Is Senator Collins really a flip-flopper?

Senator Susan Collins, R-Maine, has long faced charges that she votes on both side of an issue, but it reached a fever pitch over the confirmation of Donald Trump's education secretary, Betsy DeVos, who Collins opposed, but voted to let out of committee. Collins has argued that her votes are based on principle, and the procedural ones are often mischaracterized or misunderstood.

So which is it?

In this week's Maine Sunday Telegram, I try to take an empirical approach to finding an answer, analyzing a half dozen prominent cases where she was accused of trying to "have it both ways." The results: her explanations hold water most of the time. Read on for details.