Sen. Collins, below are the words you should have said to your colleagues in the Senate. But that’s not who you are. Those are the words of Angus King, your fellow Maine Senator. I suggest you read them now, since you clearly weren’t paying attention before.

“We began our careers here with the following words, ‘I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.’

“When each of us arrived here in the Senate, we took this oath to support and defend the Constitution, and as it says, against all enemies foreign and domestic. I think it’s interesting that the framers concede that there might be domestic enemies to the Constitution. Our oath was not to the Republican Party, not to the Democratic Party, not to Joe Biden, not to Donald Trump, but our oath was to defend the Constitution.

“And right now — right now, literally at this moment — that Constitution is under the most direct and consequential assault in our nation’s history. An assault not on a particular provision but on the essential structure of the document itself. It’s hard to grasp what is happening because of all the events that are swirling around us over the last several weeks. It’s coming from so many different quarters and so many different actors. It’s hard to get a picture of what’s really happening fundamentally.

“But this is an assault, and how we respond to it will define our life’s work, our place in history, and the future of our country. None of us will ever face a greater challenge.”

Let’s consider, Sen. Collins, how you’ve responded to a clear assault on the Constitution. Well, you had a grand old time at a recent GOP retreat at Mar-a-Lago, hobnobbing with your fellow spineless GOP Senators and Representatives, assuring Trump’s henchmen that you would approve all of Trump’s remaining cabinet nominations. And hey, you and your fellow got an all-expenses paid junket to sunny Florida, compliments of the American taxpayer. Yahoo!

In recent years, you’ve demonstrated time and time again that you want to have it both ways. You want to be perceived as a “moderate,” expressing “concern” about this or that latest GOP outrage. But you always cave when it matters. You’re also very gullible, to put it mildly.

You declared that Trump had “learned his lesson” after the first impeachment trial. Oh really? You believed Brett Kavanaugh’s assertion that he wouldn’t help overturn Roe v. Wade. And you happily swallowed Robert F. Kennedy’s snake oil. You approved his nomination to become secretary of Health and Human Services even though 150 Maine physicians had sent you a letter urging you to oppose him.

I get it, Sen. Collins, why jeopardize being ousted from the GOP boys club, just to please a few Maine physicians. After all, what do they know about health? And why listen to the thousands of Mainers who have barraged your offices with letters, emails and phone calls in recent weeks, urging you to stand up to Trump and his assault on the nation’s democratic principles.

Sen. Collins, let me be blunt. You’ve gone well beyond your use by date. When you were elected, you promised to serve only two terms, yet you’re now in the middle of your fourth term. Ah, the perks of power. Never mind that you are apparently afraid to hold public meetings in Maine, preferring to hide away in your office, expressing concern, clutching your pearls, but ultimately doing the bidding of people who would destroy our democracy.

If you run for reelection in 2026, Sen. Collins, we Mainers will remember your craven cowardice. You can’t hide. You can’t escape the truth. Your legacy will be forever tarnished.

(NOTE: A hearty thank you to Sen. Angus King for standing up for the Constitution, for America and for Maine. It’s sad that you can’t convince your fellow Maine Senator to do what’s right.)

David Treadwell, a Brunswick writer, welcomes commentary and suggestions for future “Just a Little Old” columns at dtreadw575@aol.com.