Senator Susan Collins Denies Trading Federal Contracts for Cash
Senator Susan Collins dismissed allegations that she secured millions in federal contracts for Navatek in exchange for campaign contributions as completely false.
U.S. Senator Susan Collins has dismissed allegations that she traded federal contracts for campaign contributions, calling the claims "completely false." The accusations follow an ethics complaint filed by Maine attorney Valerie Adams and reporting by ProPublica, which cited former Navatek CEO Martin Kao.
Kao, who is serving 87 months for fraud and campaign finance crimes, alleged that Navatek secured millions in federal funding by bankrolling politicians. He specifically claimed the office of Collins promised $32 million in naval contracts in exchange for $150,000 delivered via a shell company. ProPublica reported that the Senate allocated at least $10 million in 2019 based on proposals from Navatek.
Collins maintains that the funding was requested by the University of Maine and that she had no prior knowledge of Kao, whom she described as "a crook." She asserts that the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the Federal Election Commission previously rejected these claims. ProPublica reported that a 2024 FBI bribery investigation into the matter collapsed after Donald Trump returned to office and purged the bureau's public corruption teams.
