Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) pens an important op-ed in the Washington Post today highlighting the proposed Executive Order on government contracting. Collins says of this proposed political shakedown, “Whether you are a small, family-owned company or a large corporation, if you want to do business with the federal government, you had better think twice before you contribute to political candidates or causes.”

Below are more excerpts:

In true Orwellian fashion, the draft order suggests that the only way to keep politics out of the contracting process is to include political information with every contract offer....This far-reaching order would apply not only to contributions made by the contracting company but also to contributions made by its directors, officers and affiliates...

[P]olitical donations made years before a contract is even contemplated would have to be shared with government officials. This would inevitably have a chilling effect on the First Amendment rights of individuals to contribute to the political causes and candidates of their choice...

The administration’s proposal violates the fundamental principle that federal contracts should be awarded free from political considerations and be based on the best value to taxpayers. Whether a prospective contractor agrees or disagrees with the political views of an administration should be irrelevant to the process... 

The result would be less competition for federal contracts and thus higher prices for goods and services procured by the federal government. At a time of severe budget constraints, the administration should be seeking to expand the pool of bidders, not shrink it...

It simply doesn’t pass the straight-face test for this administration to suggest that such a dramatic change is needed to remove politics from the federal contracting process. Requiring disclosure of one’s political activities and leanings as part of that process would make it inevitable that politics would play a role in the award of federal contracts...

A proposal that stifles First Amendment rights and politicizes the contracting process is a dangerous and costly step backward as we work to ensure that American taxpayers get the best value in the marketplace.

You can read Senator Collins’ entire op-ed on the Post’s website.