The BDN Opinion section operates independently and does not set news policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com
Amy Fried is a retired political science professor at the University of Maine. Her views are her own and do not represent those of any group with which she is affiliated.
There’s a typical, even stereotypical way to write about Sen. Susan Collins. It’s to say that she faces a lot of pressure from her party because she’s a Republican who sometimes disagrees with them, and, with courage, may do that again.
That approach is based in some truth but it’s also incomplete in ways that matter for how Collins is judged.
Indeed, when Collins starts her service in the 119th U.S. Congress in January, she will be pressured by incoming president Donald Trump. He and his closest allies do not brook dissent and are threatening Republican elected officials who might not vote for his most objectionable nominees. As Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a fellow Republican and friend of Collins, put it recently, Trump’s team is warning: “Don’t get on Santa’s naughty list here, because we will primary you.”
Besides this political threat toward sitting senators, Trump’s threatened to run roughshod over Congress with constitutionally dubious recess appointments and by withholding funds budgeted under law. He’s also shown disdain toward the legislative branch holding him accountable by
by saying everyone on the January 6 Committee “should go to jail” and his appointees should “look at that.”
So, yes, there is pressure on Sen. Collins from her party and the incoming president.
But let’s also acknowledge that she doesn’t seem all that concerned. In fact, in speaking about efforts from the right and the left to influence her, Collins told the Washington Post recently, “For me it’s an everyday occurrence, I mean that. . . So I’m used to that, that pressure.”
Moreover, it’s hard to imagine that a primary fight against Collins would be successful. While some Maine Republicans will be angry at Collins if she doesn’t go along with everything Trump wants, probably most recognize that a MAGA Republican could not win a Senate race in Maine so a primary loss for Collins would mean losing that seat. And if Collins truly acted independently and ran as an independent, she’d be unbeatable.
Thus we should conclude that Collins, a senator with a great deal of experience, policy chops and political smarts, acts based on her own judgment and should be judged accordingly.
This means that close attention should be paid to more of Collins’ votes. Take her opposition to Lauren McFerran’s nomination to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Her vote last week was very consequential, as it failed 50-49. This allows Trump to come in and flip the majority, enabling him to undermine pro-worker policies and union organizing. As the Collins Watch blog points out, Collins voted for McFerran in 2020 but hasn’t said (and perhaps hasn’t been asked) about her recent vote.
It also means that Collins should be assessed by how she serves her constituents, the majority of whom voted against Trump three times. Moreover, Maine has a population that gets more federal funds than taxpayers send to Washington, with many needs for health care, Social Security, heating assistance, food stamps, Head Start, housing and more. Big budget cuts hitting Mainers will be proposed and Trump’s tariffs and mass deportations are expected to increase grocery prices. Moreover, Elon Musk wants to “delete” the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Trump’s allies also want to cut bank regulations. All this endangers Maine people.
At the same time, Trump would need massive new spending for wholesale detentions of immigrants, the camps needed to hold them, procedures to evaluate claims and efforts to remove them to other countries.
Collins said she had an “excellent meeting” with Elon Musk that didn’t review any specific cuts. In contrast, Sen. Angus King’s spokesperson was pointed in acknowledging these could hurt Mainers, saying that King’s “door is open to any visitors serious about finding practical approaches and efficiencies within the government budget — as long as they don’t harm Maine people or services.”
As the next chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Collins will have a lot of influence over funding, all of which would affect Maine people far more than the sorts of federal spending she regularly touts during election time.
And that’s how to judge Susan Collins — not by her rhetoric or with a focus on what Trump wants her to do, but as an elected official with power and the political ability to consistently act for Mainers.
