PORTLAND, Maine — Top Democrats are holding their breath and waiting for Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) to potentially enter the race against Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) next year, but voters in the state say it’s time for a new generation of candidates to represent them in Washington as younger contenders have begun piling into the race.
Tim Bailey, 67, a retired Marine from Yarmouth, said he liked Mills, who would be 79 years old if she is successful in ousting the five-term GOP incumbent, who is 72. But ultimately, he felt it was time for Mills to step aside.
“I mean, she’s a brilliant woman. I like her. I’m not being derogatory,” Bailey told HuffPost at a rally for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in Portland on Monday. “But she served Maine. She served. She’s a very intelligent woman. She was attorney general. It’s just time for us to get out of the way, let younger kids, you know, get in the trenches and take their turn.”
“We’re out of touch. D.C. is way out of touch — Democrats, I mean,” he added. “The last election — that was horrible. And I’m a Joe Biden fan, you know? President Obama asked him to step aside. That broke my heart. We’ve lost because of what [Democrats] wanted us to do, not because of what the American people want.”
