Susan Collins's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Stance on SCOTUS Pick
*By Conor White*
Republicans may be chomping at the bit to get another conservative justice on the Supreme Court and finally overturn the long-standing Roe v. Wade decision.
But Mother Jones's Ben Dreyfuss told Cheddar that a repeal of abortion rights ruling could, maybe ironically, spell disaster for the GOP.
"I think it's a massive risk both in the immediate term ー which is midterm elections ー but also a risk, which many people in the Republican party are aware of, in the long term," the senior editor said. "There's a big assemblage of evidence and thought that there's a lot of Republicans who don't actually want to overturn Roe, even if they are pro-life."
Many Republicans hope that whoever replaces Justice Anthony Kennedy on the nation's top court will reverse the 1973 landmark decision. But according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation poll, just 29 percent of Americans want to see the ruling overturned.
Even GOP Senator Susan Collins of Maine said over the weekend she wouldn't support an anti-abortion Supreme Court candidate. But because she also signaled she wouldn't specifically ask the nominee to offer his or her opinion on the matter, Dreyfuss said President Donald Trump's pick will be confirmed in short order.
"She basically was saying as long as he or she doesn't come to the Senate and say, 'Just so you know I'm going to overturn Roe,' she'll support him," Dreyfuss explained, "which is very different than saying, 'I want to know how they feel about Roe, and if they don't answer, I will say no.'"
Kennedy announced last week he'd retire from the bench at the end of July. President Trump is expected to announce his nominee, the second of his administration, on July 9th.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/scotus-fight-heats-up).
Face to face for just over two hours, President Joe Biden and Russia’s Vladimir Putin squared off in a secure video call Tuesday as the U.S. president put Moscow on notice that an invasion of Ukraine would bring enormous harm to the Russian economy.
Ahead of Instagram head Adam Mosseri's congressional hearing on the mental impact of the social platform on teens, the company announced a number of updates aimed at teen safety.
Troubled Chinese real estate giant Evergrande is once again nearing the brink of collapse. Shares of Evergrande sunk to a new record low on Monday, closing down 20 percent, as debt default fears resurfaced. Drew Bernstein, co-chairman at consultancy MarcumBP, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss. He said U.S. investors have to understand that "there is no company in China that's too big to fail, that's for sure," and that the Chinese government will be prioritizing the social welfare of the populace. Bernstein did note that it would be a managed collapse in some form.
Joan Greve, a politics reporter at The Guardian US, joined Wake Up With Cheddar to break down the implications of the Biden administration announcing a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing games in response to allegations of human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims. She noted the significance of the move, assessing the already frayed relationship between the U.S. and China. "The Chinese have said that a boycott would be politically manipulative, and now they are actually threatening countermeasures," she said. "And that will certainly have an impact on the spirit of the games at the very least."
The Biden administration has reached an agreement with the Mexican government to resume the "Remain-in-Mexico" policy under court order. By reinstating a Trump-era border policy, asylum-seekers will be forced to stay in Mexico until their U.S. immigration court date. The program is set to resume on Monday. Ryan Devereaux, a reporter for The Intercept, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
The U.S. announced it will not send any official representation to the upcoming Beijing winter Olympics. Cheddar's Hena Doba speaks with East Asia expert Michael Swaine about the reasons behind the diplomatic move.
COVID-19 is still battering the nation's criminal justice system, causing a massive backlog in cases and delaying verdicts for months on end. This, combined with the fear of crowded prisons during a pandemic, has prompted many defendants to plead guilty in exchange for time served or probation. Tina Luongo, attorney-in-charge of the Criminal Defense Practice, joined Cheddar to discuss the court backlog, the rise in plea bargains, and why this was an issue long before the pandemic.
With so many high-profile court cases taking over the media, from the trial over the murder of Ahmaud Arbery to the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse to the ongoing Elizabeth Holmes trial, Cheddar took a look at these cases and why there is such a big interest in them. Rachel Fiset, a white collar criminal defense lawyer and partner with Zeiback, Fiset, and Coleman, and Bryan Hance, attorney-at-law, professor, and academic program director of the pre-law and paralegal studies program at National University, joined Cheddar for a roundtable discussion on why there is so much public interest in so-called courtroom drama.
Carlo and Baker discuss the sweeping new vaccine mandate in NYC that will target all private businesses. Plus, Trump's media venture gets its CEO and more.
