Roe v Wade Is Settled Law, or so they said at their confirmation hearings and in their interviews.
Collins and Murkowski claim they were stunned how the newest justices apparently lied to them.
Or is it Susan Collins who is lying?
Either way the GOP is showing again that they do believe in a big intrusive government that strives to control the most personal decisions in our lives. I mean what is more personal than one's relationship with their body and their doctor?
On the up side, the Democrats likely just received an issue that will get many to the polls and ensure they have plenty of money to correct this travesty of justice.
Of course, I will be waiting for these supposed pro-life folks to start increasing funding to care for the women who do not want their baby and later, that unwanted baby, toddler, pre-schooler, etc. I am probably dreaming again, since those are the same folks / states where poverty rates are the highest.
14 comments:
For me the issue is whether a Supreme Court whose justices lied to get their jobs can be considered legitimate. In private life, lying on an employment application, particularly on an important matter is grounds for firing. Surely, that must be the case when the level of trust, and the importance of the position is much greater. At the very least, people who lied at their hearings should recuse themselves when the issues they lied about come before the court.
--Hiram
They should be impeached.
Sure, it's not great that these folks lied in their confirmation hearing. It's also not great that there were leaks of the draft. But the various process infractions here pale into actual damage that the decision will inflict on women.
In this very state, Republicans have offered an abortion bill that bans abortion after six weeks with no exceptions for rape or incest and a very limited life/health of the mother exception. For all their talk about caring about crime, they're proposing a bill that would require a rape victim who gets pregnant as a result to not only carry the physical and emotional harm of the rape but to endure the physical, emotional and financial risks of carrying the child to term. And, oh by the way, Minnesota is the ONLY state in the nation that has no law restricting parental rights for rapists!
It's up to the Supreme Court to keep it's secrets. For myself, I would have no problem in knowing more about how it does it's work. Remember, these are public employees whose salaries and health care are provided by us, and their daily work doesn't involve national security.
Let's be very clear here. The reasons for the studied ambiguities are now gone. If Republicans win both houses of the Minnesota Legislature this fall as seems likely, a bill making abortion a crime will be on the governor's desk next year. And if the governor is a Republican, that bill will be signed into law. That is what is at stake in this year's election.
Pro life forces have always avoid specifics. The signs they carry, typically, do not say "Let's jail as many girls as we can". But now it is clear that they want that, as many cheerfully admit in so many words. It remains to be see whether Republicans can win on that issues.
--Hiram
Well let's hope the DEMs show up at the polls in a non-Presidential year and protect women's rights. The GOPers may have given the DEMs a gift.
We are polarized and that means controversial issues both help and hurt. But this changes things. Justice Alito teaches us that the only rights that count are the "deeply rooted" ones, the ones we have had for more than 50 years or so. So much for that silly newfangled notion that married women should be able to get credit cards.
--Hiram
Justice Alito's effort to take away the rights of women over their own bodies and turn it over to state legislators is, of course, disturbing to me. Most people don't even know who there state legislator is. He or she may or may not even be a member of the same party as the woman who is faced with the issue. She might very well have voted against that state legislator. Giving that person the job of making such intimate choices seems absurd. What we have is just a draft opinion from Justice Alito. Perhaps his final draft will give us more insight into his thinking as to why he reposes such trust in our state legislators.
--Hiram
Usually I would prefer states to determine this social norm, however this is how I answered someone regarding why this is different...
"It does get complicated, and good question. I will have to think about it more. Here is my immediate answer.
1. Roe v Wade in my opinion was a somewhat rational balance between the woman's rights and the fetal rights. Though I would have preferred that they picked maybe 16 weeks instead of "viability".
2. If Roe had not settled this ~50 years ago, I may have leaned towards citizens working this out at the state level. However I now see no benefit in re-opening this settled law and energizing the national strife again.
3. Finally, remember that I put kids first. They should only go to households who are capable of raising them well. Unfortunately abortions is one way to prevent incompetent, negligent and abusive people from screwing up more kids."
What happened in America that didn't happen in a lot of other countries is that the issue of abortion became intensely politicized. This happened in part because in practical terms, the issue had been taken off the table, so no political position however extreme, would have no practical real world effects. It's easy to be extreme when it is without consequences.
--Hiram
Well let's hope more rational heads prevail in states if Roe is over turned.
I find the pro life logical to be impeccable. If abortion is murder, those who commit it have committed the most serious of crimes and should serve long terms in prison. Where is the flaw in my reasoning?
--Hiram
GOPers try to avoid issue
Just as a generalized issue, abortion is a basic issue for Republican, integral to how they win elections when they win them. But Justice Alito's decision is a game changer. Now abortion moves from being a theoretical issue about which nothing can be done, to a completely practical one for state legislatures to decide. Now it's fair to ask every candidate for what practical measures they would enact into law to deal with this issue.
I have seen complaint that news coverage of Justice Alito's opinion has been one sided. I think that isn't because of a decision made by the networks or their bookers. I think it's because Republicans don't know what to say. I am pretty sure they don't want to say what Justice Alito implies, that woman have no rights, because rights were determined at the constitutional where no women were present, and no issues related specifically to women were discussed. My guess is that language is going to be edited out of the final opinion, and otherwise rationalized away.
--Hiram
The SNL Cold Open made that point.
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