The Future of Abortion Rights in Trump’s America
Justice Anthony Kennedy’s retirement has instilled both fear and hope that a conservative majority on the Supreme Court can overturn the 1973 decision Roe v. Wade. Before Kennedy’s retirement, few people were seriously concerned about the possibility of overturning Roe v. Wade. During his time on the Court, Anthony Kennedy proved himself to be an essential swing vote ,voting to legalize gay marriage in 2015 and to upkeep legal abortions in 1992 [1]. With the Senate approval of Kennedy’s replacement, Judge Brett Kavanaugh, looming many are beginning to wonder what the future of abortion rights may look like in the United States. Now more than ever, the future of legal abortions in the United States remains a huge question mark.
Ever since Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court on July 9th, many Democrats have worried that the future of Roe v. Wade hangs in the balance [2]. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer expressed his concern of having Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court just a few days after his nomination by President Trump. Schumer and other Democrats find Kavanaugh’s stance and previous rulings on women’s reproductive rights to be troubling, which is why they believe he could help overturn Roe following his appointment to the Court.
When Congressional Democrats talk about Kavanaugh and abortion, they often bring up one of his most recent cases when he served as a judge on the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. When a pregnant 17 year old undocumented immigrant was detained at a border facility in Texas, stating her will to terminate her pregnancy, her reproductive rights were denied and ended up being brought to the court that Kavanaugh served on as a judge [3]. Although the court ruled in favor of the undocumented immigrant, Judge Brett Kavanaugh made his feelings about abortion explicitly clear in the dissenting opinion.
“… The government has permissible interests in favoring fetal life, protecting the best interests of a minor, and refraining from facilitating abortion” [4].
This case is often a talking point for Democrats and others when it comes to blocking Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court. It is evident that Kennedy’s replacement poses a big threat to abortion rights in this country which is why the issue of abortion has also become a hot topic for the 2018 midterm elections in November. The issue of abortion could impact the midterm elections, and attention is now shifting towards the states. State lawmakers are finding ways to gut abortion into state law which will in turn enact more restrictions on the legal procedure [5].
States like Texas already have strict abortion laws all while living under Roe v. Wade. In the state of Texas, women who are seeking an abortion must make two visits to the abortion clinic. During the first appointment, they are required to have a mandatory ultrasound where they not only see the fetus but hear its heartbeat in an attempt to sway the expectant mother’s decision about wanting to terminate her pregnancy [6]. In addition, state law requires minors to get parental permission before being able to get an abortion.
In recent years, Texas has come onto the radar for their notoriously strict abortion laws. The most notable time was when Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt was brought to the Supreme Court in 2016. Three years before the case was decided in 2016, Texas state lawmakers passed a House bill that enacted major restrictions on abortions performed in the state. Some restrictions included that a physician performing abortions must have admitting privileges at a hospital within a 30 mile radius of where the abortion is being performed, and another restriction required all abortion clinics comply with mandatory standards for ambulatory surgical centers [7]. Although the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the abortion clinics who were suing the state of Texas, Texas still has major restrictions when it comes to abortion to this very day.
It is believed that if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, then four states will automatically ban abortion. Mississippi, Louisiana, North Dakota and South Dakota all have so called trigger laws that already restrict abortion despite it still being legal [8]. An additional seven states that have trigger laws encoded in their state laws would also outlaw abortion in years to come if the Supreme Court ever decides to overturn Roe v. Wade [9].
Brett Kavanaugh’s stance on legal abortion in this country is troubling, and many are worried that he will be the deciding vote to put an end to Roe v. Wade once he gets appointed to the Supreme Court. With the overwhelming possibility of eleven states outlawing abortion if the case is overturned, the future of abortion rights in this country is in jeopardy. What many fail to understand is that making abortion illegal won’t stop women from seeking abortions. Outlawing abortion would only put an end to safe abortions in this country.
If you want to help protect reproductive rights at the Supreme Court and beyond, please consider donating to https://www.weareplannedparenthoodaction.org/onlineactions/hkv0R7LN0E-Q-U5mXFaXRA2?sourceid=1004803&ms=4NALz1901K1N1V&ask=scotusnom&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIq5Pbkezs3AIVBksNCh27WgpEEAAYASAAEgKrwfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
References
[1] Dwyer, Colin. “A Brief History Of Anthony Kennedy’s Swing Vote — And The Landmark Cases It Swayed.” NPR.
[2] Landler, Mark, and Maggie Haberman. “Brett Kavanaugh Is Trump’s Pick for Supreme Court.” The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/09/us/politics/brett-kavanaugh-supreme-court.html
[3] “Garza v. Hargan.” Harvard Law Review.
https://harvardlawreview.org/2018/04/garza-v-hargan/
[4] Bolton, Alexander. “Democrats Build Abortion Case against Kavanaugh .” TheHill.
http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/396317-democrats-build-abortion-case-against-kavanaugh
[5] Foley, Ryan J. “State Legislatures See Flurry of Activity on Abortion Bills.” PBS.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/state-legislatures-see-flurry-of-activity-on-abortion-bills
[6] Planned Parenthood. “Texas Abortion Laws.” Planned Parenthood.
https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-center-for-choice/texas-abortion-laws
[7] “Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt.” Oyez.org.
https://www.oyez.org/cases/2015/15-274
[8] Glenza, Jessica, and Sam Morris. “A Grave Threat to Women’s Rights: 24 US States Could Ban Abortion in Two Years.” The Guardian.
[9] Solis, Marie. “These States Will Immediately Ban Abortion If Roe v. Wade Is Repealed.” Broadly.
