‘We’d like you to listen!’: Susan Collins savagely heckled at ribbon-cutting ceremony

In a strong contrast to her previous public appearances, Republican Senator Susan Collins faced a wave of heckling and boos at a recent event in her home state of Maine. It seems like heckling has become very common when dealing with politicians lately.

The most recent confrontation occurred during a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Searsport, Maine, marking the completion of the long-running Route 1 construction project. As Collins attempted to speak, demonstrators repeatedly interrupted her with shouts of “Shame! Shame! Shame!” The senator’s attempts to address the crowd were met with more interruptions, with one demonstrator yelling a demand for her to listen to her constituents.

NBC news reported that at one point, Collins said, “Could you please just listen, for just one…” before she was interrupted again by someone saying, “We’d like you to listen!” The protesters’ grievances were varied, but at this specific event, their concerns focused on Collins’s role in celebrating new spending at the same time President Donald Trump and her Republican colleagues in Congress were pushing for federal budget cuts to health care, food assistance, and other essential services. This isn’t the first politician booed for supporting Trump, and it likely won’t be the last.

More politicians are getting heckled for supporting Trump

This reception stands in strong contrast to the welcome Collins received in July 2017. At that time, she was greeted with spontaneous applause upon her arrival at Bangor International Airport. The public outpouring of support was a direct result of her vote to derail the Republican Party’s far-right health care plan, a move that was seen as a victory for the public against her own party’s agenda.

The senator described that moment as amazing, a feeling that must be far removed from her recent experience in Searsport. The dramatic change in public sentiment is a significant indicator of the political challenges she now faces.

The recent heckling and booing are not isolated incidents but rather the latest in a series of confrontations between protesters and members of Congress. For Collins, who is reportedly planning to seek another term next year despite a previous pledge to limit her time in office, this public reception is particularly discouraging. Her constituents’ concerns are not unfounded, and they have been paying close attention to her voting record.

While the senator has pointed to her vote against her party’s far right megabill when it came to the Senate floor, her record on related legislation is more complex. Just a few days prior to that vote, she sided with her party to clear a key procedural hurdle for the legislation. This action allowed the radical legislation to advance, even as some other Republican senators chose to side with the package’s Democratic opponents.

This voting history on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act has not gone unnoticed by some of her constituents. They see a pattern of voting with her party, which appears to contradict her public image as a moderate willing to stand against her colleagues.