Despite being embroiled in scandal, the Maine senator is benefiting from Democratic Party divisions.

Susan Collins should never be underestimated. She won her first Senate election 30 years ago, and her sheer tenacity in staying in power is formidable, especially since, over the course of her political career, Maine hasn’t been hospitable ground for Republicans (the state last gave the popular vote to a GOP president in 1988).

But Collins’s undeniable gift for pork-barrel spending could now come back to haunt her, thanks to a new pay-for-play scandal broken on Tuesday by ProPublica. The ProPublica story focuses on Collins’s links to Martin Kao, the former CEO of a defense contractor called Navatek. Last year, Kao was sentenced to 87 months in prison for bank fraud and Covid relief fraud.

ProPublica’s reporting shows that Kao’s operation was almost comically corrupt. Despite the denials of Collins’s office, the ProPublica report is damning. It’s also being picked up by local media in Maine. Troy Jackson, the Democratic candidate in the Senate race, put out a punchy ad quoting the reporting and labelling his rival “Corrupt Collins.”

  • Canajan@piefed.caEnglish
    41·
    16 days ago

    This is why Canadians have no faith in Americans to elect a responsible government. A state like Maine begging Canadians to come back, get fucked. Never going to the states again.

    • arrow74@lemmy.zip
      9·
      16 days ago

      Don’t say never, Germany went from enemy of the Western world to respected ally in like 20 years. So who knows

      • Hanrahan@slrpnk.netEnglish
        5·
        16 days ago

        sure , after being bombed to the Stone age, their leader was killed and they were invaded.

        and now the Nazi’s in Germany are back again

        • Eheran@lemmy.world
          1·
          14 days ago

          I agree, there needs to be a really massive cut to change a society. Look at monarchy, GB still has it simply because they did not get wrecked like others. Germany was not just beaten to shit but then also occupied etc. Russia is the same, the Soviet Union broke more or less passively and they want it back, they still love the same “heroes” etc.

    • wheezy@lemmy.mlEnglish
      3·
      16 days ago

      I have noticed a significant decrease in Canadian license plates I see in Washington State. Makes sense. I just wish we could get annexed by Canada and kick out all the California tech workers that moved here.

    • TronBronson@lemmy.world
      2·
      16 days ago

      I for one am happier without you guys as well tbh, you’re not great visitors and you were buying up vacation properties faster than Blackrock so good riddance?

    • TronBronson@lemmy.world
      1·
      16 days ago

      The state of Maine, aka the chamber of commerce, aka all the well to do people that sell you overpriced shit while you’re here. Us poor people hate all the tourist equally, and most of us are glad you’re gone, and appreciate the economic damage your boycott is causing because again, its of no benefit to the average mainer. Fist time in a decade i can afford a hotel and lobster roll in my own state. Please keep up the boycotts.