All posts tagged "susan collins"

Todd Blanche confirmation in peril as key senator comes out against him

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's chance of securing his role permanently is hanging on by a thread after a GOP senator came out against him.

On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance Blanche's nomination as Attorney General to the full Senate, but not before deals with two GOP senators had to be cut to secure the vote. Now, Blanche has to secure enough Senate votes to secure the AG role, but Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) announced she would not be voting in his favor, according to reports.

"While I believe Mr. Blanche is a capable lawyer, the Department of Justice has become increasingly political," Collins said in a statement. "Mr. Blanche has taken several actions that have further eroded the Department's independence, and that is the basis for my vote to oppose his confirmation."

Blanche can only afford to lose two votes in the Senate if he wants to become President Donald Trump's AG, according to reporting by CNN and Axios, which noted that Sen. Mitch McConnell's lingering absence is also narrowing his margin for error.

During the past few months, Blanche had to battle to secure the support of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) over the weekend said that he won't confirm Blanche after Trump posted on Truth Social that he'll resurrect the $1.776 billion anti-weaponization fund, which critics worry will pay Trump allies and Jan. 6ers. Tillis called it a "payout for punks."

However, Tillis ended up voting to advance Blanche. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) also made it unclear whether he would vote for Blanche, and after the vote on Blanche was delayed last week, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said he would work to shore up the votes to advance Blanche. Ultimately, Cornyn and Tillis voted to advance Blanche.

Now, Blanche can only afford to lose one more vote. Axios noted that Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) haven't said how they will vote on Blanche's confirmation, though Murkowski's state has seen a recent windfall in settlements with Blanche's Department of Justice.

GOP senator snaps at pressure over Mitch McConnell's return: 'So unkind'

A GOP senator lost her cool when addressing questions about when Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will return, per reports.

An article by The New York Times about McConnell's extended absence and health described how Republicans are responding to questions about the senior senator. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) responded by taking offense at those pressing for answers.

"Mitch was the longest-serving leader in Senate history," Collins said. "Couldn't we extend some grace to him? He is a survivor of childhood polio, which has made his recovery slower. But he has always been a fighter and will be back."

She also lashed out at Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) for demanding that McConnell "directly and verbally address the people of Kentucky and provide proof of your capacity to serve, or resign."

"This rush led by the governor, who must be running for president, is so unseemly and so unkind to a senator who has been such a leader for so many years," responded Collins, who serves alongside McConnell on the Senate Appropriations Committee as its chair. The Daily Beast's reporting noted that Collins has also faced questions about her tremors, which she says are benign.

The Times also spoke to John Feehery, a longtime senior congressional aide and Republican strategist, about a possible special election to replace McConnell. Feehery said it would be a waste of time and money, according to The Times.

"Mitch McConnell deserves the right to serve out the term however he sees fit," Feehery said. "He is certainly not the first senator to have health problems which require him to miss votes, and he certainly won't be the last."

'It's unbelievable': GOP senators lose patience as senator's absence ties agenda in knots

GOP senators sounded off on Sen. Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) extended absence and suggested a rule change to claw back leverage, according to a new report from NOTUS.

In a Thursday article, GOP senators discussed the key votes they're losing in Senate committees while McConnell has been hospitalized for most of the past two months.

"We're at 52," Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) told NOTUS, referring to how the GOP is effectively short of the 53 seats it nominally holds in the Senate. "This is the reality."

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) expressed her frustration with a nearly month-long standstill in the Senate Appropriations Committee, as she told NOTUS it's "impossible" to have conversations and advance bipartisan legislation to avoid a government shutdown. The committee is split at 14-14 with McConnell's absence, NOTUS noted.

"We miss not just his vote. We miss him," Capito said. "But it definitely has an impact on approps. It's probably the most deeply felt."

Sen. Jim Justice (R-WV) told NOTUS that Congress should pass a bill to prevent legislative impasses caused by long absences and allow parties to pick replacements for lawmakers absent for more than 30 days.

"That completely is so reasonable it's unbelievable to me," Justice said. "Let's just pray that he gets back really, really soon and gets back in a good, healthy way where we can move this along."

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) complained to NOTUS about absences in his party generally, saying, "Basically, we've been unable to do stuff today in committees" because of missing Republicans.

"All the committees I was in today had to be canceled or couldn't do business because Republicans weren't there," Hawley told NOTUS. "And I'm like, wow, we've got two weeks to go."

