It’s been almost two weeks since Donald Trump announced Steve Bannon, who ran a racist and misogynist website and has been accused as a domestic abuser, as his pick for White House chief strategist, and our Sen. Susan M. Collins has done nothing to stop it from happening.

Last weekend, hundreds of white supremacists energized by Donald Trump’s victory and Bannon’s appointment gathered in Washington, D.C. The hate they spewed was almost unimaginable. The keynote speaker questioned whether Jews are human and lamented that America is no longer a “white country,” while members of the audience gave the Nazi salute and chanted “heil Trump.”

These are the people that Trump has brought out of the shadows.

Collins should know that her constituents oppose Bannon’s appointment. Why isn’t she one of the lawmakers who is trying to stop him from getting to the White House? No decent person, Republican or Democrat, should allow Bannon in the highest level of government. Collins must stop putting party over decency. She has the power to stop Bannon from reaching the White House, starting with publicly denouncing him.

John Benziger, M.D.

South China