Graham Platner's town hall today in a chicken barn in Appleton, Maine. He's done more than 65 town halls. No questions are screened. Susan Collins has held 0 town halls in 25 years. No questions are taken. Photo: Jim Dugan Photography #MEpolitics

The Fifth Circuit just told millions of women that three judges know better than the FDA, their doctors, and 25 years of evidence. They don't. This restriction on medication abortion is a nationwide abortion restriction, full stop. I have no intention of letting this stand.

Read it all, listened to attacks, but heard Graham Platner up close yesterday. I'M ALL IN. He listens, answers are direct, doesn't shirk from explaining. He's serious & treats people seriously. This is what you get in a hands-off primary: the people's choice emerges. #mepolitics #MESen #VoteBlue

Gift link. Great piece, remarkable embedded footage: www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/u...

T fires independent National Science Board and proposes 50% cut in NSF funding in '27 budget. This is another attack on academia: NSF funds about 25% of basic scientific research coming out of US colleges & universities. thehill.com/policy/energ...

No hearings are scheduled by Susan Collins, Senate Appropriations Chair, to find out why servicemembers aren't getting adequate food. This is not a surprise: Collins has refused to hold oversight hearings since becoming chair in 1/25.

Despite 2 GOP votes against the measure, Susan Collins cast the decisive vote to give ICE, CBP $70 billion in a move that covers the remainder of T's term, preempting post-midterm changes by the Dems. Maine needs to retire Collins. mainenewsroom.substack.com/p/senator-co...

In the middle of the night and over bipartisan opposition, Susan Collins cast the decisive vote to keep Trump's plan to funnel $70 billion to ICE on track. Two other Republicans voted against it. #MEpolitics

Everyone should read this description of how the Roberts Court abused the Supreme Courts own rules and traditions to turn the previously rarely used "shadow docket" into a tool for legislating a right wing agenda from the bench. These "interim rulings" aren't interim; they are policy. Gift article.

Despite being pressed, Gov Janet Mills won't describe Israel's actions in Gaza as genocide. #MEpolitics www.mainepublic.org/politics/202...

LL Bean is 1 of the outdoor companies that's refused to stand up for public lands as the Trump admin orders the most devastating dismantling of the US Forest Service in 121 years. It's easy to tell the company that silence is complicity. Find a link to their email in my post below. saveusfs.org

Interesting piece on the state of the Maine Democratic Senate primary. #mepolitics shorturl.at/yxZDQ

#ME/CFS: Survey about Rest, ME/CFS, & PEM from researchers at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. The general survey took me about 10 minutes. There's a low-energy version available as well. survey.restandmecfs.com/rest-and-mec...

Well, there's this for parents who don't want to tell the kids the dog died. They can say instead that he's “transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector.”

Springsteen's "Ghost of Tom Joad" for Minneapolis with a searing lead by Tom Morello. "Wherever somebody's fighting for a place to stand Or a decent job or a helping hand Wherever somebody's struggling to be free Look in their eyes, ma, and you'll see me" www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qyt3...

Have you seen this yet? This is wrong. Parliament is supposed to be a civic space — the one room in this country where every faith, and no faith, stands on equal ground.

#KnitSky: I want to test knit a sweater & am looking for a good less-expensive yarn (acrylic? blend?). Anyone have a favorite or two?

Springsteen streamed the 1st 2 songs of his inaugural "Land of Hope & Dreams" US tour tonight. Show began with his fiery indictment on the administration before the band launched into "War" and "Born in the USA." www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EN2...

Jackson's lone dissent in SCOTUS ruling for Christian counselor vs. CO's ban on conversion therapy: "To put it bluntly, the Court could be ushering in an era of unprofessional & unsafe medical care administered by effectively unsupervised healthcare providers.” thehill.com/regulation/c...

Platner holds a 27-pt lead over Mills in ME Senate primary per new poll. He & Mills both edge out Collins (48% Platner, 41% Collins; 46% Mills, 43% Collins), but Platner's lead is outside MOE (+/- 4.2%). Poll taken after Mills's 1st negative ad. #MEpolitics emersoncollegepolling.com/maine-2026-p...

ME/CFS: Quick way to participate in important advocacy.

Think voting doesn’t matter? 766 votes.

HEADS up: Join the Association of Migraine Disorders' HEADS Registry open to anyone with Headache, Ear, Auditory, Dizziness, & Sinus disorders. It's designed to build a foundation of knowledge that supports research required to improve lives. www.migrainedisorders.org/heads-regist...

Susan Collins Illogic: "A provision requiring a 1-time proof of citizenship when you register to vote I do not believe is burdensome. If you had to do it every time, I would not support this bill." Collecting & paying for docs in order to (re)register is as problematic as needing them yearly.

Good news: AL Gov Kay Ivey agrees with original trial jurors & victim's daughter who asked her to commute Sonny Burton's sentence to no parole. AL had planned to kill Burton 3-12 even tho Burton never killed nor planned to kill. eji.org/news/charles...

In Sept, the Defense Dept burned thru $93m to use up its funding, but much of the spending went to things that couldn't be considered "pertinent military expenses." In the meantime, Sen Appropriations Chair Collins still hasn't held a single oversight hearing. newrepublic.com/post/207555/...

