By Sherwood Olin
Senator Susan Collins poses with Rotarians Bob Duke (left) and John Atwood following her address to the Damariscotta-Newcastle Rotary Club Oct. 7. (Sherwood Olin photo) |
Making the rounds on the campaign trail this week, U.S. Senator Susan Collins, R-Maine, started her day at the weekly Damariscotta-Newcastle Rotary Club breakfast in
Newcastle Oct. 7.
Collins, a former Rotarian herself, began her remarks with a tip of the hat to her audience. Acknowledging her warm introduction by local Rotarian John
Atwood, Collins announced Atwood was a distant cousin.
“Very distant,” she said, “but one I am particularly proud to claim here in Lincoln County.”
Collins devoted the bulk of her comments to discussing the “hyper-partisan, divisive” atmosphere in Washington, and she talked about the challenges ahead
for the nation and the state.
Although Collins is up for reelection for a fourth term in the U.S. Senate next month, she did not address the upcoming election, and she never referred to
her Democratic opponent, Shenna Bellows.
Despite the partisan rancor that has crippled “the world’s greatest deliberative body,” Collins said there is a group of senators in Washington eager to
work to the center in order to reach agreement on issues before the nation.
“Common sense is a valuable commodity but it is often in short supply these days,” she said.
Collins suggested government could operate better if all politicians operated via the Rotarians Four Way Test: Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned?
Will it build goodwill and better friendships? Will it be beneficial to all concerned?
She talked about her efforts to forge a bipartisan compromise to end the government shutdown in October 2013. Collins described the shutdown as a disaster,
one with terrible ramifications for the entire U.S. economy.
The 16-day shutdown cost the U.S. economy more than $24 billion, including an extra $400 million in interest payments alone, Collins said. She pointed to
the small businesses around Acadia National Park as an example of the damage done. Collectively those business lost $1 million a day, she said.
After listening to debates during the shutdown and hearing both sides blaming each other, Collins said she crafted a few remarks, pleading for compromise,
which she delivered from the Senate floor. Within minutes her cell phone was ringing with other Senators wanting to help.
Eventually Collins said she helped fashion the “Common Sense Coalition,” seven Democrats, six Republicans, and one Independent who collectively came up with
a seven point plan Congressional leadership used as a springboard to eventually end the impasse.
“There is a center in the Senate that does want to solve problems,” she said. After the shutdown ended, Collins said she continued to get calls from her
peers seeking to continue pursuing compromise solutions.
“All of a sudden I was one of the cool kids in my group,” she said.
Focusing on the future ahead, Collins said one of the biggest problems facing America today is preparing the American workforce to compete in a global
economy. Unemployment is at 5.9 percent nationally, yet the participation in the labor force is the lowest it has been in 35 years, she said, an indicator some people
have given up on finding a job.
When she goes around the state talking with employers, one theme Collins said she hears constantly is that there is a mismatch between the jobs employers
have to offer and the skill sets prospective employees possess.
It will take a united effort by politicians, educators, and employers to properly prepare American workers for the future, she said.
“You cannot visit a machine shop in this state that does not need a machinist,” she said.
Collins also spoke about the need for a complete overhaul of the U.S. tax code, both to lower the top tax rate to encourage corporations to remain in the
United States and to close loopholes to ensure everyone is paying their fair share.
