elected.
I do 'commend' you for getting in the talking points for Trump's re-election in your comments. You have memorized them perfectly.
@ACH Well, you are correct that in discussing the strength of the economy that could be taken as an endorsement of Trump. I give Trump little credit for the current positive state of the economy as he mostly inherited it from Obama. If Trump were to serve a second term and the economy tanked, I would probably give him little blame either. The economy operates pretty much independently of the President. unless we have a case of a hard line fiscal conservative against a socialist.
I will not vote for Trump and if the Democrats make another nominating mistake and choose someone as left as Warren then I will probably vote for a third party.
Judges for the Supreme Court are not judged on the sunniness of their personalities. They do not try cases and question witnesses. When hearing an appeal a Justice may or may not question the attorney giving the oral argument. I feel certain that you would not disqualify Merrick Garland if he was testy during his appearances before Congress and you would not want Kavanaugh approved even if he had shown the manners of Jimmy Carter.
Incidentally, did you know that Kavanaugh's court, the powerful Court of Appeals for the D.C. circuit, has only four Republican-appointed judges vs. seven Democratic-appointed? When does the takeover of the Courts by conservative judges begin?
Susan Collins, after former Maine senator Olympia Snowe, is the last of the so-called moderate female Republican senators from Maine wearing the now fading mantle of Margaret Chase Smith. Collins, however, lacks the boldness of Smith, lacks the ability to inspire. Would Collins ever dare stand alone and show the courage it took for MCS to read before the Senate her Declaration of Conscience? Hardly. MCS's words from 1950 are strikingly relevant today. Read them and learn, Sen. Collins, what you might have been--
"Those of us who shout the loudest about Americanism in making character assassinations are all too frequently those who, by our own words and acts, ignore some of the basic principles of Americanism –
"The right to criticize;
"The right to hold unpopular beliefs; The right to protest;
"The right of independent thought.
"The exercise of these rights should not cost one single American citizen [their] reputation or [their] right to a livelihood nor should [they] be in danger of losing [their] reputation or livelihood merely because [they happen] to know someone who holds unpopular beliefs. Who of us doesn't? Otherwise none of us could call our souls our own."
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Collins will fold. She has proven time and again that she’s no better than the other Republicans — or rather, what they’ve become. Early on, she projected integrity. That’s long gone.
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Collins does not merit this much media attention. I would hate to think that the press is doing it's level best to get her reelected. She should not be reelected.
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It is almost certain conclusion that senator Collins will vote with McConnell no matter how much research she does or vigorously she declares her open mindedness. She knows she has lost support of the Democrats and many independents with her vote to confirm Kavanaugh. So as long as she planning to run to 5th term she will not alienate Trump supporters and his base. I hoe the the Democrats and other progressive will continue their campaign to defeat her in September and will not be swayed by her false declaration of being open minded.
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Moderate Republican today only means a person who voices their concerns about regular Republicans, but votes the party line anyway.
Well, ms Collins gets another 15 minutes of fame while the rest of us roll our eyes
Her act of pretending to agonize over weighty decisions has gotten old. It needs to be canceled in the next election.
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Funny that the moderate Republicans take all the heat. I hope she isn't reelected...its still kind of funny though.
Collins and many other Republicans under estimate the distrust and gross dislike of Trump. Both on the Republican and Democratic side of the political "fence". And not to forget the independents..they will hold and have held sway of most elections these past years.
If the Republicans as a political group continue to band together to support Trump even under all the disclosures mostly recently..they are killing the Republican Party. In fact, what do they even stand for currently..the name should be "Trumpulican" as a way to merger the two together. The impeachment trial/process must be open with witnesses and documents otherwise the Republican will certainly be branded as un-American.
I use to think so highly of Collins. I truly believed she wd make a great president. That was before Kavanaugh. I felt livid at her and made a contribution to her unnamed Democratic Opponent (Sara Gideon).
Last week, after learning she was "in bed" w McConnell socially and unwilling to stand up for witnesses in the trial I called her office to let them know of my despair over Collins and that I wd be giving another $1000 to Gideon.
I'm glad Collins is finally feeling desperate and shame. She deserves it. Let's hope these feelings make a difference in the impeachment.
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The fulsome praise that Collins gave to the disgraceful out of control rant of Kavanaugh shows that she is not to be trusted or supported by any political moderate irregardless of what her actions are on impeachment. Mainers deserve someone that doesn't go through "Perils of Pauline" machinations on every vote that McConnell pushes.
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"Yet incumbency can be a powerful force. Ms. Collins is known as a shrewd politician who has built ties to every part of the state and labors to scrape together benefits for its shipyards, lobstermen and large elderly population and to promote them when at home."
C'mon those tools are just stock in trade, any representative will foster the same caring and sharing. What does she do when the constitution is under assault, the inviting of foreign governments to corrupt our democratic principles, the absolute disrespect for the leaders in the Armed Forces, the total immersion of nepotism in an administration, the lack of intelligent critical thinking, the willingness to assassinate.
My family migrated through Maine and many are reside there today, but Collins is an anomaly to the revered character of that state. C'mon any palooka will work to bring home the bacon but what about standing up to and throwing the bum out?
Bye-bye, Susan!
(Courtesy of popular Maine bumper sticker)
I will be actively contributing to volunteering for her opponent in maine. as will most of my district. we are sick of senator collins' betrayal of our state and our nation.
Another problem with Sen. Collins is that she loves the spotlight a bit too much—not unlike most others in the Senate. Watch how she cleverly plays the media, will she or won’t she make her decision....she loves to think DC revolves around her whims. It’s too bad she hasn’t moved on from a Republican party that has abandoned its roots.
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Collins claims she can't be intimidated, but I think the evidence contradicts that. Look at her pitiful performance during the Kavanaugh hearings when she tried to appear moderate and then caved to support K as she wanted to do all along. She wants desperately to be a member of the R boys club of establishment hacks, a woman who goes along to get along. She's a puppet for the status quo who only occasionally raises her head just a little bit to voice a mild concern about Trumpism, then she retracts it out of political cowardice and lack of real moral conviction or devotion to our Constitution. She will whisper her feckless concerns while the ship of state sinks from the iceberg of Trump smashing into it.
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The Senator from Maine is a politician and she will calculate that that her constituents like tax breaks and federal debt more than ousting their obstructing and bribing president, a president who will also do dirty deeds for them on occasion.
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There isn't a Republican Senator that doesn't vote with his or her antenna aimed at the political fallout. Of course this goes for Democrats too.
Collins will vote to acquit Trump because she's as immoral as the rest of her colleagues.
Truth is politically irrelevant and is always sacrificed to a higher good, which means keeping traitorous criminal Trump in office.
The Founding Fathers couldn't have imagined the level of corruption that exists in business and government in America today.
The Republic is dead and won't be revived any time soon as long as money and politics are hand in glove.
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As a person with 4 generations of family living all or part-time in Maine, I've followed Ms. Collins career closely over the years.
First and foremost, she is not a 'moderate' Republican, but poses as one every single time a difficult decision comes up. There was absolutely nothing 'heroic' or independent about her not voting to remove Bill Clinton -- he was immensely popular at the time, and voting to remove him would have been the end of her political career.
She similarly showed her spinelessness when courted by President Obama to support the affordable care act. In her classic drawing-it-out-as-long-as-possible-so-as-to-appear-measured in her approach, voted against Obamacare simply and cynically because it might have somehow hurt the elderly on Medicare in her state. There is no logical reason, other than hysteria, for that position, and it was basically a vote saying old people deserve access to health care while young people do not, period.
Now she will cynically posture and once again draw-it-out-as-long-as-possible, pretending her mind is open, but there is absolutely ZERO doubt that she will not vote to remove Trump, no matter what the overwhelming evidence is of his unfitness for office. Instead, she'll play her little game of looking thoughtful, listening to a few witnesses, but then vote to keep our criminal current president in office.
She is not moderate or thoughtful or brave. She is a coward. My Rockefeller Republican parents are rolling in their graves.
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@dmckj I agree wholeheartedly!
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@dmckj Well said - I thank you for your comment on her background. We in California wouldn't have known otherwise. I was surprised and disappointed when she joined the mob, after "careful consideration", and elevated Kavanaugh to the High Court in the face of overwhelming evidence of his unfitness for office. Hundred of law school deans and professors - his own professional brethren -joined in the petition to reject him as unfit. Not good enough of an opinion for Collins?
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@dmckj You miss one key point. Collins will vote for witnesses and approach voting for impeachment but only and especially if either is not going to succeed if she does.
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She talks like a moderate and votes as Republican. All her meetings with other senators and reading all the material is an effort to present herself as moderate. Her vote in Clinton’s case is like no harm done. Same rule will be applied. She will vote for impeachment and no harm done, because Trump will not be removed from office as there is no two-third vote. Her argument for Trump is her re-election is important to keep senate in Republican control which benefits Trump if he gets elected second term.
She is a perfect argument for term limits- it seems that her decisions are determined by getting re-elected, not by what’s right- wonder what she would do if getting Re-elected was off the table.
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It is ironic that the centrist Republicans like Collins have received the most active attention of severe criticism.
In fact, this article alludes to the main unspoken goal of the impeachment. It is the Democratic take over of the Senate by causing sufficient numbers of endangered centrist Republican senators like Collins to lose their re-election bid and render Trump powerless for the next 4 years should he wins re-election. Trump is sure to be acquitted and will likely win in 2020. But if the Democrats control the Congress, he will become irrelevant.
The late Senator Margaret Chase Smith was lionized for having stood up to Joe McCarthy in the 1950s, and coasted for years similarly to the way that Senator Susan Collins is doing now.
During the Vietnam War Senator Smith showed herself to be hopelessly out of touch and was sent packing by Maine voters.
We are replaying that scenario in the present time. Senator Collins no longer represents her constituents and doesn't show much interest in keeping up.
Time to go.
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The country still hasn’t figured out what made Sen. Susan Collins dismiss Christine Blasey Ford’s accusations of attempted rape against Judge Kavanaugh 30 years ago and cast the decisive vote that made him an associate justice of the Supreme Court. Whatever her reason, the damage had been done. Kavanaugh will remain on the court for the rest of his life, long after Susan Collins ceases to be a senator. And he may even face the embarrassment of being asked to recuse himself from all rape-related cases that could come up before the Supreme Court.
Sen. Collins will soon be called upon to cast another decisive vote, this one in the forthcoming Senate trial on President Trump’s impeachment. Not that her vote is going to play any role in getting him removed from office. That won't happen unless we have enough Republican senators conscientious and gutsy enough to join their Democratic colleagues who want to do it.
Sen. Collins can at least go along with three of her Republican colleagues who are willing to join all 47 Democratic senators who are demanding that four individuals who have first-hand knowledge of the crimes for which Mr. Trump is impeached and all documents that are relevant to those crimes be subpoenaed. For the subpoenas to go out, we need 51 senators supporting it.
Here is a chance for the senator from Maine to redeem herself for what she did vis-à-vis the Kavanaugh nomination. Is she going to let us down a second time? The whole country is watching.
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Susan Collins gives indications that she will vote one way and then votes the other. There is no doubt she will vote to exonerate Trump. She needs the money the RNC can give her for the election.
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I'm so happy to see all of the comments in this section from Maine residents which seem to indicate that Collins' long tenure may come to an end. Bravo to the Mainers who are speaking up, and thanks for providing some hope for the 2020 Senate elections.
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For the past 25 years we have spent our Summers at our home in Southern Maine .Of course this has afforded us the opportunity to make many close and valued friends in our small beach town. When Susan Collins name would come up in conversation the response from our friends used to be something to the tune of 'Yes she is a Republican, but shes a Good One. Although mostly Democrats and Liberals a good many of our friends used to support Senator Collins.
Then came the Kavanaugh hearings,her casting a vote to place him on to the Supreme Court was truly a Game Changer in terms of non Republicans supporting her .
Senator Collins is in the fight for her life to retain her seat, she can not do so without winning the populous Coastal areas North and South of Portland . Mainers are watching how she votes not only on calling for more witness but how she votes on Trumps impeachment also.
Her political future is at steak and she knows it.
She may as well do the right thing this time to make up for her vote on Kavanagh. She’s not going to be re-elected anyway.
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Collins will vote on this impeachment issue based upon which side will provide her the best opportunity for re-election. So check her polling numbers / approval ratings when the Trump matter requires a show of hands!
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This is not a complicated subject. If she doesn’t want to quit the Republican Party, that is her choice.
But if she wants to be someone of zero integrity, that is another choice too.
So far, she has done fine enough. I wish her well in continuing on that path.
Collins has played the 'reasonable' moderate way too long for it to be convincing, given her actual track record.
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The irony is that this lifelong Democrat wishes that Collins and more of her colleagues had voted to convict Bill Clinton and remove him from office — not because I disliked Clinton, or was unhappy with his administration’s policies and record, but because, upon his removal, Al Gore would have become President and would have been able to run for election in 2000 as the incumbent. The public would have had a clearer idea of who he was, what he stood for, and it would have forced George W. Bush to run from a position of relative weakness.
Beyond re-litigating that nearly 20-year-old election, it must be pointed out that Trump and his party’s malfeasances and outright crimes did not spring from a vacuum, but were built on the hurtful policies, malfeasances and crimes of George W. Bush’s two terms, just as his were built on those of Ronald Reagan, whose crimes were, in turn, built on the crimes of Richard Nixon.
It’s like the so-called broken-windows theory of policing: if minor crimes go unpunished, someone will come along and reason that he can commit a more serious crime and get away with it, and then someone else will rationalize an even worse crime.
Give Republicans the proverbial inch and they will, if left to their own devices, eventually take a mile. That’s why Joe Biden’s pledge to seek bipartisanship will not work. Republicans’ noses must be bloodied again and again and again until they realize that Democrats will no longer let them get away with it.
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This is a great comment! Democrats need to push back with all they have against the entire cult- like opposition party that threatens to destroy democracy - if it hasn’t done that already.
They don’t need thuggish behavior like Martha McSally to call out the republicans corrupt agenda and their amorality. They should be taking all the help they can get from people like Rick Wilson who advocate for their borrowing his party’s strategic tactics for the good of democracy— not for personal enrichment the Trump Party has used so successfully.
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Sorry New England but it is a New England, thing.
The behind the back pass, and false sympathy is pure small town politics, in the GOP Chamber.
She is a litmus test for the truth, small town life, and a shining beacon on the hill, for the base.
Even Winthrop would cringe.
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There is no way Collins can thread the needle this time. If she votes to allow Democrat witnesses, she will also vote for Republican witnesses. I would like to see her allow both sides to present witnesses. Is Bolton worth Hunter Biden to Democrats? Or Mulvaney for Joe Biden, or Pompeo for Schiff? Presidential Privilege will protect a lot of what Republicans will have to testify on. Joe, Hunter, and Schiff will have to answer questions, or plead the 5th. Great for television, and better for Trump. Trump won’t be impeached regardless of the testimony provided. The Biden’s and Schiff have serious consequences for their testimony. After the acquittal, only the Democrats will be harmed. Go ahead Susan, find the middle ground. Vote for all witnesses requested by both sides. You can be fair, and bury the Dems at the same time. I doubt Democrats are willing to trade witness for witness. If they do, Trump wins, again.
Like Nikki Haley (and now apparently Martha McSalley of AZ), Sen. Collins has taken measure of the Republican Party and realized that it is now the Trump Party. There is no future in this party for consideration of issues or thoughtful analysis; there is only one concern: do you support Trump or do you lose your seat?
The allure of these seats in the House and Senate must be so great that it render the question moot. They always choose their seats. Always.
How in the world could a Senator allegedly intelligent, who supposedly does vigorous research and votes independently vote for Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court?
Even if she believed him (and his sobbing protestations of being guilty of only loving beer) surely she could have stood firm and demanded more of the women accusing him be heard before the Senate vote.
At the very least, a person of ethics and good judgment wold have said that in this country of over 327 million people, surely we can vote for a better candidate for a life-long appointment to the Supreme Court - and incredibly important position.
If she didn't put party loyalty to the Republicans first, she is at the very least guilty of very, very poor judgment that will haunt the United States for decades as he sits on the highest court in the land.
Wish I lived in Maine and could vote against her - she has been in office way too long and has lost her intellectual sharpness and loyalty to her oath of office.
I am thrilled that Susan Collins will be voted out of office this year. While she likes to refer to herself as a moderate, her votes indicate the opposite. Her support for Kavanaugh is enough information for us to know that she doesn't support the rights of women. I am sure she'll be in lock-step with her GOP colleagues and be a good, little foot soldier when she should be the opposite.
“... and was not sufficient to overturn an election and throw him out of office,”
For me, one of the most troubling aspects of this impeachment process has been the relentless invocation of the ‘overturning an election’ rhetoric from Trump’s supporters. It wasn’t about overturning an election in Clinton’s case, it was about his lying under oath; it isn’t about overturning an election in Trump’s case, it’s about flagrant abuse of the office to which he was elected. In neither case would there be (or have been) any nullification of an election.
As a woman I regret and with sadness in reading the majority of postings are critical of Senator Collins. The fact that there are so few women Senators makes her even more important in terms of representing us women as a positive force in society, of honor and truth.
