Annie Clark calls the Collins allegations categorically false
Annie ClarkDeputy chief of staff to U.S. Senator Susan Collins
Clark rejects Kao's allegations against Collins and her staff, says the campaign was not an investigative target and argues that the earlier inquiry found no Collins wrongdoing.
Responding to
Susan Collins knowingly participated in a pay-to-play arrangement in which Navatek campaign support was exchanged for her office's assistance obtaining federal contracts.
“The seven-year-old allegations made against Senator Collins and her staff in this piece are categorically false. There have never been any allegations of wrongdoing by the Collins for Senator campaign, and the campaign was never the target of the FBI investigation.”
Original post
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Did Susan Collins Trade Federal Contract Support for Navatek Campaign Donations?
Former Navatek chief executive Martin Kao told FBI agents that Susan Collins and people around her knowingly participated in an arrangement connecting campaign support to federal-contract assistance. Collins's office, an FBI spokesperson and several participants dispute that account. Criminal proceedings and an FEC settlement established illegal contributions by Navatek-linked actors, but no public charge or court finding establishes that Collins knowingly joined a quid pro quo.
Source and context
Original post
About this source
Primary statement from Collins's deputy chief of staff responding to the ProPublica report. Clark disputes the allegations, attacks Kao's credibility, describes the campaign's cooperation with investigators and says the FBI has not contacted the office about Kao since 2021.
Reporting
About this source
Anchor investigation reporting previously undisclosed FBI cooperation interviews, internal company emails, campaign and lobbying communications, and responses from Collins's office, the FBI, Scott Reed, Glen Mandigo, Andy Winer and Steven Loui. The article says Kao had credibility incentives and that no one working for Collins was charged.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
ProPublica reported Kao's account and documents it said were consistent with parts of an alleged pay-to-play arrangement involving Collins, Navatek and 1820 PAC.
After the quotation
Clark challenged Kao's credibility, described the campaign's cooperation with investigators and said the FBI had not contacted Collins's office about Kao since 2021.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Relative to the alleged knowing exchange of Navatek campaign support for federal-contract assistance, Clark explicitly says the allegations against Collins and her staff are false. That is a direct denial, not merely a challenge to wording.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Martin Kao
More from this case
Read the full caseCollins calls the Navatek allegations completely false
“The allegations are completely false ... We have a picture of his meeting with me and with other people in my office that is many months before he ever made a single contribution ... He spun this story up again in the hopes that the judge would be lenient, or the prosecutor would be.”Read statement
Abbott says a photo disproves the claim that Kao had to donate before meeting Collins
“ProPublica has the theory that Martin Kao, based on Martin Kao's word, had to make a donation before he could get in to see Susan Collins. As you can see from that picture, it's not true”Read statement
Collins campaign says it has no record of Collins calling Kao to thank him
“Neither Susan Collins nor anyone who worked for her believes that she made a call”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Annie Clark calls the Collins allegations categorically false
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/1516-clark-rejects-kao-s-allegations-against-collins-and
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Annie Clark calls the Collins allegations categorically false". First published: 2026-09-22. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1516-clark-rejects-kao-s-allegations-against-collins-and