Embattled GOP Sen. Susan Collins says she won't attack Biden

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published 7 July 2020

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) ruled out voting for President Trump in 2016. But this time, as she faces re-election and straddles appealing to both Trump supporters and the moderates she needs to hold on to her seat, Collins isn't making it clear where she stands.

Collins' deciding vote to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court and his subsequent votes against abortion rights sent progressives scrambling to unseat Collins this election cycle. Collins' Democratic opponent, Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon, just announced she pulled in a huge $9 million in the second fundraising quarter of the year, and The Cook Political Report ranks their race a tossup. It all left Collins admittedly concerned about the election, she told The New York Times as she campaigned over the weekend.

But despite threats from Trump to stay in line with his messaging or risk losing this fall, Collins promised she won't attack former Vice President Joe Biden. "I do not campaign against my colleagues in the Senate," Collins said, apparently including former senators. She said she knows Biden "very well" from his days in the Senate as well. "My inclination is just to stay out of the presidential and focus on my own race," Collins added. Read more about Collins' re-election strategy at The New York Times.