By Ramona du Houx
October 15, 2020
Maine Veterans and members of Common Defense gathered outside the Augusta Civic Center for the October 15th U.S. Senate debate to protest Susan Collins.
“In the past I voted for Senator Collins because I thought she would show integrity and hold the line against big interests,” said Carroll Payne, a retired US Marine Corps First Sergeant from Plymouth, Maine. “That didn’t turn out to be the case.”
Veterans are highlighting their disappointment in Collins for supporting the agenda of Donald Trump, and becoming complicit in “pay-to-play” politics.
In February, the pro-Collins 1820 PAC received a $150,000 donation from a shell company connected to Martin Kao, a defense CEO who was recently arrested for defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program.
“Susan Collins says one thing and does another,” said Nancy Randolph, a US Navy veteran from Topsham, “Even during a pandemic, it’s sad that politicians like Senator Collins only seem to care about getting re-elected. She is running for a 5th time after only claiming she’d run for two terms.”
The veterans said that Mainers deserve a Senator who will fight for them and who will put the people of Maine over corporate interests and self-serving interests. Susan Collins has demonstrated she is not that Senator.
Maine Insights Newsmagazine 