Military & Veterans
Fall of 2002 - Iraq War Resolution
Jean - Against the Iraq War Resolution in the Fall of 2002.
Olympia Snowe - Voted in favor of the Iraq War Resolution.
Bring Troops Home from Iraq
Jean - Supports the Homeward Bound Act, H.J. Res. 55, a binding Resolution calling for President Bush to announce by the end of 2005 a plan for withdrawal from Iraq that would begin by October 1, 2006. Supports the position of Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) to bring the troops home as soon as practicable.
Olympia Snowe - ?
Closing Guantanamo Bay military prison camp
Jean - Yes. Supports Sen. Joe Biden's (D-Del.) call for the immediate closure of the Guantanamo Bay military prison camp. (See USA Today story June 7, 2005)
Olympia Snowe - ? (But she voted TWICE to deny these detainees access to federal courts to challenge their detention under the habeas corpus provisions of the U.S. Constitution)
Woolsey Amendment to Withdraw Troops from Iraq
(Vote was 300-125 against. House vote only, no Senate version. Jean would have submitted a Senate bill.)
Jean - In favor of the Woolsey Amendment calling for an exit strategy from Iraq.
Feb. 2, 2006 - To support the health needs of our veterans and military personnel and reduce the deficit by making tax rates fairer for all Americans.
(vote #7, Motion Rejected, 44 yeas - 53 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Nov. 17, 2005 - To provide an additional $500 million for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010, to be used for readjustment counseling, related mental health services, and treatment and rehabilitative services for veterans with mental illness, post-traumatic stress disorder, or substance use disorder.
(vote #343, Motion rejected, 43 yeas - 55 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Nov. 15, 2005 - To provide for judicial review of detention of enemy combatants.
(vote #324, Motion rejected, 44 yeas - 54 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Nov. 10, 2005 - To deny detainees held by the U.S. Military at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, access to U.S. Federal Courts to challenge their detention under the Habeas Corpus provision of the U.S. Constitution.
(vote #319, Amendment agreed, 49 yeas - 42 nays)
Jean - NO!!
Olympia Snowe - Yes
Sept. 14, 2005 - To establish a special committee of the Senate to investigate the awarding and carrying out of contracts to conduct activities in Afghanistan and Iraq and to fight the war on terrorism.
(vote #228, Motion rejected, 44 yeas - 53 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Oct. 19, 2005 - To establish a special Senate committee to investigate the awarding and carrying out of war and reconstruction contracting.
(vote #259, Motion rejected, 44 yeas - 54 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
July 1, 2005 - Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator: S.Amdt. 1085 to H.R. 2419 To prohibit the use of funds for the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator and utilize the amount otherwise available to reduce the National debt.
(Vote #171, Motion rejected, 43 yeas - 53 nays)
Jean - Yes. Would have voted IN FAVOR of this amendment, and AGAINST the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator.
Olympia Snowe - No. Voted AGAINST this Amendment, and IN FAVOR of the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator.
Snowe's position prevailed, the amendment failed, the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator project was safe for the moment.
(Update: This program was killed in a House/Senate Conference Committee vote on Oct. 26, 2005)
Health Care
Nov. 17, 2005 - To express the sense of the Senate concerning the provision of health care for children before providing tax cuts for the wealthy.
(vote #337, Motion rejected, 43 yeas - 55 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Oct. 26, 2005 - To increase funding for the AIDS drug assistance program.
(vote #274, Motion rejected, 14 yeas - 85 nays)
Oct. 27, 2005 - To provide funding for the AIDS Drug Assistance Program within the Health Resources and Services Administration.
(vote #278, Motion rejected, 46 yeas - 50 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - Twice voted against.
Labor
Oct. 19, 2005 - To Raise the Minimum Wage from $5.15 to $6.25 per hour over 18 months.
(vote #257, Motion rejected, 47 yeas - 51 nays)
Jean - Yes. Maine's current minimum wage is $6.50, so approval of this bill would not have meant higher wages for Maine businesses to pay. But a higher federal minimum wage would have helped Maine small businesses, by forcing their competitors in low-wage states to pay workers at rates comparable to Maine's.
Olympia Snowe - No
FEMA
Feb. 2, 2006 - To establish a congressional commission to examine the Federal, State, and local response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Region of the United States especially in the States of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and other areas impacted in the aftermath and make immediate corrective measures to improve such responses in the future.
(vote #6, Motion Rejected, 44 yeas - 53 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Sept. 14, 2005 - To establish a congressional commission to examine the Federal, State, and local response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Region of the United States especially in the States of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and other areas impacted in the aftermath and make immediate corrective measures to improve such responses in the future.