I hereby plead with Senator Collins to join the Democrats to subpoena witnesses like Bolton, Pompeo and any other revlevant persons involved in the Ukraine affair during the Impeachment hearing". You will be that honorable, strong woman who can stand up for the truth by letting witnesses testify. Americans deserve to hear the truth, and the House is successful in obtaining a fair judgement of Trump. May America conintues to be that shinening city on a hill!
Over the years she has mastered the art of "fooling her constituents ". Show outrage and in the end bow to right wingers no matter how abhorrent. She shows video of the outrage to Democrat leaning districts in attempt to get 8% Democrat/Undecided to win and shows video of her (solid right votes) voting records to Republican district.
She has been playing this game for decades, fooling Democrat in her State and it is time to unseat her.
There needs to be term limits to clean up Senate/Congress from people like her who is interested in ruling rather than governing and stay in limelight.
Senator Susan Collins stood for Justice Kavanagh/she will stand for President Trump -- let us hope the good people of Maine vote her out of office in November.
Please can we stop asking if she will vote to impeach Trump. He's already been impeached. Impeachment is what the House does. As a Senator, she'll be voting on removal.
With regards to Ms. Collins and any other republican senator toying with the idea of voting for additional evidence and witnesses, if it were me I would say better to be quiet than offer false hope.
I do not have much hope in Collins or any Republican to break ranks with Trump, but things are different here than Kavanaugh--though that may not matter. First, for now, this is simply voting for a trial, not the eventual outcome. That may be more palatable for Collins. Second, the issue is fresh, not 30 years ago, and clearly resonates with a pattern of behavior that may continue. Third, there are documents and witnesses that make a pretty strong case, not just one witness. Fourth, despite what Trump's team and others say, Trump's actions likely fall under impeachable offences according to an originary interpretation--the Federalist papers in particular have a lot to offer--so it is not just about character. It is about the fundamental rule of law. In any case, we will see.
6
@Brett
You say "Trump's actions likely fall under impeachable offences according to an originary interpretation".
He is already impeached so by definition it was impeachable.
This is not about will he be impeached. He is impeached. Now its about conviction and removal from office, i am sure Brett that you understand that but I keep reading comments where people don't seem to understand... he ia already impeached.Nothing can change the fact.
Susan Collins, carries the moderate label largely because the Republican Party's dominance by a donor class willing to fund the mobilization of right wing social policy in order to achieve the donor class's economic agenda. The party has moved so far right and away from principle that the moderate label is really anything but that. On occasion, emphasis on occasion, she has voted outside the orthodoxy. But make no mistake about it, she is aligned with the right wing agenda. Recall Lindsey Graham's assurance to her Kavanaugh vote. "Not to worry there were donors in line ready to provide millions to support her re-election".
8
Collins' choice is clear:
Either stand up for the Constitution and the rule of law, or play party politics.
Her "stand" on Kavanaugh was appalling, but life has a way of providing redemption for those courageous enough to accept the challenge.
33
But she will not redeem herself. Senator Collins has shown her true colors time and again.
It is virtually certain that the Senate will vote along party lines in the trial of Donald Trump.
Indeed, Trump could not have designed the political backdrop better. Republicans wanted Brett Kavanaugh appointed to the Supreme Court. And Democrats made a disastrous move.
They decided to investigate Kavanaugh for attempted rape.
If they failed to convict they would look like Trump. Like Trump they would be stooping to make inflammatory charges which can unfairly destroy a person's life.
The charge of attempted rape presumably occurred 35 years ago when Kavanaugh was in high school.
Such a case would never have been pursued in an actual court because the statute of limitations had passed. The reason for a statute of limitations is that memories fade after so much time has elapsed.
Indeed, the only people who seemed to remember the party at which the attempted rape might have occurred were the two principals.
Susan Collins stated that she did not believe the evidence made the charges "more likely than not." To quote from this article:
"That confirmation vote — and her impassioned speech defending it on the Senate floor — generated millions of dollars in donations to be used against her, and a lengthy period of harassment and intimidation by critics, including numerous death threats."
Oh for an earlier era in which politics was not so partisan.
Kavanaugh now faces placards declaring that he is a rapist whenever he tries to speak.
It is now payback time.
6
Payback time, for what? Kavanaugh sits on the Supreme Court. And I don’t think memory fades after trauma. Dr. Ford was a very credible witness. Have you forgotten what happened to her family asa result of her bravery?
She voted against decency and women . Period.
@Blaise Descartes
"Statue of Limitations"? You might want to ask Bill Cosby about that.
It wasn't just that she voted for Kavanaugh, it was that she strung us all along for weeks pretending to be so careful and agonized about her choice and about the consequences for Roe. Then she hid behind a woefully inadequate pretense of an FBI investigation and announced her decision with a self-righteously angry speech blaming those who opposed him. It was clear that she never had any doubts or serious consideration of whether to vote for him and had made up her mind from the start. It is that insincerity that duped many of us for so long that I hope will finally do her in.
81
She is the female version of Rand Paul. "Will I or won't I" is her mantra. But she always comes home. Hopefully Maine has new representation come November.
83
I love all the comments here from Mainers and other citizens calling out Susan Collins. Thank you.
53
Collins seems to be one of the few Republicans in Congress who is waffling when it comes to supporting Trump and authoritarianism. That is probably because she is from New England where there are still widespread concerns about placing the president above the law. Voters in Maine who favor keeping liberal democracy may find she is too much of a Republican and voters who want authoritarian rule with Trump as the strongman may feel she has not gone far enough right. The challenge could be too much even for Collins to win reelection.
18
Maine Independent Senator Angus King said the billions in bailouts for Trump’s tariffs went to the Midwest and the lobster industry—equally or more impacted—got none.
Surely that information would be helpful in defeating Collins.
45
Senator Collins may be among the most sane and moderate Republican Senators but that’s not saying much; she’s still a Republican in 2020, which speaks volumes.
Anyone who thinks Collins is going to be a major factor or savior in this Senate trial is kidding themselves. She talks the talk but seldom walks the walk.
65
The phoniest public person I have ever encountered in my lifetime (1946).
1
Susan Collins voted for Brett Kavanaugh to become a Supreme Court justice because she did not find convincing the accusations brought before him. She did not vote against President Clinton to be removed from office because she did not think the charges were serious enough. Hopefully she will not vote to remove President Trump because these charges do not warrant removal. She will not be cowed by anyone and will do the right thing.
4
I f she were sincere she would support testimony that would include witnesses and documents.
She won’t. I know her. ( not personally) but I know her.
If only there was vote betting like sports betting. I would be a wealthy man.
Actually I take it back. I’ve made a hundred predictions re Trump and all wrong.
@KMW
WJT fibbing about a tryst is not a high crime. DJT is the definition of high crimes!
Senator Collins does the right thing when it's right for her political future.
Anyone who says, grandiloquently, that they are "open" to witnesses is doing nothing but raising a finger to the winds. Nothing but posturing and she, apparently, thinks her constituents are dumb. Hope her approval rating continues to tank.
You really have no idea why she voted for Kavanaugh. Newsflash: politicians lie.
It's becoming increasingly likely that the Democrats blundered by choosing to go narrow rather than broad with the articles of impeachment--only two charges as opposed to the myriad charges they could have brought, including most obviously obstruction of justice based on the overwhelming evidence in the Mueller report. Bringing only two articles makes it easy to trivialize them. (Only two ? No big deal. And not impeachable anyway.) A long list of charges would have been more difficult to trivialize or to depict as on the whole non-impeachable. Going narrow gave cover to so-called Republican moderates like Collins by making it easy to say, in effect, "Is that all? Regrettable, maybe, but not impeachable."
9
@Ed
You can thank Nancy Pelosi for the limitations. She was too concerned about how the electorate may or may not react in the 2020 election than building a wider and stronger case for Trump's impeachment.
2
@Deus
I don't believe a long list would have changed any of the antics we have seen or the likely acquittal. The additional facts that have surfaced
will be used in the court of public opinion in November.
Actually, what’s becoming all too clear is that there are certain, “leftists,” out there who’d rather see Trump re-elected than compromise so much as one of their precious demands.
What I’ve gleaned from both this article, and in the readers’ comments, Susan Collins is serving her last consecutive term in the Senate. If she’s as savvy a politician as this story indicates, she must see that.
So, Senator Collins, why not do yourself some good? Really listen to the witnesses and evidence presented and then vote with honesty and moral conviction. It won’t make up for the Kavanagh vote and defense, but your actions will be remembered. (And if you make the right choice, there’s always 2026.)
23
She is incapable of being honest. In her own way she’s as untrustworthy as Trump.
@Dunn Arceneaux Zero chance she will show spine and vote against Trump. Zero.
I recall Senator Collins' speech in favor of Kavanaugh as painful.
Now she gets a second chance to prove intelligence and independence.
Trump claims his witnesses exonerate him. Make them testify.
Don't we deserve to see the evidence?
If Senator Collins can manage that -- and will fairly evaluate it -- then I will vote to re-elect.
11
Collins, like her colleagues doesn't want to leave the Senate. She forgets that she occupies an office Margaret Chase Smith once held. She like her colleagues have the option of following her oath --- and if she is shunned by her colleagues, accept their vitriol. Any one who ever lost a position he or she cherished because of a matter of conscience, duty and self respect knows that there is a life after and the opportunity to look oneself in the mirror makes any sacrifice all the more satisfying.
13
@OC
This is what happens when one "sells their soul to the devil" and let's face it, Collins was far from the only republican who did it.
If Senator Collins pulls another stunt like she did with the votes on health care and Bret Kavanaugh, she needs to be voted out of office as her actions demonstrate she is far more concerned with being cowed by Trump and McConnell than being independent and displaying courage to stand by her oath to protect and defend our Constitution. The old adage is at play here - 3 strikes and your out. Senator Collins already has 2 strikes.
23
What happened to fool me once, fool me twice? As for me she’s out.
Look at whom Maine people voted for governor two terms.It suggests that they are primitive people endowed with highly defective judgement. Ignorance does not lead to bliss, it leads to destruction over time.
During the Kavanaugh hearings, I got into a very, very long and detailed emailed exchange with a center-right Republican lawyer who supported Kavanaugh's confirmation and who also happened to be a woman who supported Senator Collins in her voting for Kavanaugh.
After many emails on the details of witnesses, trauma theory and psychology of violence, in the end, all the points / counterpoints of this lawyer's arguments (like Collins') ultimately reduced to: "I believe him. She is confused."
Now, if you walk into a VFW post and ask male soldiers about their experiences in certain battles, they will tell you, 50 years latter, exactly what the battlefield looked like, where they were, where the enemy was, what it smelled like, where the sun was and how the eyes of Johnny looked when he took a bullet and died in their arms. Traumatic memories are extremely vivid. They persist as nightmares and waking terrors.
But if a woman says she was pushed from behind onto a bed and a man jumped her and began fondling her and her friend started laughing and then turned up the radio and then her attacker put his hand over her mouth, and then she escaped because of a brief letup in the assault because the perp lost his nerve and was inebriated, then apparently she is "confused."
Since Collins says she consults all these experts, we can assume she consulted specialists in trauma during the Kavanaugh hearings and decided to ignore all that and simply vote to keep her base happy.
40
@Kip Leitner yep. I remember every single minute of my assault and my husband remembers every single minute of his time in the Iraq war. Somehow we (women) are less believable. Who would’ve thunk it?
1
@Kip Leitner Congratulations and thank you. You have cogently and brilliantly set out the reprehensible behavior of Ms. Collins. It is perversely akin to being accosted by a person who is going to murder you, one way or another. The murderer asks you if you would like to die a quick relatively painless death or a slow agonizing death.
If you want a slow agonizing death, choose Ms. Collins. Otherwise, choose one of the openly sycophantic Trump-supporting Senators and get it over with.
"What appears to rankle Ms. Collins is the suggestion that her votes are mere political calculations."
Her votes are mere political calculations. We already know that she's going to vote in lock-step with her Republican co-conspirators.
41
She’s quite the actress. And she’ll be voted out.
One can bet who will be the next US president. After all of this, for the people who will put money on the line, they are betting on Trump. Never has Trumps odds been better. And his odds have gone up dramatically during the impeachment proceedings.
Trumps odds have never been better but not unbeatable odds.. The economy is just awesome for everybody. Why can he still be beaten? It’s because his personality is a turn off for allot of people. But for a acting pro like Trump a personality can change quickly. After being an ogre for years he just needs a few touchy-feely moments to have votes dramatically turn his way. Trump is already reinventing himself. His tone of voice has changed. He is making himself into a kind old man.
2
@Jim
The impeachment is making Mr. Denial into an old man. We the People are disgusted with him and his puppets.
While his personality is a turn-off, that is not the real issue. It’s his stupidity, incompetence, cruelty, complete lack of moral character, and his constant elevation of his personal interests over those of the country.
Trump is a failed businessman who had to be bailed out by his father time and time again. After his father died, no American banks would lend him money so he turned to Russia.
I wouldn’t vote for such a person for a school board, much less for President of the USA.
1
Impeachment only make our country further divided. It is not going to work. American democrats should wait until 2020 national election day. Remove Trump from voting booths. Only Nixon resigned in August, 1974 because of Watergate scandal. Pretty bad for America. Don't do it again. Only further divided our beautiful country. I am not crazy about Trump but I love the future of America.
3
We should wait for Election Day? The one that Trump stands accused of trying to to sway by having a foreign power investigate his biggest potential Democratic rival?
If you had evidence that an NFL team tried to hire a hitman to break the kneecaps of an opposing team’s QB, would you say the best way to handle it would be to let it slide, wait for the game, and hope the corrupt team gets beaten? Or would you, like, immediately put the team on trial for conspiring to rig the game?
@McLean123
So, Congress should have given him a pass? Not. He will likely be acquitted and there will be a real trial in November for him and the fools in the Senate that are grandstanding.
My father's family is from Maine for generations, and my husband and I bought a house in Maine where we planned to retire, only the house did not pass inspection, so we bailed.
I learned: Mainers are highly independent, critical, don't like showoffs, are suspicious of "people from away" and those who don't live frugally or throw their money around.
The operative word for Mainers is "independent."
Politically, Maine is 1 of 9 states where those registered Independent/Unaffiliated (35%) outnumber those registered Democrat (33%) or Republican (27%). The other senator from Maine, Angus King, is 1 of the 2 senators whose political affiliation is Independent (Bernie S. is the other senator).
The Democratic Party is gaining power in Maine; the GOP is losing power. Maine is the top 1 of 7 states where white, rural, noncollege voters do not predictably vote GOP.
Susan Collins is basically in a no-win situation. She is a moderate Republican, but her party has gone extreme right, and McConnell in the Senate does not tolerate independence in any GOP politician. Collins appears to by playing both ends against the middle (support of the ACA but unpopular for her Kavanaugh vote).
Also, Collins has a viable challenger for the 2020 Senate election: Sara Giddeon, the Speaker of the Maine state House of Representatives--though Collins has not said if she will run for the senate this time.
My hunch is if Collins does run, she won't win since the GOP at a disadvantage in ME.
17
I seriously doubt Senator Collins dives as deep into issues as she purports to. When House Democrats sent communications SDNY investigators had released the night before along with articles of impeachment she accused them of being slipshod. Her yes vote on the tax cut and the Kavanaugh confirmation display her true colors.
17
@Steve Senator Collins cares nothing about Trump's lack of fitness for office and made a snarky political comment in response to new evidence of very serious crimes. That shows both a lack of class and a lack of conscience.
Can't wait till she is thrown out by the voters.
Rather than making up her mind, she predicts what she will probably do after she does make up her mind, as if she were an opinion columnist writing a piece on Susan Collins. She would like to be in the middle, but Trump does not tolerate that, and neither do his supporters. Trump is not giving any documents or allowing any testimony; this contempt for Congress is blatant and obvious. So she is carefully weighing whether or not our president should be held to his oath of office, or whether it is a big, impeachable deal if he ignores and violates the law.
To someone who took a similar oath and takes such oaths seriously, this is a no-brainer. But such people are so out of style; people who pretend to be so are in style, as always.
7
It's all a ruse, Collins' 'so-called' deep in thought/research on whether or not to vote to bring in witnesses and ultimately impeach Trump. We can see right through her by this point. She showed her cards for everyone to see on the tax cut and Kavanaugh endorsement. I am keeping my fingers crossed tightly that the people in Maine's motivation to oust her bear fruit on election day. She is neither serving the majority of her constituents nor the American people by staying so tethered to the horror in the WH.
25
Ms. Collins keeps telling all of us how moral, thoughtful, and measured she is, yet 97% of the time she votes like a party loyalist. I find that rather difficult to reconcile.
I'm reminded of some advice I got from a mentor many years ago. He commented that one should never trust anyone who readily attributed superlative adjectives to him/herself because those superlatives were the leisure of others to assign. Ms. Collins seems to have forgotten that her actions speak louder than her words.
48
Same act as too often before. She is an endangered senator. A one term senator who overstayed her welcome in a state that deserves better and real representation. One, who is honest as best a senator can be, with herself and her State. Maine needs a fresh
political presence.
