Dem Senate Candidate Troy Jackson Accidentally Attacks Himself While Trying to Score Debate Points Against Susan Collins
During a debate in Portland, Maine, Democratic Senate candidate Troy Jackson criticized incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins, claiming she is ignorant of federal and state law regarding Medicaid reimbursement rates. Collins responded by clarifying that Medicaid rates are set by the states, while Medicare rates are federal, and explained that Maine’s Medicaid costs are shared with the federal government, which covers about 67% of expenses. Jackson also questioned Collins’ legislative effectiveness, citing her rejection of many bills, but Collins countered that bills frequently enough receive support from other lawmakers and pointed out Jackson’s voting record on key issues. Jackson accused Collins of voting against measures that benefited Maine residents, such as the “Big Lovely Bill” and a War Powers Resolution regarding Iran, but Collins supported parts of the legislation and voted appropriately in other instances. the debate highlighted misunderstandings and partisan perspectives on legislative records and Medicaid policies.
Maine Democratic Senate candidate Troy Jackson demonstrated how ignorant he is of both federal and state law while trying to attack incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins during a Tuesday night debate in Portland.
Jackson, who served as the Maine Senate president from 2018 to 2024, said, “Sen. Collins just brought up how [Medicaid] reimbursement rates are not high. She’s been in Congress for 30 years. She touts how she’s chair of appropriations. Yeah, it would be great if she actually worked on that and got that done, because we’re not getting enough reimbursement.”
Collins fired back, “Medicaid rates are set by the state. They are not set by the federal government. Medicare rates are set by the federal government. So it is Augusta [Maine’s state capital] that is responsible for the inadequate reimbursements under the Medicaid program.”
This is becoming uncomfortable to watch.
TROY DOESN’T KNOW BALL https://t.co/Fbts6ciPeA
— Graham Pollard (@GrahamMaineWire) October 6, 2026
Fact check: true.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services explains on its website how states determine Medicaid reimbursement rates, as well as services covered by the program.
“The Medical Assistance (MA) rate is a state’s standard reimbursement for Medicaid-covered services. Each state sets how it will reimburse Medicaid recipients. For example, some states reimburse for each service provided during an encounter (a face-to-face interaction between the patient and the healthcare provider), rather than setting a flat fee for each encounter,” the website says.
Further, “The amount of money Medicaid reimburses depends on individual state policies and other factors. However, reimbursement rates must fall between the federally established minimum and maximum payment limits.”
In other words, the federal government picks up costs to a certain level, and the states pick up the rest, and they can choose whatever limit they want.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the federal government covers 67 percent of Maine’s Medicaid expenses, with the state covering 33 percent, which is fairly typical of the cost-sharing breakdown.
Collins had another zinger of a moment when allowed to ask Jackson a question directly.
“In your more than 20 years in the legislature, more than one-third of your bills were unanimously rejected in committee. You couldn’t even find one Democrat on the committee to support a third of your bills,” she began.
“If you can’t find one person in your own party to vote for your bills when you were the Senate president in Maine, how do you think you’re going to get things done in a closely divided Senate as the most junior senator?” Collins asked.
Ouch. https://t.co/0l4EkhnfdC
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) October 6, 2026
Jackson responded that multiple people often put forward the same bill, and that he was a team player, letting other bills go forward.
He then argued that he doesn’t see what legislation Collins passed that has been helpful to the people of Maine.
Jackson cited the “Big Beautiful Bill” and the Iran war as two examples of harmful votes.
But Collins actually voted against final passage of the “Big Beautiful Bill,” saying she would only back it if $50 billion in funding for rural hospitals was added.
The senator did support a procedural vote that allowed the legislation to be taken up on the Senate floor.
It’s actually a shame Collins voted against the “Big Beautiful Bill.” The law has provisions for no tax on tips, overtime, and Social Security, and increases the standard deduction and child tax credit to $2,200 per child, all of which allowed Mainers to keep more of the money they earned.
Regarding the Iran war, Collins voted against a War Powers Resolution in March to halt the military engagement, but then sided with Democrats the following month to seek to force Trump to end the conflict.
So even Jackson’s criticism of Collins’ record displays an ignorance, willful or otherwise, of her votes.
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