Oh Susan

[Norbert]

Busted: Susan Collins advanced Trump bill after receiving $2 million from billionaire

As she gears up for a tough midterm race against a progressive challenger in 2026, Sen. Susan Collins is struggling to shake her reputation as a sellout to corporate interests. A new report out Wednesday may make that even more difficult.

Collins (R-Maine) was one of just three Republican senators not to vote for President Donald Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" Act in July, which slashes over $1 trillion from Medicaid to help pay for tax cuts for the rich and is expected to result in over 10 million people losing health insurance coverage.

But Collinsdidcast a crucial vote to advance the legislation to the Senate floor. An exclusive report from Tessa Stuart in Rolling Stonegives us damning insight into a possible reason why:

[Collins] cast that vote just one day after private equity billionaire Steve Schwarzman, the chair of the Blackstone Group and a man who will personally reap huge rewards from the bill, kicked in $2 million toward her reelection effort.On June 27, Schwarzman gave $2 million to Pine Tree Results PAC, a Super PAC backing Collins; on June 28, Collins cast a decisive vote allowing Trump's bill to advance to the floor. The vote was 51-49. Vice President JD Vance was present at the Capitol, on hand to break a tie, but was not needed after Collins voted in favor of the bill.

The bill went on to pass the Senate just a few days later, to Schwarzman's presumed delight, since the legislation both extended the pass-through business deduction—treasured by the owners of private equity firms—and made it permanent, allowing partnerships to deduct 20% of their pre-tax income.

Collins' office has strongly denied that Schwarzman's influence had anything to do with her vote to advance the bill. As press secretary Blake Kernen noted, a tie in the Senate would have been broken by Vance, so "the motion to proceed would have passed without her vote."

Graham Platner needs to mention this early and often.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/busted-susan-collins-advanced-trump-bill-after-receiving-2-million-from-billionaire/ar-AA1LWm5I?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=68bacb7ad2ae4f49b8183c7ec9be77a4&ei=10

[Scrivener7]

1. Thanks, John Roberts, for that bang-up Citizens United decision.

[marble falls]

2. "a tie in the Senate would have been broken by Vance, so "the motion to proceed would have passed without her vote."" ..

... so her conscience had nothing to do with her vote. A big enough piece of cheese brought out the rat in her.

[JustAnotherGen]

3. I hope the Maine

Independents are paying attention. Especially the moderates who may be very pissed to learn that they count less than one billionaire in America.

[paleotn]

7. From all indications, they are

[JustAnotherGen]

8. That is a race where 'culture' needs to be emphasized

Common sense and Democracy vs Cruelty and Fascism.

[bronxiteforever]

4. Kick and recommend

[Ray Bruns]

5. ed, a tie in the Senate would have been broken by Vance, so "the motion to proceed would have passed without her vote."

But that’s her schtick and it’s getting old. If they need her vote, she votes straight party line. If not, they let her vote against it so she appears “independent”.

[live love laugh]

6. Because we're voting is done with dollars instead of ballots now.

[republianmushroom]

9. She whines and talks the talk,

but, she has shown when it come to money she does walk the walk. Another true republican.