33
Sen. Collins always acts like she's deeply thinking about the morals of her vote; always considering all options; always evaluating all sides. I used to respect her and used to believe she was really doing that; but, after she voted for Kavanaugh, I now realize that was simply an act. She will vote with the rest of the Republicans. Hopefully, this is her last term representing the fine state of Maine.
80
She needs to step up and take a stand against Trump and GOP.
We’ve heard so many times about this cluster of moderate Republicans. I’m sick of them all. Mitt Romney’s business was acquiring compares and closing them in ways that wrecked people’s lives. All in the name of. business.
He hates Trump and Trump hates him and everyone. Really sick of them all. No heroes insight. They should cry out for witnesses testifying and documents. Anything else is supporting the obstruction of justice.
50
Putting any faith in this woman to do anything decent is completely misplaced optimism. Let's move on.
95
@Gigi
Here, good senator, let me lay it out for you:
1. He cheated in the 2020 federal election by trying to get foreign, uncontrolled operatives to "find" dirt on his likely opposition candidate.
2. He withheld Congressionally-appropriated funds to do so, subverting the will of the people in not giving them over to assist Ukraine at a dangerous time.
3. This lack of aid helped our adversary Russia which is at war with Ukraine.
4. He tried to bribe/extort the Ukraine leader with this money to do an illegal act, violating the Foreign Bribery Act, which is why now he is saying the act should be overturned.
5. He conspired with other high level federal officials to do this.
5. When caught he directed a comprehensive coverup and obstructed justice.
What Trump did is nothing like Clinton when he lied about having extramarital sex. Of course Collins will vote not guilty.
2
Collins has only one act. She draws attention to herself with a “thoughtful” pose, a “moderate” stance. Why even report this charade again and again? News would be if she ever once acted as a thoughtful, independent woman OR senator. Up to now, she’s a totally uninteresting conformist.
2
Maine, and America, deserve much much better than Susan Collins. The Brett Kavanaugh vote is a permanent stain on her legacy, but it could become almost inconsequential if she doesn't respect her duty to insist upon the deepest and most honest investigation of the most corrupt, ignorant and incompetent president in American history. There will be no second chances on this one, Ms. Collins. Shop your place in history at your peril, because we are all watching.
81
She will not vote to convict. Her convictions are with being re-elected. In today's Republican party, that means allying oneself with Trump. She does make good theater of her decision process, though. And I'm not falling for it again. Fool me once.
83
@Cathy : It does not matter how she votes. It takes 67 senators to convict. She can be the exception, done purely for show. Her heart is MAGA all the way.
1
Collins is ‘Lucy,” holding the ball for Charlie Brown again before she pulls it away and says,”mine.”
62
The press created Susan Collins and the notion that she is a moderate Republican. She took advantage of being associated with our wonderful former senator Olympia Snowe, but Susan Collins is no Olympia Snowe; she is no Bill Cohen; she is no Margaret Chase Smith; she is no George Mitchell; and she is no Ed Muskie. She is a creation of the press. They handed her high profile status that she never deserved.
She is milking this association with previous Maine senators for all it’s worth. And we are done with her.
119
@Elizabeth Hatch - I seriously doubt that Maine will vote her out.
It doesn't matter if a Senator is a Democrat or a Republican, you can accurately predict their vote based on what is necessary to get re-elected. In Ms. Collins case, she has to find the fine line not to offend too many voters on either side in Maine. It's a lot easier for Chuck Schumer or Mitch McConnell, who can (and need to be) highly partisan to get re-elected.
3
@ J Waddell
Heidi Heitkamp voted against Kavanaugh’s nomination which doomed her in North Dakota. She did it on principle because of her mother’s experience. Jon Tester from Montana took a big risk by doing the same. A slew of Democratic House members with military and intelligence backgrounds who won in Trump districts came out in support of an impeachment inquiry before Nancy Pelosi has. And Doug Jones in Alabama is not cowering from reporters.
9
That is why we need term limits.
If the few, too few Republican women in the Senate are really OK with the Trump Circus playing fast and loose with our laws, our treaties as approved by the Senate, our borders, and our national security, then they can perhaps convince themselves and their families and friends that "All Is Well".
As Lincoln said, "You can fool some of the people all of the time ..."
But they will be complicit in what comes next ...
30
Susan Collins must vote the way she sees fit as she has done in the past. She will win supporters and detractors no matter her choice so it is hers to make. She voted to acquit President Trump and his crime was more serious so hopefully she will acquit President Trump who did nothing wrong. She made the correct decision to vote for Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh to be put on the bench because there were too many holes in the accusations brought before him.
3
Correction: Susan Collins voted to acquit President Clinton and his crime was more serious so hopefully she will acquit President Trump who did nothing wrong.
@KMW GOP is Trump's Shock Troops :"Yes Sir;' May I kiss your behind"?
The New York Times has an obligation to its readers and the public to speak the truth, and to call Collins a “moderate” or a “centrist” is just plain wrong. She is a Republican through and through, and as we saw with the Kavanaugh hearing and confirmation, when push comes to shove she has zero independence and zero integrity. I pray Mainers vote her out in November and elect a Democrat who can do more for the state and more for America.
50
As a Democrat, but I would much like to hear the both sides of stories to make my own judgement of the president's conduct. Why can all 100 sentors to be impatial jurors of people of this great law bidding nation. Let the constitution protect us from all harms.
1
Despite the camera ready angst, Ms. Collins falls in line.
Maine deserves a new senator with fresh ideas.
35
Susan Collins is a perfect example of why we badly need term limits. I am so sick and tired of career politicians whose only goal is to get re-elected indefinitely and die in office. It’s time for them all to go.
46
Oh Susan. As a former Mainer, I can only hope that you deliver on your first campaign promise so many years ago. To serve only two terms. That's the first one you reneged on. You never fail to disappoint. While my concerns over Kavanaugh were more to his lack of judicial judgement, I still could not believe your vehement speech on your approval vote. You think you are likely to vote to have more information brought forward? Oh. How enlightened of you. You have been there long enough to know how this stuff works. You get played by your fellow senators all the time--remember the deal you struck for a yes vote on repealing parts of ACA and the tax bill? Still waiting. Oh, and no town halls, no meetings with citizens. Guess she doesn't want to hear from constituents. Hope she gets voted out this year.
44
I was born and raised in Maine and voted for Collins during my years there. She’s got no moral ground left to stand on post-Kavanaugh...I’m expecting her to hew to party lines and support Trump. The people of Maine need to vote her out.
59
I hope the Senator reads these comments and realizes Dems are her enemies. There is nothing she can do that will make them support her for more than a minute. She better keep her base and appeal to the independents. Vote no on the issue of witnesses. The House should have done its job. It’s failure is on the House, not the Senate.
3
Hope. A scarce commodity.
4
@Matthew, I'm sure Susan Collins knows that her voting pattern has not endeared her to Democrats, but I imagine that she may be getting the idea that she isn't making moderate Republicans and Independents very happy either. The house did it's job and now, the senate is to have a trial, which requires witnesses.
9
Blaming this on the house is just another way to try to protect Mr Trump. (Not the country)
If it was a perfect call and he never lies...
What is everyone so afraid of?
1
If Ms. Collins could decide that perjury by the President didn't warrant removal from office, she could also decide that Trump's potentially illegal actions also don't warrant removal from office, especially 10 months before an election when the voters can decide whether to remove Trump or not.
4
She should be voted out of office. She has become a completely unprincipled politician, and I predict that she will vote against impeachment, despite the overwhelming evidence that Trump tried to pressure a foreign power to do his bidding for his own personal gain, and in defiance of congress, who voted military aid to Ukraine.
37
Susan Collins is reviled by many because of her penchant for asking the right questions while all too often providing only predictable, politically-expedient answers.
She is a beacon of false hope, defined by her readiness to place considerations of self-interest and electability above what is best for our nation. Falsely viewing herself as a bulwark against right-wing extremism, she is less than what she appears to be, in the end bereft of the necessary conviction and substance to act decisively in a time of crisis.
Expect little from Senator Collins that cannot be explained by her need to be re-elected.
40
Her retirement is well funded.
It would be nice if she put patriotism above partisanship, but either way the Dem who opposes her gets my donation dollar.
32
The article refers to Senator Collins's "history," and, as is so often the case, history can be instructive.
The last time senators were confronted with an out-of-control demagogue, colleague Joseph McCarthy, trampling over the Constitution with the same impunity and contempt for the rule of law now shown by Donald Trump, a freshman senator from Maine, Margaret Chase Smith, issued a "Declaration of Conscience" with a 15-minute speech on the Senate floor.
Senator Smith called upon her fellow Republicans to reject "the Four Horsemen of Calumny -- Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry and Smear" rather than tolerate them for the sake of political expediency. Little could she have imagined that all of those despicable traits -- and others -- would someday be embodied by none other than the president of the United States.
She had what Capitol Hill Republicans are lacking today -- courage -- and surely would be appalled by their moral cowardice. And that includes one of her eventual heirs, the senior senator from Maine.
Time and again, Susan Collins has turned her back on the principles of Margaret Chase Smith while bending to the will of Mitch McConnell and, by extension, Donald Trump. Now, she has yet another chance -- a historic one -- to embrace those principles and rise to the occasion.
America is waiting.
33
I really do wish you'd stop calling Susan Collins a 'moderate' Republican. Just look at her voting record. There's nothing moderate about a Senator who lent support to Brett Kavanaugh and who has a "Trump score" (support of administration's position on bills) of 67% overall, including opposing providing humanitarian aid at the US-Mexico border, reauthorizing the warrantless spying program under FISA, favoring sale of arms to Saudi Arabia; and support for all of Trump's odious appointments (except two moments of backbone, against Scott Pruitt and Betsy De Vos). No one who supports this Administration this much can possibly count as a moderate, except on the distorted field of partisan politics we're in today where it's "moderate" to be decidedly right wing and "conservative" to be a fascist.
28
Dems won't vote for her in Maine, so she can only turn to the Trumpers for re-election.
8
I agree Sen. Collins was able to vote the fine line between ticking off your constituents and lobbyists for most of her political career. But 2 things have changed. First and foremost, Citizens United has made not catering to big money a recipe or electoral defeat. Second, there was no middle ground on Kavanagh. Aside from his obviously sketchy past actions and reputation in his appellate court position, he will vote to overturn Roe v. Wade after 2020 elections. And that is just unacceptable to Maine voters.
320
Well said. I would not have voted against Kav for the flimsy evidence against him, but his intent to overturn Row.
1
@baltcate
He will vote to overturn Roe v. Wade after 2020 elections
We have freedom of religion and we should also have freedom from religion in politics. What happened to separation of church and state?
5
@baltcate Are you saying Kavanaugh lied to Collins to get her vote? I am shocked, I tell you, shocked!
3
The ridiculous "turning over an election" farce gives away that Collins will ultimately vote to acquit no matter what happens in the trial. The only hope here is that she may vote to have an actual trial - her usual splitting the baby to appear moderate.
Moderates don't vote for tax cuts for billionaires, they don't stand by silently as a Supreme Court nominee is denied a hearing, they don't vote yes on right-wing Supreme Court justices from the Federalist Society, and they certainly don't remain quiet as an unhinged and unqualified extremist is nominated for president by her party.
Here's hoping the good people of Maine finally turn the page on her.
635
@Frank Roseavelt
Here is an interesting exercise-"What is a moderate?" I would hope a moderate is for 1. rule of law and upholding the Constitution 2. pragmatism-taking the best ideas of both conservatives and progressives and passing laws that promote the common good, 3. responsibility- eliminate wasteful spending, and have some sort of plan that will lead to a balance budget and paying off the national debt. 4. civility- being honest and kind to our political opponents and all other people living in this world.
9
@Frank Roseavelt
I would stake any amount of money on Collins voting to acquit. There has never been a doubt.
6
@Frank Roseavelt
as a Democrat, i find the ad hominem attacks against Susan Collins to be an embarrassment to our party. It's cowardly and counter-productive to focus our anger on the moderate Republicans. Keep the focus where it needs to be, on Trump and McConnell. I personally hope Collins gets re-elected.
1
Collins likes to play the moderate, but she is far from one. Her vote to confirm Kavanaugh was the last straw. The fiasco of an FBI "investigation" gave her enough cover to appoint a predator with a drinking problem to a lifetime appointment on the supreme court.
Times up, Susan.
584
@lynne
the Democrats simply failed to present a strong enough case to deny Brett Kavanaugh the SCOTUS seat. A lot of the leftist-elitists who are making the most noise about Kavanaugh were the same folks who refused to vote for Hillary Clinton because she wasn't "woke" enough for them... next time maybe come out and support the Democratic candidate for president, so that we don't have to get into this mess of Trump/Republican SCOTUS appointments in the first place.
I expect Susan Collins to be re-elected to the Senate.
@lynne ... gave her enough to cover to approve the appointment of a spiteful, political partisan. Mr Kavanaugh’s performance after lunch proved to me that he lacked the impartial perspective, even temperament, and reasoned judgment to be a Supreme Court Justice - heck,even a judge...
3
I’m tired of hearing about the potentially courageous GOPers who might decide to be moral, distinguished career or not.
Be moral now. Be moral *already*
618
Dems looking at themselves in mirror for Clinton impeachment. You could literally take Nadler’s and Schumer’s comments from then and place them in the GOP talking points now. But Dems are so sure they have the high ground, they can be judge and jury of GOP behavior. “Shame Susan Collins for not buying our line,” held by every single Democrat.
I am a native Mainer. When Susan Collins first ran, she promised to serve two terms, BUT she didn't. Then she claimed to be a bipartisan moderate, BUT she isn't. I have voted for her in the past but it is increasingly obvious she is not the Susan Collins that Mainers once supported. The more liberal population of southern Maine will outvote the conservative voters who reside in the second district. The times change, the voters demand accountability for party line votes like Brett Kavanaugh. She will not win.
953
@Monty Adams
I hope you are right. I have always voted for her but not this time. I get up every morning and regret voting for her. My daughter lives in Portland and says the same thing you did. Every one of her friends will never vote for her again.
I have Republican friends who will vote for any Democrat candidate for president. They can’t take Trump any more.
375
@Sued Trump has certainly worn this Mainer out. And Collins lost my support after her vote for the tax cut and Kavanaugh. Centrist, my foot.
226
@Monty Adams
I wonder if the lobstermen for whom the article says she "scrapes together benefits" don't think that climate change is going to affect their livelihoods.
153
Collins doesn't merit this full time coverage of her supposed angst. She will once again slide back into the fold, shed her grief and end up backing Trump.
28
It’s incredibly telling by the comments posted here that a representative who thinks for herself and isn’t completely beholden to a party, is hated by both the right and the left. It really irks liberals, especially democratic women, that Susan Collins doesn’t fit their mold of what a female representative should stand for. I have a lot of respect for her and appreciate that she isn’t a partisan. She based her Kavanaugh decision on the evidence and not her gender.
2
As long as Mitch McConnell keeps funneling rubles in her direction I am not really holding my breath.
16
How will she vote during Trump’s next SCOTUS nomination?
2
I find her tiresome.
22
Ms. Collins needs a moral compass.
22
@Susan Winters
At the moment her compass is pointing due Oliver North.
She constantly sells her vote to the highest bidder. She has no conviction except to enrich herself. SAD!
19
Dear Senator Collins' staffer stuck reading comments on articles, PLEASE march into your bosses office and help her understand that her integrity, her conscience, and our country are on the line - to rise above the presidents fear tactics (seriously - scared of tweets - or losing an election) and do the right thing: PLEASE - she needs to hear the words, not just read the news - ask her if she will be able to look constituents and the cameras in the eye and say it's ok not to call witnesses in a hearing - it's ok for a president to put our TROOPS IN HARMS WAY to serve his ego - it's ok for the president to lie ("no wounded in recent attack on our troops in Iraq).
17
Stop calling Susan Collins a "moderate" republican. She has shown her colors and they are not bright and shiny. Are like fifty shades of grey. She's not a moderate, but merely someone who appears to be a moderate.
12
Susan Collins engages in delusional thinking and has left the orbit of normal order or thinking as a Senator. She is the played, not the player and consistently used as a tool for McConnell and Trump since the Kavanaugh hearing. She cannot handle her power at all. Maine has lost their patience for her meandering with a monstrous President. Her role is irrelevant, but the press continues to adore her every move, which is endlessly misplaced.
She changes nothing.
16
Kananaugh Collins supported a superficial FBI investigation that had been circumsribed by the White House. Now she is in deep trouble in her re-elction campaign. In a senate seat once held by Margaret Chase Smith, who had the guts to stand up to Joe McCarthy early on, Collins is weighing a political calculus rather than core principles. A profile in no courage!
18
I think many of us have come to doubt the sincerity of Susan Collins when she dangles objectivity and bipartisanship. Mitch always pulls her back in line .
20
Senator Collins must be voted out. She is self serving at all turns and what she says cannot be trusted-just like Trump. Voters of Maine, please vote her out.
