Susan Collins' honorary degree should be rescinded, nearly 1,500 St. Lawrence University faculty, alumni say

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Susan Collins faces calls to rescind her honorary degree

Nearly 1,500 alumni and faculty members urge St. Lawrence University to rescind Republican Sen. Susan Collins' honorary degree for her support of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh; reaction from political strategist Monica Klein.

Nearly 1,500 St. Lawrence University alumni and faculty are calling on the school to rescind an honorary degree Sen. Susan Collins was awarded last year because of her vote to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

A more moderate Republican, Collins was targeted by liberal activists and those opposed to Kavanaugh – particularly after allegations of sexual assault came to light – who thought she could abandon her party and vote against confirming the judge. But ahead of the vote, Collins said she didn't believe the charges could "fairly prevent Judge Kavanaugh from serving on the Court.”

Kavanaugh, who vehemently denied the decades-old sexual misconduct claims against him, was confirmed in a narrow 50-48 vote despite testimony from accuser Christine Blasey Ford.

More than 1,300 alumni of St. Lawrence University in New York signed onto a letter saying Collins “lack[s] the integrity and commitment to justice that we expect from the St. Lawrence body.”

“We ask that the University revoke this honorary degree as we find that she is not deserving of it in the face of her recent actions. We ask the university to do this in support of truth and for all of the victims of sexual assault and violence, of which many of her fellow alumni and students have suffered,” the letter read, in part.

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Nearly 100 faculty members have also demanded the university revoke the degree to “communicate that we find the dismantling of rape culture more important than saving face or avoiding critique that has the potential to threaten relationships with people who wield considerable power.”

They said Collins “did not carefully weigh all the available evidence” when determining Ford’s testimony was “lacking credibility.”

Collins graduated from St. Lawrence University in 1975. She was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in 1998 and an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree in 2017. The letters from alumni and faculty specifically ask for the revocation of the 2017 degree.

In a statement, St. Lawrence University spokesman Ryan Deuel told Fox News the school has “no intention” of rescinding the degree, noting it has never before done so.

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Collins has faced intense backlash since the Oct. 6 vote. Linda Sarsour, a far-left activist and a leader of the Women’s March, said Collins “talking about presumption of innocence that is never offered to Black men in America” was a sign of “white supremacy on the Senate Floor.”

Authorities were called to Collins’ Bangor, Maine, home Monday after a threatening letter containing what the author said was poison ricin was delivered there. An FBI spokesman told The Associated Press preliminary tests to the envelope indicated there was no threat to the public.

Collins spokesperson Annie Clark said the “incident is the latest in a series of threats against Senator Collins, her loved ones, and her staff.”

Fox News’ Samuel Chamberlain and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.