Susan Collins finds a principle to stand behind: Tattling on ‘both sides’ in the name of civility

Just when you thought Maine Sen. Susan Collins couldn't get any worse, you find out she's a tattle-tale. Yes, the one thing that woke Chief Justice John Roberts out of his stupor during the ongoing impeachment trial was a note from Collins tattling on Rep. Jerry Nadler for being mean during his statement Tuesday night.

She told Politico she was "stunned" that Nadler would suggest that Senate Republicans were aiding in Trump's cover-up of his Ukraine dealings, and felt compelled to tell teacher Roberts that Nadler and White House counsel Pat Cipollone were breaking the rules. "So I did write a note raising the issue of whether there’d been a violation of the rules," she said. "I gave that note to [Senate Parliamentarian] Laura Dove and shortly thereafter the chief justice did admonish both sides. And I was glad that he did." Which is quintessential Collins: more concerned about decorum in the Senate chamber than Trump extorting a foreign leader to interfere in our election on his behalf. And clearly more invested in helping cover that up, since she voted against every single amendment brought by Democrats trying to expand the record with new witnesses and documents.

Collins has chosen her side, and Maine knows it. Please give $1 to help Democrats in each of these crucial Senate races, but especially the one in Maine!

Collins apparently also remains unconcerned with the behavior of her fellow Republicans, who are breaking all the rules set for them in an impeachment hearing by leaving the chamber for long stretches of time, chatting, snapping gum, doing crosswords, playing with toys, and reading books. She's not tattling to Roberts about that, and reminding him that he's supposed to keeping her colleagues in line. That’s presumably because it's Republicans and not "both sides" misbehaving.

Majority of Maine voters say Collins is ‘driven by political self-interest, not principle’

Susan Collins is damned if she does stick with Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump on impeachment and damned if she doesn't. The filing deadline for the primary for her Senate seat is March 16, and while she's got the backing of the state's rabid Republicans now, they would turn on her in a split second. Former Gov. Paul LePage, who's endorsed her, has to be casting a beady eye on the seat in case she strays. While Collins has to keep looking over her right shoulder, the rest of Maine is bailing on her, according to the latest polling by Garin-Hart-Yang Research Group for the Democratic Senate Majority PAC.

Goal Thermometer

Pollster Geoff Garin points out, based on the polling, that "Maine voters already see Collins as someone who who makes decisions based on what's best for her and least risky politically. They don't see her as acting on principle or what's best for Maine." That makes her voting lock-step with Republicans against witnesses and documents at Trump's impeachment trial on Tuesday a problem for her. That's because 71% of respondents in Maine said the Senate "[s]hould insist on seeing documents and call witnesses." That's on top of the 53% who say that Trump abused the power of his office, including 57% of independents. She has no room to maneuver here.

This comes on the heels of a Morning Consult survey showing Collins to be the least-popular senator with home-state voters in the entire country, in either party. What was remarkable in that survey, conducted quarterly in every state, wasn't necessarily that she's 10 points underwater in her approval rating with Maine's registered voters, 52% disapprove to 42% approve—a drop of 10 net points since the last survey in September. The big deal is that 93% of Maine voters are familiar enough with her to have an opinion about her. Just 7% percent of Maine voters don't look at her favorably or unfavorably.

In this context, this conclusion from the polling for Senate Majority PAC has got to be striking terror in her heart: "Maine voters do not trust Susan Collins to put principle above politics, and if she votes to acquit President Trump a majority say it will be because she is following a party line and doing what she believes is in her own political interest."