Every time Sen. Collins votes in lockstep with her party, to the detriment of her constituents, I think, “This is it. This is when the press stops calling her a ‘moderate.’ ” And yet the misnomer persists, like a virus you can’t shake.

For reasons I cannot fathom, reporters do not question her, and do not challenge her. When she claimed Neil Gorsuch had the support of 50 “diverse” lawyers, the press swallowed her claim whole. It wasn’t until two readers did a little digging and wrote a letter to the editor (April 3) laying bare the connections among those lawyers that their lack of diversity was revealed.

Reporters are so enamored of Sen. Collins and her reputation that they listen to her words and pay no attention to her votes. When you hold a position of power, words matter, but actions matter more, and votes matter most.

How can the Press Herald publish a headline saying that Collins “takes the lead in urging preservation of filibuster” (April 7) when she had just voted to permanently eliminate the filibuster from Supreme Court deliberations? That is the very definition of hypocrisy, but it is par for the course with Sen. Collins. She says one thing and does the opposite, because the press lets her get away with it time and again.

Susan Collins is no moderate – her votes prove it. The press needs to start doing its job and stop perpetuating the myth.

Lisa Wesel

Bowdoinham