Dozens of protesters in Portland Tuesday publicly challenged Maine U.S. Sen. Susan Collins to vote against President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
The protesters gathered first in the park across from Collins' downtown office to make a case that Kavanaugh's nomination is a threat to the court's landmark abortion rights decision, Roe v. Wade.
Jane Card, a retired teacher, says Collins has served Maine well. But Card said a vote to confirm Kavanaugh could cost Collins some votes in 2020.
"We would like her to come out wholeheartedly in favor of women's rights, right to choose," Card said. "She's probably not going to trash her career on principal but we'd like to remind her we will not vote for her if she confirms Brett Kavanaugh."
Protester Susan Richards said she watched the Roe v. Wade decision come down in 1973, ensuring a woman's right to an abortion. But she says the decision has never felt secure.
"I feel like I've been defending this and fighting for it all my life and that's ridiculous. It's ridiculous," Richards said. "And our children and grandchildren will continue this fight."
Some of the protesters then crossed the street to try and make their concerns known directly to Collins' staff.
