Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said a Supreme Court nominee's words about Roe v. Wade would tell a lot about how he or she would act as a justice. | AP Photo Collins: New justice should not favor overturning Roe v. Wade

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Sunday that President Donald Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court should not seek to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that enshrined abortion rights in the United States.

“Roe v. Wade is a constitutional right that is well-established,” Collins said on “State of the Union” on CNN. “And no less an authority than Chief Justice [John] Roberts said that repeatedly at his confirmation hearing.“


Trump last week said he wouldn’t ask potential Supreme Court nominees about abortion rights — a departure from his stance on the campaign trail, when he said he would nominate to the Supreme Court only people who oppose abortion.

“I think what he said as the candidate may not have been informed by the legal advice that he now has,” Collins told Jake Tapper. “It would be inappropriate for him to ask a nominee how he or she would rule on a specific issue.”

Collins, who favors abortion rights, said she is not comfortable with all 25 names on Trump’s shortlist for the Supreme Court. The Maine senator is one of the few Republicans considered to be a possible vote against a Trump Supreme Court nomination.

Speaking also on ABC’s “This Week,” Collins elaborated on her position on the 1973 abortion ruling, written by Justice Harry Blackmun.

“It has been established as a constitutional right for 46 years — 45 years, and was reaffirmed 26 years ago,” Collins said. “So a nominee position, whether or not they respect precedent, will tell me a lot about whether or not they would overturn Roe v. Wade. A candidate of this import position who would overturn Roe v. Wade would not be acceptable to me, because that would indicate an activist agenda that I don’t want to see a judge have. And that would indicate to me a failure to respect precedent of fundamental tenet of our judicial system.”

Brent Griffiths contributed to this report.