19
I feel that Susan Collins like all her fellow Republicans is no moderate. Her voting record shows that she is a faithful extreme right conservative. Occasionally her talk may suggest otherwise; but when it counts, she follows timidly the Republican line. I expect the same during the likely farcical impeachment trial where I expect truth, the facts, the Constitution to be ignored by the Republican Party and its hypocritical Senators. They will not be impartial or fair. They will embarrass their institution and will weaken the Senate’s prestige and independence as a coequal body of government.
15
Not this again. Waiting for a deciding Collins vote is like watching a rerun whose ending we forgot.
20
Collins does know how to posture in the limelight.
Really, a career can be defined by two votes: one to confirm Brett Kavanaugh as a Supreme Court justice, and the other to gift rich folks $3 trillion in tax cuts. Any claim to centrism or scruples Is long gone.
35
It's just not that complicated, Senator Collins. Should a president be impeached and removed from office for withholding congressionally approved funding from a US ally in order to pressure that ally into performing personal political favors? How can the answer to that question possibly be no?
33
The reason Senator Collins is the second least popular senator next to Mitch McConnell (as opposed the "dip in the polls" per this article) is not because she is a centrist, or that she has taken difficult votes that make people on both sides "unhappy" at times.
It is because her words don't match her actions.
Her Kavanaugh debacle, for example, was less about her vote than it was about a betrayal of her stated principles leading up to the vote.
Recall her nearly hour-long impassioned speech about how she supports women coming forward and have their claims be heard without retaliation, followed by her vote for an FBI "investigation". Supporters of a fair process cheered Senators Flake and Collins for a couple of days.
Then, it was revealed that the "investigation" was not a real investigation at all. The FBI was no allowed to speak to many people that had come forward to validate Dr. Blasey Ford's claims, and only spoke to 9 people.
Senator Collins had the clout to make it a real investigation, and she chose empty appearances over substance.
As it played out, she held the cards at the key moment; and her vote for Justice Kavanaugh followed her disingenuous flirtation with a just course of consideration the nomination.
Senator Collins poured salt into millions of wounds.
I admired John McCain as a person much more than Senator Collins, even though her politics are so much closer to mine - because he tried to be honest, and admitted mistakes at least some of the time.
22
It's really not so hard to be honest, moral, and do the right thing.
Not a whole lot of gray area when it comes to trump.
27
She voted correctly.
Ms. Ford could not even remember what house the supposed incident occurred.
Even her own witnesses did not agree with her or support her.
2
Whenever it is reported that some politician is a “centrist” or a “moderate”, the article should include the percentage of votes that the politician has cast in opposition to her/his Party.
It should be easy to operationalize or quantify the concepts. The percentages, within reason, can be debated.
I would say that a “centrist” or “moderate” politician is one that votes no more than 75 percent along his/her Party line on issues that are significantly partisan (issues on which the Democratic and Republican parties are diametrically or strongly opposed to each other).
A politician, who votes 90-95 percent with her/his Party on highly partisan issues, is hardly a centrist, a moderate, or a maverick. Similarly, a politician, who frequently votes (say, 65 percent or less) against his/her Party on significant partisan issues, should consider switching political parties.
5
The reason Senator Collins is the second least popular senator next to Mitch McConnell (as opposed the "dip in the polls" per this article) is not because she is a centrist, or that she has taken difficult votes that make people on both sides "unhappy" at times.
It is because her words don't match her actions.
Her Kavanaugh debacle, for example, was less about her vote than it was about a betrayal of her stated principles leading up to the vote.
Recall her nearly hour-long impassioned speech about how she supports women coming forward and have their claims be heard without retaliation, followed by her vote for an FBI "investigation". Supporters of a fair process cheered Senators Flake and Collins for a couple of days.
Then, it was revealed that the "investigation" was not a real investigation at all. The FBI was not allowed to interview many people that had come forward to validate Dr. Blasey Ford's claims, and only spoke to 9 people.
Senator Collins had the clout to insure a real investigation, and she chose empty appearances over substance.
As it played out, she held the cards at the key moment; and her vote for Justice Kavanaugh followed her disingenuous flirtation with a just course of consideration the nomination.
Senator Collins poured salt into millions of wounds.
I admired John McCain as a person much more than Senator Collins, even though her politics are so much closer to mine - because he tried to be honest, and admitted mistakes at least some of the time.
6
Susan Collins is no moderate. She has lost all sense of representing the state of Maine -- she represents the Republican party. I'm a Mainer and she has ground this in our faces -- she is Republican first, last, and forever. No Republican can claim to be moderate and support the Trump administration.
21
Ms.Collins had no trouble approving the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, with full knowledge that pertinent testimony was not allowed to be entered into the proceedings. Can we possibly set the bar any lower?
23
Collins and all other senators must uphold the Constitution as they swore to do. They should not be worried about their re-election. Trump broke the laws, tried to cover them up by withholding documents and requiring key players to not testify. He should be found guilty and removed from office. We have a Democracy not a dictatorship or a king. Trump is not above the law of the land.
13
Collins is clearly worried about re-election - regardless of what she or her reps say. I visited family in Maine last fall. Watching her advertisements, you wouldn't know she is a Republican. The word "independent" was plastered all over her ads. I don't think I saw one reference to her Republican allegiance. And definitely no reference to Trump.
8
The uncertainty raised in this article is a little overdone. Sen. Collins is a Republican who benefits from the image of being more enlightened than other Republicans in the Senate. The image is just an image. It is not in keeping with the sentiment of Republicans in her state. She will not risk disappointing them.
She can be depended upon to vote with the majority of Republicans.
11
I recall Senator Collins lengthy speech in the Senate in which she cited the irrelevant conviction standard, "proof beyond a reasonable doubt" was not there. While that shibboleth, operates for criminal proceedings, inapplicable for applicants for a job, any job, even Supreme Court Justice.
That process is comprised of:
1. Examine the qualifications of available applicants
2. Select the best candidate for intensive review of qualifications
3. Candidate undergoes Senate vote.
The process should have stopped at #1. The Supreme Court does not need 2 mashers on the Bench. Plenty of other qualified, competent, and eminent jurists are available to take the job. Sen Collins could have said: "Thank you Judge K for your time and presentation", then sent him back to his Appellate seat.
8
Senator Collins is good at teasing moderation when the pressure build and the mike turns on. Then when she believes the attention has waned she goes party line..... each and every time of any importance.
It's already indicted in her response to new evidence it WILL happen again. But regardless, would this be any different?
9
Is Collins one of the 44 Republican Senators that Trump has actually given "campaign donations" to? Just asking since I already know how she'll vote. I think we all do. She will vote the way McConnell tells her to vote with a bunch of hand-wringing for the press and cameras before the vote.
12
After all these years, how can anyone fall for this open-mindedness act of hers? Senator Collins is a reliable party-line voter when the chips are down and her vote matters. Can we please not pay attention to this act this time around?
13
To any degree that Sen. Collins is a moderate, it's because she's the last to fold among her Republican colleagues.
7
Collins is a political animal to the core, and will vote based solely on what is to her advantage. Convicting Clinton was no risk for her in the primary and would have caused trouble in the general election. This time she faces a potentially troublesome primary, and perhaps her most challenging general election yet.
This makes Collins a bellweather for the Republican party's future. If she doubles down on Trumpism, the Republican party isn't coming back. A vote to convict is simply political maneuvering.
8
If you vote for any Republican for any office in the land, then you are also casting a vote, without exception, of confidence in Donald Trump and his administration.
16
Ms. Collins is reliable in her voting. If there are enough votes to bring the issue to the desired republican conclusion she can afford to keep her "centrist", "moderate" reputation intact.
Otherwise she'll protect her party, her interests.
Though to be fair, she has done some good for the Maine people over the years.
4
Senator Collins is Lucy. We are Charlie Brown.
88
She might not be a total hardcore Republican lackey but neither is she a sensible Democratic stalwart, therefore she has to go. She “thinks” there should be witnesses in Trump’s trial? She voted for those destructive tax cuts for the rich? She got a “personal promise” that Kavanaugh would uphold Roe? Much too little, sorry Susan. The people of Maine, newly free of the shackles of the perfidious Gov. LePage, can do better than you.
55
I don't count on her vote in favor of impeachment. As I don't count on Mancin either.
Seems to me she has "evolved" in the last 21 years, and has become another party-above-nation elected official (unlike Mancin).
I do hope she considers asking for foreign interference in american elections "sufficient" reason to impeach.
And by the way, no one is overthrowing the will of the people if DJT is removed from office. His running mate would assume the office, therefore the will of the electorate is preserved.
Assuming Pence is not impeached himself!
28
@c
Convict not impeach. He’s been impeached. I’m afraid she will do the wrong thing again. Maine is better than that. Turn her out.
12
@T. Monk
I stand corrected, my mistake.
He will be forever impeached. I did mean convict.
Sorry, and thank you for catching it.
4
@c Pence is better in the short term than Trump. trump is a criminal, so he has to go no matter when or how.
i am sure we have all made right and wrong decisions in our life. People change ober the years. If any of her recent votes are to go by, evidence is not something she seems to be strong on. Take the case of Kavanaugh. what was the need for rush here to make a lifetime appointment of someone who will sit in judgment of others? The least they could have done is a proper vetting or thorough investigation of the accusation. The GOP opted to fold for "belligerent show of assertion" which is the defense strategy of this potus.
Claiming no direct evidence of any wrongdoing while withholding all such evidence is the ither strategy. If everything is okay why oppose sharing evidence? why oppose testimonies? If no witnesses are allowed, then we know this will not be a fair trial, but even then the second article of impeachment holds true: obstruction of Congress. so if no further evidence is produced, he has to be convicted of one of the articles!
I am not holding my breath. His acquittal is a foregone conclusion. The only question is if GOP will at least make a show of a trial, forget a fair trial!
9
You got to hand it to Trump he is the showman. With all the star power he has for his defense the trial should be a spectacle.
Let's hope the whistleblower, Schiff and the Bidens get to testify. The Ukranians gave the Bidens $3.1 million. What were the Ukranians expecting and did the Bidens provide it ?
8
Why didn’t the House Articles of Impeachment identity a crime?
Because President Trump broke no law - otherwise the Democrats would certainly have named such crimes in their Articles.
The Senate will quickly find those Articles do not meet the level of an impeachable offense.
If Democrats want to push the issue and call new witnesses, the Republicans will certainly call Hunter Biden.
Then we will learn the Biden’s truly are corrupt - and the 100% partisan impeachment falls to pieces.
As will Joe Biden’s candidacy.
8
@Dr. John
The crimes that were STATED and why donnie was impeached were: ONE defying all congressional subpoenas to gather documents and witnesses for the impeachment hearing.
THAT IS THE CONGRESSES JOB.
donnie thinks he is above the laws of the constitution, and TWO: freezing congressionally allocated funds to an ally for “a favor though”.
Putting our national security at risk.
19
@Dr. John
Put down your hash pipe and read the Articles. The Government Accountability Office just confirmed the acts constituting abuse of powers are a crime. So is obstruction of justice.
When you sober up, you'll find the world is a different place.
21
@Dr. John
For the hundredth time a high crime is not a crime in the usual sense. A high crime might be a crime (Trump has committed plenty) but it can for example be misbehaviour that is not a crime. the "high" refers to the high position the transgressor. You and I cannot commit a high crime.
A high crime can often be a transgression that is less serious than an actual run of the mill serious crime.
But it can be a serious crime as well. It is a term from the 17th century.
It has already reached the level of impeachable because he has already been permanently impeached. Nobody expects removal and conviction because the GOP senators have announced already they do not want witnesses and documents... absurd. Bidens' guilt or innocence is 100% irrelevant to the impeachment which is already over.
He is already impeached Dr John. I have told you this before but have a nice day.
16
How often Collins votes in line with Trump’s position 67.0%
Trump’s share of the vote in the 2016 election in the member’s state or district minus Clinton’s-3.0
How often Collins is expected to support Trump based on Trump’s 2016 margin 45.0%
Difference between Collins’s actual and predicted Trump-support scores +22.0
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/congress-trump-score/susan-m-collins/
3
Let’s get one thing straight. There are no ‘moderates’ left in the Republican Party. There are conservatives and Trump loyalists. Any moderates have either retired or joined the Democratic Party.
None of the so called moderates, in the Senate, will vote to allow witnesses not will a single Republican senator vote to convict. Trump has brought to the surface the endemic corruption which effects the Republican Party...
19
@Dersh,
"Trump has brought to the surface the endemic corruption which effects the Republican Party..."
Everyone knows that, but why do voters keep voting for endemic corruption?
8
@Listening to Others
"why do voters keep voting for endemic corruption?"
Racism and abortion. Not necessarily in that order.
She will do what she does well: say things that sound right but do the wrong thing.
30
Ms Collins, this is an apple to oranges comparing both impeachments. President Clinton did lie about a dalliance. President Trump not only tired to get a newly elected president from Ukraine to do this bidding in making a statement of an investigation against a political opponent, Trump also held up funds that were approved by Congress. And, remember, Ukraine had complied with the requirements associated with those funds. In addition, Trump trashed the reputation of an ambassador just to get his, quote, guy in to support his demands. Add to that, Trump has stonewalled this investigation against the House, and I feel quite confident, if the Senate requests witnesses and documents, they will be denied, too. If you can't understand the Trump issues don't expect to be elected again.
25
In the end, she does what Mitch McConnell wants. Everything else is false drama and political theater. Maine already has one senator of conscience, Angus King, but it deserves two.
41
@Dotconnector The Collins drama has had too many reruns, the ending is predictable and the unoriginality of the actress has become a big bore. .
I do wish the NYT and others would stop referring to Collins as a "moderate." As others have pointed out in these comments, while that might have been true at one point, she, like the other GOP, votes with the party. This is predictable and it is infuriating that anyone, and especially any media organization, would continue to give her the benefit of the doubt by still referring to her as a moderate. Hand wringing is a perfect description of her hypocrisy. If I had money to spare, I would be sending it to her opponent.
25
Sen. Collins betrayed most women and most of America when she voted to confirm Brett Kavanaugh. She CLAIMED to care about women's reproductive rights and that she wanted to be sure Roe v. Wade would not be overturned.
But nobody on the current, right-wing-packed Supreme Court is more in favor of weakening, if not overturning, Roe v. Wade. Everything in Kavanaugh's past, from his writings to his pro-corporate decisions that ignore the rights of the worker (the little guy) screams out that he will vote against women's reproductive rights.
Of course, on top of this obvious flaw in Kavanaugh, is the credible testimony of a woman who sacrificed everything to expose Kavanaugh's past assault of her. And yet more, there's his indisputable association with people who have a love affair with beer and alcohol, and that seems to include Kavanaugh himself.
Most troubling is the way Sen. Collins publicly agonizes over her decision but always seems to go with the right-wing, conservative Republican majority.
I'm at the point of rolling my eyes every time she expresses any opposition to her right-wing party. Spare us the drama, PLEASE! Senator: We DO NOT TRUST YOU, any more than any other Trump-supporting Republican!
48
Can someone please explain to me (I am not American) how it is possible for all Senators to swear that they will deal with the impeachment evidence impartially - as should any jury, which is what they have become - yet maintain that they will vote along party lines when the final vote comes? This is particularly the case for Republican senators, with Mitch McConnell saying he was working in 'lockstep' with the White House. Is there nothing in the constitution that can lead to their disbarment from this so-called 'jury', as is happening in the Weinstein case? If there is no such mechanism, is the constitution itself not flawed? And if Senators should hear evidence that clearly shows misdoing, yet still vote for acquittal, is there any punishment apart from losing their seat at the next election?
21
@kiwicanuck Because it is a farce that is why. Impeachment is a political process and always has been.
6
@kiwicanuck I wish I could explain, but there honestly doesn't seem to be any answer.
6
@kiwicanuck
Easy - they're liars.
They should be prosecuted and convicted of perjury and violating their oath of office, but that's another issue.
One of the reasons I want a Democrat to replace Susan Collins is the intense pressure that Republicans put on all their members. Mitch McConnell is the leader of this Republicans first agenda. Most Republicans put their party before their country; they oppose environment regulations, oppose healthcare, oppose immigration, oppose gun safety, suppress voters, support tax cuts for wealthy, reduce aid for food stamps, etc.
I hope Susan Collins will put her country first. Donald Trump tried to CHEATE in the 2020 election by enlisting the help of a foreign government. The testimony of many witnesses support this. It is time to remove Donald Trump; his cheating and lies are un American!
35
A TV interview with a Ukranian already under indictment who repeats hearsay, tells uncorroborated tales, and produces his own hadwritten notes with nothing to prove that they weren't written last week, is a waste of time and effort.
Removal from office requires a 2/3 majority vote.
That isn't going to happen.
3
Parnas has corroboration from other witnesses and electronic documents of conversations which have been corroborated.
14
If you are an elected political official of either party who doesn’t support using any and all legal means available to remove Donald J Trump from office now or in November, that makes you every bit as much of a stain on the nation as he is. It only serves to prove that your ignorance of the profound danger to democracy that his presidency continues to radiate is at once profound and disqualifying.
21
Can’t wait for the people of Maine to vote this vile narcissist out.
