Maine Senators on SCOTUS

The Bangor Daily News has a piece today profiling Maine's senators - Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, both members of the Gang of 14 - and their role in the Supreme Court confirmation process.

Of the media ad blitzes already occurring, Senator Snowe says "It's regrettable that we have major media campaigns under way regarding a Supreme Court nominee when we do not have a nominee. Unfortunately, I think it serves to elevate the polarization and partisanship that exists here in the Senate and in Washington in general." Once there's a nominee, "That's when you have the chance to evaluate the qualifications of the nominee and the various attributes and qualities of the candidate, but to run ads now serves no purpose but to further polarize."

Snowe and Collins both said the ad campaigns will have little impact on their decision-making as the process moves forward; Snowe told the paper that constituent letters are much more important to her than form emails or t.v. ads.

Collins noted that she met with White House chief of staff Andy Card last week regarding possible nominees, and that she told him "The person should have integrity, should have a record of professional excellence, and the person should have a proper judicial temperament. I am seeking an individual that will respect precedent, who respects the rule of law and will apply it fairly and will follow the Constitution."

You know the old saying "As goes Maine, so goes the nation?" The nation sure couldn't do much better than having a Senate full of folks like Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins.