“Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), appearing in Maine for the first time since her vote not to impeach President Trump, said that she disapproves of retribution against anyone who came forward with evidence during the process,” the Portland Press Herald reports.

Said Collins: “I’m obviously not in favor of any kind of retribution against anyone who came forward with evidence.”

“A U.S. Senate candidate in Maine has selected an unusual logo for campaign T-shirts – the guillotine – citing the need for a revolution to remove big money from politics,” the Portland Press Herald reports.

A mysterious Hawaii company may have illegally funneled a six-figure contribution to a political group boosting embattled Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) 5,000 miles away, the Daily Beast reports.

“There is scant public information about the company. It does not appear to have a website or any social media presence. Its listed address is a P.O. box in Honolulu… Google searches turn up no information on the company. And there’s no record of prior political involvement by its sole officer, Jennifer Lam.”

Michael Bloomberg, who took his presidential campaign to Maine, said he would actively back his party’s challenger to Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) despite past donations to her, the Bangor Daily News reports.

He said he backed Collins in previous elections because of her general support for expanding background checks for gun purchases.

A new Garin-Hart-Yang (D) poll in Maine finds 53% of voters think President Trump is guilty of abusing the power of his office for his personal benefit by withholding military aid to Ukraine.

Among independent voters — a key group for Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who is up for re-election — 57% said Trump is guilty of abusing the power of his office.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) was caught on video flatly denying that she had accepted campaign contributions from both the Sackler family, owners of Purdue Pharmaceuticals, and drug company giant Eli Lilly.

Collins has, in fact, received contributions from both sources.

Politico: “The outside group Maine Momentum is dramatically escalating its bombardment of Collins over the last weeks of December, honing in on the second anniversary of the GOP’s tax reform law that Collins (R-Maine) supported in 2017, which Democrats believe is a vulnerability in her likely race against statehouse Speaker Sara Gideon.”

“The group planned to run $60,000 in ads over the next three weeks focusing on the law. But the group behind the buy is tripling its investment over the end of the year: Now instead of $180,000 over a three-week period, the group will now spend $540,000 on the ad, punctuating the edge Democrats currently have on the airwaves in the state.”

Politico: “Her reelection contest is already on track to be the state’s most expensive race ever. And Trump is eager to compete for the state’s four Electoral College votes with a campaign aimed at white, working-class voters.”

“If she votes to acquit the president, the state’s resurgent Democratic Party and its national allies are likely to clobber her as out of step with the state’s light blue hue. And if she votes to remove Trump from office after a Senate trial, she’ll risk dampening support from the conservative base and raising the ire of the president himself.”

Portland Press Herald: “Gideon has shown early success tapping into the smaller-dollar, online donations that experts say are increasingly important in competitive races… Maine voters won’t select the next senator for more than a year, but Collins and Gideon – Maine’s House speaker and the best-funded Democrat in the race – have already amassed more contributions than all but one other U.S. Senate race in the state’s history and every other House and gubernatorial contest.”

“And with nearly $13 million in combined donations so far, the candidates will easily surpass the $14 million raised by Collins and her 2008 opponent, former U.S. Rep. Tom Allen, by the end of the year.”

A new Public Policy Polling survey in Maine shows Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) has a dismal 35% to 50% approval rating.

Collins trails a generic Democrat for reelection 41% to 44%. That represents a big drop for Collins compared to a September poll when she led a generic Democrat by 6 points at 44% to 38%.

Also interesting is that 53% of Mainers support impeaching President Trump with 44% opposed. When asked who they would choose if Collins opposed impeachment, she goes from a 3-point deficit against a generic Democratic opponent for reelection to a 7-point deficit at 40% to 47%.

“Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-MA) presidential campaign is putting resources into Maine, where it hopes to help unseat Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) in one of the most high-profile Senate races of this cycle,” the Daily Beast reports.

“A new memo sent to supporters… details a series of investments on state directors and organizers for states that vote and caucus in March. The campaign is devoting these resources not just to boost Warren ahead of primary voting but to assist Democrats in marquee Senate, House, and state legislative contests in 2020.”

First-term Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) said he’s not going to take sides in next year’s U.S. Senate race, the Portland Press Herald reports.

“Golden said he respects both U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, and the leading Democratic challenger, state House Speaker Sara Gideon, a Freeport Democrat.”

“But his rationale for steering clear of the race has less to do with his feelings about the candidates than it does with his commitment to maintaining a good working relationship with whomever wins in November 2020.”

Associated Press: “Money is pouring into Maine’s high-profile Senate race, threatening to upend the state’s reputation for genteel politics and giving way to a new era of partisanship.”

“Advertising data shows Democrats plan to spend at least $1.2 million on ads through December, including a spot that aired for the first time this month that accuses Collins of failing to protect Medicare. A newly formed GOP group, meanwhile, has $800,000 already in the bank, thanks to a small group of wealthy financiers.”

Cook Political Report: “There hasn’t been any reliable polling to date, but it’s a good bet that Collins is ahead, but that Gideon, assuming she in the Democratic standard bearer, has lots of room to grow. This could well end up being one of the closest Senate contests of the cycle and is in the Toss Up column.”

“In the unlikely event that Collins doesn’t run, Republicans’ chances of holding the seat decrease enormously.”

“Maine will see unprecedented amounts of political ad spending in the 2020 presidential cycle, with a nationally targeted U.S. Senate race drawing more than twice what has ever been spent on a single campaign here,” the Bangor Daily News reports.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) “isn’t used to seeing her popularity under water in her home state, but that’s where the Maine Republican finds herself as she decides whether to run for a fifth term next year,” Bloomberg reports.

“Collins says she’s focused on preparing for a re-election bid but won’t decide until the early fall whether she’ll run.”

Said Collins: “The divisiveness of our country and the unceasing attacks by dark money groups in Maine have clearly had an impact.”

Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon (D) announced she will challenge Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) in 2020, the Portland Press Herald reports.

Gideon said she will run against Collins “because Mainers deserve a senator who will always put our state first.”