Banning abortion has been a top Republican goal for years. They talk about it all the time, they attack Planned Parenthood at every opportunity, and they propose all the legislation they can to make sure women’s access to abortion is as limited as possible. Since they can’t outlaw abortion outright, they impose ludicrous restrictions on those seeking abortions as well as on abortion providers (aka TRAP laws).
Now, though, with the retirement of Anthony Kennedy from the Supreme Court and Trump’s nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, we’re in a place where Republicans might be able to fully outlaw abortion as they’ve always wanted. Trump has said since his candidacy that if given the chance, he would appoint “pro-life” judges to the court who would work to overturn Roe v. Wade. So why are Republicans suddenly saying it’s unreasonable for us to assume that’s what’s happening?
On last night’s Full Frontal, Samantha Bee addressed all the conservative pundits and politicians who feign shock that we would assume Trump’s SCOTUS pick will do … that exact thing Trump told us his SCOTUS pick would do. As she says, “All Republicans have done for years is rail against abortion and now suddenly we’re hysterical for taking them at their word? We weren’t born yesterday and even if we were, we’d still see through you because you were saying it until yesterday.”
Yes, apparently we’re being “hysterical” (an inherently sexist term) just because we’re looking ahead to the future of our reproductive rights and not happy with what we see. Bee does a great job of breaking down what a conservative court could and likely will mean for the future of abortion.
“It’s true that Roe v. Wade might not get completely overturned,” she says, “but with Kavanaugh dragging the court to the right, it will at least get tipped over. Anti-choicers could use any abortion case to weaken it, chipping away to make abortion effectively illegal in much of the US.” State legislators have been prepping for a shift in the court, and have enacted “extreme, cruel and unconstitutional laws, but they feel confident because they believe the Supreme Court could uphold them in the face of legal challenges.”
And if Roe is fully overturned, things could be “even worse, even faster.” A number of states have what are known as trigger laws, meaning the second Roe v. Wade is reversed, legislation is already in place that would immediately ban abortion. Others still have state laws on the books from before Roe v. Wade that ban abortion, which would likely go into effect if the ruling were overturned. In all, abortion would likely be illegal in 22 states were that to happen. Most of those states form a huge block in the middle of the country, meaning women in that area seeking safe and legal abortion would have to travel an exceptionally long distance to do so, an impossible obstacle for many.
If Republicans think paying attention to these issues is “hysterical” behavior, so be it. As Bee says, “Now is the exact time to get maximum hysterical.”
(image: YouTube)
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