Collins to oppose Trump’s attorney general pick over abortion pledge

Senator Susan Collins of Maine said Tuesday she will vote against President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general, Todd Blanche, citing his reported pledge to anti-abortion groups. Collins said Blanche promised an anti-abortion organization he would seek to prohibit the mailing of abortion medication to women nationwide.

According to The Hill, Blanche also told anti-abortion groups he would work to make the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision "permanent" if confirmed. Blanche was quoted saying that in states that protect "every life from the moment of conception," his office would put policies in place so other states or organizations "can't attack that," including through mail-order abortion drugs.

The Justice Department told The Hill the comments were mischaracterized and concerned mail-order abortion drugs specifically, not a broader expansion of federal control over states. Collins, who describes herself as pro-choice, has previously broken with her party over abortion rights, including criticizing the Dobbs ruling by justices she had supported for confirmation.

Reproductive Freedom for All President and CEO Mini Timmaraju said Blanche was making promises to weaponize the Justice Department to enact a national abortion ban. Blanche's confirmation, which would give him oversight of federal abortion law enforcement including the Comstock Act, remains a developing story.

Read the full story at newsweek.com.