Sometimes you have to read in between the lines.
I am not going to speculate as to whether The F.B.I. is wrong and Susan Collins does in fact know about the illegal campaign financing via Navatek—a Hawaiian defense contractor.
What interests me far more is the idea of her truly not knowing.
If what sources are alleging is true, then that means Navatek went out of its way to illegally finance her campaign without her knowledge.
You really have to LOVE someone in order to do something like that. You must want them to be in power so incredibly badly to engage in this type of behavior.
Sources also point to the fact that these mystery donations were made right after Collins helped Navatek to secure an $8 million Naval contract.
Whether you believe she did know and The F.B.I. simply has not picked up on it, or does know but is covering for Collins, or she truly does now know—one thing is for certain: The M.I.C loves Collins.
Here is what we could dig up:
Axios had some interesting facts about Collins and Navatek:
The FBI is investigating what it describes as a massive scheme to illegally finance Sen. Susan Collins' 2020 re-election bid, Axios has learned.
A recently unsealed search warrant application shows the FBI believes a Hawaii defense contractor illegally funneled $150,000 to a pro-Collins super PAC and reimbursed donations to Collins' campaign. There's no indication that Collins or her team were aware of any of it.
Collins helped the contractor at issue, then called Navatek and since renamed the Martin Defense Group, secure an $8 million Navy contract before most of the donations took place.Former Navatek CEO Martin Kao was indicted last year for allegedly bilking the federal government of millions in coronavirus relief loans.
What they're saying: "The Collins for Senator Campaign had absolutely no knowledge of anything alleged in the warrant," Collins spokesperson Annie Clark told Axios in an emailed statement.
The Wall Street Journal went more in depth:
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has searched electronic devices belonging to defense executive Martin Kao seeking evidence that he orchestrated an effort to funnel allegedly illegal contributions to help Ms. Collins, a Maine Republican, in her 2020 reelection bid. Federal law prohibits defense contractors from making contributions to federal elected officials.
Federal agents requested the warrant, unsealed Friday, citing evidence that Mr. Kao, through a personal account and his company’s, reimbursed friends and family members for about $45,000 in donations they made directly to Ms. Collins’s campaign. Such a pattern of behavior would violate a federal law banning donations made in the name of another person. Investigators also allege that Mr. Kao unlawfully directed $150,000 in corporate funds to a super PAC supporting Ms. Collins’s 2020 re-election campaign.
At the time, Mr. Kao was serving as the chief executive of Navatek, a Hawaii-based defense contractor that has since been renamed Martin Defense Group. A spokeswoman for the company didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Join the conversation!
Please share your thoughts about this article below. We value your opinions, and would love to see you add to the discussion!