Susan Collins

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 Chris Kast, a grandfather and avowed rabble rouser, is a writer and marketing professional who lives in Portland. Last week the so-called Blue Wave hit like a tsunami and people in each state in our incredible — albeit increasingly more fragile — union turned up at the polls and said, “enough is enough.” I know I did. And as I carefully filled in the first choice circle near Troy Jackson’s name, I did so not because I’m a huge fan — I think Jackson has some weaknesses — but because he was our only real choice to defeat “I’ll only serve two terms if elected” Susan Collins. So, he got my vote. After all, the way I look at it, nearly anyone would have been a better choice than Sen. Collins, who has become a voter of political convenience , seemingly to protect her status as a moderate. But I saw through what I consider her machinations and pearl-clutching concerns and for months have been writing her in the hopes that she would respond to me not with a form letter telling me about the hard work she was doing, but with more substantive answers to my questions in order to better understand where she stood on issues and not on her impeccable voting record (which I have to admit is impressive). As I looked at her record and voting, I noticed a pattern of opposition to President Donald Trump when it was convenient and would garner news coverage and then, when it mattered to the MAGA base, she’d step in line and vote for people ( Brett Kavanaugh ) and to move forward legislation (the One Big Beautiful Bill) that showed me and many people like me her true colors. Actually it’s one color really — MAGA red. So as we live through the last few weeks of her long tenure, I have a few suggestions that may help her leave office by making a few moves in her role that could help her maintain respect for the years she spent in Washington, D.C. working on behalf of all Mainers. Those are of course the pre-Trump fealty years. From the tone of her ads toward the end, I could tell that she and the team felt trouble was brewing as the digs at Jackson were puerile and beneath what I thought was her dignity and ability to always take the high road. But since that notion was completely scrapped from what I saw and heard in ads supporting her campaign , I wanted to suggest a few things that she may be able to do to regain some respect. And preserve her legacy. She should: Rebuke Trump for all his bullying, name calling and chaotic brinksmanship that has flipped our republic on its head. Go back, if only for these fleeting last weeks in office, to your true centrist roots and pave the way for both sides to come together as a collective for the greater good. Look into the allegations that Darline Graham Nordone’s (you know Lindsey Graham’s sister) husband works for a company that’s connected to a Chines