Signaling that she is in full campaign mode, Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican, announced her campaign leadership team and, Felicia Knight, Collins' deputy campaign manager, squabbled with the Maine Democratic Party over who was more or less partisan.

Collins' campaign leadership team includes some wise men of Maine politics. Co-chairmen Merton Henry, an attorney, and Scott Hutchinson, who worked for former Sen. Ed Muskie, a Democrat (a quick search of FEC records shows he has not contributed to a Democratic candidate lately).

Finance Chair Sam Ladd is the president and CEO of Maine Bank and Trust and Treasurer Leo Loiselle, an accountant, round out the team.

The Maine Democratic Party sent out a press release last week chastising Collins for voting for the war in Iraq, the Bush tax cuts and Bush's energy bill. Knight responded with her own release saying that Allen is just another partisan Democrat.

This tit-for-tat means little in the grand scheme of things. Such press releases are meant for reporters, activists and political junkies and that's why we share them here.

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