If Susan Collins votes for Brett Kavanaugh, a Maine crowdfund will give $ 1 million to his opponent

In the narrowly divided Senate, Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court confirmation depends in part on the votes of two moderate Republican senators: Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine.

For liberals concerned about what Kavanaugh's seat would do in court, Collins was both a source of hope and limited frustration, expressing concerns about threats to Roe vs. Wade, while consulting the Trump administration through the selection process.

Thus, a group of liberal activists from Maine created an unusual crowdfunding campaign that sums up these two emotions: they raised money in the form of pledges they promised to give to anyone who decided to challenge Collins in 2020 If she votes no, the money will never be withdrawn from the donors.

"Senator Collins votes NO on Kavanaugh and you will not be charged, and no money will be used to fund his future opponent," notes the platform. "Senator Collins votes yes on Kavanaugh and your commitment will go to his opponent's campaign, once that opponent has been identified."

The unusual fundraising effort of the Maine People's Alliance, Mainers for Accountable Leadership and activist Ady Barkan on the Crowdpac platform, had raised more than one million dollars on Tuesday. But in the midst of the attention he was receiving, there were signs that his efforts might turn around.

At least one ethics expert consulted by the Washington Post said that it could very well violate federal laws on bribery, which prohibit giving or offering anything of value to public servants in exchange for acts or of votes. And Collins issued a clearly worded response through a spokesperson who called it an extortion attempt.

"And anyone who thinks that these tactics would work on Senator Collins obviously does not know her," spokeswoman Annie Clark said in a statement. "Senator Collins will decide on the merits of the appointment. Threats or other attempts to intimidate will not play a role in his decision making. "

[Democrats all but acknowledge Kavanaugh is headed toward confirmation to Supreme Court]

Adav Noti, senior director of the campaign's non-partisan legal center, who works on the rules of ethics and finance in the government, told The Post that he thought the list was illegal, noting that the corruption is a federal crime.

"I think they're playing a game to avoid the literal enforcement of the law on corruption," he said. "They structured the campaign in such a way that the action they will take if it does what it wants is that they will pay back the money, but that seems like a fictional distinction. They seem to say that if you do not do what we want, we will spend $ 1 million, which seems to me just as much an incentive to say that we will give you $ 1 million if you do what we want.

Other organizations working at the intersection of monetary policy disagree.

"It sounds a bit risky, but it is not at the level of corruption because there is no agreement," said Jordan Libowitz, spokesperson for Citizens for Ethics and Responsibilities. "It's just the way money and politics tend to work these days."

Both groups of activists did not respond to a request for comment. Barkan did not immediately respond to a message left on his Facebook page.

The tone of the list was alternately threatening and encouraging.

"The people of Maine are asking you to be a hero, Senator Collins," he noted, while warning that if it failed "to defend the citizens of Maine and Americans across the country, every dollar donated to this campaign will go to your possible democrat opponent in 2020. We will get you out of the office.

"Your card will only be debited if Collins votes for Kavanaugh's confirmation," noted the inscription.

Collins has a reputation as a centrist, even if she is a reliable Republican voter. She has already supported Kavanaugh once, when he was appointed to the US Court of Appeals by George W. Bush in 2006, and she sent strong signals that she would support him again this time. After meeting with him in August, whom she described as excellent, she said that he had told her that he was in favor of Roe v. Wade was established as a precedent of the court.

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