(vote #229, Motion rejected, 44 yeas - 54 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Foreign Policy & UN
July 26, 2005 - To stop corporations from financing terrorism.
(Lautenberg Senate Amendment 1351 to S 1042 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006)
(Amendment rejected, 47 yeas - 51 nays)
Jean - Would have voted in FAVOR of this amendment.
According to a press release from Sen. Lautenberg's office, this amendment:

"would have closed a loophole that allows U.S. companies to do business through offshore shell corporations with states that sponsor terrorism. ...U.S. sanctions provisions in the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) prohibit U.S. companies from conducting business with nations that sponsor terrorism. Yet a few U.S. companies have exploited a loophole in the law by creating foreign subsidiaries of U.S. companies to do business with rogue, terror-sponsoring nations such as Iran. All Democrats supported the amendment, as did Republican Senators Jon Kyl (R-AZ), James Inhofe (R-OK) and John Ensign (R-NV)."

The amendment failed, and, according to that press release,
"Instead, the Senate passed an amendment introduced by Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) that merely codifies existing regulations."
Olympia Snowe - Voted AGAINST this amendment. The vote was 47-51, so Snowe's position prevailed, and the amendment failed. Snowe voted in favor of the Collins amendment.
July 19, 2005 - Broadcasting to Cuba
To provide that no funds may be made available to provide television broadcasting to Cuba, to increase by $21,100,000 the amount appropriated to the Peace Corps, and to reduce by the same amount the amount appropriated under title I to the Broadcasting Board of Governors for broadcasting to Cuba. (Dorgan Amdt. S.Amdt. 1294 to H.R. 3057 Foreign Operations, Export Financial and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2006)
(vote #194, Amendment rejected, 33 yeas - 66 nays)
Jean - Would have voted in FAVOR of this amendment. For years the federal government has been producing these daily broadcasts at great expense, only to have them continually blocked by the Cuban government. This has been and is a colossal waste of taxpayers dollars.
Olympia Snowe - Voted AGAINST this amendment.
NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement)
Jean - Against NAFTA in the fall of 1993.
Olympia Snowe - As a Congresswoman, voted against NAFTA in 1993.
June 30, 2005 - CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement
A bill to implement the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement. Measure Number: S. 1307.
Jean - Opposed to CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement, as she opposed NAFTA in 1993.
Olympia Snowe - Voted AGAINST this measure.
June 9, 2005 - U.S. Withdrawal from the World Trade Organization (WTO)
(Vote was 338-86, the U.S. remains a member of the WTO. House measure, Senate did not vote. Jean would have submitted a Senate bill.)
Jean - In favor of U.S. withdrawal from the World Trade Organization, supported by 86 House members Thursday, including Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) and Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Judiciary
Patriot Act
Check out this story in The Hill, "USA PATRIOT Act 2005: Big Brother is Watching"
Jean - Would have voted against the Patriot Act in 2001. I am greatly concerned about the loss of liberty and privacy. I am against extension of the Patriot Act provisions which are due to expire this year, and would work to repeal the entire act.
Olympia Snowe - Voted FOR the Patriot Act in 2001. Favored reauthorization of the U.S. Patriot Act in July 2005.
Jan. 31, 2006 - On the nomination of Samuel A. Alito, Jr., of New Jersey, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.
(vote #2, Nomination Confirmed, 58 yeas - 42 nays)
Jean - No. I am troubled by some of his previous rulings and statements on choice, separation of church and state, right to privacy, and other issues.
Olympia Snowe - Yes
Sept. 29, 2005 - Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts
(vote #245, Nomination confirmed, 78 yeas - 22 nays)
Jean - AGAINST confirmation. Concerned about his decisions, legal opinions, judicial philosophies, particularly as they pertain to women and women's rights. Would vote against confirmation, unless the confirmation hearings in September reveal some astonishingly positive information. More...
Olympia Snowe - Voted to confirm.
June 9, 2005 - Nomination of William Pryor Jr. of Alabama as a federal judge
Jean - AGAINST confirmation.
Olympia Snowe - Voted AGAINST confirmation.
June 8, 2005 - Nomination of Janice Rogers Brown of California as a federal judge
Jean - AGAINST confirmation. as a federal judge of Janice Rogers Brown of California, who was once quoted telling conservative audiences that elderly Americans who depend on Social Security "blithely cannibalize their grandchildren."
Olympia Snowe - Voted to confirm.
