Republican Sen. Susan Collins is steadfastly playing dumb about whether or not she'll vote for a Supreme Court nominee from the current occupier of the Oval Office. She's relying, apparently, on the misguided belief that her constituents are stupid.
"I think I've made it pretty clear," she told MSNBC Wednesday, "that if a nominee has demonstrated hostility to Roe v. Wade and has said that they are not going to abide by that long-standing precedent, that I could not support that nominee." And what everybody is that Trump is working off of a pre-approved list on which every potential nominee has been screened for their adherence to extreme right-wing ideology, including hostility to abortion. Collins is continuing to try to pretend that if the nominee hasn't said it out loud, they won't do it.
Here's the thing: no Supreme Court nominee has ever said out loud that they would not abide by any long-standing precedent, but especially Roe. Because they wouldn't get confirmed that way. And the far right knows that. They rely upon the stealth of their nominees. Despite past performance, Collins isn't so stupid that she doesn't know that very well.
But she's still playing her role in this ridiculous kabuki performance. "I'm amazed," she says, "that people on both sides of the aisle have already committed to voting either for or against a nominee whose identity they do not know," Collins said. Yeah, well, it's been pretty widely reported who the top few candidate are, and we know they all have that Federalist Society approval stamped on their foreheads, so it's not so amazing that folks can made a decision here.
It's also not like Trump hasn't made entirely clear what his litmus test is, even if he "promised" Collins that he wouldn't have that discussion with them when he met with them. The senator is setting herself once again for the unflattering headlines: Is Susan Collins a liar or just stupid?
She's also setting herself up for a lot of angry phone calls and emails from Mainers.
Do you live in Maine? You have a powerful voice in stopping Trump's Supreme Court nominee. Click here to write Sen. Collins.