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, predicted McConnell "will be back in September," she told NOTUS.

Susan Collins in full-on retreat as Trump's new attack on Canada threatens her state

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) was flailing for as much distance as possible as President Donald Trump moves to impose draconian new tariffs on Canada, according to a Politico report on Tuesday.

Collins, a top target for Democrats in a battleground Senate race, represents a state that directly borders the Canadian Maritime provinces.

“I have voted repeatedly against the Canadian tariffs,” said Collins in a statement to Politico. “Maine and Canada’s economies are very intertwined. A lot of our blueberries, our potatoes, our lobster, our lumber are harvested in Maine, processed in Canada and then come back. I don’t want to see the tariffs on the books.”

Bobby Charles, the GOP's nominee for governor, concurred with Collins.

“As Governor, Bobby will always prioritize Maine, even if that means taking a position contrary to the national elites of his party,” Vincent Harris, a senior strategist for Charles, told Politico in a statement.

If elected, Charles said he will travel to Washington to argue against Trump's tariffs.

Trump's new scheme, enacted under a controversial and hardly-ever-used 1930 tariff law, would put 50 percent import taxes on a range of Canadian products.

All of this comes amid a massive shakeup of the Maine Senate race, with Democrats pressuring their nominee Graham Platner to withdraw over credible allegations of sexual assault, and coalescing instead around state lawmaker Troy Jackson.

Susan Collins warned on Fox News that her votes are about to come back to haunt her

A Fox News co-host said Friday that Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) could face a tough road in the upcoming elections to maintain her Senate seat in the fallout over the fatal ICE shooting in her state.

Democratic strategist Jessica Tarlov pointed out that since Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner stepped down from the race amid allegations of sexual assault, it's opened up more questions and scrutiny over Collins' vote on ICE funding as potential Democratic hopefuls push their campaigns forward.

"There is a lot of energy right now in Maine, and it is blue energy in the Democratic sense," Tarlov said. "There is a reason that they are talking about the policies of Graham Platner because they were overwhelmingly popular with the primary electorate."

Now, it's been six years, and Collins has voted with Trump "95 percent of the time," Tarlov added.

"Right now Maine is in full crisis mode over this ICE murder from last week of Johan Guerrero," she said. "Everyone's talking about Susan Collins, one of the deciding votes for that extra $70 billion for ICE funding."

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin's threats on Friday that federal immigration officials would ramp up street-level enforcement could also be problematic for Collins, Tarlov argued.

"We're going to be turning up the heat in the streets," she said. "Susan Collins doesn't want any heat up in the streets. Susan Collins is going to have a very difficult time hanging on if things like this are going on in her state, and if you can tie her directly to the funding."

"She's got to run even stronger than she did in 2020; this is a different environment, and it is a very anti-Trump environment, and she is tied with him with 95% of her votes," Tarlov added.

Jessica: Markwayne Mullin said we are going to be turning up the heat in the streets. Susan Collins doesn't want any heat up in the streets. Susan Collins is going to have a very difficult time hanging on if things like this are going on in her state. pic.twitter.com/vliXcyYGGc
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 17, 2026

Protests flare up at Susan Collins' office after ICE shooting in Maine

A group of protesters swarmed Sen. Susan Collins' (R-ME) office Monday after an ICE shooting left a 26-year-old Colombian man dead, according to reports.

The group flooded the streets outside the longtime Republican's Maine headquarters after ICE fatally shot Joan Sebastian Guerrero in a car in Biddeford, Maine, the Bangor Daily News reported. Immigration rights groups said he was authorized to work in the United States.

ICE officials said that the man was attempting to use the car as a weapon against the federal agents. But videos from the shooting show agents walking beside a slow-rolling car, undercutting the government's claim that the driver tried to use it as a weapon.

Biddeford, Maine is pissed off and organized a MASSIVE protest after ICE has fatally shot another citizen.

Americans don’t have to live like this. pic.twitter.com/71PcxtmX3G
— Sarrah Bellus (@sarrah_bellus) July 13, 2026

'Anxious' Senate Republicans fear they'll hand Dems another weapon — another shutdown

Senate Republicans are dreading the possibility of handing Democrats an opportunity to force a shutdown before the midterms, per Axios.