35
Collins is a fraud. She likes to toy with matters so that she appears to be concerned.
46
She voted correctly on Kavanaugh.
The Democrats were treacherous. They accused him, in front of his family, of running a rape train for years starting when he was 14-years old.
Pure political evil.
4
What does his family being there have to do with it? Too bad that you aren’t concerned about Dr. Ford and her family.
31
Treacherous? In betraying whom or what, exactly? (As for the sensibilities of Mr Kavanaugh’s family, one expects that his wife knew something about his Yale fraternity before she married him.)
22
What’s your source of information? Were you in the room when he groped the woman?
14
The final investigation by the FBI into Kavanaugh's past behavior was a sham as they were not allowed to interview all key witnesses, and his HS buddy disappeared. Collins speech on the floor saying the investigation convinced her to vote for him, knowing full well the woman at Yale to whom Kavanaugh exposed himself was never interviewed, made her speech a cynical farce. She deserves to be voted out.
36
Would everyone please forget about this Collins! She's all hat and no cattle, as President Johnson would have said. Nothing ever will come of her talk and posturing. Main should vote her out of office and put her out of her misery.
21
Please Maine, vote this no-integrity hack out of office.
29
Collins is far more ethical than the others in her party. Which is a bit like being a very tall Pygmy.
9
Senator Collins is a puzzle. And I suppose that is a good thing. Afterall, politics in Maine seems to be a good study of America as a whole. While I was very disappointed by the Senator's vote for Kavanaugh, I am heartened by her distancing herself from the self-serving diatribes of Lindsay Graham and others, who seem to think that their "might' is right. Or Right is might-whatever. I was pleased to read in the article about the work Coolins is doing to prepare for the impeachment trial. Fingers crossed, and a hope for needed courage.
1
Here in Maine I think her as a "MINNOW," (Moderate IN Name Only: Weak).
Swimming with sharks hasn't worked so well for the tiny fish ("but he promised me!"), for our state, or for the country at large.
16
I once thought Sen Collins was a strong Maine woman. Collins only had the appearance of possessing a spine while fellow Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe was in office. Snowe was the moderate, independent thinker, Silly Susie was along for the ride. Collins promised to limit herself to two terms - she is too spineless (or egotistical) to resist holding on to power. She has proven repeatedly she is too weak to resist voting the party line. Her assigned role is to pretend to be moderate, her record proves she never votes against the GOP when it would make a difference. Many of my fellow Maine voters in the second district are fed up with her silly antics and will not support her in November.
49
Since when did questionable presidential conduct which was “...not sufficient to overturn an election and throw him out of office” become a criteria for voting for acquittal in a Senate impeachment trial, according to Collins? Is she personally creating for herself a novel two-part test, even if a president did commit the sole constitutional standard of “high crimes and misdemeanors “? Will her “test” allow her to find that Trump’s conduct did violate the constitutional standard but not the “election nullification “ one? Is Collins, once again, disingenuously attempting to “have her cake and eat it too”? Please explain Senator!
6
Perhaps all that information that was brought back form Ukraine by Rudy Giulani will be used to exonerate Trump.
There must be some reason why they're sitting on that "mountain of information" that Rudy bragged about.
7
Two-faced, scheming hack. Out with her.
!
23
Nice try by the NYT to pressure on Sen. Collins. Fortunately, she could not care less what you think of her.
5
@Robert
She could not care less about her oath of office, either.
1
Ms. Collins is a career politician who cares not for the country but for Trump
She threw women under the bus in her support of a drunk sexual abuser on the Supreme Court
She needs to be voted out of office and forced into retirement she is a traitor to democracy
The next three weeks she will be wringing her hands studying the issues and vote with Trump
A true GOP Trump bigot supporter who hates democracy,women
14
Tut tut, clutch pearls, vote Party line. You're fired.
15
I'm looking for anyone to bet with.
I say Collins votes for interviewing witnesses ....
....then she votes for Trump
This is the Collins MO
Any takers?????
28
I'm not worried about Collins being re-elected, even when factoring her support for Kavanaugh. Her D opponent, Sara Gideon, does not come across like a leader. She is not strong and forceful. Dem Mainers need to reach out to a big tent---liberal Republicans to liberal Democrats. With strength and determination. Pick a platform for the kind of issues that would appeal to both. Infrastructure and health care. And Sara Gideon's campaign will implode if her campaign focuses on Susan Collins' Kavanaugh support.
2
Let’s name the Senators who actually represent their constitutional over their major donors...who are accessible, hold town meetings and press conferences, respond to constituent’s emails and letters, have phone lines and where the message box isn’t continually full.
Those Senators! There are a few.
Collins isn’t one.
11
Please stop calling Collins a "moderate" Republican.
When was the last time she voted "moderate" when it would actually make a difference? Kavanaugh? NO. Tax cuts for the rich? NO. Health Care? NO.
20
Nothing personal, Senator Collins, but you're profoundly out-of-step with this historic moment and you're time as a senator will come to end in the next election.
14
I don't know whom I have less respect for, Leningrad Lindsey who excoriated trump in 2016 in the harshest terms but now angrily broadcasts his naked, obsequious sycophancy for the dude, or Collins who feigns a considered, moderate approach to issues but folds in the end like a cheap suit.
That said, no politician of any stripe should have to fear for their (or their family's) safety due to cowardly & unacceptable threats. "I'm never gonna vote for you" is fine, anonymous threats to life & safety are not. I would hope those who do that eventually face criminal charges.
I am also not a fan of people who harass public figures in restaurants.
7
I've been shocked by the submissions. Almost everyone seems to KNOW Ms. Collins is NOT struggling to do the right thing. I can't be sure what is going on in her heart and soul. The country is in a bad place if liars like Trump make us sure that no one can possibly have conflicted ideas and feelings.
2
Collins is not at all a moderate - she only plays one for the media. The only reason she got the go ahead to vote against ACA repeal, in order to keep up appearances with Maine voters, was that McConnell didn't know McCain would vote to kill the repeal effort.
5
The quote below says nothing and everything at once. I’ve never read such a wishy-washy yet calculating statement like this before:
“I would anticipate that it is likely that I would vote to have more information brought forward, whether witnesses or documents or both,” she said Thursday.
6
I live in Maine and I voted for Collins in her first 2 runs though not since then. It's long past time for her to leave office if only due to her pledge to serve no more than 2 terms. Her fealty to McConnell is nauseating. I was revolted by her vote to approve Kavanaugh.
On the other hand I'm really glad I don't live in Arizona. IMO Martha McSally is a disgrace to her state and constituents. Talk about an opportunist.
If the Dems can't beat Trump in November then they must hold the House and take over the Senate.
Please vote in November. Our lives may very well depend on it.
48
She's weak. It doesn't matter if her character is weak or her mind is weak, or both, the results are the same: She's unable to make a principled decision that will stand the test of time. The voters in Maine should vote her out and demonstrate what a strong, principled stand looks like.
9
I was in 10th grade when I read "Profiles in Courage" - the first non-fiction book I read on my own outside a school assignment. Sadly, we now have more than enough fodder for an updated anti-version called "Profiles in Cowardice" starring Moscow Mitch, Lindsay Graham, William Barr, and Susan Collins (a.k.a. "Senator Cave-in"), not to mention the Prince of Lies himself ... history will not be kind to this rogues' gallery - what about the electorate?
11
Senator Collins is what most of us consider the truest form of a hypocrite up here in Maine. Her promise of serving only two terms came and went long ago setting herself up for a career marked with insincerity and self-service.
Sadly, her Democratic contender hasn't offered any true solutions, hanging her hat solely on the adage "I'm not Susan Collins."
If you want to see what is absolutely broken about the two party system, look no further than the great State of Maine.
13
Collins is and always has been an invertebrate.
In fact, it seems like all of the GOP Senators experienced a devolution since the 2016 election.
Darwin would be astonished at its speed.
9
Sen. Collins is a moderate. And Jonathan Van Ness is straight.
3
I long for the days when Margaret Chase Smith, a moderate Republican,represented the great State of Maine in the United States Senate.
Susan Collins never could lay claim to that mantle but, worse, she’s become a Trump/McConnell sycophant.
13
I don't know if she's whole wheat, sourdough or white, I just know she's toast.
15
Fellow NYT readers, the sooner you accept the fact that Susan Collins has repeatedly demonstrated to act in an entirely passive aggressive manner when it comes to her ‘deliberations’, you’ll be much more at peace with your disappointment when she votes the way we all know she will vote.
6
Elect Sara Gideon in 2020. Vote Susan Collins out,
Let's get someone to represent the people of Maine and the rest of American interest.
6
She's a tool, spineless.....voting for a Supreme Court justice like Kavanaugh? Game, set, match, done.
9
Yes, the impeachment trial is a political proceeding -- but it is based on legal precedent.
There may be rules that technically allow a majority of senators to bar witnesses from appearing at Donald Trump's impeachment trial, but if such a course is pursued they will be acting against the rule of law by stifling truth and denying justice.
Republicans like Susan Collins, Mitt Romney, Lamar Alexander et al need to follow the rule of law, not the law of rules.
9
If every other Republican senator expressed the level of concern that Collins has, instead of displaying smugness and certainty, there might be a chance that they would be perceived as doing what they are paid to do. Collins, despite her limitations, is a role model for Republicans.
3
@ Harpo
No, she isn’t a good role model. She has demonstrated that she is consistently passive aggressive in her dealing with the press and public.
12
The Senator needs to evaluate Trump in the light of two sets of issues. The immediate problem is ethics, did Trump indeed violate his oath of office and dishonor the trust placed in him? I hope she has the deep integrity to look upon the manipulations in Ukraine as every bit as much a dishonorable situation as was the case against Nixon in the Watergate scandals. From the standpoint of the welfare of her state, Maine is not well-served by the President. Maine has much poverty, so attacks by Trump on Obamacare do not help Maine. Education policies of Trump do not help Maine. Fisheries policies and their intersection with Trump's denial of climate change do not help Maine. Although Trump is not impeached over these issues, they should color her thoughts on the President.
9
I was quite upset with Sen. Collins for voting to confirm Justice Cavanaugh. I was also quite disappointed in her voting for the Republican tax-cuts.
But when I read about her vote to acquit President Clinton in 1999, which was indeed a partisan witch-hunt, I became quite sympathetic with her. Whatever she decides to do in the Trump-impeachment matter, she being a Republican, I would not hold any animosity towards her.
In the end, when all said & done, what is important is having some lawmakers who uses a modicum of discretion at least, unlike Mitch McConnell, in voting.
3
Witnesses were called in the Clinton trial, and I expect Collins will vote that way. Politically, she has little to lose. She can appear even-handed knowing Trump will not be removed from office.
Regarding witnesses, they may have to do some horse trading. If Bolton and Mulvaney can be compelled to testify, maybe Democrats shouldn't object to calling Hunter Biden. He handled himself well in his tv interview and there's no evidence he did anything illegal. Making some easy money isn't a crime. Trump's children do it every day.
16
Susan Collins is the type of politician I detest, which is one that absolutely has to have it both ways: getting credit for sounding fair and reasonable while retaining her hard core support by caving at the last minute by going full party line.
It's not so much a tightrope as it is a game of hop-scotch, with the last jump and landing--irrespective of where the potsy gets thrown--always in the same place, where her party is.
For that reason alone she's infuriating. It's the number reason why people hate politicians, this tendency to try to have it both ways. She's succeeded up until now, but if she's depending on moderates and Democrats, I think her "bound to be ultimate acquittal" of Trump (I can just hear her tortured logic on that one) will be severely dealt with.
19
McConnell has been running advertising for her re election so we all know how she will vote.
4
I believe that to anticipate Susan Collins playbook for the impeachment trial we need not look any further than her recent interview with CNN Senior Congressional Correspondent Manu Raju in which she was asked about recent evidence obtained by the House Intelligence Committee from Lev Parnas. Collins displayed an embarrassing lack of information and understanding of how the material was obtained and she suggested the timing was somehow suspect. When the interviewer filled her in on the timing issue, Collins' immediate response was to criticize the House impeachment process as rushed and incomplete. This exchange caught Collins off guard and made it clear that she is ill-informed and far from impartial.
In her public remarks, Collins has consistently demonstrated an inability to meaningfully differentiate between the circumstances surrounding Clinton's impeachment and the context of the current Senate trial. I do not expect Collins to emerge as an effective advocate for anything resembling a full and fair Senate trial.
15
Collins pretends to be moderate. She is just trying to retain her seat in Maine, which isn't a "purple" state but a red-blue state. She will loss off half her constituency whatever happens. So she does what will get her re-elected then tries to explain her actions so the other side won't be as mad. She has no moral positions, just expedient ones.
6
Maybe I am mistaken, but there are very few votes where "moderate" Susan Collins broke ranks with her party, Given the utter lack of honesty, respect, fairness and the desires of Maine voters, Senator Collins is an avid backer of Moscow Mitch and and the Golden Goose President. Any lie in a storm. Right now the GOP as a whole is showing Americans that it is party before country. Just like Putin did to the Russian public 2-days ago. The entire GOP is destroying this country and put Constitution.
3
Q: Was funding delayed beyond the Congressionally mandated release date?
A: No.
1
Q: Why was the money released?
A: Because Trump got caught withholding it.
13
More knowledgeable, and more impartial, people than you have already determined that Trump broke the law in tampering with the release of the aid. The date that he ceased doing that doesn’t negate his wrong action, and none of this addresses why he was doing the withholding. His impeachment asserts that he did it to aid himself, not the country. Your point is moot.
11
1. Introduce the Giuliani May letter to ask for the announcement of a biden investigation.
2. Call Giuliani as if on cross examination, limited to the events relating to the letter.
3. Call the President limited to the events.
I am so tired of waiting to be "saved" by Collins or Murkowski and then....not. Will no one rid us of this troublesome senator?
10
People like Collins give the term 'political moderate' a bad name. As if a moderate is deliberatively and neatly in the middle of the political spectrum between Bernie Sanders and Louie Gohmert. Collins is not moderate. She is a cowardly politician ever hiding far, far away from controversial, rational and thoughtful decisions.
6
Its unlikely she will be able to get out from under her ranting support of Kavanaugh, who she put in for life.
9
Well I just read about Lara Trump & her remarkable imitation of the father-in-law, where she mocks Joe Biden's stutter.
Wow. The pathologies of a mob family are amazing,
9
Always so adorable to see the Times defend Collins as "moderate" when she is so clearly as craven as the rest of the GOP.
13
Not mentioned in this story is Maine's late Senator Margaret Chase Smith, whom Senator Collins has channeled for years. Smith gave the impression of senate power by withholding her vote until the last minute, obliging presidents and senate elders to beg for her support. But the power was illusory -- more like that of a congressman who gains favor among constituents through favors and federal contracts -- than a senator, who should be focused on larger matters of national interest. Voting on the impeachment of a president should be a question of a senator's convictions and the law, not a bargaining chip in a political poker game whose object is re-election.
4
She might as well go along with her fellow travelers. She has already earned her democratic opponent lots of donations. Her showing herself again can only help the cause
5
Collins is NOT a moderate. Stop calling her that.
22
Nonsense. She won’t stand up for anyone but herself.
20
Collins was demonized for not supporting a still unproven attack on Kavanaugh. Democrats still can't let it go. They owe Kavanaugh and Collins an apology. Now they want her to vote in favor of an unproven, partisan impeachment case, as if Democrats will suddenly reward her with their votes. That would be idiotic. The only thing Democrats have proven over the last three years is that they have no shortage of soon-to-be-debunked conspiracy theories. In terms of scrutiny, why isn't Schiff under scrutiny? He colluded with the whistleblower, ran unfair hearings and lied about having evidence of Russia collusion for three years. What about Schumer - he ralied against a political impeachment for Clinton. There are zero heroes on the Democrat side of this partisan side-show. Collins isn't your problem, you are.
5
@TL What you call "conspiracy theories" are realities: from stealing the 2000 election to Russian interference in the 2016 election to trump's amorous subservience to autocrats and using the office of the presidency for personal gain. All of these can be proven with mountains of evidence to numerous to list here. What you call not "letting it go" is recognizing the disgusting, anti-democracy antics of the trump party; in other words, recognizing reality.
8
@TL What you call "conspiracy theories" are realities: from stealing the 2000 election to Russian interference in the 2016 election to trump's amorous subservience to autocrats and using the office of the presidency for personal gain. All of these can be proven with mountains of evidence too numerous to list here. What you call not "letting it go" is recognizing the disgusting, anti-democracy antics of the trump party; in other words, recognizing reality.
Oh, and learn the adjective form: Democratic, however difficult that might be in the Russian dialect.
5
Two words: Merrick Garland.
9
Susan Collins has done some good things for Maine over her career. But she needs to have it firmly impressed upon her that doing things that are bad for the USA, as she has done over her career as well, seriously overwhelms any good she has done for the fewer than two million of us who live here. And the way to do that is to vote her out in November, and make sure whoever is voted in understands that working for the good of the country is at least as important as working for the good of Maine.
