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Republican Maine Sen. Susan Collins has been whining and moaning about the fact that her constituents care deeply about Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court, and are telling her so directly.
That's not going over well with local media, which has served as Collins' long-time ally and always treated her with kid gloves. For a second day, the the top-read stories in the state's Portland Press Herald are about Collins and the nomination.
Wait, I take it back. One is about her fellow Maine Sen. Angus King who, in a strong and very pointed statement Wednesday, announced his opposition to Kavanaugh’s nomination. This dig was particularly pointed: "after carefully studying his record (at least the part that is available) and judicial philosophy, I have decided that I will vote no on his confirmation."
Now she's being called out for her characterizing a grassroots campaign by Mainers for Accountable Leadership, the Maine People's Alliance, and Be A Hero to crowdfund pledges for a 2020 challenge to her if she votes for Kavanaugh as a "bribe." In an editorial appearing in several Maine papers, she's chided about the claim.
If the Koch brothers-affiliated Americans for Prosperity can spend "seven figures" to let senators know that they should support Kavanaugh if they want their support, or the Judicial Crisis Network, which is funded by unnamed donors, can budget $10 million for TV ads that warn of political consequences for a "no" vote, what's wrong with named individuals making fully disclosed campaign contributions that deliver the opposite message?
That’s a good question, one that the Maine press should continue to ask her.
The people of Maine need to call her on this. Directly. Every day. At her office numbers: (207) 622-8414, (207) 945-0417, (207) 283-1101, (207) 493-7873, (207) 784-6969, (207) 780-3575, (202) 224-2523. But be polite. And maybe record your messages to show how polite you are, and provide those to the local media.