You might be as surprised as I was to have found, on the pages of Turn Maine Blue, the most compelling case for why one should vote for Tom Allen that I've ever seen - and it was written by a Republican! OK, it happens to be Tom Allen's son-in-law - Randy Creswell - but he's a conservative Republican nonetheless (what was his daughter thinking?!?). It's a scathing critque of the Portland Press Herald's choice to endorse Susan Collins, and it offers many articulate reasons for voting for Tom Allen. I believe this letter deserves much more attention, hence my thoughts about it presented here, with supporting quotes.
Here are some relevant quotes:
Given the bicameral nature of Congress, the procedural processes by which bills are introduced, the fact that the legislative agenda is controlled by the party in power, and the system of checks-and-balance between the Executive and Legislative Branches, the ability of any particular member of Congress "to serve the constituents" is almost singularly dependent upon the status of that member's party. What is determinative is whether that member's party is in the majority or the minority of the House and the Senate, and whether that member's party controls the Executive Branch.
As it becomes more and more clear that we're going to have (thank G-d) a president Obama, AND a solid Democratic majority in the Senate, that pretty much erases any hope of Susan Collins doing anything productive in the Senate - unless she decides to jump ship and start working with the Democrats (something that she has only done occasionally, as much as she like to pretend otherwise).
I also find it incredible that you reference Ms. Collins's work as Chair of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs as one of her "signal accomplishments." This is an astonishing assertion. A fair look at her record as Chair should begin and end with her oversight failures regarding Iraq.
I wish Tom Allen were a bit more aggressive about making this point. Oversight of the war in Iraq was perhaps Susan Collins's sole opportunity to show a true independent streak and make a huge impact. She and BFF Joe Lieberman managed to do, well - as you know - nothing in that regard. Hello!?!?! Tom!?!?!? Obvious point to drive home!
What is also conspicuously absent from your editorial was any mention of Ms. Collins's voting record with respect to the economic policies of the Bush Administration over the past eight years. Given the present financial status of the world and the failing American economy, I would think that a fair accounting of the candidates records would include a discussion of their voting records concerning the most significant financial crisis that the country has seen in the last eighty years. Nothing, though. Not a single word comparing the two candidates voting records on the financial policies that have brought the country to its present financial situation.
I know that Tom Allen is doing his best to run a positive campaign. However, the only way to overcome Susan Collins's insistence that she's not George W. in a red dress is to freakin' point out how much of a supporter she has been of the economic policies that have brought us to this predicament. Creswell does an excellent job of, point-after-point, blasting Collins's (obvious) record of support of Republican policies.
A good example of Ms. Collins's lack of any guiding principles is her promise to seek only two terms in the U.S. Senate. In 1996, in an effort to be elected to her position, Ms. Collins enthusiastically promised to only serve two terms in the Senate if elected. At the time, Ms. Collins's stated reason for only seeking two terms was her stated belief that the framers of the Constitution were right and that the country should be run by a citizen legislature. Citizens spend a relatively short amount of time serving their country and then they go back to private life for the collective good. In September of 2002, two months before her re-election, Ms. Collins again wrote to a constituent reaffirming her 1996 promise and affirmatively representing that she would not seek a third term.
Enough said. One of Creswell's points is that, especially knowing that the Senate is going to have a Democratic majority, the only real reason Collins could have for running would be to either
- participate in blocking - or attempting to block - the Democratic agenda, or
- act like a Democrat in supporting the Democratic agenda
If you want someone to support the Democratic agenda, why not elect the Democrat?!?!?
Creswell addresses most of Collins's positions (economics, votes for Alito and Roberts, her "bipartisan when it doesn't count" approach to policy and principles) and, basically devastates any reason one could have for supporting Collins - Republican or no. I urge you all, especially those of you in Maine, to read Creswell's letter, and to use its contents as you make a difference, one voter contact as a time, to help Tom Allen in his (longshot - but shouldn't have been longshot) bid to win the Senate seat.
As a side note, I keep talking to people who have the "polls be damned" outlook on the coming election, thinking Tom Allen might just pull it out with the number of newly registered Obama voters mobilized here in the state. On my better days, I believe that they could be right. Thanks for listening.
P.S. I miss Turn Maine Blue in the blogroll, and wonder why they're not there any more. And no, I don't run that site. :)