Maine Senator’s Husband Linked to Lobbying Firm Amid Controversy
Maine Senator Susan Collins is under scrutiny as details emerge about her husband’s consulting work for Chesapeake Enterprises, a lobbying firm advocating for increased data center development. The controversy centers around Scott Reed, the firm’s sole registered lobbyist in 2025, who is implicated in a pay-to-play scheme potentially impacting Collins’ reelection campaign.
Data centers and political integrity have become pivotal issues for voters this election cycle, placing Collins in a defensive position on both fronts. Collins and her husband, Thomas Daffron, who previously held roles as a lobbyist and business consultant, married in 2012. At that time, Collins’ net worth soared from $250,000 to $2.9 million, eventually reaching $4.1 million today.
According to Collins’ financial disclosures from May, Daffron earned at least $1,000 in consulting fees from Chesapeake Enterprises last year. Although Senate rules mandate income reporting for spouses exceeding $1,000, they do not require disclosure of the exact amount. Daffron’s history with Chesapeake includes serving as the executive vice president from 2001 to 2004.
During his consultancy, Chesapeake lobbied the federal government on behalf of Hillwood Investments, led by billionaire and Collins donor H. Ross Perot Jr. Hillwood has developed at least six U.S. data centers, including a Texas facility operated by Meta, Facebook’s parent company.
These data centers are controversial due to their significant consumption of electricity and water, leading to higher utility costs nationwide. A New York Times/Siena poll shows that 61% of Americans disapprove of new data centers in their communities. In response, several communities in Maine have enacted temporary bans on data center construction.
Scott Reed, representing Hillwood Investments in 2025, lobbied Congress on “real estate investments.” Reed also heads Pine Tree Results, a super PAC supporting Collins. In 2019, the FBI investigated Reed for securing a significant donation from defense contractor Navatek. Former Navatek CEO Martin Kao, now imprisoned for wire fraud, admitted to providing the donation expecting Collins’ assistance in securing federal contracts, which she later facilitated.
The FBI dropped the investigation into Reed after President Donald Trump resumed office. ProPublica’s September 22 report first uncovered the alleged scheme, which Collins has since disputed, defending Reed and questioning the report’s credibility. ProPublica, however, stands by its account and has challenged Collins’ refutations.
Collins supported the Ratepayer Protection Act, intended to obligate large data centers to bear their electricity costs rather than passing them to consumers. Senate Democrats criticized the bill as ineffective, highlighting its lack of enforceable standards for cost-sharing by state utility commissions. Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy told Yahoo Finance, “It’s just fakery to try to fool voters into forgetting that Republicans spent the entire term trying to stop states from regulating AI.” The Act did not pass the Senate on September 30.
Facing a challenging reelection campaign, Collins is viewed as a vulnerable Republican incumbent. Her opponent, state Sen. Troy Jackson, advocates for approving data center projects only if they offer a tangible benefit to Maine residents.
—
Read More Kitchen Table News
Comments are closed.