Maine Sen. Susan Collins — one of the two moderate Republicans who’s viewed as a key swing vote in the Supreme Court fight — met with Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh on Tuesday and told reporters that he’s said he considers Roe v. Wade “settled law,” per CNN.
Susan Collins: Kavanaugh says Roe v. Wade is “settled law”
Democrats have been skeptical of such commitments to precedent.
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Li Zhou is a former politics reporter at Vox, where she covers Congress and elections. Previously, she was a tech policy reporter at Politico and an editorial fellow at the Atlantic.
”We talked about whether he considered Roe to be settled law. He said that he agreed with what Justice Roberts said at his nomination hearing in which he said it was settled law,” Collins said after a sit-down with Kavanaugh that lasted over two hours.
Collins has previously said that she would not back any Supreme Court nominee who’s hostile toward Roe v. Wade — although she’s also expressed skepticism that justices like Neil Gorsuch and John Roberts would actually vote to overturn the precedent established by the landmark abortion case. As she notes in her Tuesday comments, Kavanaugh’s position on the issue seems to echo reassurances Roberts had made regarding a commitment to Roe — claims that Democrats haven’t found particularly reliable.
Citing the recent Janus ruling, which overturned 41 years of precedent and gutted the power of public-sector unions, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has previously emphasized that “settled law is only settled until a majority of the Supreme Court decides it is not.”
Collins added that she won’t announce her decision on Kavanaugh until his September confirmation hearing has taken place.
Collins, along with Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, is seen as a pivotal Republican vote that Kavanaugh will need in order to advance his confirmation. Because of the GOP’s slim 51-49 majority in the upper chamber, if even one Republican senator were to withdraw his or her backing, Kavanaugh’s nomination could theoretically be in jeopardy.
Democrats have sought to use the preservation of abortion rights as one of the rallying cries aimed at uniting their caucus and winning over Collins and Murkowski, both of whom have spoken up in support of the landmark 1973 decision.
During his confirmation hearing for the DC Circuit in 2006, Kavanaugh had also said he would respect precedent on Roe, but declined to offer his personal views on the subject. Democratic leaders have argued that his vetting by the Federalist Society — a conservative organization led by a well-known anti-abortion advocate — should be reason enough for concern.
Murkowski has indicated that Kavanaugh’s position on Roe will also be a consideration as she weighs his nomination. Both senators’ initial reactions to Kavanaugh’s nomination didn’t seem to suggest an inclination toward blocking him.
Schumer is due to meet with Kavanaugh later today as well. He’ll likely push the nominee on both abortion and health care — the other main issue Democrats have stressed in their efforts to block him.
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