Once we had truly great Maine Republican senators. The last one was William Cohen. Later he became secretary of defense under a Democratic president. He was called a moderate.

What is Sen. Cohen’s reaction to the news coming out of Washington? Donald Trump’s lies, coverups, withholding of military funding to extort an ally into helping his upcoming election, violations of his oath of office, use of the presidency for personal gain and contempt for Congress (a co-equal branch of government) all finally became too much for moderate Republican Sen. Cohen. He concluded that Trump committed an impeachable offense.

Compare him to Susan Collins, who describes herself as a moderate. But a moderate what? A moderate thinker? A moderate communicator? A moderate observer? While witness after witness tells corroborated stories of illegality in Trump’s presidency, Sen. Collins is mute. She won’t reveal whether the stories filling the news are troubling enough to warrant an inquiry by the U.S. House of Representatives. What is she waiting for? Where is her voice?

Recall the late Sen. Barry Goldwater, Republican of Arizona, who had two sentences appropriate to this moment: “Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.”

Collins seems to be saying: “My extremism in silent defense of a corrupt president is no vice, while my tepid moderation in pursuing justice and the rule of law is my virtue.” Maine and our country deserve better than Collins provides.

Len Freeman

Portland