20
Collins wants it both ways. She wants to appear that she will be a thoughtful, unbiased juror in the upcoming impeachment trial, but I have grave doubts that she would ever vote to impeach, regardless of the overpowering evidence of wrongdoing by the President. I think all who are hoping for a decision by her based solely on the facts and moral judgement will be sorely disappointed. She will undoubtedly vote to acquit and come up with some arcane excuse for doing so.
12
This is easy to predict.
Voting with McConnell and her party can help her win reelection, voting against won't.
11
Collins, like soon many other long-term members of the Senate has out lived her effectiveness as a legislator. During her tenure, she has become corrupted by the nationwide, decades long stealth process to remake the Republican Party into what it is today. More moderate Republicans are responsibility for wresting control of the Party away from the radical wing now controlling it. Meanwhile, the people of Maine along, those in other States with the opportunity to retire members of Congress failing to protect and defend the rule of law and the constitution must do so in order to prevent further damage to the Republic.
5
Most unpopular Senator in America per a recent poll. Given her competition, this is an astounding achievement. Well deserved, though.
19
I think if Susan Collins stands for calling witnesses and documents from both sides that will put her in a much better position with Mainers going forward.
If, after listening to the witnesses and reading new documents of evidence she could certainly redeem herself with most Mainers if she votes for Impeachment. Not only will she be Senator for life Collins will end up the most popular Senator in United States history
This will surely redeem her from her vote for Kavanaugh
4
I voted for Senator Collins once - the first time she ran. I’d thought then that her work in Senator Cohen’s office defined her as a committed bi-partisan - wow was I wrong. Her first few weeks in Washington found her in deep lock step with Trent Lott and on camera pushing for Bill Clinton’s impeachment. I never trust her to make a bi-partisan vote, never. She will continue to play the media whenever the opportunity arises and fall back in GOP party line every time.
16
Collins, like most Republicans in national offices, value their jobs above their duties to our country. Most dislike Trump but fear him. Imprinted on their brains is the deadline for another GOP candidate to file for their position with potential backing from Trump.
This is how it works in authoritarian countries. Loyalty to the leader becomes paramount to their sworn duties to uphold the Constitution.
Defeat the Republicans in November. Defeat them all.
13
I just wish her inability to be intimidated stood for more principled ideals. I’m glad that she believed that lying about a consensual sexual affair did not warrant being thrown out of office (that is what divorce is for). I’m appalled that she might be thinking that Trump’s high crimes and misdemeanors are anything but worthy of being thrown out of office. Her confirmation of Kavanaugh was an insult to the people of Maine who deserve better.
13
Centrist? Only if that's a synonym for charlatan.
10
@ Dr. Planarian: Spot on!
"Ms. Collins convened several meetings in her office with the Republican senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah..."
She snuggled up with Mitt Romney? Next thing she knows, she will find herself riding on the roof of his car. Clearly, she has very poor judgement, which is what this article seems to be about.
2
If Susan Collins is so confused how she should vote, every time there’s big decisions to make, it’s time to resign. Vote her out!
4
(First Part)I live in this great nation since 1963, my country, but I had never seen a president as totalitarian as TRUMP, with this man the REPUBLICAN party lost its reins and now who does and descents and orders is this man, who never had a political position, and only dedicated to the construction without knowing, with the influence of politicians like Guliani, former MAYOR AND A CORRUPT IN ALL HIS CAREER, the members of the House of Representatives as well as the senators receive orders from him as if they were his employees, and these at the same time forget that those who pay their salaries are the CONSTITUENTS, who choose them and we send to Washington to safeguard the right of "WE THE PEOPLE", now we are all "WE THE TRUMP" which is what the Senators do and Congressmen, turning us all into FACHISTAS.
Never in the annals of the history of this country has any Constituent had attempted life, or employee of a member of Congress as they have been with Senator COLLINS,souls.
5
Sen. Collins's perpetual announcements that "I must express my concerns. . .before I go along with my party as usual" has worn pretty darn thin with many Maine voters, as she is well aware. She will make a big public point of bucking the party when her vote doesn't count. I don't expect anything different now, and I hope she is replaced.
59
There is really only one vote that will count: the one she will definitely cast for Mitch McConnell as the next Republican leader in the Senate if she is reelected.
Whether she is reelected may determine whether he will remain majority leader and therefore continue to tie up virtually all legislation including anything to address climate change or gun violence, or, if the courts overturn the ACA, anything to do with health insurance and will continue to confirm conservative judges seeking to gut the environmental regulations we already have and abortion rights if Trump is reelected.
3
Patriot or partisan?
The patriot will do what's right and abide by the Constitution, regardless. The partisan puts paycheck before country.
I have my doubts about Ms. Collins.
13
@Glen
She has shown us who she is over and over. Please vote her out she is nothing but a trump supporter who cares only for her career
6
Jim Hacker: "I’m glad you asked me that question because it’s a question a lot of people are asking. And why? Because a lot of people want to know the answer. And let’s be quite clear about this without beating about the bush, the plain fact of the matter is that it’s a very important question indeed and people have a right to know."
Interviewer: "We haven’t yet had the answer."
Jim Hacker: "I’m sorry, what was the question?"
-Yes, Minister
2
If Susan Collins watched any of the Impeachment hearings in the House, then she knows that the President is guilty. Even if she has some qualms about "high crimes and misdemeanors", she knows he is guilty of obstruction of justice. He provided not one document or one witness. The hoax and sham that the Republicans are always talking about is not the President's Impeachment, but the way it has been treated by Republicans. This Senate trial is not about whether Trump is guilty or innocent, because that is already pretty clear. It is about whether Republicans are willing to continue to let him get away with whatever he wants. Susan better think carefully about this because her legacy is at stake.
21
Instead of always wasting energy on hoping for Republicans to do they right thing’, Democrats should focus on winning elections to the House and Senate.
13
@Paul
We are , some of us are traveling across the country to beat these pathetic GOP
Bloomberg wants to get Democrats elected he needs to put his money to help defeat these GOP
2
I have just about given up on any politician with an R after their name doing the right thing and Susan Collins is in that camp despite wanting to have it both ways.
9
If I were in Vegas right now, I'd make a bet: Collins and the other three Moderates of the Apocalypse will vote to have more evidence and witnesses introduced. It's no skin off their collective backs to do this because even if old Hannity bloviates his way through a few nights, it won't matter but the effort will allow the GOP to nod and make sober pronouncements that they approached the trial with fairness, impartiality and rigor. And then they'll acquit the man-boy. Oh no. I sound horribly cynical don't I?
21
@Steve You are not cynical. You are a realist.
Yet another Senator who is a legend in her own mind. Seeking a fifth term.
Isn't 24 years enough, Ms Collins? Allow the people of Maine to choose someone else. You are not indispensable.
Perhaps you could start a trend among your colleagues by stating publicly that four terms is more than enough. For anyone.
16
I am neither a fan nor a particular critic of Susan Collins. I am disgusted, however, at the blatant sexism that accompanies so many comments about her.
Yes, she voted to confirm Kavanuagh. So did every other Republican. So did Joe Manchin, a Democrat. Yet it is Collins who gets excoriated in social media.
She is undecided about witnesses and documents. Is she the only senator in that position? There are a lot of silent Republicans and reluctant Democrats. There are also a lot of obnoxious Republicans who have blatantly stated they will ignore whatever process occurs and sign the blank check that all Republicans present Trump.
I don't agree with Susan Collins on much, but she gets too much criticism that is not leveled at her male colleagues.
4
Collins gets criticized not because of her gender but because of the faux hand wringing she usually goes through before voting with Republicans. She, by far, makes the biggest show of being tortured by her decision. She brings the attention — and subsequent wrath — on herself.
12
@D F
Because as a woman if everyone could see a sexual predator she saw it to .
We saw a privileged drunk and Collins said it was ok
Women are attacked every fifteen minutes and she just didn’t care.
That is why she is not trusted but nothing more than a woman hater ,
Ms Collins needs to go and don’t show up at any protest moments in the future.
4
as a woman who lived in Maine for 5 years, a woman who has never had an abortion but who could have had getting pregnant at a young age and fearful of my parents, I found Susan Collins to be despicable, I'm 1 week younger than Collins, those had times back in the late 60s and 70s and yet she believed this guy, a catholic of the nth degree.. At that moment i lost all belief that Collins was a champion for women, but was a champion for the people who have never had to be in my shoes as a young woman. I have moved back to Texas but I still give to anyone who will run against her, our granddaughter's must be assured a safe place and procedure should they need an abortion. Susan - you let me down so horribly, you let my granddaughter down, no forgiveness here, just vote her OUT.
20
I watched Senator Collins' self-indulgent 40-minute One Woman Show in the Senate defending her decision about Kavanaugh last summer. Heaven help us all if she performs a sequel regarding the Trump Impeachment trial.
It's time Maine reminded Senator Collins that she committed herself in 1996 to a limit of two terms.
Time's up. Time's WAY up.
36
“Stung by Kavanaugh Backlash?”
What are you talking about? I could never have been more proud of Ms. Collins!
Her speech was worthy of Cicero’s and I had my college students read it.
1
Remember when the Democrats wasted months trying to come up with a health care plan Collins could accept? Or her vote for Kavanaugh, despite his unseemly display of bias (not to mention solid allegations of violence, financial problems, and alcohol abuse), during which she berated those who disagreed and suggested that Christine Blasey Ford was mistaken (echoing a troubling right-wing conspiracy theory)?
I sure do! And that's why I wonder why reporters are investing so much time on Senator Collins when other GOP Senators - Cory Gardner springs to mind! - also face tough re-elections this year. Why not make him justify his vote? How about McSally? Her chances are at least as middling as Collins'!
5
I contribute to the opponents of every GOP senator mentioned by the writer including Collins.
2
To quote a wide variety of Republicans, “political hack.” Collins may have been moderate at one point but her Kavanaugh vote and vote to give billionaires a free pass tell us who she is today.
6
Susan Collins is the worst of those who pretend to be fair, but who always votes with the gop, no matter what she says she will do. Any respect I had for her is long gone.
10
She and Mitt Romney are the two most spineless politicians in the country. Completely lacking in any principles.
11
Senator Collins must be Congress's arch-equivocator: it's very tiresome. Why can't she simply do the right thing without a lot of handwringing? Or is it that she is as morally corrupt as the other GOP senators?
7
@RT
Morally corrupt plain and simple
4
Two words: Term limits.
4
If she didn’t vote to impeach Clinton, in a case of submitting and suborning perjury that was so obvious that the entire Supreme Court including his own appointees boycotted his state of the union, I think it’s safe to assume that she’s a vote for exoneration in this silly, partisan charade.
1
I'd like to hear from two witnesses: Donald John Trump and John Bolton during the senate impeachment trial.
8
She was never a moderate
4
Please, for the sake of your journalistic credibility, stop referring to Collins as a "moderate Republican." She plays a "moderate" on TV, always expressing "deep concern" about the topic du jour. When it comes time to vote, she always votes the Republican party line. Always. This has been her consistent MO throughout her career. There is nothing "moderate" about her and there never has been.
11
Collin's, moderate.
Like Paul Ryan was a "wonk".
Ridiculously off base descriptions by the media.
Please stop with them please.
10
Susan Collins is untrustworthy. She dithers and says the right things (sometimes) but she votes GOP. Her vote in support of the ACA was a stand out(along with McCain’s).
But I’m tired of hoping she will be principled, then being disappointed. (The tax give away for the rich and Kavanaugh.....who lacks the temperament to judge anyone, and will work to end full healthcare for women.)
Compare her to Sen. angus King who speaks primarily when he has something substantive to say......and who gives his opinions forthrightly rather than Collin’s wishywashy pretend “considerations.”
14
“There is a possibility that I will consider the likelihood that perhaps I could support a position that potentially could lead to a proposition that would have the capacity to maybe resolve the process (as long as mine is not the deciding vote.) “
3
Senator Collins seems to be addicted to the attention she gets every time there's a crisis in Congress and the Democrats go looking for her to help. She strings them along, says she's looking into things (this time she even found others to go along with her on the search), but eventually she feels someone yank her back into compliance with the other Republicans.
I'm tired of the Dems playing footsie with her and think they should turn their attention to others who will be more on the level with them.
31
I am not one of Sen. Collins' constituents. But if I were, I would ask her two questions:
"You have given the Republican Party loyal support for 25 years. What has it done over that time to make America a better place?"
"How would you try to convince a young person to follow your footsteps and support today's Republican Party?"
17
Susan Collins's vote to confirm Kavanaugh may have been symbolically significant, but it wasn't in fact practically significant. Sure, he's a bad apple on the Supreme Court, but had his nomination been rejected, the right-wing people at the Federalist Society would have promptly come up with a replacement, probably a woman, who would have been no better and might have been even worse.
I would not vote for Collins since she's a Republican and control of the Senate is at stake. Yet I found her statement accompanying her vote on Kavanaugh to be reasonable and heartfelt if not convincing.
2
Ms. Collins reminds me of the time when the world was about the size of Maine and people would stand on corners and say, "It sure is a small world" and Ms. Collins would always agree.
The worst ride in Disneyland and Walt Disney World is a Small World. It has ruined many a vacation. Don't bet on Collins.
8
The charges against Donald Trump make the charges against Bill Clinton look like a botched attempt to steal a soda can from a 7-Eleven. If Sen. Collins believes that the charges against Trump do not constitute an impeachable offense, then she needs to revisit the meaning of “self-dealing” and review James Madison’s notes on the proceedings of the Constitutional Convention.
McConnell doesn’t want witnesses, because very Senator in the chamber knows that Trump is guilty. The GOP’s efforts are aimed at preventing evidence to be placed on the record that substantiate, not merely the charges, but also their nature and magnitude - i.e., high crimes and misdemeanors.
Ms. Collins always agonizes, but then votes with the GOP. If she does that this time, the odds are high that this will be her final term as a US Senator. Trump’s crimes, and the GOP’s willingness to cover up those crimes, are literally making people sick. No one who protects him and is not in a no-fail “Trump” state will survive in office after the November election.
Think of it this way: since 2016, Trump almost certainly has not won a single additional vote in a battleground state, where margins were narrow and the presidential election was decided; whereas the Democrats who sat out 2016 cannot wait until November 2020.
24
Mainers are independent and proud and they will not be influenced by the out of state money that is attempting to secure Senator Collins' defeat. She is well regarded by Maine voters and will prevail. Count on it.
@freddy 16 What about the out-of-state money that is attempting to secure her re-election?
9
@freddy 16
Funny I thought women lived in Maine. I didn’t realize that women enjoy having sexual predators telling them how to think and act. Didn’t know drunks were in control of the state also
So with that said she is right at home with her own kind. Collins a protector of drunks and predators . She should be happy with Starr
If you have daughters move to Boston where sons of rich elites can’t assault you
Collins is a traitor
3
Why does she get to be called a “centrist” in this story when her voting record shows she almost always supports Trump, particularly when push comes to shove. False equivalency, disguised as relative equivalency.
21
At this stage of the game, and her political career, why does she not vote with her conscious!
Or will she prove herself, yet again, to be just another political hack.
Personally I think she is the epitome of everything that is wrong with so many Senators, and many politician's on a whole, they've corrupted their principles for so long in order to tow the party line, and maintain voter "appeal", they lack a decent measure of personal integrity.
Therefore American's no longer trust them, nor the system.
It's how we got Trump.
11
Collins always puts on the airs of a moderate but then votes, most of the time, along hard party lines.
The magnitude of Clinton's offense, lying about sex, is so minor to that of Trump's offense. Trump put US security at risk (holding aid from a country in an active war with Russia), abusing his office by asking a foreign country for a political favor that would have rigged the 2020 election, and withholding evidence and witnesses from the impeachment process in the House.
Clinton was not boy scout but Trump is soo much worse in soo many ways.
11
I can’t find where to contribute specifically to Kathleen Marra’s quest to beat Collins.
Very frustrating to this Californian!
Can anyone help?
Thanks
5
The drama of Sen. Collins' posture on her Constitutional obligation is interesting, but as with Kavanaugh, she will cave in to Trump. If she votes to have witnesses she can still vote with her colleagues to acquit Trump. It is time for Maine voters to step up and stop this nonsense with this Senator in November.
17
I have always voted for Susan Collins in the past but this year I will canvas for her competitor. She doesn’t represent Maine values or stick up for the little guy anymore; she represents money and Mitch McConnell. She appallingly portrayed those peacefully protesting her Kavanaugh vote as radicals. It’s time for fresh leadership in Maine.
46
The facts have demonstrated repeatedly for the past several years that there is no such thing as a "moderate Republican" including Collins. So hen will reporters (both TV and print)who make this false claim admit this fact?
4
Collins-talks the talk absolutely does not walk the walk.
Her antics got old long ago.
9
If Collins were really a moderate she would switch parties as the Republicans have gone off the deep end in their desire for a right-wing dictator. And for Maine voters, even if she were a moderate, a vote for her is a vote to continue the Trump-McConnell corruption of American government.
5
All this benefit of the doubt hand-wringing for the party that cheers for locking children in cages and permanently disappearing them into the child services bureaucracy. Stop already! Maya Angelou has it right: "when people show you who they are, believe them the first time."
12
Ms. Collins will say or do whatever she thinks will get her re-elected.