Platner outpolls both Collins & Mills in new Quantus Insights Poll. In primary: Platner 43.3%, Mills: 38.0% with a significant 18.7% undecided. In head-to-head: Platner beats Collins by nearly 7 points with 5.9% undecided. Full poll is linked. #mepolitics quantusinsights.org/f/maine-sena...

AL plans to kill a man on 3/12 whom AL admits neither killed nor planned to kill. Sonny Burton, 75, was sentenced to die, while the killer was resentenced to life without parole. Petition in linked post asks Gov Ivey to commute Burton's sentence to no parole. www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

I can’t believe in a few days our documentary has been on @Netflix UK a year. So if you are in the UK, have not seen it you need to watch in the next 10 days. If in USA you can stream the Sectets of the Dead on PBS and also in some areas worldwide on Apple TV. 😊#wadlowportrait

AL plans to kill Sonny Burton, 75, despite agreeing that he didn't kill, plan to kill, or encourage a killing. Petition asks Gov Ivey to commute his sentence to no parole, the same sentence the actual shooter received: www.charlessonnyburton.com/action deathpenaltyinfo.org/weeks-ahead-...

Anne Tyler's contribution to the Hogarth Shakespeare series is "Vinegar Girl," a clever retelling of "The Taming of the Shrew." I found it a fun, fast read & welcome relief from the news. #LitFic

Susan Collins supports the SAVE Act even tho Mainers just "resoundingly rejected a referendum that would have restricted access to voting." Collins either doesn't know what kind of ID is required by the bill or she's deliberately spreading misinfo. #mepolitics www.sunjournal.com/2026/02/28/m...

Very frustrating @pbsnews.org interview w/ Border Patrol w/ false claim that ppl being detained have "had due process & ... have been ordered deported" going unchallenged. In ME, the vast majority of ppl targeted have pending asylum claims & no criminal history. mainemorningstar.com/2026/01/23/a...

#MEpolitics: Interesting discussion of the recent UNH poll. Even with some questionable choices about sampling, the poll puts Platner in a good position against both Mills & Collins. @mainenewsroom does good work. mainenewsroom.substack.com/p/a-deeper-d...

Rahman, the disabled US citizen dragged from her car by ICE in Jan, was arrested for silently standing in the Congressional gallery when T spoke about MN. Tho others were also standing, Rahman was aggressively arrested & needed medical care before being charged. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

New UNH Poll: In the primary, Platner leads Mills, 64% to 26%. In the general, Platner leads Collins, 49% to 38%. Mills's lead over Collins is 1%, within the poll's +/-2.9% margin of error. #mepolitics scholars.unh.edu/survey_cente...

Susan Collins is the only member of Maine's Congressional delegation attending the State of the Union. www.mainepublic.org/politics/202...

Be aware of which political party wants the American people to vote and will protect our collective right to do so…and which political party wants to restrict that right so that they may remain in power indefinitely. The difference could not be clearer than at the present moment.

Man in Midcoast Maine arrested & accused of felony after he used his truck to push snow & ice at sidewalk protesters w/ enough force that some were knocked down. Police noted a recent increase in people targeting the weekly peaceful protests. tinyurl.com/4229rkjp

Trump VA rules change means disabled vets who are helped by medicine get less $ in benefits. I'm not making this up. "A lot of veterans prescribed medication for their service-related medical problems will cut it off, rather than lose compensation." www.military.com/benefits/vet...

Hemingway: "The most essential gift for a good writer is a built-in, shock-proof shit detector. This is the writer's radar and all great writers have had it" (1958). "A Farewell to Arms" is a good read. Scribner's 2012 ed includes EH's 47 alternative endings & list of 40+ possible titles. #LitFic

Alabama plans to kill a man 3/12 whom the State admits neither killed nor ordered a killing. Sonny Burton, 75, has spent 30 years on Death Row. The shooter was resentenced to no parole. Petition asks Gov Ivey to commute Sonny's sentence to no parole. www.charlessonnyburton.com/action

MRI studies found that whether "stories were consumed through reading them in a book format or listening to an audiobook version, the same cognitive and emotional areas were triggered." #BookSky goodereader.com/blog/electro...

Many detained by ICE have pending asylum claims & no criminal record. Even if they're released on bond, their cases are "moved to the more adversarial defensive track" & some are ordered to leave & restart the asylum process via a "safe third-country agreement." www.mainepublic.org/immigration/...

Emily Dickinson writes of befriending "Strangers in a foreign World" during another crisis in American history. #Poetry

Susan Collins's support for the SAVE Act moves the bill closer to passage: "We now have enough votes to pass a motion to proceed to the House-passed bill — even without any additional votes — with VP JD Vance breaking the tie," says Mike Lee. I'm livid. #mepolitics www.foxnews.com/politics/col...

Susan Collins is now fundraising off of supporting the SAVE Act.

Courts have ruled more than 4,400 times since October that the administration is jailing immigrants illegally. Most ICE detentions in Maine were of people with active asylum claims, work permits, & no criminal records. www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a speech Saturday at the Munich Security Conference in Germany. Rubio evoked great replacement theory, or what he called “the forces of civilizational erasure that today menace both America and Europe alike.” www.nytimes.com/2026/02/14/w...

Coast Guard pilot fired for failing to transfer Noem's blankie btwn aircraft was "told to take a commercial flight home." The firing was reversed "when it was determined that no other pilot was immediately available to operate the aircraft for the return flight." #oops avweb.com/aviation-new...