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).
Rebecca Walser, President of Walser Wealth Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where she discusses the factors behind Monday's surge on Wall Street and explains why investors will likely experience volatility in the market throughout the month of December.
Cheddar's Chloe Aiello joined "Closing Bell" to break down the progress of the SAFE Banking Act in Congress as cannabis businesses operators struggle to find financial institutions that will service them. Banks face steep federal penalties, including the risk of losing a bank charter, if found to be servicing marijuana businesses even if their state has legalized operations. Aiello reported that while there was some bipartisan support for the measure in the Senate, the bill faces some opposition from conservatives with "longstanding concerns" about cannabis and progressives who prefer a more comprehensive approach to reform.
Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri is slated to testify this week in front of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee after a Wall Street Journal report that found the Meta-owned social media platform is negatively impacting the mental wellness of teen girls.
Chinese regulators are reportedly behind China-based ride-hailing company DiDi exiting from the New York Stock Exchange, just days after listing earlier this year. The regulators stated prior that DiDi had not received the necessary clearances to list in the states. Gordon Chang, Asian affairs expert, joined Cheddar to break down what the delisting says about the relationship between nations. "This really strikes me as an attempt to really to force a decoupling of China and the U.S. in the financial markets," Chang said.
U.S. Futures were pointing to a higher open to round out the week despite a miss on the November Jobs Report, which showed slower job growth than expected-- and as the omicron variant continues to spread across the country. Patrick Healey, Founder & President at Caliber Financial Partners joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Just days after the detection of the Omicron variant, the World Health Organization has agreed to start the process of establishing a global pandemic treaty or accord. Amy Maxmen, senior reporter for Nature, and Dr. Samuel Scarpino, managing director for the Rockefeller Foundation's Pandemic Prevention Institute, joined Cheddar to discuss this effort and what lessons can be learned from the many COVID-19 failures as the world prepares for future pandemics.
It's a mixed bag for the November jobs report. Hiring slowed last month as employers only added 210,000 jobs, massively missing the estimate of 550,000. But there was one bright spot: the unemployment rate fell to 4.2%, with the number of unemployed people dropping to 6.9 million. Both of those numbers are considerably down from their highs at the end of the 2020 recession. Heather Boushey, a member of President Biden's Council of Economic Advisers, joined Cheddar to discuss the report and the state of the country's ongoing economic recovery.
