Sen. Susan Collins has taken years of criticism for her vote to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh. What her critics rarely mention is that she also voted to confirm Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, nominated by President Obama, and Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, nominated by President Biden.

That record isn’t a contradiction. It reflects a principle. The Constitution gives senators the job of advising and consenting on a president’s nominees, and Sen. Collins has consistently treated that as a question of qualifications, character and respect for the law, not whether she agrees with a nominee’s politics. Voting only for judges who share your views would turn every confirmation into a partisan brawl. She has refused to do that, whether the president was a Republican or a Democrat, and she has refused to be moved by political campaigns built on accusations rather than evidence.

That same practical, steady approach shows up here at home. Sen. Collins secured $4.7 million in federal funding for a new Belgrade Fire and Rescue Station. For a small town like ours, that kind of investment would be nearly impossible to raise on our own. It means our firefighters and rescue personnel will have a safe, modern facility to serve residents and the thousands of visitors who come to the lakes every summer.

Mainers deserve a senator who does her homework, votes her conscience and gets results for our communities. Sen. Collins has done all three, and she has my support.

Penny Morrell
Belgrade