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Romney backs vote on Trump's Supreme Court pick

"I came down on the side of the Constitution and precedent as I've studied it and made the decision on that basis," Romney said.

Romney's decision left Democrats with few hopes of blocking Senate confirmation of the Republican president's third appointment to the nine-member high court, giving it a 6-3 conservative majority.

Trump has said he plans to announce his nominee by Saturday.

Romney, the party's 2012 presidential nominee, is one of the few Republicans in Congress willing to criticize Trump, and he even voted to remove him from office in the February impeachment trial.