This morning, Maine Governor Janet Mills suspended her campaign for the U.S. Senate paving the way for Graham Platner to be bestowed with the Democratic Party nomination.
I find Mills' decision disheartening and distressing.
By most accounts, she was a competent, reasonably liked governor. But apparently competence isn't what Democratic Party primary voters want these days. They want red meat (ethically sourced, of course), easy answers and social media clicks. In this respect, Democratic Party voters are no different than the MAGA they purport to despise. This is disheartening.
Aside from being manifestly unqualified for the job, Platner is also a vile anti-Semite, and it would seem Maine Democrats don't care. Indeed, they might very well like him because of it. That is distressing.
Loathe as I am to support a Republican in the age of Trump, if I were living in Maine I would cast my ballot for Susan Collins. It should be said that Collins was among the 7 Republican Senators who voted to impeach Trump during his second impeachment proceeding in 2021 following the events of January 6th and did not vote for Trump in 2024. That she voted to impeach Trump in 2021 and publicly refused to vote for him in 2024 and managed not to have a primary challenger is no small feat.
Trump certainly has no love lost for Collins. A year ago, Trump berated her for not supporting his tariffs against Canada. Last July, Trump took Collins to task for not supporting the so-called Big Beautiful Bill. Back in January, Trump made a profanity laced phone call to Collins when she voted in favor of a Democratic war powers resolution after Trump initiated military action in Venezuela.
Of course, Trump is mercurial. Last month, during a FOX News interview, he called Collins "a good person". Maine Democrats claimed it was proof that Collins was on Trump's team.
At this point, questions remain. Will Maine voters will have the good sense to recognize Collins' independence from Trump and her ability to bring home the bacon? Or will Main voters choose an untested populist demagogue who appeals to people's basest prejudices out of spite not only for Trump but out of spite for competence and getting the job done?
If Janet Mills' competence wasn't enough then who can say it will help Collins?
If that is the case, then I can only hope there are enough decent voters in Maine who will not be fooled by a man who covers a Nazi tattoo because they will see Graham Platner for the bigot that he is.
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