A group who gathered outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrapped up their demonstration around 8:30 p.m., with several people noting they would head to the Supreme Court building to join other protesters already there.

Protests are expected to continue outside the Supreme Court and in several states across the country throughout the weekend.

For continued coverage of the nationwide response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, click here to read more from the Washington Examiner.

A group of pro-abortion rights activists gathered outside the home of Justice Clarence Thomas om Virginia on Friday evening, just hours after the Supreme Court announced its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Protesters stood on the lawn outside the home to protest as Thomas was one of five justices to vote in support of reversing Roe, which had guaranteed the nationwide right to an abortion.

As of 8 p.m. there were roughly 30 protesters and a similar number of journalists outside the home of the justice and his wife, Ginni Thomas. Protesters sang, yelled and chanted. Among the rallying cries were: “No privacy for us, no peace for you.” And “Ginni Thomas is an insurrectionist.”

One protester held a sign that read: “Thomas is a treasonous turd.”

The protest was organized online by the pro-abortion group “Ruth Sent Us,” which has been protesting regularly at justices’ homes since May when a leaked Supreme Court opinion signaled the court would overturn nearly 50 years of abortion access precedent

The protest is one of several planned for the weekend, as the groups say they plan to show up at every justice’s house who voted to overturn Roe. Protesters at Thomas’s house on Friday evening said they plan to return every week.

Famed musician Taylor Swift responded to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade on Friday, denouncing the move as a blow to decades of fighting for abortion rights.

“I’m absolutely terrified that this is where we are — that after so many decades of people fighting for women’s rights to their own bodies, today’s decision has stripped us of that,” she wrote on Twitter.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson responded to the Supreme Court’s decision to overrule Roe v. Wade on Friday, criticizing the move as a “step backwards.”

“It’s a very important decision. I’ve got to tell you, I think it’s a big step backwards,” he told reporters. “I’ve always believed in a woman’s right to choose and I stick to that view and that is why the U.K. has the laws that it does.”

At least 13 states have so-called trigger laws on the books to ban abortion as soon as the Supreme Court relegated jurisdiction over the social issue back to them, which the high court did on Friday.

The states are Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.

Specifics of the bans vary from state to state, with some immediately going into effect and others waiting on some type of certification. Eight of the states with trigger laws do not appear to have exceptions for either rape or incest, and the timing of when the bans would be “triggered” varies by state. As of press time, at least six of these bans have been enacted following the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision Friday that overturned Roe v. Wade.

Click here to read the full story.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer asked the Michigan Supreme Court to evaluate her lawsuit challenging a pre-Roe law restricting access to abortion.

The governor filed a motion Friday urging the state’s high court to take up her suit filed in April to scrap the law and declare abortion a constitutionally protected right under Michigan law, stressing the urgency of her motion in light of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that guaranteed a woman’s right to an abortion.

Click here to read the full story.

The Pontifical Academy for Life, a department of the Vatican, praised the Supreme Court‘s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the half-century-old ruling in Roe v. Wade that legalized abortions nationwide.

“The fact that a large country with a long democratic tradition has changed its position on this issue also challenges the whole world,” the statement said. “It is not right that the problem is set aside without adequate overall consideration. The protection and defense of human life is not an issue that can remain confined to the exercise of individual rights but instead is a matter of broad social significance.”

Click here to read the full story.

Several companies have vowed to cover their employees’ costs of abortion-related travel after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade.

Just minutes after the decision came down from the high court on Friday, the Walt Disney Company said it would cover employee travel expenses for abortions. It said the company would cover travel for “family planning,” which includes “pregnancy-related decisions.”

JPMorgan Chase circulated an internal memo to employees after the landmark decision dropped that said it would pay for employees to travel out of state should they live in a state where abortion is now prohibited. The policy is set to go into effect next month.

Streaming giant Netflix said that it would offer a $10,000 lifetime allowance per employee for abortion-related travel, in addition to providing the benefit for travel related to cancer treatment, transplants, and gender reassignment surgery.

Click here to read the full story.

Donations flooded to the D.C. Abortion Fund in the hours after the Supreme Court released its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, with the group telling the Washington Examiner it had raised more than $30,000 by 1 p.m. — less than three hours after the opinion dropped.

The D.C. Abortion Fund is a nonprofit organization that provides grants to women who are seeking to receive an abortion but cannot afford the procedure. Abortions are legal in the district at any point during pregnancy regardless of residency. About 81% of abortions funded through DCAF in 2020 went to women who live outside of the district, according to annual data released by the organization.

“Although the protections of Roe v. Wade are gone, DCAF will continue our work to build a world beyond Roe where access is a reality for all, regardless of race, zip code, or income,” said Devin Simpson, communications director for DCAF. “Funds have been leading the way and will continue to do so as we navigate these anti-abortion threats together. We will continue to do what we have always done in the last 26 years: fund abortions. Our mission and our vision will never change.”

