Jared Huffman: Roe v. Wade leak might be ‘first of many shoes to drop’
A leaked Supreme Court decision that would overturn longstanding abortion rights “is probably the first of many shoes to drop” from the highest court of the land, says North Coast Congressman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael).
“It’s a really extreme agenda and this is likely just the beginning with this court,” Huffman told The Times-Standard.
On Monday, news outlet Politico published an article based on a leaked draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito indicating the Supreme Court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, a 1973 decision that protected a woman’s right to make her own reproductive choices.
Meanwhile, California has been taking steps in the opposite direction, further expanding access to safe abortions. For instance, the passage of Senate Bill 245 in March gets rid of out-of-pocket costs for abortions.
North Coast State Sen. Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg) told The Times-Standard the state isn’t stopping there and reiterated the commitment to further codifying abortion rights at the state level.
“The news out of the Supreme Court is horrifying,” McGuire said in a statement. “Reproductive rights are under attack across America. We will not go backwards, we will not back down. California will always defend reproductive freedom.”
McGuire and Assemblymember Jim Wood (D-Santa Rosa) are among those in the state Legislature that support passing a constitutional amendment that would protect reproductive health care and abortion services.
“Although we knew this was a possibility, reading the leaked draft opinion from members of the Supreme Court regarding Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey was disturbing,” Wood said in a statement. “I am a passionate supporter of a woman’s right to choose and will do whatever I can to ensure that California protects women’s reproductive rights … Prior to this leak, and in preparation for potential Supreme Court actions overturning these decisions, the Legislature has already moved legislation and made budget requests to ensure that women from oppressed states will be able to come to California for their care.”
A representative of the Humboldt County Republican Party said it’s premature to comment on the draft opinion since the decision isn’t final. However, Jean Caldwell, of the Humboldt County Democratic Party, said there is no guarantee and that even the state’s abortion protections might be at risk if the Republican Party takes any more seats in the Senate this fall.
“The Senate is so heavily weighted toward rural and Southern states that they have an outsized influence that’s not representative of people in general,” Caldwell said. “With the kind of government we have in the United States, it’s a danger that we’ll get a nationwide ban.”
Huffman said that wasn’t an unlikely possibility depending on how Congressional elections go.
“As nice as it is to have really solid state laws that protect women’s reproductive rights, it is true we have a Republican Party right now that would like to pass federal legislation to prevent California and other states from doing that,” he said.
If the party can manage to add two more Democrats to the Senate and get rid of the filibuster, Huffman said nothing would stand in the way of locking in reproductive protections nationwide.
“There will be an effort to pass that legislation now with the current members of the Senate,” Huffman said. “It’s just not likely to succeed because of the filibuster and I think that’s going to feed right into the election this fall.”
That’s going to be especially crucial since Huffman said he believes more of these decisions are coming down the pipe, pointing to a religious liberty case that might end up supporting “something that looks a lot like compulsory prayer in public schools.”
“Having the ability for Congress to respond with legislation when this court rolls back rights and tortures the Constitution is really critical,” Huffman said.
Arcata Vice Mayor Sarah Schaefer was also aghast at learning of the direction the Supreme Court was taking and decided to work with fellow Councilmember Meredith Matthews to organize a rally for noon this Sunday at the Arcata Plaza.
“It’s not just one group of people that cares about this,” Schaefer said. “A lot of people are really outraged and want a place to put their anger and their fears so hopefully we can get a lot of people to show support and make it a feel-good event, especially on Mother’s Day.”
Sonia Waraich can be reached at 707-441-0504.
By: Sonia Waraich
Source: Eureka Times-Standard
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