US President Joe Biden on Tuesday urged Americans to defend access to abortion. His appeal came after a leaked draft opinion of the US Supreme Court showed that majority of the conservative-dominated court was of the opinion to end nationwide right and access to abortion.
Biden warned that if such a verdict was delivered it may lead to widespread changes in American law as “every other decision relating to the notion of privacy is thrown into question.”
Watch | US: Draft leak suggests court to overturn abortion rights
If the ruling is finalized, abortion laws will depend on individual states and “it will fall on voters to elect” officials who back the right to the procedure, Biden said after the ruling was leaked.
“If this decision holds, it’s really quite a radical decision,” Biden told reporters in Washington as he departed on a trip to Alabama. “It’s a fundamental shift in American jurisprudence.”
“I believe that a woman’s right to choose is fundamental,” Biden said, referring to the landmark 1973 Supreme Court case Roe v Wade that declared abortion a constitutionally protected right.
Biden also called on Congress to enshrine legal abortion in US law. It is the only way of overcoming any Supreme Court ruling that the document apparently shows is set to be issued.
It is clear by now that the leaked Supreme Court draft is authentic. This has been confirmed US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.
Read | Leaked draft shows US Supreme Court set to strike down abortion rights: Politico
On Tuesday, Roberts said that draft was authentic, but not the final decision on the matter. He termed draft leak an “egregious breach” of trust.
News outlet Politico late on Monday published a draft opinion that suggested the conservative-dominated high court was poised to shred nearly 50 years of constitutional protections by striking down the nationwide right to abortion in the United States.
(With inputs from agencies)
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