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Q: Who do you think would make a better U.S. senator for Maine—Collins or Allen?Q: Who do you think would make a better U.S. senator for Maine—Collins or Allen?
Scott K. Fish
I hunker down to write on whether Senator Collins or Congressman Allen would be a better U.S. senator for Maine, and I’m distracted by theme songs/lyrics from TV shows of my childhood heroes. Davy Crockett “born . . . in the land of the free.” Johnny Tremaine, son of Liberty, who “fought and won ’cause his heart was free. Fought and won for liberty.”
Why am I hearing this music again now? The U.S. presidential primary race is sputtering to its finish line. Our next president, as of this writing, will be Senators John McCain, Hillary Clinton, or Barack Obama. When that news became clear—that’s when I started remembering these songs.
My childhood heroes are long gone. Their spirit—the unique American spirit—ties one American generation to the next, gives us our champions, our leaders. I just never gave it a second thought that my heroes’ independent, pioneering spirit would fade away. Yet that’s the feeling I have in the wake of the McCain/Obama/Clinton news.
Obama? Clinton? They’re committed socialists. Socialism and the American spirit are arch enemies. Socialism is the antithesis of Davy Crockett’s “land of the free,” of Johnny Tremaine’s “liberty.” The American voters slobbering over Obama cannot have been touched by the American spirit. Getting excited over socialism is like getting excited over cafeteria food, the motor vehicle bureau, waiting in line.
McCain? Have you ever sat at a bar or lunch counter, striking up a conversation with the amiable guy on the next stool over? Five minutes into the conversation the amiable guy is growing testy and your survival instincts are kicking in. Soon you’re looking for the exits. To me, that’s McCain. Sorry.
It’s no wonder that my brain keeps moving American hero songs front-and-center. It’s me trying to cheer me up, keep me optimistic in the face of troubling political news. Which brings me to the Senator Collins vs. Representative Allen question.
I first met Susan Collins and Tom Allen in 1990. Susan was Maine commissioner of professional and financial regulation in the Governor McKernan administration fighting to fix Maine’s failing workers’ compensation insurance system. Tom was a lawyer at some meeting talking about regionalization.
Allen, like Clinton and Obama, is a fruit from the socialism tree. Representing southern Maine in Congress with nothing to show for it, Allen thinks rural Maine’s a place for government to “save,” not a place where families with homes and children want private sector opportunities, not government handouts. His key campaign issue is U.S. surrender in Iraq. Tom Allen as one of two Maine U.S. senators would be especially bad for Maine’s rural counties, would be a dramatic shift to the left.
Senator Collins and I don’t agree on all issues. But she has deep roots in rural Maine—in the Bangor metro region. She’s not pretending. I agree with her key votes on Supreme Court nominees, the “war on terror,” on economic issues—issues having the greatest impact on Maine after the next general election, too.
Maine is handicapped with Democrats controlling the State Legislature, wasting our time and money on one harmful nanny-state program after another. Compounding that with Tom Allen in the U.S. Senate? Does Maine have chronic masochism?
Sean Faircloth
Senator Collins and President Bush disagree strongly with Senator Snowe, Congressman Mike Michaud, and Congressman Tom Allen. Like Congressmen Tom Allen and Mike Michaud, Senator Snowe agrees we need a firm date for withdrawal from Iraq. Senator Collins would leave as many as 100,000 troops in Iraq over 10 years.
President Bush proposed $70 billion in tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Like Congressmen Allen and Michaud, Snowe voted no. Collins voted yes.
Habeas corpus protects legal rights in civilized nations. Like Congressmen Allen and Michaud, Senator Snowe voted to restore habeas corpus rights that had been suspended by President Bush for people labeled “terrorism suspects” by the Bush administration. Senator Collins voted the Bush line to continue this basic violation of human rights. The Washington Post (September 21, 2007) reported that Senator Collins was “visibly angry” about this vote—not because of the merits of denying basic rights, but because Senator Snowe had not provided “cover” for the pro-Bush vote of Senator Collins.
Like Congressmen Allen and Michaud, Senator Snowe opposes dangerous drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Senator Collins agrees with President Bush, supporting drilling.
Like Allen and Michaud, Snowe voted to protect overtime pay for workers. Collins agreed with President Bush, supporting Bush’s cap on overtime pay.
Like Allen and Michaud, Snowe opposed outsourcing federal government jobs to private entities, entities which actually gouged taxpayers. Senator Collins supported the Bush outsourcing.
This leads to one of the biggest scandals of the 21st century: Halliburton. Halliburton scammed billions from taxpayers. Senator Collins was chair of the Government Affairs Committee during the time Halliburton was stealing from you. When repeatedly asked to conduct an investigation, Senator Collins followed the Bush line, refusing to conduct an investigation into an ongoing scandal that cost Americans billions.
Senator Harry Truman, during WWII, led a Senate committee investigating contractors who ripped off America’s military and taxpayers. Truman was rewarded by FDR with the vice presidency. With a far worse scandal, Senator Collins also pleased a sitting president. Unfortunately, what pleased President Bush was no investigation.
Senator Allard and Senator Hagel, both Republicans, kept their two-term pledge. Senator Collins made the same pledge. Senator Collins—just before she ran for a third term—discovered that she’d “underestimated the importance of seniority.” Thus she jettisoned the promise she made in 1996, then repeated in 2002. This recent discovery of the importance of seniority, she argues, was something Senator Collins did not observe during Senator Cohen’s decades in Washington.
Mainers admire the principles of Harry Truman. Mainers agree with the issue stands of Allen, Snowe, and Michaud. Maine people just don’t agree with these issue stands of President Bush and Senator Collins. A Senator Allen and Senator Snowe would show the Maine independence we need in Washington. If you agree with Senator Snowe on the issues described above, then it’s time for U.S. Senator Tom Allen.
