61 Former Ambassadors and National Security Leaders Endorse Troy Jackson, Warn Collins Enables Trump

Signers include Susan Rice, Iran nuclear deal negotiator Wendy Sherman, and former Reagan and Bush administration officials

MAINE — Today, 61 former U.S. ambassadors and national security leaders endorsed Troy Jackson for U.S. Senate, warning that Susan Collins has enabled Donald Trump’s abuses of power and a reckless foreign policy that threatens American security and raises costs for Maine families.

The signers’ service spans five decades under Democratic and Republican presidents—including Ronald Reagan, both Bush administrations, and Donald Trump. In an open letter, they call for a Senate willing to check presidential abuses, confront corruption, and defend America’s alliances.

Signers include Susan Rice, who served as President Obama’s National Security Advisor; former Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, the lead U.S. negotiator of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal; Thomas Pickering, President George H.W. Bush’s ambassador to the United Nations; Charles Redman, President Reagan’s Assistant Secretary of State and State Department spokesman; and Alexander Vershbow, President George W. Bush’s ambassador to Russia and South Korea and a former Deputy Secretary General of NATO.

“The most consequential thing Susan Collins does in the U.S. Senate is enable Donald Trump,” the leaders write. “She paints herself as a moderate while voting with Trump 96% of the time. Her occasional breaks mean little when Republicans already have the votes they need.”

The letter highlights Collins’ five votes to let Trump continue the war with Iran and her votes to confirm officials charged with carrying out his tariff agenda. The signers connect those decisions directly to the costs facing Maine families.

“In the war with Iran, Senator Collins has repeatedly failed Maine,” they write. “She voted five times to let Trump continue a war that puts American service members at risk, threatens greater instability, and drives up costs for families already struggling to get by.”

The leaders also emphasize the damage Trump’s tariffs have done to Maine’s relationship with Canada, which sustains jobs, businesses, and communities across the state.

“For Mainers preparing to heat their homes this winter, Collins’ foreign policy failures are not abstractions,” the letter reads. “Those consequences arrive in heating bills, at the fuel pump, and at the grocery store. They deserve a senator who puts their interests ahead of loyalty to Donald Trump.”

In endorsing Jackson, the leaders cite his record in the Maine Senate fighting to lower prescription drug costs, protect reproductive freedom, and help working families get ahead.

“He brings the judgment of someone who knows what it means to work for a living, listens to his neighbors, and delivers for the people he represents,” they write.

The letter closes with a call for independent leadership and accountability:

“Maine needs a senator who will exercise independent judgment, demand accountability before putting American service members in harm’s way, and defend the alliances that keep our country secure.

“Troy Jackson will fight for the people of Maine and the well-being of our nation. He has our unequivocal support.”

Read the reporting on the endorsement roll out here.

Signatories endorse in their personal capacities. Former titles are provided for identification only.

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