The nonprofit organization is the only one in the district that focuses solely on providing grants to those seeking assistance to afford an abortion. Clinic workers connect prospective patients with case managers who can determine the cost of the procedure, and the DCAF then sends grants directly to the clinic where the abortion is being performed.

Police responded to the Frederick Douglass Bridge in Washington, D.C., after a pro-abortion rights protester scaled the structure Friday morning in protest of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

“Ok, I’ve got a life. A job, kids I love, there’s pretty much any place I’d rather be than the top of this damn bridge,” a Twitter user called Guido Reichstadter said in a tweet along with a photo of a man on the bridge. “But I have a responsibility to those I love- to step out, stand up and defend their rights. And so do you! So let’s rise up, nonviolently, for Abortion rights!”

The bridge is less than two miles away from the Supreme Court building, where protests erupted on Friday moments after the decision was announced.

D.C. police confirmed to the Washington Examiner they are responding to the scene “for the report of a person in crisis.” No other details were available at the time.

Several businesses in downtown Washington, D.C., were spotted boarded up their windows in anticipation of protests in response to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The building where the National Press Club is located was seen boarding up its windows Friday afternoon, as well as several nearby businesses.

This comes as large crowds gathered in front of the Supreme Court building moments after the decision was announced, with some protesters saying they are preparing for a “night of rage.”

Washington, D.C., leaders responded to the news of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade on Friday, urging Congress to act swiftly to codify abortion rights and strengthen the district’s autonomy.

“We need to work together because certainly, this ruling is a threat to women and men and families across the country. But I think it shows a particular threat to our city,” said D.C. Councilmember Elissa Silverman. “And I really think we need to strategize and work together to strengthen Home Rule to make sure that we preserve the rights that we have to make the best decisions for residents of our city.”

Although abortion is legal at all stages in D.C., the district’s laws can be changed at any time by Congress because the city does not have statehood. This has prompted anxiety among D.C. lawmakers ahead of the midterm elections, as the Republican Party seeks to gain control of Congress.

“We are a pro-choice city. Nothing has changed in Washington D.C. Abortion remains legal,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser. “Women and girls we know are worried. We are worried because we know we are vulnerable as a jurisdiction because of our lack of statehood. But we will keep fighting.”

The Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and overrule the right to get an abortion nationwide amounts to a “healthcare crisis,” Vice President Kamala Harris said on Friday.

“For nearly 50 years, we have talked about what Roe v. Wade protects. Today, as of right now, as of this minute, we can only talk about what Roe v. Wade protected. Past tense,” Harris said. “This is a healthcare crisis because millions of women in America will go to bed tonight without access to the healthcare and reproductive care they had this morning. Without access to the same healthcare or reproductive healthcare that their mothers and grandmothers had for 50 years.”

The decision amounts to the government stripping rights away from women and removing the privilege of privacy, the vice president said.

Harris was on a flight to Illinois when she got the news that the Supreme Court announced its decision on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and began reading through the opinion, according to a White House official.

Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge certified the state’s trigger law banning abortion, making the procedure illegal immediately.

The newly certified abortion law bans the procedure in almost all cases with the only exception being if the “life of a pregnant woman [is] in a medical emergency.” People who perform or attempt to perform an abortion could be charged with 10 years in prison or a fine of up to $100,000.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson told reporters on Friday he does not currently plan to ask the legislature to consider adding exceptions for rape or incest.

Several groups of pro-abortion rights activists are planning to protest outside the home of Justice Clarence Thomas on Friday evening, just hours after the Supreme Court announced its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The protest outside Thomas’s home is the first of several demonstrations planned by the hodge podge of groups, which includes Ruth Sent Us, Our Rights DC, and Shut Down DC. Demonstrations will continue throughout the weekend at each of the justices’ homes who voted to overturn Roe, which legalized abortions nationwide.

“Enraged? Devastated? Pissed the f*** off?” said Our Rights DC in a tweet. “So are we.”

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said that the Supreme Court’s decision on abortion was “unconscionable.”

“Abortion is a basic and essential part of health care— patients must have the right to make decisions about their health care and autonomy over their own bodies,” Becerra said.

Becerra added that the Department of Health and Human Services remains committed to “ensure every American has access to health care and the ability to make decisions about health care.”

President Joe Biden called on Congress to codify Roe v. Wade into law, an admission of his limits as president.

“The only way we can secure a woman’s right to choose is for Congress to restore Roe v. Wade as federal law,” he said. “No executive action from the president can do that.”

Biden promised to protect the ability to travel to seek an abortion, calling this “a bedrock right,” and to do “everything in [his] power to fight” such restrictions.

The decision, he said, is “a sad day for the court and the country.”

“It just stuns me,” Biden said.

Democrats have issued a torrent of statements condemning the ruling Friday and are expected to lean heavily on the decision as they seek to motivate voters ahead of the November elections.

