GORHAM, Maine — Senator Susan Collins used a campaign appearance on the Howie Carr Show at Moody’s Heavy Duty in Gorham to highlight federal funding she says she secured for Maine communities, defend her work on behalf of the state’s lobster industry, and make the case for her reelection.

Collins said she has helped secure $1.5 billion for 672 projects across Maine over the past five years. She said the figure reflects an opportunity provided by her role as chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, a position she took on last year. According to Collins, it had been 92 years since a Maine senator last chaired the committee.

Among the projects she cited were new emergency rooms in Bridgton, Rumford and Millinocket. She said the funding total did not include support she helped secure for Bath Iron Works, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Pratt & Whitney, and Air National Guard facilities. Collins praised the workers at Maine’s defense-related employers and said she had supported community-college workforce programs to train welders, plumbers and pipe fitters. She described Bath Iron Works as a source of 6,800 jobs.

Collins also defended her efforts to block federal rules she said would have harmed the state’s lobster industry. She characterized the Biden administration’s proposed regulations, intended to protect right whales, as onerous and said the First Circuit overturned them. In the meantime, she said, she had added language to an appropriations bill preventing the Department of Commerce from proceeding with the rules.

“That the Department of Commerce could not go ahead with those regulations, which would have shut down our lobster industry,” Collins said. “Can you imagine? I mean, what’s more iconic to Maine? What’s more delicious?”

She added that wild blueberries and Maine potatoes are among her favorite foods. Collins also criticized proposals to designate large areas of ocean as protected monuments, saying restrictions could have closed off parts of the fishing and lobster industries.

Collins makes case for Maine’s voice in Washington

Asked about her standing with Republicans who consider her too moderate, Collins said she bases her decisions on two questions: “What’s best for Maine, and what’s best for America?” She noted that she is now the only Republican senator in New England, and said that having one party dominate the region reflects polarization and is not good for the country or the region.

The senator also defended her vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Collins said she does not regret the vote, describing Kavanaugh as qualified, and argued that she has applied consistent standards to nominees from both parties. She cited her votes for Democratic nominees Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor.

Collins criticized Jackson, her Democratic opponent, for supporting an expansion of the Supreme Court. She also cited positions she attributed to the Democratic Socialists of America, which she said endorsed Jackson during his unsuccessful gubernatorial primary campaign. Collins said the group supports abolishing the Supreme Court, the presidency and the Senate, as well as opening borders, closing prisons and reducing national defense spending. These were Collins’s characterizations during the interview.

Taxes, temperament and debates

Collins criticized Jackson over a sales-tax measure she said was passed under his leadership as Senate president. She said the proposal would have expanded the sales tax to services and products including haircuts and car repairs, while lowering the top income-tax rate. Collins called the sales tax regressive and said voters repealed the law by referendum.

She also raised concerns about Jackson’s temperament, referring to reports of confrontations with Democratic women. Collins said she could not personally vouch for those accounts, but emphasized that she believes in treating people respectfully, whether or not they agree.

Collins said four debates are scheduled for October. She said she had tried to arrange debates before early voting began but that Jackson had not agreed to that timing. She said she had accepted all four debates and wished voters could have heard from the candidates before early voting.

During the event, Collins also thanked supporters who speak with neighbors, friends and family on her behalf. In a brief personal exchange, she said she and other members of her family graduated from Caribou High School. She recalled helping farmers harvest potatoes at age 10 during a break in the school year, describing the experience as where she developed her work ethic.

The interview was conducted at a live event hosted by Howie Carr at Moody’s Heavy Duty in Gorham.