I have always believed that abortion rights would be the one issue that would eventually tear this country apart. Even more today, I believe it. There is no changing of opinion on this. You are either in favor or you are not. My opinion doesn’t matter for our purposes today.
By now, you probably know what has happened. A leaked draft of an opinion was published by Politico. It was written by Justice Samuel Alito. The headline says: “Supreme Court has voted to overturn abortion rights, draft opinion shows.”
In it, Justice Alito seems to be saying that Roe v. Wade was abuse of judicial authority and should be overturned. “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences,” Alito writes.
This happened during the court’s consideration of a Mississippi case that would ban abortions after fifteen weeks.
This draft opinion was circulated among Justices Thomas, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and Barrett. During oral arguments, all voted to overturn Roe v. Wade.
If all this is true, a nearly fifty year old law would be overturned. Abortion rights would then be left to the individual states.
To me, there are two important angles to this story. First, Roe v. Wade would be no more. Second, that a draft opinion has been leaked.
That just doesn’t happen. Some legal analysts say this is the greatest breach in the history of the Supreme Court.
Why do it? Who would do it? Speculation is all over the place here.
Could it be a Supreme Court Clerk with a grudge? An agenda?
Was this draft leaked to try and pressure the court to reverse its decision? Is it intended to get lawmakers to pass some kind of abortion legislation? No one knows. Not yet.
This all reminds me of the Pentagon Papers. That history of the Vietnam War that was leaked to the press in 1971. It caused a huge uproar in this country and eventually led to the end of the war.
Interestingly, it was the Supreme Court that decided the Pentagon Papers could be published. Today, it’s the Supreme Court itself that finds itself in the middle of a controversy.
This is a big story. Very big. Roe v. Wade appears to be done. The country continues to be divided on abortion. Perhaps today more than ever.
Protests have already started at the Supreme Court. It’s probably going to play a big role in the mid-term elections.
And this… who leaked that document and why?
You are very correct – this issue has torn the nation apart. Many husbands fear discussing it with their own wives.
But your opinion counts very much, especially as someone in media who can take the pulse of the public. This issue should never have reached the Supreme Court and become a political issue. It is a personal moral issue that should be left to the individual, their doctor, their church, etc. The fact remains, even if Roe vs Wade is overturned, that the root cause of why so many woman seek abortions in the first place remains (poverty, the extraordinary cost of raising a child equitably in the U.S., inequality of availability and quality and cost of medical care, the stigmas in U.S. surrounding having an unplanned child, the dearth of people willing to adopt children, etc). Your voice is very much important. We must address these root problems that lead to the need for abortions in the first place. And the churches who fight ferociously against legal abortion should focus their energies instead on addressing these root causes. Don’t make it illegal. Illegal is a negative. Take away the legal penalties and fight instead the poverty that makes women feel they need it in the first place. Turn the issue into a positive.
This is great. Thank you for sharing.
So, I understand if it’s absolutely a fact the mother will die. However, are we to kill because someone is keeping us from the life we want, don’t want to deal with someone, or because they won’t look or act like others (sometimes the “different” people, looks or abilities are gifted in many ways and bring happiness in ways never thought of) we need to live in a way that prevents those unwanted pregnancies (get those preventative measures in use) and not kill. Yes, kill, that’s what abortion is, killing.
Thank you for reading the blog and responding. It means a lot.