Susan Collins is baffled as to why the White House 'would want to alienate' her


Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is still frustrated by how COVID-19 relief bill negotiations went down, The Wall Street Journal reports. Specifically, Collins is not pleased about what she considers to have been a brusque dismissal when she and a group of other Republican senators sat down with President Biden in early February to try to reach consensus on a package.
The senator, who has built a moderate reputation over the years, told the Journal that she's confused as to why the Biden administration, which ultimately saw its $1.9 trillion stimulus pass through Congress without Republican support in either chamber, "would want to alienate the Republican most likely to work with them to find common ground." It's "truly a mystery to me," she said.
Collins doesn't really blame Biden, it seems. The two got along well when the latter was still in the Senate, and Collins said she trusts him when he says he wants to work with Republicans and build unity in Congress. But, she reportedly thinks White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), with whom Collins has verbally sparred recently, are getting in the way of that. "I have been a bit concerned that perhaps some of these left groups, or perhaps members of [Biden's] staff, are tugging at him constantly to try to move him further to the left than I think is wise," she told the Journal. Read more at The Wall Street Journal.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Fowlescombe Farm: a luxurious retreat rooted in nature
The Week Recommends This historic working farm in south Devon is the perfect place to get back to basics
-
July 18 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Friday's political cartoons include Donald Trump desperately trying to avoid the Jeffrey Epstein story while JD Vance and Elon Musk say the loud part silently
-
What difference will the 'historic' UK-Germany treaty make?
Today's Big Question Europe's two biggest economies sign first treaty since WWII, underscoring 'triangle alliance' with France amid growing Russian threat and US distance
-
Fed chair Powell in Trump's firing line
Speed Read The president considers removing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell
-
Trump trashes supporters over Epstein files
speed read The president lashed out on social media following criticism of his administration's Jeffrey Epstein investigation
-
Judge nixes wiping medical debt from credit checks
Speed Read Medical debt can now be included in credit reports
-
Grijalva wins Democratic special primary for Arizona
Speed Read She will go up against Republican nominee Daniel Butierez to fill the US House seat her father held until his death earlier this year
-
US inflation jumps as Trump tariffs 'bite'
Speed Read Consumer prices are climbing and the inflation rate rose to its highest level in four months
-
SCOTUS greenlights mass DOE firings
Speed Read The Supreme Court will allow the Trump administration to further shrink the Education Department
-
Cuomo announces third-party run for NYC mayor
Speed Read He will go up against progressive Democratic powerhouse Zohran Mamdani and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams
-
Secret Service 'failures' on Trump shooting
Speed Read Two new reports detail security breakdowns that led to attempts on the president's life