Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, drew widespread attention this week for the way she handled a question about her Democratic opponent’s personal life, appearing to raise a sensitive detail about Troy Jackson while insisting she wasn’t going to bring it up.
Asked by a Politico reporter whether Jackson’s personal life was fair game in the Senate race, Collins responded: “Well, I’m not going to bring up the fact that the mother of his two children is his second cousin. I don’t know whether people know that or not.”
The reporter pointed out the obvious contradiction: “But you just mentioned it.”
The exchange spread quickly online, with commentators on both sides of the aisle weighing in on Collins’ approach. Republican operative Jesse Hunt called her a “silent killer.” Politico editor Mike DeBonis described the clip as “a less-than-2-minute precis of how Susan Collins is as stone-cold a political combatant as the Senate has ever seen.” NOTUS reporter Igor Bobic characterized it as a “Trump tactic” — bringing something up while claiming not to.
Others predicted the moment was a preview of what’s to come. Justin Davis, public affairs director for the National Rifle Association and a Maine native, said “the upcoming debates are going to be gold.” Targeted Victory chief communications officer Matt Gorman warned against underestimating Collins, writing, “Count Collins out (like everyone did in ’20) at your own peril.”
Background on the second-cousin reports
Reports that Jackson and his longtime partner share the same great-grandparents first surfaced in July, when The Maine Wire reported on the relationship. Conservative commentator Greg Price referenced the report on social media, also noting that Jackson entered the race after Graham Platner ended his campaign amid a rape allegation.
A 1988 police report resurfaces
Jackson’s personal history has drawn additional scrutiny over a 1988 police report alleging he assaulted a man at a bar. The same report states that his partner accused him of pushing her around. Jackson does not dispute the altercation with the other man but denies ever laying a hand on his partner, who has said she does not recall giving police a statement to that effect.
Asked about the police report in August, Collins told Fox News Digital: “He’s the one that needs to respond to the reports. I’m not going to comment on them. But I will say that based on widespread reporting it appears that he struggles to control his temper … From my perspective, it seems that vetting is very important. We learned the failure of vetting with Graham Platner. But that’s really up to the Democrats.”
In the Politico interview, Collins also pushed back on the idea that Jackson would be an easier opponent than Platner, noting that Jackson has a lengthy political record that can be scrutinized, unlike Platner, who ran as a political outsider.
Jackson campaign calls it a distraction
Jackson’s campaign has argued that Republican focus on his personal life is meant to divert attention from policy issues. “Susan Collins will do anything to distract from the fact that she votes with Trump 96% of the time and has sold out working people in Maine,” the campaign said previously. “Personal attacks on Troy’s family are shameful and desperate.”
The Jackson campaign did not respond to a request for comment this week.
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