President Joe Biden has been “clumsy” in his management of the next Supreme Court vacancy, according to Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine. Collins stated on ABC News’ “This Week” that Biden’s statement of his intention to nominate an African American woman to the Supreme Court had turned the decision into a political one. “The president’s handling of this nomination has been amateurish at best,” Collins remarked. “It contributes to the notion that the court, like Congress, is a political institution when it is not.” I am completely open to anybody he chooses to select. My obligation as a Senator is to assess that person’s credentials under the advise and consent position.”
Collins also justified her “no” vote for Justice Amy Coney Barrett in the aftermath of former Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death in 2020 as a non-political decision. “I voted against Amy Coney Barrett because her nomination and vacancy happened too soon to the election, the presidential election,” Collins explained. “And Republicans, even in the Obama administration, had created a precedent that we would not confirm someone — in that case, Merrick Garland — in an election year.” She also stated that she hopes for bipartisan Electoral College reform this year.
“This rule from 1887 oversees the counting and verification of presidential votes,” she explained. “And on January 6th, 2021, we witnessed how ambiguities, basic law, were exploited.” We must take steps to ensure that this does not happen again.” “I’ve gathered together a bipartisan group of 16 Senators,” she stated. “Together, we’ve been conducting Zoom meetings,” she continued. “We’ll pick them up again tomorrow.” And I’m hopeful that we can pass a bipartisan bill that makes it clear that the vice president’s role is merely ministerial, that he has no authority to halt the count, and that we’ll raise the threshold for triggering a challenge to a vote count submitted by the states from one House member to one Senator.”
