AUGUSTA, Maine - Maine Sen. Susan Collins met with Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland, a current member of the federal appeals court, for a wide-ranging talk about his nomination and his qualifications.
Collins says it was a good meeting, and says Garland deserves a public hearing by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
"The next step, in my view, should be public hearings before the Judiciary Committee so that the issues we explored in my office can be publicly aired."
Collins says the topics she discussed with Garland ranged from Second Amendment issues to the public perception of the courts.
She says she continues to hope that other Republican senators will change their minds and allow a public hearing. So far, Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, has rejected holding a hearing on the nomination.
