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Collins aide dismisses ProPublica pay-to-play allegations as 'categorically false'

Sen. Susan Collins's office denies FBI scrutiny over campaign contributions linked to defense contracts.

newest coverage 5h agosummary written 1d ago4 pieces NewswiresGoogle News

What to know

  • ProPublica reported the FBI opened a preliminary investigation in 2024 into alleged pay-to-play contributions involving Sen. Collins, based on claims by convicted defense contractor Martin Kao.
  • Collins's office denies the allegations entirely, characterizing them as false claims from a convicted felon seeking to deflect blame.
  • The report comes as Collins faces a competitive November re-election in Maine against Democrat Troy Jackson, with recent polls showing a tight race.

“Susan Collins doesn't care that we're losing our health care, that ICE is killing people on the streets, and that we've been dragged into a pointless war — as long as her donors get their contracts and her coffers get filled.”

Troy Jackson, Democratic candidate for Maine Senate · Washington Examiner ↗

Susan CollinsSusan Collins U.S. Senator (R-ME), Senate Appropriations Committee chairAnnie Clark Collins Deputy Chief of StaffMartin Kao CEO of defense contractor Navatek, federal informantTroy JacksonTroy Jackson Democratic candidate for Maine Senate seat

Collins aide dismisses ProPublica pay-to-play allegations as 'categorically false'
Washington Examiner

How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articles

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  1. 1

    Democratic rival Troy Jackson accuses Collins of corruption

    Troy Jackson, Collins's opponent in the 2026 Maine Senate race, accused her of "corruption of the highest order" and claimed she prioritized donor contracts over Maine constituents' needs.

    “No wonder she voted with [Trump] 96% of the time and has rubberstamped his agenda to hurt Maine.”
    — Troy Jackson
  2. 2

    Collins deputy chief of staff calls allegations 'categorically false'

    Annie Clark, Collins's Deputy Chief of Staff, issued a statement dismissing the ProPublica report, stating the campaign was never targeted by the FBI and that Kao was facing federal charges at the time he made the claims. She said the issues were resolved in 2021 and the FBI has not contacted the office since.

    “There have never been any allegations of wrongdoing by the Collins for Senator campaign, and the campaign was never the target of the FBI investigation.”
    — Annie Clark
    1. 1 outlet Susan Collins aide dismisses ProPublica corruption allegation as ‘categorically false’

      first by Washington Examiner, 1d ago

    2. 1 outlet Sen. Susan Collins' staff denies corruption allegations made in ProPublica report

      first by WMTW, 1d ago

  3. background

    ProPublica publishes report on FBI scrutiny of Collins — ProPublica published an article describing preliminary FBI steps to investigate potential pay-to-play allegations involving Collins and defense contractor CEO Martin Kao, suggesting the scrutiny evaporated following a Trump-led Justice Department purge.

  4. background

    FBI takes preliminary steps to investigate Collins campaign contributions — The FBI began investigating campaign contributions that informant Martin Kao claimed were steered to politicians including Collins in exchange for millions in federal contracts, citing a 2019 meeting between Kao and the head of a pro-Collins super PAC.