Abortion Lobby Prepares for Fight to Protect Roe v. Wade

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 22: Pro-life activists stand off against pro-choice activists dur
Alex Wong/Getty
Dr. Susan Berry

While pro-life advocates say President Donald Trump’s choice of Judge Brett Kavanaugh is a “promise” kept, and pro-abortion forces are gathering support for a fight to protect Roe v. Wade, some experts caution that Roe is probably not at stake with this Supreme Court nominee.

“Trump has selected Judge Brett Kavanaugh to sit on the Supreme Court, confirming all of our worst fears,” said Dawn Laguens, executive vice president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, in an email letter to supporters. “Trump promised to appoint justices only if they are determined to overturn Roe v. Wade – and Kavanaugh will tip the balance away from our constitutional right to access abortion and to be free from discrimination.”

Laguens, the public face of Planned Parenthood since the departure of former president Cecile Richards, added:

Brett Kavanaugh has a dangerous track record of trying to block women from getting access to birth control and abortion care. Just last year, he ruled to block an undocumented woman who recently entered the United States from obtaining an abortion. He also ruled in favor of bosses denying their employees birth control coverage based on their personal religious objections. Now, President Trump wants Kavanaugh’s extreme views on the Supreme Court. Based on this record, we can safely assume that he will make good on Trump’s promise to only appoint justices who will overturn Roe v. Wade. We must stop Kavanaugh — this is a fight we can’t afford to lose.

The abortion industry and its friends are frantic over Trump’s nomination of Kavanaugh – a judge described as one who has attempted to keep the judiciary within its bounds as an interpretive, rather than a legislative, body.

Meanwhile, pro-life leaders are excited at the possibility of another Supreme Court justice they say will interpret the Constitution as written.

“This announcement is good news for democracy,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List, in a press call Monday evening following Trump’s announcement of Kavanaugh’s nomination. “In Judge Kavanaugh, we have a man who is devoted to interpreting the text of the Constitution as it is written and as it applies to today’s debate.”

Originalist opinions are unwelcome to abortion advocates who have relied heavily on the 1973 Roe decision that essentially created a right to abortion – though none ever existed in the Constitution.

In fact, a progressive activist judiciary has been the lifeblood of the abortion industry and its colleagues. Time and again, Americans have seen the contempt of these left-wing groups for laws passed by representatives of “the people” that do not conform to their agenda.

American Life League noted that Planned Parenthood especially “continually loses in public votes and in many state legislatures” but “turns to the courts to force its way on the American people.”

Laguens, a lesbian who raises triplet daughters with her partner, admits, “The Supreme Court is the last line of defense against ideologues who are determined to see a national ban on safe, legal abortion — not to mention those who wish to roll back hard-won victories of the past on access to health care such as birth control, protections for the LGBTQ community, and more.”

Dannenfelser said her organization will be “all in” for Kavanaugh’s confirmation.

“This nominee is devoted to safeguarding our safe haven – our Constitution – because whatever your cause, and ours here at the Susan B. Anthony List is the fundamental of all causes – the right to life, our founding documents give us the right and the roadmap to settling our differences in an atmosphere of civility,” she said.

Similarly, Lila Rose, president of the pro-life organization Live Action, said about the nomination, “We encourage Brett Kavanaugh to uphold the Constitution and support the most basic human right — the right to life — for all people.”

However, Leonard Leo, an outside adviser to Trump on Supreme Court nominations, has said the fate of Roe v. Wade remains uncertain and that the Left is fear-mongering that Trump’s nominee will overturn the controversial decision.

“We’ve been talking about this for 36 years, going all the way back to the nomination of Sandra O’Connor,” Leo said, according to ABC’s This Week. “And after that 36 year period, we only have a single individual on the court who has expressly said he would overturn Roe. So I think it’s a bit of a scare tactic and ranks speculation more than anything else.”

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