There was speculation that Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) would split with his party and reject a confirmation vote for President Trump's Supreme Court nominee before the November election, but several analysts aren't surprised that he ended up supporting moving forward. That's because Romney's preference for a conservative-leaning high court takes precedent over his "disdain" for Trump, The New York Times' Carl Hulse argues.
Politico's Tim Alberta concurred, noting that Romney likely still expects and even hopes Trump will lose to his Democratic challenger, former Vice President Joe Biden, in November. Alberta also suspects Romney senses the Democrats will "dominate" Congress for some time, leaving the Supreme Court as the only branch of government to maintain conservative power.
That said, there was a little more confusion surrounding Romney's explanation for his decision. The senator said Democrats "have gotten used to having a liberal court" — which several observers pointed out was inaccurate, at least in terms of the legal ideologies of the sitting justices — and that a center-right court is appropriate for a "nation that is, if you will, center-right." But Alberta and The Daily Beast's Sam Stein agreed that Romney's interpretation of where the country stands politically is off the mark. Tim O'Donnell
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Taps could run dry in drought-stricken TehranUnder the Radar President warns that unless rationing eases water crisis, citizens may have to evacuate the capital
-
Alaska faces earth-shaking loss as seismic monitoring stations shutterIN THE SPOTLIGHT NOAA cuts have left the western seaboard without a crucial resource to measure, understand and predict tsunamis
-
10 great advent calendars for everyone (including the dog)The Week Recommends Countdown with cocktails, jams and Legos
-
ABC News to pay $15M in Trump defamation suitSpeed Read The lawsuit stemmed from George Stephanopoulos' on-air assertion that Trump was found liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll
-
Judge blocks Louisiana 10 Commandments lawSpeed Read U.S. District Judge John deGravelles ruled that a law ordering schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms was unconstitutional
-
ATF finalizes rule to close 'gun show loophole'Speed Read Biden moves to expand background checks for gun buyers
-
Hong Kong passes tough new security lawSpeed Read It will allow the government to further suppress all forms of dissent
-
France enshrines abortion rights in constitutionspeed read It became the first country to make abortion a constitutional right
-
Texas executes man despite contested evidenceSpeed Read Texas rejected calls for a rehearing of Ivan Cantu's case amid recanted testimony and allegations of suppressed exculpatory evidence
-
Supreme Court wary of state social media regulationsSpeed Read A majority of justices appeared skeptical that Texas and Florida were lawfully protecting the free speech rights of users
-
Greece legalizes same-sex marriageSpeed Read Greece becomes the first Orthodox Christian country to enshrine marriage equality in law
