Barack Obama emerged from retirement to back progressive Troy Jackson against endangered Republican Sen. Susan Collins — the permanent political class closing ranks to flip a seat the GOP has held for nearly three decades and that Republicans desperately need to keep.
The stakes are straightforward: Collins is behind in the polls and at risk of losing a seat her party has controlled for almost 30 years, according to the Daily Beast. Obama's last-minute endorsement is designed to finish the job.
In a 50-second video released Thursday, Obama sat in a chair and spoke directly to the camera, calling Jackson — a fifth-generation logger and former state Senate president — the kind of fighter the economy requires. "In this economy, we need a fighter like Troy," Obama said. "A fifth-generation logger, Troy worked 80 hours a week and still struggled to get by. So as Maine's Senate president, he fought to raise wages, lower the cost of prescription drugs and provide free lunch to every student in the state."
Obama also highlighted that Jackson "helped protect the right to an abortion in Maine" after Roe was overturned.
The Portland Press Herald noted the video aims to consolidate moderate Democrats and independent voters behind Jackson by focusing on economic issues — voters who have been fickle in Maine. A CNN exit poll in 2020 found Collins earned 13% of Democrats and held a three-point edge with independents in her polls-defying win over former House Speaker Sara Gideon. This time, the numbers look worse for the incumbent.
The Daily Beast framed the race as a referendum on Trump, citing the president's "plummeting approval ratings" driven by his conflict with Iran and widespread unaffordability. What both outlets buried: this is also a story about a 30-year incumbent who can't defend her record to the working-class voters she claims to represent. Collins struggled to defend her record in office against Jackson's attacks that she has failed everyday voters, the Daily Beast reported.
Obama's Maine move is part of a broader operation. His team says he's recorded ads for roughly two dozen candidates across key battleground races, with more expected to air in coming days. Politico reported Obama is targeting races where he can "move the needle with Democrats and persuadable voters." He's also backing Senate hopeful James Talarcio and gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa in Texas, Josh Turek in Iowa's Senate race, and plans to stump in Michigan for Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and gubernatorial hopeful Jocelyn Benson.
Progressive stalwart Bernie Sanders is also hitting the trail for Jackson, with three rallies planned over the weekend.
Jackson said in a statement he was honored by Obama's backing: "Working people are sick and tired of a government that works for the wealthy and well-connected while they struggle to get by."
The question neither outlet asks: when a former president from a seaside estate and a democratic socialist from Vermont both line up behind the same candidate, is the establishment protecting working people — or protecting its own grip on power?
