Collins Feared Sexual Assault In Senate

A stunning anecdote from Sen. Susan Collins via Politico:

So notoriously predatory was [Former Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-SC] that when Susan Collins came to the Senate in 1997, she was warned to avoid getting on an elevator alone with him.

A Republican from Maine, Collins describes publicly for the first time being headed for the senators-only elevator and seeing Thurmond walking in the same direction. She did a U-turn and took the stairs. "The reason I remember the incident so well is because it was observed by one of my Republican male colleagues," recalls Collins. He "started laughing because he knew exactly why I was turning around and not getting on the elevator."