Liberals rage at Supreme Court draft opinion overturning Roe v Wade

Republican lawmakers throughout the country celebrated the news of a Supreme Court draft opinion that is set to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade decision which legalized abortion – but have denounced the leak as an attempt to ‘intimidate’ the justices into changing their minds.

Politico reported Monday night that Justice Samuel Alito, one of six justices appointed by Republican presidents on the nine-member court, wrote a majority draft opinion in February repudiating both Roe and the 1992 Planned Parenthood vs. Casey decision.

‘Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,’ Alito writes in the opinion, which was reportedly circulated among the court members. ‘We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,’ he continues in the document, titled ‘Opinion of the Court.’

‘It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.’

Republicans celebrated the decision, calling it a victory for the social conservatives and Christians who have worked for decades in lockstep to reach this moment.

The draft document is not final until the court formally announces its decision in a case, meaning the ruling could technically still be changed. The court is expected to issue its final ruling before its term is up in late June or early July.

That led to speculation from some on the right, including Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, that the Alito draft was leaked in the hopes public outrage could temper the court’s decision.

Indeed, following its release, several notable Democrats have already slammed the decision, saying they will not abide by it. 

One Democratic Representative compared the decision to a dystopian novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, while California Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed the state would ‘fight like Hell’ to oppose the ruling.

‘Our daughters, sisters, mothers and grandmothers will not be silenced,’ Newsom tweeted Monday night. ‘The world is about to hear their fury.’

Reaction to the news of Alito’s draft opinion was swift Monday night, with conservative lawmakers celebrating the news after decades of fighting for an end to abortion rights – though they raised doubts about why the decision was leaked.

Mike Gibbons, who is facing Trump-endorsed candidate JD Vance in the Republican primary for an Ohio Senate seat, wrote that the decision marked a ‘huge pro-life victory,’ noting it’s ‘great to see the Court recognize all life is protected under the Constitution.

‘We still have to make sure we elect candidates that will continue to defend the unborn, which is exactly what I’ll do in the U.S. Senate.

Others, though, raised doubts about the news, with Marco Rubio writing: ‘The next time you hear the far left preaching about how they are fighting to preserve our Republic’s institutions and norms remember how they leaked a Supreme Court opinion in an attempt to intimidate the justices on abortion.

Republican Josh Hawley, of Missouri, also tweeted that the leak is ‘an unprecedented breach of confidentiality, clearly meant to intimidate.

‘The Justices mustn’t give in to this attempt to corrupt the process,’ Hawley wrote. ‘Stay strong.’

Controversial Congressmember Madison Cawthorne also tweeted that ‘this leak was meant to intimidate the Supreme Court into backing down.

‘Pray for the end of Roe v. Wade. Pray the Court will defend innocent life. Pray the Court will stand strong,’ he urged his followers, noting:  ‘Evil MUST not triumph. Science, common sense, and LIFE will win.’

And Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, of Georgia, said in a statement she is ‘overwhelmed with emotion because this is the best news of our lifetime.

‘This is a great victory for God and the unborn who have been innocently slain for years, my entire lifetime,’ she said.

‘I want to urge everyone to continue to pray, people all over our country, people all over our world, have been praying to end abortion.

‘I want you to understand that there is going to be a major pushback in our country because there’s going to be people that are going to fight to keep it and they’re going to fight keep murdering the innocent unborn. 

‘I want you to dig in in prayer and faith and continue to pray that this actually comes true when they do release their opinion that Roe v Wade will be overturned and abortion will end and this will return the rights back to the states. 

‘I urge every single strong pro-life state to end it,’ she wrote.

But on the left, Democrats and abortion rights activists slammed the decision – saying it is a ‘nightmare scenario’ as they vowed to fight the ruling.

In a statement following the news, Planned Parenthood CEO Jodi Hicks said: ‘This is the nightmare scenario we in the reproductive health, rights, and justice space have been sounding the alarm about and especially once the U.S. Supreme Court had a conservative majority.

And now, if this opinion truly is reflective of the final decision of the majority of the U.S. Supreme Court Justices, then even if abortion remains legal today, we are just days away from more than 26 states banning access to abortion services, essential and safe health care that has been a constitutional right for nearly 50 years.

‘Make no mistake about it, the plan has always been to ban and criminalize abortion ever since 1973 when Roe v. Wade was decided,’ she claimed

A number of Democrats have since come out against the decision, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi saying in a joint statement that the decision ‘would go down as an abomination, one of the worst and most damaging decisions in modern history.’

They also used the opportunity to slam former President Trump, saying: ‘Several of these conservative justices, who are in no way accountable to the American people, have lied to the US Senate, ripped up the Constitution and defiled both precedent and the Supreme Court’s reputation – all at the expense of tens of millions of women who could be stripped of their bodily autonomy and the Constitutional rights they’ve relied on for half a century.