I hunker down to write on whether Senator Collins or Congressman Allen would be a better U.S. senator for Maine, and I’m distracted by theme songs/lyrics from TV shows of my childhood heroes. Davy Crockett “born . . . in the land of the free.” Johnny Tremaine, son of Liberty, who “fought and won ’cause his heart was free. Fought and won for liberty.”
Why am I hearing this music again now? The U.S. presidential primary race is sputtering to its finish line. Our next president, as of this writing, will be Senators John McCain, Hillary Clinton, or Barack Obama. When that news became clear—that’s when I started remembering these songs.
My childhood heroes are long gone. Their spirit—the unique American spirit—ties one American generation to the next, gives us our champions, our leaders. I just never gave it a second thought that my heroes’ independent, pioneering spirit would fade away. Yet that’s the feeling I have in the wake of the McCain/Obama/Clinton news.
Obama? Clinton? They’re committed socialists. Socialism and the American spirit are arch enemies. Socialism is the antithesis of Davy Crockett’s “land of the free,” of Johnny Tremaine’s “liberty.” The American voters slobbering over Obama cannot have been touched by the American spirit. Getting excited over socialism is like getting excited over cafeteria food, the motor vehicle bureau, waiting in line.
McCain? Have you ever sat at a bar or lunch counter, striking up a conversation with the amiable guy on the next stool over? Five minutes into the conversation the amiable guy is growing testy and your survival instincts are kicking in. Soon you’re looking for the exits. To me, that’s McCain. Sorry.
It’s no wonder that my brain keeps moving American hero songs front-and-center. It’s me trying to cheer me up, keep me optimistic in the face of troubling political news. Which brings me to the Senator Collins vs. Representative Allen question.
I first met Susan Collins and Tom Allen in 1990. Susan was Maine commissioner of professional and financial regulation in the Governor McKernan administration fighting to fix Maine’s failing workers’ compensation insurance system. Tom was a lawyer at some meeting talking about regionalization.
Allen, like Clinton and Obama, is a fruit from the socialism tree. Representing southern Maine in Congress with nothing to show for it, Allen thinks rural Maine’s a place for government to “save,” not a place where families with homes and children want private sector opportunities, not government handouts. His key campaign issue is U.S. surrender in Iraq. Tom Allen as one of two Maine U.S. senators would be especially bad for Maine’s rural counties, would be a dramatic shift to the left.
Senator Collins and I don’t agree on all issues. But she has deep roots in rural Maine—in the Bangor metro region. She’s not pretending. I agree with her key votes on Supreme Court nominees, the “war on terror,” on economic issues—issues having the greatest impact on Maine after the next general election, too.
Maine is handicapped with Democrats controlling the State Legislature, wasting our time and money on one harmful nanny-state program after another. Compounding that with Tom Allen in the U.S. Senate? Does Maine have chronic masochism?
Sean Faircloth
Senator Collins and President Bush disagree strongly with Senator Snowe, Congressman Mike Michaud, and Congressman Tom Allen. Like Congressmen Tom Allen and Mike Michaud, Senator Snowe agrees we need a firm date for withdrawal from Iraq. Senator Collins would leave as many as 100,000 troops in Iraq over 10 years.
President Bush proposed $70 billion in tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Like Congressmen Allen and Michaud, Snowe voted no. Collins voted yes.
Habeas corpus protects legal rights in civilized nations. Like Congressmen Allen and Michaud, Senator Snowe voted to restore habeas corpus rights that had been suspended by President Bush for people labeled “terrorism suspects” by the Bush administration. Senator Collins voted the Bush line to continue this basic violation of human rights. The Washington Post (September 21, 2007) reported that Senator Collins was “visibly angry” about this vote—not because of the merits of denying basic rights, but because Senator Snowe had not provided “cover” for the pro-Bush vote of Senator Collins.
Like Congressmen Allen and Michaud, Senator Snowe opposes dangerous drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Senator Collins agrees with President Bush, supporting drilling.
Like Allen and Michaud, Snowe voted to protect overtime pay for workers. Collins agreed with President Bush, supporting Bush’s cap on overtime pay.
Like Allen and Michaud, Snowe opposed outsourcing federal government jobs to private entities, entities which actually gouged taxpayers. Senator Collins supported the Bush outsourcing.
This leads to one of the biggest scandals of the 21st century: Halliburton. Halliburton scammed billions from taxpayers. Senator Collins was chair of the Government Affairs Committee during the time Halliburton was stealing from you. When repeatedly asked to conduct an investigation, Senator Collins followed the Bush line, refusing to conduct an investigation into an ongoing scandal that cost Americans billions.
Senator Harry Truman, during WWII, led a Senate committee investigating contractors who ripped off America’s military and taxpayers. Truman was rewarded by FDR with the vice presidency. With a far worse scandal, Senator Collins also pleased a sitting president. Unfortunately, what pleased President Bush was no investigation.
Senator Allard and Senator Hagel, both Republicans, kept their two-term pledge. Senator Collins made the same pledge. Senator Collins—just before she ran for a third term—discovered that she’d “underestimated the importance of seniority.” Thus she jettisoned the promise she made in 1996, then repeated in 2002. This recent discovery of the importance of seniority, she argues, was something Senator Collins did not observe during Senator Cohen’s decades in Washington.
Mainers admire the principles of Harry Truman. Mainers agree with the issue stands of Allen, Snowe, and Michaud. Maine people just don’t agree with these issue stands of President Bush and Senator Collins. A Senator Allen and Senator Snowe would show the Maine independence we need in Washington. If you agree with Senator Snowe on the issues described above, then it’s time for U.S. Senator Tom Allen.
