Immediately following the Supreme Court’s ruling on Friday to overturn Roe v. Wade, current and former lawmakers reacted to the end of Americans’ Constitutional right to an abortion.
The decision had been anticipated since the Supreme Court took the Dobbs v. Jackson case this year. A leak of the decision last month showed a 6-3 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which was indeed the final outcome.
The ruling:Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, eliminating constitutional right to abortion
More:Where the abortion fight goes from here: Roe overruled but the battle will continue
Here’s what lawmakers are saying about the decision:
Rep. Jim Jordan addressed ruling on House floor
While the House prepares to vote on bipartisan gun safety legislation, members of Congress took to the floor to speak on the SCOTUS ruling.
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said overturning Roe v. Wade is “a win for the Constitution and a win for the sanctity of life.”
— Katherine Swartz
Poll:Furor over Roe v. Wade reversal likely won’t rescue Democrats in midterm elections
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene called the ruling an “answer to prayer”
Speaking to reporters outside the Capitol, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., called the Supreme Court’s ruling an “answer to prayer,” and said that “we’re going to protect life.”
— Katherine Swartz
Gov. Greg Abbott touts Texas investment in abortion alternatives
Texas Governor Greg Abbott applauded the Supreme Court’s decision and emphasized the millions of dollars he’s allocated towards supporting “women’s healthcare and expectant mothers.”
Texas has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the nation, cutting off after a heartbeat is detected. This is typically in the sixth week of pregnancy, before many know they’re pregnant.
— Katherine Swartz
More:The Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade is only the beginning for anti-abortion advocates
Sen. Majority Leader Schumer calls SCOTUS “extreme MAGA court”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said today’s ruling is the result of electing MAGA Republicans.
“Today is one of the darkest days our country has ever seen,” he said.
“Millions upon millions of American women are having their rights taken from them by five unelected Justices on the extremist MAGA court,” Schumer added.
He said the decision makes “crystal clear the contrast as we approach the November elections.”
— Candy Woodall
Sen. Joe Manchin said he would vote to codify Roe
Moderate Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin said he is “deeply disappointed” by the SCOTUS decision.
Though the senator from West Virginia is pro-life, he said he understands his definition of that may be different from someone else’s definition of pro-life.
Manchin said he would support legislation that codifies the rights Roe v. Wade previously protected.
— Candy Woodall
More:Supreme Court ruling triggers maze of state abortion laws
Speaker Pelosi says Dems will fight ‘ferociously’ to enshrine Roe
Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade is “outrageous and heart-wrenching” and vowed to fight against it in Congress and at the ballot box.
The ruling is the result of the GOP’s “dark and extreme goal of ripping away women’s right to make their own reproductive health decisions,” she said.
“Because of Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell, the Republican Party and their supermajority on the Supreme Court, American women today have less freedom than their mothers,” Pelosi said.
During her weekly news conference, shortly after the SCOTUS decision, she warned that Republicans in Congress want a nationwide ban. She indicated the only way to stop that was to keep the GOP from gaining a majority in the midterm.
“A woman’s right to choose is on the ballot in November,” Pelosi said.
— Candy Woodall
Congress:Seven members of Congress, seven personal stories of abortion as Roe v. Wade hangs in balance
Hillary Clinton: Opinion “Will live in infamy”
Former First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton tweeted that the Supreme Court’s decision “will live in infamy” as a step backwards for women’s rights.
“Most Americans believe the decision to have a child is one of the most sacred decisions there is, and that such decisions should remain between patients and their doctors,” she wrote.
Clinton also called on the public to support and donate to Democratic candidates, to protect reproductive rights by winning elections “at every level.”
— Katherine Swartz
Former Vice President Mike Pence
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who is contemplating his own presidential run in 2024, issued a statement within minutes of the ruling and called for ending abortions in all 50 states.
Praising the Supreme Court for returning the issue to the states, Pence said: ”Having been given this second chance for life, we must not rest and must not relent until the sanctity of life is restored to the center of American law in every state in the land.”
He did not offer specific proposals.
Pence rose to political prominence as a social conservative who emphasized abortion. He won elections to the U.S. House, the governor’s mansion in Indiana and the vice presidency.
In his statement, Pence said: “It is incumbent on all who cherish the sanctity of life to resolve that we will take the defense of the unborn and the support for women in crisis pregnancy centers to every state in America.”
— David Jackson
Sen. Bob Casey, a Catholic Democrat, slammed SCOTUS ruling
Sen. Bob Casey, a longstanding Catholic Democrat who has previously supported pro-life efforts, condemned the Supreme Court ruling.
“Today’s decision upends almost a half century of legal precedent and rips away a constitutional right that generations of women have known their entire lives,” he said in a statement. “This dangerous ruling won’t end abortions in this country, but it will put women’s lives at risk.”
Casey forecast that this is the beginning of a series of decisions and efforts to end abortion rights in the U.S.
“And make no mistake—this is not the end goal, it’s just the beginning. Republicans in Congress want to pass federal legislation to completely ban abortion. Our daughters and granddaughters should not grow up with fewer rights than their mothers.”
— Candy Woodall
Former President Barack Obama: Protest, volunteer, continue to act
Only minutes after the ruling was announced, Former President Barack Obama released a statement on Twitter:
“Today, the Supreme Court not only reversed nearly 50 years of precedent, it relegated the most intensely personal decision someone can make to the whims of politicians and ideologues—attacking the essential freedoms of millions of Americans,” he wrote.
Obama also linked a longer statement that he and former First Lady Michelle Obama wrote when the draft decision was leaked.
In his previous statement and tweets, Obama called on Americans upset over the decision to “join with activists who’ve been sounding the alarm on abortion access for years — and react.”
— Katherine Swartz