‘The party of Lincoln and Eisenhower has now completely devolved into the party of Trump,’ the two top Congressional Democrats continued, adding: ‘Every Republican Senator who supported Sen. McConnell and voted for Trump justices pretending that this day would never come will now have to explain themselves to the American people.’

And one-time Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton also tweeted Monday night she is ‘not surprised’ by the news.

‘This decision is a direct assault on the dignity, rights and lives of women, not to mention decades of settled law,’ she wrote. ‘It will kill and subjugate women even as a vast majority of Americans think abortion should be legal. 

‘What an utter disgrace.’

Many have now said they would fight the decision if it were passed – either at the federal or the state level. 

In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy reminded his followers that he signed into law the Freedom of Reproductive Choice Act, which codifies the right to an abortion into New Jersey law.

‘New Jersey will not go backwards on reproductive rights,’ he wrote in a tweet.

Meanwhile, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said abortions rights would not be overturned ‘on my watch,’ and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul also promised that ‘abortion will always be safe and accessible in New York,’ saying it will welcome anyone who says they need an abortion ‘with open arms.’

‘I refuse to let my new granddaughter have to fight for the rights that generations have fought for & won, rights that she should be guaranteed,’ Hochul tweeted.

At the same time, New York Attorney General Letitia James also promised in a tweet to ‘do everything in our power to protect the right to an abortion’ adding, ‘Congress must act immediately to do the same.’

And in Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she will ‘fight like hell to make sure abortion remains safe, legal and accessible in our state.’

On the progressive end , woke Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, meanwhile, noted that Sen. Joe Manchin is preventing a vote on codifying abortion rights into law, while Sen. Bernie Sanders suggested ending the filibuster to get it passed.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren also branded the Supreme Court ‘extremist’ in a tweet saying it will ‘impose its far-right, unpopular views on the entire country.

‘It’s time for the millions who support the Constitution and abortion rights to stand up and make their voices heard,’ Warren wrote. ‘We’re not going back—not ever.’

Maryland Democrat Rep. Jamie Raskin, meanwhile, warned that Alito’s decision could also lead to bans on birth control as he claimed the decision is reminiscent of The Handmaid’s Tale.

He was referring to the novel by Margaret Atwood – which was later turned into a television show. In both iterations, women are forced by the state to give birth.

‘The basic legal claim here is that the word “abortion” doesn’t appear in the Constitution, and of course it doesn’t appear in the Constitution,’ Raskin, a Constitutional lawyer, explained to MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow Monday night.

‘But the Supreme Court in 1973, in Roe v. Wade or Griswold v. Connecticut – which was a 1965 decision by the Supreme Court striking down a law banning birth control, even for married couples in Connecticut – the Supreme Court said that the due process liberty clause include a right to privacy, over intimate decision making.

‘So the point is that Justice Alito’s decision would also apply, presumably, to the right to privacy in contraception,’ he continued. ‘If Casey is to fall, if Roe v. Wade is to fall, then Griswold v. Connecticut presumably is to follow as well because the word “contraception” or “birth control” doesn’t appear in the Constitution [either].

 ‘So this would appear to be an invitation to have Handmaid’s Tale-type anti-feminist regulation and legislation all over the country,’ Raskin concluded.

The Supreme Court’s draft decision has shaken the Supreme Court to its core, with barricades posted around the building shortly after the report was posted online.

The highly-respected SCOTUSblog, which covers the court in-depth, noted: ‘The document leaked to Politico is almost certainly an authentic draft opinion by J. Alito that reflects what he believes at least 5 members of the Court have voted to support — overruling Roe. But as Alito’s draft, it does not reflect the comments or reactions of other Justices.’

‘It’s impossible to overstate the earthquake this will cause inside the Court, in terms of the destruction of trust among the Justices and staff. This leak is the gravest, most unforgivable sin,’ SCOTUSblog tweeted. 

Other observers called it a crisis for Roberts’ tenure as chief justice.

‘The article represents the greatest crisis that Chief Justice John Roberts has faced in his tenure on the Court,’ wrote legal scholar Jonathan Turley.

Turley also pointed out the leak happened to put pressure on the court to change its ruling before it’s publicly announced. 

‘The most likely motivation is obviously to pressure the Court and push the legislation in Congress on a federal abortion law before the midterm elections. It will also likely renew the call for court packing,’ he added. 

And Democratic campaign strategist Brian Fallon tweeted: ‘Is a brave clerk taking this unprecedented step of leaking a draft opinion to warn the country what’s coming in a last-ditch Hail Mary attempt to see if the public response might cause the Court to reconsider?’ 

Such a ruling would immediately become an issue in the 2022 midterm election where Democrats are struggling to keep control of Congress. 

Abortion would also become a major political issue in governors’ races with states being given the right to determine whether or not to allow the procedure.