In today’s Sun Journal (Maine), Senators Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Susan Collins (R-ME) write that “the bill provides additional protection for disabled veterans, service members called to active duty and debtors with severe health problems.”

If Maine’s senators were genuinely interested in these protections, they wouldn’t have voted against these amendments to protect debtors with severe health problems. And they wouldn’t have fought against Senator Durbin's effort to provide broad protection to active duty service members and their families. The truth is that Snowe and Collins voted for a weak amendment that provides rhetorical cover to senators instead of providing financial cover to distressed middle class families. These same families would be better off under current law; the bill, even as amended, just makes things worse.

Snowe and Collins are engaging in the politics of deception. Mainers: don’t fall for it. Write letters to the editor to the Sun Journal and let people know that Maine's senators are lying to their constituents.

Don’t forget: Maine has voted for a Democrat for president in every election since 1992 and Olympia Snowe is up for reelection. Her campaign coffers are filled with finance industry donations. To compete, the grass roots fight has to begin now.

The bloggers over at mainepolitics have been doing a nice job covering Snowe and Collins on bankruptcy.