Susan Collins: in her own words

Original Link: http://www.turnmaineblue.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=1577

by: Gerald

I wasn't going to comment much on the radio interview (h/t Collins Watch and Maine Politics) in which Susan Collins speculates about whether John Edwards fathered an illegitimate child - her comments are simply inappropriate coming from a sitting senator (and she volunteers them - she is not responding to a question).
I have no idea about who the on-air talent is Q Morning Show (WJBQ-FM, Portland), but it is obvious that they simply adore Collins, and by extension, so must the station itself. And as they actually do talk about real issues, I feel that it is necessary to respond.

If you can bear it, listen/watch for yourself here:

http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/631181

Plenty has been written about her comments regarding Edwards, and I'll not add anything to it, except to wonder if Collins will be asked about John McCain, who cheated on his previous wife Carol, who had been severely injured in a car wreck, in which she lost 5 inches out of her legs and suffered a crushed hip.

I missed where Sen. Collins mentions the relationship. I apologize for my error, and I thank cd2voter for pointing out my oversight.You may recall the Tom Allen news event in which Tom Allen introduced the First Time Homebuyers' Tax Credit Act, which turned into a non-controversy when two TV stations left out the disclosure about his two former staff members. And more recently, Collins' own blog post about the 100th anniversary of Simone's. Well, it turns out that the Simones' daughter works for Collins in her D.C. office. You'll find no reference to that in the blog post or video attached to it, but it does explain why she received such a glowing endorsement, and warm reception inside.

The talk becomes more serious, after mentioning small businesses, one of the hosts claims that Obama "...wants to have every business pay [health] insurance for everyone..." Collins responds, "I do think we need to expand access to affordable insurance, but I don't think that we should require every small business to provide it." She goes on to explain how she wants to provide a tax credit for small businesses to help them defray costs of providing health insurance to their employees.

From the Obama for President website:

Employer Contribution: Employers that do not offer or make a meaningful contribution to the cost of quality health coverage for their employees will be required to contribute a percentage of payroll toward the costs of the national plan. Small businesses will be exempt from this requirement, and will receive a new Small Business Health Tax Credit that helps reduce health care costs for small businesses.
Support for Small Businesses: Barack Obama will create a Small Business Health Tax Credit to provide small businesses with a refundable tax credit of up to 50 percent on premiums paid by small businesses on behalf of their employees. This new credit will provide a strong incentive to small businesses to offer high quality health care to their workers and help improve the competitiveness of America's small businesses.

Responding to a question about who John McCain should choose as his running-mate, she decided not to answer, but instead volunteered that Barack Obama ought to choose Sen. Evan Bayh for his. This is all part of a concern troll meme amongst the right wing (based on credible rumors), and I was surprised to hear it here.

When asked about off-shore oil drilling, Collins said, "I think we should expand off-shore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and the four south-eastern states that want it, but I'm opposed to drilling in the Gulf of Maine because of the impact on our fishing industry and tourism."

Who knew that the states in the south-east didn't have those two industries!

She then uncorks this blatant disregard of history:

We got to end all the needless tax subsidies that the oil industry gets now, and instead use those billions of dollars to give tax breaks to consumers so that we can insulate our homes, switch to a wood pellet stove - whatever.
Of course, Collins didn't mention that she had voted for $14 billion of those tax cuts, nor was she challenged by the Morning Crew. You can read about Tom Allen's proposals to deal directly with high energy costs here.

But you have to give them a break, as they obviously can't follow a script. When Collins led in with the tired meme that the House voted to adjourn instead of staying in Washington to solve the energy "crisis," one of the hosts blasted George W. Bush for going to China to watch the Olympics. Too funny. Idiots.

What no one asks Collins is if the high cost of fuel is such a "crisis," what the frig is she doing here in Maine, going to the theatre? Why isn't she in Washington working while everyone else is off having a good old time.

The love fest wasn't quite over, but the important parts were at this point. No need for you to suffer through the sunflower.