According to an article by Axios, "anxious" GOP senators are already raising fears that Democrats will force another shutdown this fall, ahead of the November midterms. The situation is also complicated by the absence of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who is on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

"[Senate] Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has stressed the need to ensure the Senate is not trapped in another funding emergency right before the election," Axios reported, adding that some Republicans are even considering a short-term continuing resolution to carry the government through the midterms.

"Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) still wants to stick with the normal funding process to avoid a [continuing resolution]," Axios noted. "But Collins has been vocal about her frustration with Democrats' unwillingness to vote for the funding bills in committee."

Collins complained last month that Appropriations Vice Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) had threatened to vote against every appropriations bill, including measures Democrats helped write, according to Axios. However, Murray blamed the Trump administration's spending demands, including a $1.5 trillion defense request.

"We made it clear to the Republicans that we are not going to accept a gigantic war budget offer," Murray told reporters last month, according to Axios. The Trump administration also asked Congress for $87.6 billion, mostly to fund the Iran war, Axios added.

McConnell chairs the defense appropriations subcommittee, and his hospitalization since last month has already forced the panel to delay markups, per Axios. With just a one-seat GOP margin on the committee, Republicans can't bank on the Democratic votes they've leaned on before.

The Senate has endured three shutdowns in the past year, including a months-long closure last October. The government runs out of money on September 30, and the Senate is scheduled to be in recess all of October, Axios noted.

Gretchen Carlson goes scorched earth after Graham Platner drops out: 'Disgusting display'

Former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson unloaded on Graham Platner's denial of damning allegations as he suspended his campaign.

Platner announced he's suspending his Democratic campaign for a Senate seat in Maine via an eleven-minute video. On CNN, Carlson slammed his comments as a "disgusting display" and called on him to "take accountability."

After months of controversies plaguing Platner's campaign to unseat Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), the Democratic nominee decided to suspend his campaign because of accusations of sexual assault that came out earlier this week, which led to supporters like Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) pulling their endorsements and calling on him to withdraw.

In the video he posted on Wednesday announcing the suspension, he continued to deny those allegations as "all false" and "not remotely true." He said the accusations were "being used by the political establishment to put pressure" on his campaign.

Carlson, who filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against the late Fox News head Roger Ailes, wasn't buying Platner's defense, however.

"That was a disgusting display of hubris that every woman and man in America should be incredibly upset about," Carlson said. "A real man would stand up and take accountability for what has happened here."

She slammed Platner's image as a regular person, saying, "Regular people do not abuse women," and brought up his "myriad" of other controversies, including his wife finding out that he was sending sexually explicit texts and his tattoo with Nazi connections. She also cautioned the Democrat taking his place in the race against taking Platner's endorsement.

"I don't know what this display was in this video," Carlson said. "But I wouldn't want the endorsement of Graham Platner."

Graham Platner suspends Maine Senate campaign after damning allegations

Embattled Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner announced on Wednesday that he's suspending his campaign.

Platner already faced a series of controversies before winning the Democratic primaries to run against Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), but earlier this week, he was accused of sexual assault, which led to endorsements being pulled.

In an eleven-minute video posted by his campaign, he continued to deny what he called "false allegations" that are "being used by the political establishment," he said.

"I think it's really important to understand why [this] is happening in the timeline, why this is happening right now," Platner said. "There's a reason that this is happening now."

Platner had until July 13 to leave the ballot, and he said, "That's why this is occurring," this week.

Maine Democrat in marquee race accused of sexual assault

Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner has been accused of sexual assault, according to Politico on Monday.

The accuser, "a 41-year-old Maine resident named Jenny Racicot, detailed the alleged incident to POLITICO in three interviews over the past two weeks." A man Racicot dated corroborated the incident, as well as "emails between Racicot and her therapist and messages between Racicot and an acquaintance whom she warned against getting involved with Platner years before he ran for office."

Racicot has said that she knew Platner for two years "before he entered her rural Maine home uninvited one night in late 2021, deeply intoxicated, and forced himself on her while she repeatedly told him to stop." After this alleged incident, she says she told him the encounter wasn't consensual and cut contact with him.

Platner has denied the allegations against him. “These allegations are troubling, serious, and false. Any accusation of non-consensual behavior is categorically untrue.”

This comes after a long series of other controversies involving Platner, an oyster farmer and veteran running against Republican Sen. Susan Collins as an outsider candidate.