After Sen. Susan Collins’ vote to confirm Matthew Byrne to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio this past week, advocates are contrasting her actions on abortion rights with her claims about where she stands — and with the actions of her opponent, former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson.
“[Jackson has] been a real champion,” says Lisa Margulies, a spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood Votes. In contrast, she says, “Collins has totally lost her moral compass and commitment to this issue in any way, shape, or form.”
Collins has long claimed to support the right to an abortion, but Margulies says her actions have not followed through. Jackson, on the other hand, has publicly evolved on his stance on the right to abortion, and as Senate President backed several measures protecting and expanding abortion rights in Maine.
Byrne, a far-right anti-abortion judge, is the latest in a series of Trump-nominated judges Collins has supported for lifetime appointments in several states. This comes at a time when the right to an abortion is no longer protected at the federal level by Roe v Wade.
Collins’ vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court in 2022 is widely seen as having enabled the court to overturn Roe v Wade, since he and Neil Gorsuch — who Collins also supported — were deciding votes to overturn the ruling. Collins has since said she does not regret the vote for Kavanaugh.
She also voted to confirm Joshua Dunlap to the U.S Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which includes Maine. Dunlap advocated for a “fetal personhood bill” in Maine that would have laid the groundwork for criminalizing abortion care.
Collins has also endorsed Republican candidate Bobby Charles for governor. Charles describes himself as “unapologetically” anti-abortion, and says he would, if elected, work with Pres. Donald Trump to “defund abortion clinics.”
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