Maine Sen. Susan Collins, unlike many of her Republican colleagues, indicated during an interview Wednesday on Maine Public Radio that she might just be serious about investigating the president and his administration’s shadowy relationship with Russia. As a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Collins is involved in the probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, and said Wednesday she is open to the possibility of subpoenaing President Trump’s tax returns, as part of the investigation, to ensure he doesn’t have any untoward dealings with Russia.
“I don’t know whether we will need to do that,” Collins said. “If it is necessary to get to the answers, then I suspect that we would.” Collins also indicated members of the Intelligence Committee will be requesting former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn appear before the committee. It was not clear if those hearings would be held in private or in public. Collins’ comments indicate an increasing interest in probing the Trump team’s Russian ties although the Maine Republican’s willingness to compel the president to release, at least hypothetically, his taxes as part of a broader investigation goes farther than her Republican colleagues in the Senate. “All of us are determined to get the answers,” Collins said. “In some ways, this is a counterintelligence cooperation—in many ways—and that’s what our committee specializes in.”