Nothing else matters.
14
“But anyone who thinks that they can intimidate me doesn’t know me.”
Always just a wee bit behind the curve, aren't we Ms. Collins?
I get a much stronger feeling that your constituency has far less interest toward "intimidation" than they have in merely unseating you and moving (progressively) on...
8
Term Limits may make politicians more honest... maybe.
3
She's not running again anyway. She needs to step up and do the right thing. Clinton was wrong to abuse office for sex act, but it is nothing compared to the atrocities that are Trump.
2
Thanks for the eyeroll moment of the day when you stated she was "moderate." She may want you think that, Ms. Steinhauer, but the Kavenaugh vote launched her deep into the dark heart of the Trumpublican Party. I often wonder what they promised her in exchange for selling her soul and the oath of office she took to uphold and defend the constitution. I sincerely hope the Maine voters understand the generational impact of her actions. Something tells me they do.
7
She can’t find any way to support the constitution over “dear leader” Trump.
She has made her reputation by voting against the American people at every opportunity.
7
I just made a donation to Sara Gideon and was happy to do it. Susan Collins is a joke. It was bad enough that she voted for Brett K. But that speech following her vote...how could she have thought that was a good idea? I didn't respect her before that, and I have been repulsed by her ever since.
8
One benefit of the current Presidency is the clarity it gives us in otherwise murky matters like Senator Collins.
She stands by him. Full stop. Maybe some wobble around the margins, and she acts like a normal person instead of some mouth-breathing, rumor-mongering, rape-denying acolyte from a state where Fox runs things, at least when Downeasters are watching.
But where it counts, such as the replacement of the legal nominee to the Supreme Court by a questionable one (or for that matter almost everything where a 'moderate' GOP might help) she stands behind him.
Which puts her in league with the lies, the tolerance of bigotry, the outright support of white supremacy, the demolition of US credibility around the world, the appointment of ministers dedicated to tearing down our country, (did I mention the lies?), undercutting the foundations of our prosperity, and so on.
Oh yeah. The treason too.
With moderates like this, extremists are just fine as long as they stay away from the downtown malt shop and keep in to the parking lot behind the roadhouse at the end of town.
(Writing about Maine, Stephen King sure had that one right.)
8
Her actions at the trial were deplorable if no senile .
4
Susan Collins will be remembered for her Kavanaugh vote. If she see's that it will cost her her seat, she can change her karma by voting for impeachment. Nah.
6
Let's just end the suspense now: She'll make a McCain-like show of equanimity, nonpartisanship and sanctimony; sermonize till she (and we) are blue in the face; then just like McCain, exercise unforgivably bad judgment every time, right up until she's on her death bed.
She's a tribal, partisan hack like the rest of her party. She just fakes it well.
9
Like all other republican senators, Susan Collins should be booted out of office. Pronto.
Anyone who votes for party rather than for what is constitutionally right or wrong, deserves nothing less.
8
Susan Collins is a first rate, third rate person.
10
Collins is one of the most disingenuous members in that chamber. A real phony.
11
What I find so odd about Senator Collins is that it's as if she's bending over backwards not to be rude to her party, rather than taking a principled stand on anything.
If you take a principled stand, you can defend it to your voters. You can say, "Look, I am a Republican. I agree with many of their policies. But I also stand for the rule of law, and sometimes that takes precedence."
But if you do a little verbal dance and say, "I don't want to offend the members of my party but maybe some of them could have done things a little differently, but we didn't, and that's not ideal, but I still don't think I can really agree or disagree with anything that's happening because I don't like the procedure by which it has happened..." then why should anyone re-elect you? They are voting for waffling. It's getting embarrassing. It was the same with Brett Kavanaugh. She was like, "He's a nice kid from Yale and the Bushes like him, so while of course it's not ideal he may have assaulted someone, I don't like the way this whole thing has happened procedurally and therefore I can't vote against him."
Senator, have you no moral compass at all? At all?
14
She’s one of the worst. Says one thing and does another. I hope she gets voted out.
19
It is astonishing how astonished people are that a Republican Senator might be willing to reserve judgement until after requesting to hear and then considering evidence.
The forgone conclusion that the Senate will acquit Trump makes it apparent how blinding and corrosive two-party-politics can get.
A clear demonstration of a limitation in US democratic institutions, which is being masterfully exploited by a Senator representing people in Kentucky.
4
@StG : I guess you missed the news about all the Republican Senators who announced that they would vote against impeachment before they even have heard any evidence.
7
I'm not so sure that Senator Collins is really a moderate Republican. Sure, she makes noise about considering to oppose right-wing Republican view but almost always, she votes with them in the end. She sits on the fence for days but in end is persuaded to "see it their way". She likes her senate seat too much to rock the boat. Her time is up.
I am already contributing to her opponent's campaign and I live in North Carolina.
48
@Peyton Collier-Kerr
spot on and lots of 'bye bye susan' bumper stickers in this little blue spot in maine. but it totally depends on whether the opposition, which is happy to march in funny hats, will do the grunt work of getting out the vote. uniting behind the democratic nominee for president will matter down ballot.
thanks for the support. you all have got your uphill battle down there. best wishes.
9
Senators Collins and Rand are wrapped in the same cloth. Talk and talk and be certain to bring the cameras up close to add suspense and then vote the party line. Moderate? Libertarian? No, they are both solid Trump soldiers.
27
@BillOR
'i am a vote blue no matter who' mainer who has never voted for collins. you are dead wrong. she did not support trump in 2016. and he personifies much she has fought against. but she is a republican and bows to mcconnell too often.
4
The big difference between Clinton and Trump is that Trump still does not think he did anything wrong. He even implies he would do it again. That is why he must be removed from office. I wish this point would be emphasized more!
27
When Kavanaugh votes to overturn Roe v. Wade, Collins will own that vote. She can talk all she wants about studying the issues, and hearing all sides, before making decisions. But no one doubts that Kavanaugh will vote to eliminate a woman’s right to choose. And that will be Collins’ legacy.
51
Senator Collins is trying to calculate, on the basis of political expediency, what her vote will be on the impeachment of Mr. Trump. She is a clever politician, not a person of real conviction. Her vote against Betsy DeVos, for instance, was cynically made to look like a considered decision, but it really was a callous move. She had voted to advance Ms. DeVos's appointment out of committee, knowing full well that a negative vote against her later on would not be significant.
She has voted to approve almost every judge who has come before the committee for approval, regardless of party. Despite the Trump administration's recommendations of judges who barely qualify, or have not received "qualified" notices from the American Bar Association, she has continued to vote for their approval. This is not the record of a thoughtful senator, but a record of someone who goes along to get along.
The followers of Trump have been called a "cult." Does Senator Collins belong to this group?
46
@Bevan Davies
here's back at'ya from cd 2. you are spot on in your analysis. except i'd say 'goes along to get ahead'.
but collins's sin is mcconnell, not trump.
7
If the Senator is applying the same logic to the Trump impeachment as Clinton’s, I hope she doesn’t confuse that with the much differing facts. The facts of these two cases couldn’t be more different, despite GOP efforts to reduce it to “a perfect call.”
7
It’s not just Kavanaugh. She’s voted for other trump judges throughout the federal judiciary, including Kyle Duncan, who’s anti-LGBTQ past should have deemed him unfit. And, not surprisingly, Duncan issued an opinion noteworthy for its cruelty towards a trans litigant.
21
Susan Collins has allowed herself to be played by Trump and the Republican leadership too many times to continue to be effective for her constituents. She has had 24 years in the Senate. It is a distinguished career, but it is now time for her to retire gracefully and let someone with a stronger backbone take her place. Becoming a sycophantic Trumpster is not worth selling her Congressional soul.
12
She's already hedging her bets with the "overturning an election" talking point.
Impeachment is not about overturning an election.
Impeachment is about removal from office for treason, bribery and other high crimes and misdemeanors. It is based on actions that occurred after the election.
Claiming that impeachment and removal from office are the equivalent of overturning an election is like claiming that indictment, trial by jury, finding of guilt and sentencing are the equivalent of overturning the Bill Of Rights.
She won't be able to defend or ignore the "high crimes and misdemeanors" part. The high crimes are there for everyone to see. She will cling on to this phony "overturning the election" excuse that she just planted, and vote to acquit.
26
how will justice roberts respond when the senate decides"no further evidence" all citizens know of the obstruction,refusal to offer testimony from white house personnel, trips by lawyer to ukraine,etc.,etc. roberts is aware of all these facts. how, as a judge does he respond? history will put him on the same megabus as all the trumpsters,bush,cheney,et al.
4
All bets are off with the survival of the US Democratic republic at stake. I will be voting for the Democrats, not her who votes 98% for the gop.
14
The one fact that never seems to occur to those who are taken in by Trump’s self promotion is that he does not accomplish what he promises because he’s got no heart. They realize it only after he’s burned them. The Republican Party will learn in the same way.
5
Poor Sue. By having no standards, no integrity, and no courage, she will be relegated in American history to the list of politicians known as the “Do Nothings.” Quite a long list.
13
Everybody, everybody, is on to Susan Collins's game. Except the New York Times, that continues with the "moderate Republican" scam. She's only "moderate" when it will not affect the outcome (as in the Clinton case). When the Republicans need her, she's always with them (as in the Kavanaugh and Trump cases). All that hand wringing is fooling no one, she's only worried about her re-election campaign.
17
I'm a life long Mainer. It was more than Sen. Collins Judge Kavanaugh vote with us. When Trump took office her approval rating in Maine was +40%, today, -10%. Sen. Collins lied, repeatedly lied about her reasons for her vote in favor of Trump's tax cuts. Any parent knows their child is lying when they keep changing their story. Sen. Collins also has not spoken out in regards to the highly offensive attacks against immigrants, judges, veterans (think Sen. John McCain), a Gold Star family, FBI, CIA, our allies, etc. She's in deep trouble and it is her own fault. She will lose come November 3, 2020. Mainer's have had enough. See we remember Sen. Margaret Chase Smith speaking out against Sen. McCarthy on four months after his Wheeling speech, not 4 years later when people started to find their spines. Also, Sen. Smith was the only woman in the U.S. Senate at that time - think of the stand she took as women with integrity 70 years ago...
51
If witnesses are so important why did Schiff, Nadler and Pelosi not take the time to subpoena them?
2
@Reader In Wash, DC
They did! The republicans, under orders from Trump, refused to testify. They all belong in jail for that.
12
Susan Collins has more courage and common sense than just about any other Senator.
I don't much like Kavanaugh, but what the Democrats tried to do to him was the most despicable behavior I've ever seen in politics. And all because they though he would be opposed to Roe v. Wade.
Collins defense of her vote was well-presented and honest. The utter absurdity of accusing Kavanaugh of sexual assault 36 years after the fact with no corroboration is apparently lost on the doctrinaire Democrats inhabiting this site.
4
I can't believe we've come to a point where it's supposed to be some remarkable landmark in US history when just one single Republican might vaguely consider not going along with this con man.
22
As a Mainer, my feeling is, even if she were to vote for witnesses and even to remove the president, she's still going to lose re-election in November. The Kavanaugh vote was a bridge too far for us Mainer's. Voting for Collins again at this point would be like letting back in a domestic abuser who promised not to do it again.
29
Wow, this article portrays Collins as principled, which is not how I experience her at all. Collins consistently questions the extreme right, publicly makes motions as if she will stand up for decency, and then votes with the extremists. Every time. She is not a decent person, not a person with integrity. From what I have seen she is deeply incompetent.
16
Why guess? Of course she will not vote to impeach Trump.
7
Susan Collins says: "There is no doubt that there are going to be Mainers unhappy with me no matter what conclusion I reach." Simple solution, Senator Collins. Do what is right. You know...!
10
In the end, she, as well as the other "moderate" senators, will be Velcroed to Trump. The fear of his wingnut base is amazing to this observer, but there is no doubt it exists.
6
I am thrilled that my grand nieces are spearheading her opponent.My dear Ms Collins not OK to throw your fellow women under the bus.See you sister!
17
Susan plays politics quite well. Please don't forget the charade surrounding the approval of Betsy Devos as Secretary of Education. Susan was on the committee that vets candidates for this position. True to form, she really didn't do her due diligence in this regard, and Betsy was put forth as a viable candidate. Susan then voted AGAINST her on the floor of the Senate. But wait.....there was a method to her madness. She knew that she would only be a tying, not a deciding vote against Betsy, and that VP Pence would cast the vote that would break the tie and confirm Betsy. She came off smelling like a rose, or at least she thought she did. She voted against Betsy, she could say slyly. She knew that on the Senate floor, it didn't matter. The "NO" vote that mattered was the one she wouldnt cast--where Betsy was vetted. Like the double dealer she is, she voted for her at the juncture that was critical, only to vote against her later for show. And she didn't have the courage to buck the "boys" in her party when it really mattered, on the Kavanaugh vote. Spare us your impassioned speech afterwards. You are no moderate. You vote with your party, and you pretend to be moderate. As the bumper stickers in the state of Maine say, "Bye Bye Sue"
15
McConnell will allow Collins and the other “moderates” to take turns voting with the Dems, as long as the total stays below half. This will hold equally true for procedural votes and for conviction, because a bipartisan majority to convict, even if short of the 2/3 required to remove, will be a staggering blow to Trump.
1
Ms. Collins, NYT, and everyone else. . Please stop saying, "Overturn an Election," as if that mattered a fig.
Yes. A guilty verdict removes the culprit. And, it makes certain that they won't finish their term of office. That's the point of Impeachment, isn't it ?
12
@Joe It was the Republicans in the Electoral College who overturned the Election. Hillary Clinton received substantially more votes from the Citizens of the US that Trump did.
2
I am so so glad Susan Collins is running for re-election. Why? Because she will be soundly defeated. Good riddance,
18
I have zero respect for anyone that voted to confirm Kavanaugh. Or Barr, for that matter. Zero. I hope she’s sent packing in November.
18
@Carlotta As a Mainer I can assure you that there are a lot of us working very hard to do just that.
I assume this article is to demonstrate NYT’s commitment to being fair and balanced. It tries to show Collins’s angst. I am not sympathetic. This is Collins own doing. Clearly partisan, Sen. Collins is disingenuous when she rings her hands and bemoans her plight.
Her rationalization speech as to why she voted for Kavanaugh was cringeworthy. Better off just being partisan without comment. Enough. Do what she must or exit.
6
i grow weary of Susan Collins playing Lucy with the football while the Charlie Brown Dems hopehopehooe that this year she'll play fair.
9
Don't believe a syllable of what she utters.
11
Collins is the most hypocritical senator and it appears people of all stripes agree
10
I have concluded that if Congress gave out Best Performance awards, Collins would at least be nominated many times. However, her performances are not believable. She does not have the strength of character to perform in a manner that is believable.
6
There is no Senator more engaged in seeking truth than Susan Collins, and Maine voters have tremendous respect for that in the tumultuous political chaos that dominates our day-to-day equilibrium. Hysteria dominated the Kavanaugh confirmation. As anyone who listened to her as i did, Senator Collins defense of her vote was based on very careful review of the evidence at hand. Unfortunately vast numbers of people never heard or paid attention to what she said.
4
She failed in the Kavanaugh confirmation to make an effort to find the truth. She endorsed a limited one-week investigation in to rape charges. Considering the Supreme Court seat is a lifetime office, the inquiry should have been long enough to get to the bottom of the matter not a fig leaf to create the mere appearance of an investigation.
19
@RPM Maine voters will send her packing and then you will have a plate of crow to eat.
7
Speculation on the four votes includes Romney, Lee, Murkowski, and Portman. If that’s correct Collins would be an extra insurance vote. But, it also places her role as less important. I’m not sure that will work in her favor for the 2020 re-election campaign.
3
@Scott As a constituent of Portman, I can affirm that there is no basis for any speculation. I had inquired as to his position and he made clear, in his presumably canned response provided by one of his staffers, that he did not view Trump’s actions to reach the level of an impeachable offense.
I have watched Portman over the years and can assure you he is a thoroughly bought and paid for Republican operative who, when needed, will vote the party line—precisely the same as Collins. These folks keep their jobs precisely because they are reliable, not because of the strength of their character.
6
First of all, calling Senator Collins a centrist couldn't be further from the truth. While she may have been considered a centrist at one time, she has repeatedly held the party line, voting every time with Trump and McConnell, despite her hand wringing beforehand. It's highly unlikely that she'll change for this most important vote of her too long tenure as Senator. It's also highly unlikely that she will be re-elected.
49
Power is a very strong incentive for compromising values. The right dominates the Republican Party and threatens any who the fear will not support their agenda with loss of office.
4
The political analysis doesn’t make any sense.
Surely Collins needs the votes of as many moderates/independents as she can get to win in her purple state but she definitely needs ALL the Republican votes.
If she votes to convict then she may or may not win those independents but Republican voters will be furious and stay home and she’ll lose even big.
Her best bet is to “play the game” and vote to acquit in the end, which is exactly what she’s doing.
4
"What appears to rankle Ms. Collins is the suggestion that her votes are mere political calculations."