May 25, 2005 - Nomination of Priscilla Owen of Texas as a federal judge
Jean - AGAINST confirmation. as a federal judge of Priscilla Owen of Texas, who, according to Sen. Patrick Leahy, inserts her opinions into the law so freely that President Bush's own attorney general once called her behavior "unconscionable ... judicial activism."
Olympia Snowe - Voted to confirm.
Feb. 10, 2005 - Class Action Fairness Act of 2005
A bill to amend the procedures that apply to consideration of interstate class actions to assure fairer outcomes for class members and defendants, and for other purposes.
(vote #9, Bill Passed, 72 yeas - 26 nays)
Jean - No to moving class action lawsuits from state courts to federal courts.
Olympia Snowe - Yes
Medical Marijuana Act
Jean - In favor of Rep. Barney Frank's Medical Marijuana Act, which would exempt from prosecution under federal drug laws those people who live in states with laws permitting the use of medical marijuana, and who have been prescribed marijuana by their doctor in an attempt to alleviate terminal or chronic suffering.
Olympia Snowe - ?
Confirmations (Non-Judicial)
Nomination of Condoleeza Rice as Secretary of State
Jean - Against confirmation.
Olympia Snowe - Voted to confirm.
Nomination of Alberto Gonzales as Attorney General
Jean - Against confirmation.
Olympia Snowe - Voted to confirm.
June 20, 2006 - Nomination of John Bolton as Ambassador to the United Nations
Vote was 54-38, six votes shy of the number needed to stop the Democratic filibuster and send the nomination to a vote.
Jean - Against confirmation. In favor of the Democrats' insistence that the White House turn over critical Bolton information before a vote, to allow for an informed decision. And, viscerally opposed to President Bush's circumventing the Senate by making Bolton a recess appointment.
Olympia Snowe - Voted IN FAVOR of the Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Nomination of John R. Bolton.
Anti-Cronyism and Public Safety Act
Jean - Favors this bill, which would prohibit the President from appointing unqualified individuals to critical public safety positions in the government.
Olympia Snowe - ?
Taxes
Feb. 2, 2006 - To strengthen America's military, to repeal the extension of tax rates for capital gains and dividends, to reduce the deficit, and for other purposes.
(vote #8, Motion Rejected, 44 yeas - 53 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Nov. 17, 2005 - To reinstate for millionaires a top individual income tax rate of 39.6 percent, the pre-May 2003 rates of tax on capital gains and dividends, and to repeal the reduction and termination of the phase out of personal exemptions and overall limitation on itemized deductions, until the Federal budget deficit is eliminated.
(vote #333, Motion rejected, 40 yeas - 59 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Nov. 17, 2005 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose a temporary windfall profit tax on crude oil and to rebate the tax collected back to the American consumer, and for other purposes.
(vote #331, Motion Rejected, 35 yeas - 64 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Nov. 17, 2005 - To impose a temporary windfall profit tax on crude oil and to use the proceeds of the tax collected to fund programs under the Low-Income Energy Assistance Act of 1981 through a trust fund.
(vote #339, Motion rejected, 50 yeas - 48 nays)(3/5 needed to pass, or 60 votes)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - Yes
Nov. 17, 2005 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose a temporary windfall profit tax on crude oil and to use the proceeds of the tax collected to provide a nonrefundable tax credit of $100 for every personal exemption claimed for taxable years beginning in 2005.
(vote #341, Motion rejected, 33 yeas - 65 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Sept. 30, 2005 - To continue funding for the Community Services Block Grant at no less than last year's level.
(vote #246, Motion rejected, 39 yeas - 53 nays)
Jean - Yes
Olympia Snowe - No
Estate Tax Repeal
Jean - Against repeal, favors estate tax, considers it a fair tax, recognizes the need for periodic review of exemption level, the value of a given estate that is not subject to this tax. More...
Olympia Snowe - Favors outright repeal.
Funding for Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Jean - Supports federal funding for Corporation for Public Broadcasting, opposes "disastrous cuts" in that agency's budget, and opposes the bill passed by the House of Representatives June 16, 2005.
Olympia Snowe - ?
March 10, 2005 - Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (S.256)
(vote #44, Bill Passed, 74 yeas - 25 nays)
Jean - No
Olympia Snowe - Yes
The Flag
Flag Desecration Amendment to the Constitution
Jean - Loves the American flag, but does NOT support a flag desecration amendment to the U.S. Constitution. "Better the flag than the federal building. The flag can take it." More...
Olympia Snowe - Has proposed an amendment to the Constitution of the United States authorizing the Congress to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of the United States.