U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. House Judiciary Committee debates abortion in advance of landmark court ruling
WASHINGTON — The national debate over abortion rights raged in the U.S. House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, as Democrats warned of the dangers of a potential end to the constitutional right and Republicans argued that legislatures should determine abortion laws. The hearing came just weeks after a leaked draft opinion from Associate Justice Samuel Alito […]
The Supreme Court is giving extreme new powers to increasingly autocratic state governments
There’s a lot to be worried about in the draft U.S. Supreme Court opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade — and with it, half a century of constitutional precedent. At least 26 states are likely to criminalize abortions, often without exceptions for rape, incest, or life-threatening pregnancies. In Louisiana, people seeking abortions could even face execution, which doesn’t strike […]
Economists: Abortion ban would have negative impacts on labor force, education
Nearly two dozen economists in the state agreed that prohibiting abortion in Ohio would negatively impact labor force participation and educational attainment, according to a new survey. The Ohio Economic Experts Panel answered a survey conducted by Scioto Analysis. The survey asked whether the economists agreed that prohibition of abortion in Ohio would reduce “women’s […]
U.S. Senate Democrats fail to enshrine nationwide abortion protections, vow more action
WASHINGTON — Efforts to secure the nationwide right to an abortion stalled for a second time Wednesday when U.S. Senate Democrats failed to get enough votes to overcome the legislative filibuster. Republicans, including Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, voted uniformly against limiting debate on the bill while Democrats, save West Virginia’s […]
Overturning Roe would undo women’s health, education, and economic progress
The world shook last week when Politico releases a draft opinion suggesting Roe v. Wade would soon be overturned. Since President Trump installed three new Supreme Court justices on the bench, court watchers have thought the right to privacy and bodily autonomy were at risk. Now we may see a world where protection of that […]
McConnell doesn’t rule out U.S. Senate vote outlawing abortion if GOP takes control
WASHINGTON — Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell isn’t ruling out bringing a nationwide abortion ban up for a vote, should the U.S. Supreme Court end the constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy and his party regains the chamber in the November elections. The Kentucky Republican was somewhat reserved last week when repeatedly asked by reporters […]
Rights to bodily autonomy on the ballot in November as U.S. Supreme Court looks to overturn Roe
The foreboding of the late Supreme Court Justice has come to pass. Women are being denied decision-making power over their own lives. They are being dehumanized as lesser. Being robbed of bodily autonomy. Courts, lawmakers and physicians are deciding what’s best for pregnant women — after establishing that they lack the capacity and privilege to […]
The wholly unsurprising fate of Roe v. Wade
Being a woman in this country often feels like an exercise in futility. It’s repeatedly baring your soul and sharing your personal and intimate stories in hopes of proving that you deserve basic rights, only to be slapped in the face with decisions that explicitly negate your own experience. It is exhausting. I am rarely rendered speechless, […]
Vote on abortion rights planned in U.S. Senate next week, but likely will fall short
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer will force a vote next week on a bill to codify abortion protections, following the disclosure that the Supreme Court could be ready to overturn a landmark abortion rights ruling, he and other Senate Democrats announced Thursday. The effort appears largely symbolic. Democrats are well short of the 60 […]
How the Supreme Court limiting abortion access could harm the economy and women’s well-being
By Michele Gilman, University of Baltimore A leaked draft suggests the Supreme Court is ready to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark case that gave women the right to terminate a pregnancy. But reproductive health isn’t just about abortion, despite all the attention the procedure gets. It’s also about access to family planning services, contraception, […]
Returning power over basic rights to illegally gerrymandered states like Ohio is a disaster
Gerrymandering destroys legitimate representation, so the U.S. Supreme Court returning power over basic civil rights to illegally gerrymandered states like Ohio is an absolute disaster in waiting. Many people will suffer horribly in ways big and small. Do you want your privacy rights, your health care rights, your marriage rights, your discrimination protections, and your […]
U.S. Senate to try again on abortion rights after bombshell disclosure of draft opinion
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Democrats on Tuesday pledged a new vote codifying the right to an abortion after publication of a draft court ruling that showed the Supreme Court on track to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion decision. Democrats, who likely won’t have the votes to advance that bill, also predicted that abortion […]