Sen. King gets stuck in elevator, blames Russians

In a light-hearted note attached to a selfie he posted on Facebook Wednesday night, Maine Senator Angus King recounted getting stuck in a crowded Capitol Hill elevator when leaving the Senate floor.

In the post, independent King notes that “of course, one of the passengers was a reporter” and also jokingly blames “the Russians” for his predicament.

That quip obviously brings to mind some more serious aspects of his job at the moment, with both King and Maine’s senior senator, Republican Susan Collins, serving on the Intelligence Committee and backing a probe into Trump staff and associates’ contacts with Russian intelligence officials both during the campaign and following election. The contact, the revelation of which led to the resignation of National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, occurred while the Russian state was (according to a clear consensus of the U.S. intelligence community) engaged in hacking political targets and attempting to influence the election in Trump’s favor.

Maine First District Representative Chellie Pingree, a Democrat, went a step further than the senators, announcing that she would co-sponsor legislation to probe Trump’s Russian ties.

Second District Republican Representative Bruce Poliquin, however, has so far refused to discuss the matter publicly and has refrained from calling for an official probe.

Mike Tipping

About Mike Tipping

Mike is Maine's longest-writing political blogger and explores state politics and policy with a focus on analysis and explanation. He works at the Maine People's Alliance and Maine People's Resource Center.