Sam Tracy

This is the eighth death in ICE custody in the last seven weeks.

Midcoast Villager letter: Susan Collins should not be re-elected. There is a simple reason: The GOP should lose control of the Senate. Their control has shielded the Trump administration from accountability for its unconstitutional actions. Here is a short list: Corruption: The president and his family have business interests, some with foreign governments, which have gained them at least $4 billion during Trump’s second term. Revenge: Trump’s Justice Department has harassed his perceived enemies with legal actions. One example: The attempted indictment of members of Congress who are veterans for publishing a reminder to service members that they are legally obliged to refuse illegal orders. In that case the grand jury unanimously rejected the Justice Department’s case. Cover up: Congress finally released the Epstein files after a few Republicans sided with Democrats. However, the identities of perpetrators of sex crimes are still hidden while the victims’ identities have been revealed. When questioned by a Congressional committee, the attorney general threw a hissy fit and refused to answer questions. Violent actions against legal immigrants and citizens in Minneapolis, and abusive treatment of people held in ICE custody. There is much more, but these examples show that Trump and his administration think they are above the law, and so far they have been, because Republican majorities refuse to stand up to them in large enough numbers. They must lose their majorities, and Susan Collins, despite her occasional tepid objections, also needs to go. John Spadola, Searsmont

Seems to us the fundamental -- and probably decisive -- question in ME-SEN this fall is whether Dem and indy former Susan Collins voters come to understand and accept that at her core she's a Republican team player who puts GOP aims ahead of the interests of Mainers. tinyurl.com/zna2vamx #MEpolitics

Oregon tried giving homeless youth $1,000 a month with no strings attached. Here’s what happened The program helped 94% of participants secure housing while building financial literacy skills that could break the cycle of homelessness.

In 2023, an Oregon program began providing 120 homeless youth with $1,000 every month.

Two years later, 94% of participants reported they were housed.

www.oregonlive.com/politics/202...

Ossoff: "Among today's false prophets are the election deniers who indulge this president's obsession with overturning the 2020 election. Hear me when I say this -- they tell a lie so absurd, and therefore so debasing, that the act of telling it proves the teller's total and humiliating submission."

Susan Collins decides to support the SAVE America Act months after Maine voted 64-36% to reject a voter ID measure

Thank you for doing that! I will too. It's not much but it's better than nothing.

Yes, Mainers, the one Democrat was Jared Golden. #mepolitics

One thing we're gonna keep an eye out for in the coming months are news articles that characterize Susan Collins ideology but omit how often she's sided with Trump 2025-6.

The answer? 94% of the time.

Barely takes up any space so a conscientious reporter has every reason to include it. #MEpolitics

Susan Collins Runs for Re-election in Must-Win Senate Seat for Democrats

Direct line in the NYT on Susan Collins' reelection bid:

"Her frequent statements of concern and regret that follow many of President Trump’s actions have been mocked by her opponents because she has been a reliable vote for the Republican agenda during Mr. Trump’s presidencies."

Collins is not a moderate. She's a Trump enabler 24/7.

Susan Collins Is Getting More Money From AIPAC Than Small Donors As oysterman Graham Platner handily outraises Republican Susan Collins, the pro-Israel lobby collected nearly 20% of her donations for her.

Susan Collins raised more money from AIPAC donors last year than small donors.

When we asked her campaign spokesperson about it, he hung up.

New w/ @minnahfarshad.bsky.social @premthakker.bsky.social @zeteo.com zeteo.com/p/susan-coll...

ICE said it was arresting ‘the worst of the worst’ in Maine. We only found a few criminals. The BDN used court records and other sources to identify 67 of roughly 200 people arrested in Maine during last month's surge.

Excellent reporting work here. “Of the 67 people identified by the BDN, 58 of them lacked a criminal record that could be independently verified despite claims that the operation was meant to capture the “worst of the worst” #mepolitics

www.bangordailynews.com/2026/02/09/m...

This is precisely what happened to the transcript of the Zelensky call that led to Trump’s first impeachment. They stashed it in a code-word classified system for political reasons.

Rep. Raskin Confirms ‘Troubling’ And ‘Unnecessary’ Epstein File Redactions

Jamie Raskin said he reviewed an email sent from Epstein to co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell that was a forwarded conversation between Epstein’s lawyers and lawyers for Donald Trump.

The DOJ (illegally) redacted Trump's name in the public files.
What else are they hiding?

Big boisterous turn out to protest Hegseth in Bath today! #mepolitics #antitrump #protectdueprocess #iceout

Despite ICE promises to pursue 'the worst of the worst', 87% of the folks grabbed up during the Maine surge have no known criminal record.

But instead of hauling Kristi Noem in front of her committee -- or holding hearings at all -- Susan Collins wants to give the paramilitary more $$. #MEpolitics

The SAVE Act would require every American citizen to show a passport or birth certificate and government ID to vote.

146 MILLION Americans do not have a passport.

69 MILLION women do not have a valid birth certificate due to surname changes.

The SAVE Act is an anti-voter bill.

For a story I'm working on, I'd love to talk to VOTERS who:
-Live in MISSISSIPPI & have been sent to the wrong polling place on Election Day, either due to the polling place locator or a precinct change
-Live in NEVADA or COLORADO & vote at a vote center of your choice
-Live in OREGON or WASHINGTON

U.K. might lose a prime minister because a guy who worked for him knew another guy who hung out with Epstein. Meanwhile the U.S. opposition party is telling our President, who was Epstein's best friend, that his secret police should get better training so their public street murders look less messy.

Maine Public article: Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports first case of measles in Maine since 2019.

Susan Collins decision to let an anti-vax crank run the country's health apparatus doesn't get mentioned in this article either...but it should. #MEpolitics

...and when Republicans whine that this wasn't one of the earlier conditions Democrats specified, Democrats simply have to say 1) my bad, and 2) they're adjusting in light of Trump's and Bannon's comments, and this is now a red line for them.

Democrats should defund and restrain ICE to the degree possible. And they should insist on this condition at least: No ICE (or Border Patrol) anywhere near the polls or early voting election locations this fall.

Warning Signs of Election Interference The Fulton County raid and other recent developments show how Trump and his allies are moving to discredit losses and control future elections.

"Trump lamented that he failed to activate the National Guard to seize voting machines in 2020. The Fulton raid should set alarm bells ringing about Trump’s willingness to abuse the power of his office to undermine free and fair elections in 2026 and 2028."
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...

The successful nonviolence and civil rights movements of the past, as I’ve gathered from reading about them, ALSO featured a shit ton of incessant petty drama and in-fighting.

But crucially, they didn’t have social media - so this was kept far more private.

Conservatives Boycott All Forms Of Entertainment

Conservatives Boycott All Forms Of Entertainment https://theonion.com/conservatives-boycott-all-forms-of-entertainment/

Sometimes you have to say it out loud to appreciate how dire t all is:

The president just openly declared his plans to steal the midterm elections — in an interview with the former number two person at the FBI.

If you campaigned for the presidency on a promise to destroy these assholes, you would win a landslide the size of FDR in 1936, when he campaigned on a promise to destroy these assholes.

He’s just describing The American Dream but you’re supposed to hate it for some reason

Taylor Rehmet, a Democrat (& @runforsomething.net candidate!) flipped a state senate district in Texas that Trump had won by 17 points.

Expand your imagination. When great candidates rooted in community step up to lead, anything is possible.

Graham objected to unanimous consent.

And he blocked the business of the Senate.

Any Senate Democrat could do this.