Her votes calculated or not, mine will not be. I'm voting for the Democrat. We can't endure the harm done to this country by a Republican majority Senate. Susan, your aim may be true, but this country's welfare is on the line.
113
Years ago I admired Susan Collins for taking the time to think through her votes on the issues and turn herself into a pretzel hoping for a pretense of a deep thought process. Certainly admirable given how the rest of the GOP Senators come to conclusions.
Not anymore. I've watched this same act over and over again. She's behaving like an actress not a Senator. The decision in this case is relatively easy to make. Just follow the evidence and quit the acting.
76
She is just one of the 18 votes the Democrats need
to convince Trump.
If it is obvious that there will not be 67 votes to convict
then she can vote to convict without any severe consequences.
4
@John Brown 80 votes would not convince Trump...but 18 would convict him. The "severe consequence" she is contemplating is losing her re-election.
1
I’m sorry I don’t think you understand. Trump will not tolerate “any” republican senatorial votes to convict. I fully expect that the mere evidence that any “moderate or independent” minded republican senator wants a fair trial with witnesses and testimony will be met with a twitter storm from Trump the troll. Then his cronies and Fox sycophants will unload and the death threats and intimidation will come and make what senator Collins has endured in the past seem like admiration. New York mob bosses don’t get convicted in Trumps world view & neither should he.
2
@Stan Frymann
If she votes to convict she will still win.
1
I cannot help from wondering, if she is so much against being told which way to vote perhaps the forces that pledged a million dollars to defeat her during the Kavanaugh confirmation were in fact expecting her to do exactly what she did. It was set up to anger her enough to put Kavanaugh in office, and she did.
2
May Senators Collins, Murkowski, Alexander, Romney and hopefully many others be remembered in the history books as being American patriots who upheld justice and the rule of law.
13
I don't trust her. Remember a few years ago when she made such a big deal about retiring? She's still there.
Her much trumpeted support for women's and reproductive rights went out the door when nip came to tuck and she voted for Kavanaugh, knowing full well he would tip the court in favor of the anti-choice gang.
I no longer trust any Republicans. None of them. The days when I would sometimes vote for candidates with an R next to their name is gone with the Trump cabal, and what's happened to that party.
91
@Entera 30 years ago said she would serve 10 years. OOPS!
12
Why not just vote her conscience and stop trying to figure out the politically expedient thing to do? I don't get this with all the Trump weasels in the Senate; they're so afraid that if they go against Trump they won't get re-elected, but they win re-election at a very high personal price. Who will trust them anymore? How can they think they have any moral authority to be an example to their children or live with their consciences? Ms. Collins has become far too politicized and far less compelling. I will never forgive her Kavanaugh vote. It was politically calculated and it backfired. Now she's trying another political ploy.
19
Interesting choice-- she can risk reelection in in stonewalling w McConnell-- or push for evidence and more substantive trial-- risking the ire of Trump and a lockstep GOP. One can only wish her well in navigating this precipice.
1
Threats of violence, etc. should be considered crimes.
Threats of funding opponents, primary challenges, GOTV drives for the Democrat, and criticizing her votes and statements are all legitimate politics.
There's only 2 fears that I believe are legitimate to put into Susan Collins:
1) That she'll be defeated for her seat.
2) That her reputation will be so shredded that she won't be able to use her star power to get lobbying, consulting, talking head, or board membership jobs.
7
Susan Collins voted for the confirmation of Attorney General
William Barr, who turned out to be a political tool of Donald Trump. It is now her turn to do something for democratic values and vote for witnesses in the impeachment trial.
18
I could perhaps tolerate her decision to vote to confirm Bret Kavanaugh, but I will never forgive the phony speech that she gave prior to announcing her vote. For a supposedly "moderate" female senator to provide cover to her rightwing male colleagues in this way was an inexcusable and tawdry piece of political theater, directed by Mitch McConnell.
I wish I lived in Maine so I could vote against her!
56
@bud Her speech was as phony as a three-dollar bill. She pretended to agonize over her vote, while all along intending to toe the party line. Real conservative Rick Wilson said this week that he left the GOP not because of Trump, but because of phonies like Collins, while Steve Schmidt rightly blasted her vote in favor of Kavanaugh, calling her a "titanic fraud."
14
@bud It was political theater, it was not fantastic and it certainly wasn't honest.
13
@bud Her speech was an insult to the intelligence of her constituents.
2
The venom spewed against Senator Collins illustrates the tragic disregard we, as a society, for anyone who is intellectually honest. Intellectual honesty means consistently following one's principles, even if that results in partisan political backlash. I doubt few would argue that the late Sen. John McCain exemplified such a person.
Sadly, in today's society, partisanship dismisses and even punishes intellectual honesty. People care not whether a person is sincerely following their values, but care only for whether someone supports the team.
Some of the invectives hurled by commenters are actually frightening, and illustrate the contempt we have for anyone who disagrees with us.
Senator Collins has sided against majority Republican positions on numerous occasions. I'm sure those venting contempt for her now were just fine with her when she did so.
In the current situation, she is anything but the opportunist some have called her. If she votes against impeachment, she risks her political future. Maine is a Democratic state, and Ms. Collins faces a formidable challenge in her re-election. If she votes to acquit Trump, she will only fuel that opposition. That certainly is not the conduct of an opportunist.
At one long gone time in history, we were able to respect those with whom we had honest disagreements. Now we just hate them.
6
@Gino G I must disagree with your assessment as she is no moderate and her voting record is very much suspect.
6
@Gino G
Collins is not intellectually honest. She is an actress. She portrays "the Senator with a conscience" with endless hand wringing and whinging, but in the end she always votes against decency and with the extremists. She is not intellectually honest or honest at all, she is a player doing her part. Her loyalty is clearly to the party, not to her constituents or to the country.
6
@Gino G Remember the charade with Betsy Devos. Why would you vote in committee to support her nomination and then vote against Betsy on the floor? Because a "No" vote in committee would have mattered. Betsy wouldnt have made it to the next round, i.e., no Senate floor vote. She has "principles" when it, quite frankly, doesn't matter. All this pro choice nonsense she spouts, and then she votes for Kavanaugh. What a joke. See ya, Sue. As a Mainer, I won't vote for someone who thinks we are all idiots and can't see through things like the Devos fiasco.
4
When people say this impeachment is a partisan witch-hunt, it would not be partisan if the other side opened its eyes. If a gang member is indicted for a crime, his friends would all be on one side and the law enforcement on the other. Is that partisan?
11
@Oliver: You sure hit it on the head when you implied that the Republicans are Trump's gang members while the Democrats are the law enforcement.
3
In Senator Collins defense it is very hard to stand for something when you don't have a spine and even harder to do the right thing when you have lost your moral compass.
In other words, just another Republican politician.
24
Fear not, Alan Dershowitz and Trump's dream team of TV (FOX) lawyers will come up with different rationales so that Senator Collins can profess a suitable amount of outrage at the president's "bad" behavior, perhaps allowing a few witnesses to testify, yet at the end of the week still vote to acquit him, saying something like:
"I thought a good old fashioned Censure who have served the country better... But you know those Partisan Democrats, they didn't leave us any good options."
Elect a clown, expect a circus. In this case, it will be interesting to watch the 53 clowns as they exit the clown car in the center ring...
12
Dear RNC - what say we lock up all the republicans, mcconnell can lead the parade as drum major - and start over with a clean slate.
4
Collins may “courageously” vote to compel witness testimony, upon the assurance from McConnell that only two other members in good standing in the party of Trump will defect.
By casting her vote for Kavanaugh she was inducted into the Party of Trump. The only way to leave this mob is political death by tweet. Not even a natural demise from mortal Earthly existence will spare her departed soul from ridicule. Ask the McCain and Dingel families.
And even if testimony and more documentary evidence should be admitted in the Senate trial, she will have many ways to rationalize her vote to acquit, just as she disingenuously justified her vote to confirm the Kavanaugh.
Hopefully this inalterable truth will follow Trump and Collins into polls on Election Day:
the case developed in the House impeachment hearings, corroborated by Trump’s “perfect call” transcript and his arrogant admissions, and every fact revealed since prove that Trump abused the office of the Presidency for his personal political goals. Yes, the House could have subpoenaed more witnesses and documents and pursued them in court; but the Party of Trump took their oath of Omertà to hear, see and speak no evil against their Don. None of them, or the rest of us, will be able to avoid he stench.
6
Mainers are practical people. Senator Colins support may dip, but I would not bet the farm against her. She has continually countered Trump’s obnoxious behavior and has made it clear that Trump is a scoundrel. Re Kavanaugh: Most people agree that the witness accusing him of sexual assault was not credible. Collins will be in a dogfight and her time may be up-just as Margaret Chase Smith’s tenure was terminated by Maine’s voters, but anyone feasting on her supposed vulnerabilities is a hyper-partisan dreamer at this point.
5
@Jason Mayo Why was Christine B Ford not credible? She essentially risked her reputation to come forward. She knew she would be barbecued by the Republicans and the press. I am sure she was warned, but she still came forward. How is that not credible?
13
She is very much on the hot seat following her vote to confirm the party boy justice who likes beer.
Now is the opportunity for the voters of Maine to send her packing!
You voters in Maine deserve better.
26
The lamestream media always presents Collins as a "moderate." However, she votes for Trump almost 100% of the time.
16
Collins is a careerist and weak.
There is no integrity or courage left in the Republican Party. The Bush family should have used all their muscle to eliminate Trump early in the primaries. Now all of the party and their plutocrat masters are locked in behind Trump.
5
She needed to RETIRE 2 terms ago.
11
Trump Owns the GOP; she will vote how Trump tells her to
9
Susan Collins is not and never will be a John Sidney McCain III nor Margaret Chase Smith nor Everett McKinley Dirksen.
Susan Collins is by nature and nurture part of the Republican Party sycophant triumvirate that includes Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio.
18
@Blackmamba Margaret Chase Smith. Now there was a Mainer to emulate. Stood up to Senator Joe McCarthy. She had a backbone made of steel. We should long for the days.....
5
Dump Collins in 2020. Zero integrity.
22
Republicans hated Clinton because his politics were the same a Eisenhower and Rockefeller and all moderate Republicans who could not back Barry Goldwater and who Reagan’s conservatives drove out of office everywhere that they could. They were and are are terrified of losing power over the Republican Party. That’s why lying over a private indiscretion rose to an impeachable offense. The founders did not want impeachment used for that kind of use. The Republican Party has become a stupid partisan club which has no respect for our republic.
9
The longer they stay in office, the more egomaniacal they become. Half the stuff that used to come out of mouth was idiocy. Now it's more like three quarters. There's no such thing as a "moderate Republican" anymore. If they don't support Trump's mob, there is no place for them. Susan doesn't get it.
7
She's a fraud. No integrity whatsoever. The very definition of an untrustworthy politician. Says one thing, does another.
11
Margaret Chase Smith was a Republican Senator representing Maine.
Margaret Chase Smith said she did not want to see the Republican Party “ride to victory on the four horsemen of calumny - fear, ignorance, bigotry, and smear”.
Susan Collins is no Margaret Chase Smith
39
“I would anticipate that it is likely that I would vote to have more information brought forward, whether witnesses or documents or both,” she said Thursday. It's this sort of circumlocution and fence-sitting that has Senator Collins in the dock. If after four terms in the Senate she's unable to state whether a trial should have witnesses or not, voters are left to reach their own conclusions about why.
1220
@Martin Daly, Having witnesses testify at a trial? What a novel idea.
181
Both sides get to call witnesses, or just the Democrats?
4
@JQGALT
If the GOP wants to call relevant witnesses, ie Pompeo, Bolton, etc, sure, GOP can call as many witnesses as it likes.
If the GOP wants to call witnesses who do not have personal knowledge of the President's conduct, ie Hunter Biden, then no.
Niether party should be allowed to call non-relevant witnesses.
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Throughout her career, Susan Collins has had this schtick where she wrings her hands and pretends to be undecided about this or that issue or presidential appointee, and then, after this pretense, invariably backs the Republican leadership as loyally as any Trump sycophant.
Her "moderation" is just an act. Hopefully the people of Maine see through it now.
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@Dr. Planarian
Democratic voters in Maine need to organize and put enormous pressure on Collins. Representative Matt Moonen is House majority leader in Maine. It begins with him.
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@Dr. Planarian you've summed her politics up perfectly! A feckless sycophant dressed up as a moderate.
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@Dr. Planarian
Yes, she is a complete fraud. She tries to appear open-minded and moderate, but is no different from the Republican herd. I find her hypocrisy more infuriating than those who are open about their Republican meanness. I have sent money to get her defeated and will continue to do so.
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As one of Susan Collins' former constituents, I have always found her endless public cogitating on her votes to be amusing, and nearly always predictable. She will study the options, ruminate on the various outcomes, announce her deep anxiety with both options, loudly proclaim her anxiety with the choices available to her. Finally - but only if it doesn't make any difference to the ultimate Republican vote-count - she'll make a decision based on her deeply plumbed conscience. Otherwise, she's a solid Republican vote. It's a tough line to tiptoe.
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@Marion, Well put.
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@Marion Absolutely right. She votes her post-study conscience only when it doesn't count for Repub power. It's conscience theater costuming McConnell's cynical power machinations.
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@Marion She's a real politician. Pretends to be contemplating something and, really, it's just an act.
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To paraphrase Edna St Vincent Millay, "There is room for a great Senator in Maine tonight". When I read comments like, "The Senator is fighting for his or her political career," I cringe. Elected service was never meant to be a career, maybe that's why we are where we are today.
Our elected officials need to put the good of the country first and one way to encourage that is to have term limits. While nobody seriously believes someone will get up on the House or Senate floor and propose term limits, a national petition for a referendum might prove popular.
As for Ms Collins, it's time to look in the mirror and ask yourself if your job as a Senator has any meaning if you continue to support Trump and his total disregard for the law.
I hope she chooses decency.
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@Steve Don't hold your breath.
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@steve We have term limits; they're called elections. The problem is, far too few of us exercise our civic responsibility on election day. When you combine that with gerrymandered Congressional districts in too many states, parties in power determined to make it as hard as possible to find a polling station near them, you get the results we face. Make every election day a paid holiday, nationally and locally--that would be a start. Get referendums passed in all 50 states requiring a non-partisan redistricting commission as is the case in AZ, CA and a few other states. And let's hope the old guard passes into history as soon as possible. Our hope is the next generations!
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@Sancarloscharlie
Term limits for all the Congress is really the way to go. Elections favor the incumbent most times. That is not progress. It needs to be changed
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What's changed is Maine, probably not Collins. She's losing popularity because she's not representing her constituents as well as she used to.
A quick search shows that Maine's approval rating for Trump is about the national average - 40-45% like him, 50--55% disapprove.
Collins's disapproval rating in Maine is pretty close to Trump's. Just 2-3 years ago, her approval rating was pushing 70%.
This demonstrates three things: One, that Mainers have common sense and decency. Two, that traditional moderates are probably souring on the Trump show. And three, supporting the Trump agenda is hazardous to your political career in any place but the deep red states.
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Maine is close to New York and all who know about Trump not seeking money from him know what kind of person he has always been.
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She's just leveraging her vote to get something else. It's how she operates, consistently and repeatedly.
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The important vote is the vote to hear witnesses. The Democrats don’t have 47 votes. Joe Manchin won’t vote with them. But if there are no witnesses the country (world) is watching.
Sen. Collins won’t win re election no matter what she does so she might as well vote to convict. History will reward her greatly.
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Collins's political contortions to look moderate but then support Trump are a disgrace to Maine — and the legacy of her predecessor, Senator Margaret Chase Smith, who famously was the first to condemn the unethical and immoral tactics of Joe McCarthy.
"I don't believe the American people will uphold any political party that puts political exploitation above national interest. . . .We are Republicans. But we are Americans first. It is as Americans that we express our concern with the growing confusion that threatens the security and stability of our country."
Senator Margaret Chase Smith, Declaration of Conscience, 1950
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@MCV207 And we miss people like Senator Smith, with that ethic, of country over party.
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Ms. Collins, if treason isn't a high crime and misdemeanor, shall we deep-six the Constitution? We're getting there.
Very very sad that the main motivation for far too many politicians has become keeping their jobs.
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@GreaterMetropolitanArea unfortunately so very true. Term limits, please.
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@GreaterMetropolitanArea
Not just sad, but craven, especially in Ms. Collins's case, given that in her first run for the Senate she'd vowed to serve only two terms.
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She says now of the Clinton impeachment that "it didn’t reach the constitutional test of high crimes and misdemeanors, and was not sufficient to overturn an election and throw him out of office." I'll bet that she never said then that bit about overturning an election, so here she is disingenuously positioning herself to tow the party line once more.
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@Ian
Yep and thank you. "Overturn election" talk is a white hot warning that you are being fed pure propaganda.
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@True Believer Yes, I read that Republicans got the term "overturn an election" from a focus group.
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@True Believer - Truth. If conviction meant overturning the election we'd have President Hillary Clinton. I believe the actual consequence of conviction would be President Mike Pence.
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There’s something rotten in the state of Maine, and it’s Senator Collins. If she votes to convict, I’ll eat my whole hat collection.
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