Susan Collins won't be there to greet Trump as he arrives in Maine

Conspicuously absent during the trip will be the state’s only Republican member of Congress, Sen. Susan Collins.

Collins, who faces a tough reelection fight to secure her fifth consecutive term, will remain in Washington, D.C. when the president travels to Puritan Medical Products in Guilford, Maine.

Earlier this week Collins told Maine Public Radio she’ll be working in Washington Friday and that she’ll be holding a virtual fundraiser with South Dakota Republican Sen. John Thune in the afternoon.

Collins visited the Puritan Medical factory in May, but her decision to not tour alongside a president whose electoral fortunes could affect her own has drawn considerable scrutiny. Trump continues to face withering criticism for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and the ongoing protests over police violence against African-Americans.