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Sunday, November 15, 2026Nov 15

Collins: Senator, don’t let the revolving door hit you on the way out

FILE - In this July 11, 2018, file photo, Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is escorted by former Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., to a meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington. Sen. John McCain's widow on Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018, said Kyl will fill her late husband's seat. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - In this July 11, 2018, file photo, Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is escorted by former Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., to a meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington. Sen. John McCain's widow on Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018, said Kyl will fill her late husband's seat. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Jon Kyl has just been sworn in to take John McCain’s empty seat in the Senate. Two ways of looking at this.

The normal way is to shrug and move on. That’s certainly understandable. You’ve got a lot on your plate right now. Back-to-school wardrobes. Fall to-do projects. The fact that our president is a raving lunatic.

The McCain family likes Kyl. He served in Congress from 1987 to 2013 and was an influential Republican. Retired when he was 70, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family. And then

Pop Quiz: After Jon Kyl retired from the Senate he:

A) Spent more time with his family and served as a volunteer at 12 different hometown charitable organizations.