Majority Forward, a super PAC linked to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, is hitting Republican Sen. Susan Collins over her support for President Donald Trump’s military campaign in Iran.
The digital ad comes as Trump addressed the nation Wednesday night, making his case for why the U.S. joined Israel in attacking Iran. The president has amassed 50,000 troops in the Mideast, which is about 10,000 more than normal, The New York Times reported — a potential sign he’s considering sending in ground forces.
In early March, Collins voted against a resolution to rein in Trump’s ability to bomb targets in Iran, saying it would send the wrong message to U.S. troops. She also said she supports ensuring Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon.
Speaking Tuesday to reporters in Sanford, Collins said she does not support putting boots on the ground in Iran, based on current intelligence assessments.
Collins said Trump needs congressional approval before any ground invasion. If he tries to circumvent Congress, she said she would support a war powers resolution “wanting the hostilities with Iran to cease if boots are put on the ground.”
“I am fine that we’re taking out that capability to develop a nuclear weapon, but it’s a whole other layer when we’re talking about deploying ground troops,” Collins said. “My reading of the War Powers Act is that the president should not be taking that step without a specific authorization from Congress — an authorization that I’m not willing to provide based on the information I now have.”
The 30-second ad, part of a six-figure digital campaign by Majority Forward tying Collins to Trump’s policies, highlights Collins’ vote against the Senate resolution last month. It also criticizes the roughly $1 trillion in health care cuts in Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Collins provided a key procedural vote to advance the budget bill, even though she had concerns about the health care cuts. She helped negotiate an amendment that included a $50 billion fund to help rural hospitals that would lose funding because of the cuts. She ultimately voted against the bill, resulting in a 50-50 tie that was broken by Vice President JD Vance.
The first six days of the conflict with Iran, which started on Feb. 28, cost about $11.3 billion, The New York Times reported.
“Tell Susan Collins to get her priorities straight,” the narrator says. “We need that money here in Maine, not in the Middle East.”
Collins, 73, is seeking her sixth term in the U.S. Senate.
Democrats will decide in June who they will run against Collins. Recent polling has shown political newcomer Graham Platner, a 41-year-old combat veteran and oyster farmer, leading Gov. Janet Mills in the primary. Brunswick Democrat David Costello is also running.
Mills was encouraged to run by Schumer, while Platner has drawn support from progressives, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.
“Senator Schumer can’t figure out what to do in Maine,” Collins campaign spokesperson Shawn Roderick said in a written statement. “As Governor Mills, his top recruit, struggles, he’s afraid to attack Graham Platner because of the blowback he will get from national progressives. So he just flails away with the same half-truths and lies we saw fail miserably in 2020. Mainers know that, as chair of the Appropriations Committee, Susan Collins delivers real results for our state.”
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