Maine veterans gathered in Bangor on Monday to demand answers from Sen. Susan Collins following revelations that federal investigators had been investigating allegations of a pay-to-play arrangement involving the senator and a major campaign donor before the Trump administration shut down the investigation.
The veterans, members of the Maine Veterans Alliance (which, like Beacon, is a project of Maine People’s Alliance), questioned why millions of taxpayer dollars went to a defense contractor whose research produced little of value for the military, while veterans continue to struggle with access to health care and housing.
“Let’s be clear: every defense dollar spent on a donor’s pet project is $1 taken from military readiness, from people we as vets promise to bring home,” said Tristin Friend, who served in the Maine Army National Guard from 2015 to 2021 and is the veterans organizer at MPA.
The event followed a ProPublica investigation published this past week detailing how Collins helped secure millions in federal defense contracts for Navatek. That company’s former CEO, Martin Kao, has been convicted of illegally funneling campaign contributions to a political action committee supporting Collins’ reelection.
Kao told FBI investigators that the contributions were part of an arrangement in which the company provided campaign support in exchange for help securing government contracts. The investigation ended after Pres. Donald Trump fired or pushed out agents and prosecutors involved in public corruption cases.
Collins has denied wrongdoing, and no one working for her was charged.
Jason Tkacs, a Bangor resident who served in the Navy from 1990 to 1993, called on Collins to release communications between her office, campaign, the 1820 PAC and Navatek. He also called for restoring the FBI’s public corruption unit so investigators could finish examining the allegations.
Tkacs continued that the controversy reflects a broader disconnect between federal spending priorities and the needs of veterans, many of whom struggle to access health care and affordable housing.
“Senator Collins has long said she delivers for Maine, but for who?” he asked.
Brian Robertson, another Navy veteran, criticized federal spending on military operations abroad while veterans at home struggle to receive adequate mental health treatment.
“We have 18 veterans killing themselves every day because the mental health treatment in the VA system is understaffed and mediocre on the best days,” Robertson said. “I know firsthand because I am enrolled in the VA mental health system.”
Melinda Swayne, a Navy veteran from Bryant Pond who served from 1999 to 2025, echoed those concerns, questioning why defense contractors receive millions in federal funding while veterans face delays accessing health care.
“With Senator Collins as chair of the Appropriations Committee, I’d like to know why VA Healthcare is not fully funded, but Navitec is getting contracts that produce nothing of value,” Swayne said.
Swayne also criticized Collins’ role in advancing Trump’s tax and spending legislation, which she said would reduce funding for health care and other services in Maine. Collins voted to advance the legislation before voting against its final passage.
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