Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell isn't the only Republican who has some serious thinking to do about the nomination of a total Trump lackey and conspiracy theorist to be, get this, Director of National Intelligence. See, Sen. Susan Collins has the deciding vote in the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, which has an 8-7 partisan divide.
Yep, Collins could be the one to block this guy, Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas. His fellow Texan Sen. John Cornyn, another SSCI member, is on board and the chairman, Richard Burr, promises swift action even though he seems maybe less than thrilled, waiting a day to congratulate Ratcliffe. Observers see this as "a subtle sign of discontent with the shake-up—so subtle you missed it if you blinked.
Collins' Maine colleague, Independent Sen. Angus King, puts his finger on the problem Collins is going to have. Trump picked a partisan lackey for what "is not a political job. Oh, King's on the SSCI, too, so those hearings will be fun for Collins … This isn't like secretary of state or secretary of defense; this is a fact job," he continued. "Because it is human nature to want to tell the boss what he or she wants to hear, you have to have somebody with real backbone."
The last anyone has heard from Collins on the issue was a tweet in which she studiously avoided the whole subject of Ratcliffe. "Dan Coats is one of the finest public servants I have ever known," she said. "He led the intelligence community with integrity and skill, and his departure is a huge loss to our country." Uh huh. So what now, Sen. Collins?
Let's keep her feeling the pressure. Please give $1 to help Democrats in each of these crucial Senate races, but especially the one in Maine!
