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A speech by Sen. Susan Collins about the ethics of conscience in government turned into a protest by an anti-war group over the republican senator’s support of the Iraq War.
Robert Shetterly stood near the conclusion of Thursday’s lecture at Hauck Auditorium and accused Collins of supporting an unethical war against a sovereign nation.
“Senator Collins, we cannot understand how you can make claim to either ethics or conscience unless you repudiate this administration,” said Shetterly, who joined about 100 other protesters dressed in black with the number “2319″ on their backs in reference to the number of American soldiers killed in the war.
Collins’ speech was sponsored by the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center and was designed to continue and promote the legacy of Smith, the first female senator from the Pine Tree state.
Collins called upon a quote from Smith, whom she described as one of her role models since their first meeting when Collins was a high school senior, to describe the need for integrity in government.
“The right way is not always popular and easy,” said Collins. “Standing for what’s right when it’s unpopular is the true test of character.”
The senator targeted the lobbying process as one of the facets of government in need to ethical reform. “Lobbying today conjures up images of all-expense-paid vacations and access the public never dreams of,” said Collins, who proposed instituting tougher disclosure rules about what contributions a member of Congress accepts.
“Members of Congress won’t take all-expense-paid golf trips to Scotland if they must be disclosed promptly on the Internet,” she said.
She also suggested creating the office of public integrity, which would be independent of the direct supervision of the House and Senate.
Despite some shortcomings, Collins cited the bipartisan work in the Senate on intelligence reform as a prime example of working with integrity.
“The need to better protect American people from threats of the 21st century trumped party lines every time,” said Collins.
She also spoke about the response to Hurricane Katrina and reactions of Michael Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Michael Chertoff, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
“I was truly shocked at Mr. Brown’s testimony. He showed a complete disregard for his responsibility,” said Collins. “He put personal slights ahead of public interest. His insubordination and blame shifting was astounding.”
Collins contrasted Chertoff’s response and applauded the integrity showed by the secretary.
“He was forthright in acknowledging the shortcomings and pledged to work tirelessly to improve before the next disaster,” said Collins.
“Integrity is not about being perfect,” continued Collins. “It is, however, about accepting responsibility and striving to learn from mistakes.”
While the senator was calling for integrity from her colleagues, Scott Ruffner of Veterans for Peace said Collins is the one who needs to start acting with integrity.
“What we see in this is Susan Collins not honoring the declaration of conscience of Margaret Chase Smith,” said Ruffner. “The policies she is supporting are not ethical or conscionable.”
Bangor Daily News