Activists and advocacy groups are ramping up the pressure on undecided senators with hopes of tanking Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, with less than three weeks to go before Republicans hope to confirm him.
Outside groups are pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into the effort to oppose Kavanaugh, and are targeting GOP senators such as Susan Collins of Maine, Dean Heller of Nevada, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, as well as Democrats in Republican-leaning states up for re-election who decide to vote “yes.” Many of those same senators are being subjected to cruder attacks from individuals.
Collins appears to be bearing the brunt of the attacks, as her office has fielded vulgar and threatening messages from people urging her to vote “no.” Her office has received roughly 3,000 coat hangers in the mail, a warning about the self-induced methods of abortion women may have to resort to should the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade.
[Read: Key senators mum on Kavanaugh vote after four days of hearings]
In one voicemail to one of Collins’s state offices, a person threatened to rape her 25-year-old female staffer. In another voicemail obtained by the Washington Examiner from Collins’ office, the caller said, “Don’t be a dumb c–t. Don’t be a stupid, fucking hypocrite. … Don’t be a dumb bitch. Fuck you also.”
Collins’ office received a letter warning, “If you vote for Kavanaugh, EVERY waitress who serves you is going to spit in your food, and that’s if you’re lucky, you fucking c–t! Think of that at every meal!”
Opponents of Kavanaugh’s nomination have been warning about the future of abortion rights since Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement in June. Because Kennedy served as the court’s swing vote, the stakes of the nomination were raised, as the balance of the court is expected to tip to the Right if President Trump’s nominee were confirmed.
Abortion groups warn that a Supreme Court with five conservative justices could overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark decision that established a woman’s right to an abortion.
Collins said she would not support a nominee who was hostile to Roe, and after meeting with Kavanaugh last month, the Maine senator said he assured her he believes the landmark decision is “settled law.” But Collins hasn’t said whether she will support or oppose Kavanaugh, and abortion groups are keeping up the pressure.
On Wednesday, Planned Parenthood Action Fund rolled out a new anti-Kavanaugh ad that will on TV and online in Maine. The ads include footage from a focus group with female voters in Maine discussing Collins and Kavanaugh’s nomination.
“The women of Maine know that Kavanaugh would overturn Roe and chip away at access to safe, legal abortion if given the chance. Kavanaugh’s record, his emails, his speeches all say what he dodged at his hearings last week — he does not see Roe v. Wade as correct law or settled law,” Dawn Laguens, Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s executive vice president, said in a statement. “Senator Collins needs to listen to the women of Maine and continue to stand up for their most basic freedoms by opposing Brett Kavanaugh.”
Demand Justice, a liberal judicial advocacy group, also released an ad Monday centered on Collins. The 30-second spot warns that the Maine Republican would be breaking her word to constituents if she supported Kavanaugh’s nomination.
While Collins has been the focus of many campaigns since Kennedy’s retirement, NARAL Pro-Choice America is targeting Heller and urging him to vote no. An ad from the group released Wednesday alleges Kavanaugh would “criminalize abortion.”
“Roe v. Wade overturned. Abortion criminalized. Women living in fear of punishment. … This could be our future. Unless Dean Heller stops it,” stated the ad, which will run statewide in Nevada.
Despite the attacks on Kavanaugh, the Supreme Court hopeful is expected to be confirmed by the Senate.
Because Republicans control 51 seats to Democrats’ 49, killing his nomination would require two GOP defections. All eyes are also on three Democrats in pro-Trump states, Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Joe Donnelly of Indiana, and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota. All three voted to confirm Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court last year, and could vote for Kavanaugh.
The deadline for tanking Kavanaugh’s nomination, meanwhile, is nearing.
The Senate Judiciary Committee placed Kavanaugh’s nomination on its agenda for its Thursday meeting, though the panel’s Democratic members are expected to request it be held over for at least one week.
GOP Senate leaders said they intend for the full Senate to vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination the last week of September. The timing of that vote would ensure that if Kavanaugh is confirmed, he would take his seat on the court by the start of its next term, which kicks off Oct. 1.
Robert King contributed
