Senator Collins spent three days refusing to answer questions, only taking a position once Mitch McConnell had the votes he needed without her
Like the practiced career politician that she is, Senator Collins has spent the last three days dodging reporters and refusing to clarify whether or not she would vote to confirm a nominee put forward by Donald Trump on the Senate floor. Her initial statement was intentionally vague and carefully worded to leave her room to play both sides, but now that Mitch McConnell has confirmed that he has enough votes to confirm Trump’s nominee without her support, Collins has now received a hall pass that allows her to take the position she thinks has the fewest political consequences for her re-election without actually impacting the outcome for her party.
Here’s what is clear about Senator Collins’ record – she has been a key player in Trump and McConell’s scheme to take over the federal judiciary. She has voted to confirm 178 Trump judges including every single Trump nominee in 2017 and 2018, a number of whom were rated “not qualified” by the American Bar Association and cast a deciding vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Collins has never cast a deciding vote against a Trump nominated judge, and by announcing her opposition after it was already clear that McConnell did not need her support to confirm Trump’s Supreme Court pick, she ensured that she won’t be a deciding vote against this nominee either.
Once again, the only thing Senator Collins has made clear is that she’s a career politician who after 24 years in Washington, will say anything to stay there.
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