On Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit tossed out a lower court ruling blocking Texas’s temporary abortion ban. The ban, set in place about three weeks ago, established abortion as a “non-essential service” while we are combating the coronavirus.
Of course, abortion supporters are harshly criticizing the decision, while pro-life advocates believe this move is consistent with their view of protecting life at all costs. The outrage over the ban and the insistence that abortion continue while most of the rest of society shuts down amid crisis shows just how sacrosanct abortion is to the Left.
Two of the three judges, Jennifer Walker Elrod and Kyle Duncan, both Republican appointees, said that legal precedent “allows the state to restrict, for example, one’s right to peaceably assemble, to publicly worship, to travel, and even to leave one’s home” in a public health emergency. “The right to abortion is no exception,” the judges concluded.
Abortion advocates aren’t happy:
“Stopping abortion care will not increase the supplies in hospitals and it won’t fix this crisis.” –@dr_moayedi https://t.co/N2m6lPbGTh
— Teen Vogue (@TeenVogue) April 7, 2020
Abortion is a time-sensitive, medical procedure. Lawmakers should focus on protecting and supporting people during this time, not politicizing the #COVID19 pandemic to restrict and ban abortion care. #AbortionIsEssential
— Center for Reproductive Rights (@ReproRights) April 8, 2020
NEW: Abortion-rights advocates tell 5th Circuit they plan to go to Supreme Court tomorrow morning if 5th doesn’t act today on Texas’ Covid-19 abortion ban. 5th issued administrative stay on 3/31 to block most abortions, but has taken its time issuing longer-term order. pic.twitter.com/kk5QEHPhNC
— Greg Stohr (@GregStohr) April 7, 2020
Most people are worried about fighting the coronavirus and minimizing loss of life. And from the beginning of this crisis, medical experts have begged for more equipment, pointing out that there is a severe shortage in everything from respirators to personal protective equipment such as masks, which are also sometimes used during abortions. Still, this clear need to focus our resources simply doesn’t matter to abortion advocates.
In a statement, Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Denise Harle said in part:
Pro-life advocates have always known just how sacrosanct abortion is to the Left. But when liberal activists go about attacking a temporary ban put in place for the safety of public health, even threatening to take the ban to the Supreme Court, that’s a serious statement of their morals.
The country is fighting a pandemic. While thankfully, most appear to value life more than ever, this is sadly not true for many abortion advocates. To them, all life is sacred except the lives of unborn babies. They are seriously arguing that somehow, in the midst of this pandemic, abortion access remains essential even as we limit other rights — and that speaks volumes about the nature of their movement.
Nicole Russell (@russell_nm) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. She is a journalist who previously worked in Republican politics in Minnesota.
