Bath Iron Works is one of the largest private employers in the state and has long been a mainstay of Maine politics. Senators Margaret Chase Smith, Ed Muskie, George Mitchell, Bill Cohen, and now Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins have all touted their ability to secure naval shipbuilding contracts for BIW as a sign of their clout in Washington. In 1981, Maine voters even passed a state-wide referendum to fund a new dry-dock for the shipbuilder using public funds.

Way back in 1997, the Bangor