The statement by Collins was in reference Chuck Schumer.
Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins on Tuesday pointed to past political rhetoric directed at the Supreme Court, appearing to criticize New York Democrat Chuck Schumer’s 2020 comments as justices Amy Coney Barrett and Elena Kagan testified in rare form before Congress to warn of rising threats and seek additional security funding.
“It is increasingly dangerous to be a Supreme Court justice these days,” she said. “It’s appalling to me that some of the rhetoric is coming from public officials on both sides of the aisle who should know better than to level personal political attacks against the judiciary and the courts specifically. For example, a senator stood in front of the Supreme Court building and called out two members by name, saying that they had released the whirlwind and that they would pay the price.”
This statement by Collins was in reference Chuck Schumer, who in 2020, as the high court was hearing arguments surrounding Roe v. Wade, made less-than-savory comments about the court and the potential decisions that would come down.
“I want to tell you, Gorsuch; I want to tell you, Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind,” he said. “And you will pay the price. You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.”
The comments drew wide-ranging criticism, as Supreme Court justices are appointed to lifetime terms, limiting the political price they could potentially pay, leaving only what many assumed to be a physical one.
His words drew the condemnation of many lawmakers at the time.
“At the very best, his comments were astonishing, reckless and completely irresponsible, and clearly, as the chief justice stated in a rare and extraordinary rebuke, they were ‘dangerous,’ because, no matter the intention, words carrying the apparent threat of violence can have horrific unintended consequences,” Senator Mitch McConnell said per CBS.
Schumer himself did walk those comments back and implied that he misdirected his ire.
“I should not have used the words I used yesterday; they did not come out the way I intended to. My point was there would be political consequences for Trump and Senate Republicans,” Schumer had said on the Senate floor at the time.
While Schumer’s comments were walked back, they remained an example cited by Collins in the broader debate over the rhetoric surrounding the Supreme Court. That debate took on new urgency Tuesday as Kagan and Barrett appeared before Congress to explain why some justices no longer feel fully secure without additional protections.