Biden did not respond to questions about the ruling and the future of the Supreme Court, which some Democrats have called for abolishing or expanding.

Read more here.

The Supreme Court struck down the 50-year-old Roe v. Wade decision that guaranteed a right to abortion nationwide on Friday, sending decisions for regulating abortions down to the state level.

The following is a breakdown of what the monumental decision means and addresses some misconceptions.

Abortion is not federally illegal.

The Constitution no longer guarantees the right to an abortion, but that does not mean access to the procedure has been removed. Most blue states, such as California, Illinois, and Massachusetts, have solidified the right to abortion in state law, meaning accessibility there will not change. However, the move to overturn the 1973 decision gives the right to police abortions back to states, many of which have already banned it or are expected to soon.

Abortion is now illegal in over a dozen states.

Thirteen states — Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming — have “trigger laws” in place, which effectively ban abortions almost immediately after the decision from the high court. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt said Friday that the ban has been enacted in his state.

Read more here.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) showed up alongside protesters outside of the Supreme Court on Friday to say to “hell with the Supreme Court” after its decision on abortion.

“You ain’t seen nothing yet,” Waters said just feet away from court. “Women are going to control their bodies no matter how they try and stop us. The hell with the Supreme Court. We will defy them. Women will be in control of their bodies. And if they think black women are intimidated or afraid, they got another thought coming.”

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin will seek to ban abortions statewide after 15 weeks of pregnancy, reversing current state law that allows the procedure up until the third trimester.

The Republican governor has requested four Virginia lawmakers, who each hold anti-abortion views, to draft legislation that would ban abortions after 15 weeks with exceptions for rape, incest, or harm to the mother’s life, Youngkin said on Friday, just minutes after the Supreme Court announced its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Although Youngkin wants a 15-week ban, he conceded that compromises may be needed to pass legislation. Concessions may include extending the ban until 20 weeks, which Youngkin noted is a widely agreed-upon timeframe among Congress and other lawmakers for when a fetus begins to feel pain.

(AP Photo/John Raoux)

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem announced a new website on Friday in wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling to connect mothers to resources for before and after birth.

“In South Dakota, we value life. But being pro-life doesn’t just mean caring about the unborn. It also means getting moms the help they need to be successful,” said Noem. “We’re launching Life.SD.gov to give women the resources they need to navigate pregnancy pregnancy, birth, parenting, and adoption, if they choose.”

The website will provide materials to connect mothers with financial assistance.

(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) said Friday’s ruling was “inconsistent” with what conservative Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch told her during confirmation proceedings in 2017 and 2018.

“This decision is inconsistent with what Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh said in their testimony and their meetings with me, where they both were insistent on the importance of supporting long-standing precedents that the country has relied upon,” Collins said in a statement.

“The Supreme Court has abandoned a fifty-year precedent at a time that the country is desperate for stability,” Collins added. “This ill-considered action will further divide the country at a moment when, more than ever in modern times, we need the Court to show both consistency and restraint.”

Collins voted to confirm both justices appointed by then-President Donald Trump, saying she did not believe they would overturn Roe v. Wade.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin reaffirmed his commitment to taking care of the “health and well-being” of servicemembers after Friday’s ruling.

“Nothing is more important to me or to this Department than the health and well-being of our Service members, the civilian workforce and DOD families,” Austin said in a statement. “I am committed to taking care of our people and ensuring the readiness and resilience of our Force. The Department is examining this decision closely and evaluating our policies to ensure we continue to provide seamless access to reproductive health care as permitted by federal law.”

Some protesters upset about the Supreme Court’s ruling on Friday took to chanting expletives aimed at the justices that sided with the majority opinion.

“F**k you Gorsuch, F**k you Kavanaugh, F**k you Barrett, F**k you SCOTUS, F**k Alito,” a group gathered outside of the Supreme Court chanted.

Others opposed to the ruling called for “abortion on demand.”

The leaked Supreme Court draft opinion that foreshadowed the overturning of abortion rights last month resembles Friday’s final decision, signaling that the justices did not buckle under weeks of public pressure.

Despite a national outcry of protests, marches, and an alleged attempted assassination against Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Justice Samuel Alito‘s majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization very closely resembled the draft opinion leaked by Politico on May 2.

“It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives. … That is what the Constitution and the rule of law demand,” Alito wrote in the draft and the final decision on Friday.

The draft opinion signaled Friday’s likely outcome that Justices Neil Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett, and Kavanaugh, appointees of former President Donald Trump, would join Justices Clarence Thomas and Alito to upend 50 years of precedent regarding abortion access and allow states to create laws banning or severely limiting abortion.

Read more here.

Activists supporting the Supreme Court’s ruling increasingly began leaving the area surrounding the building even as activists favoring widespread access to abortion continued to chant.

Nicky Sundt, a self-described independent “climate change expert,” said while “reproductive rights is critically important in its own right,” the ruling is “part of a larger erosion of rights for marginalized communities: women, people of color, queer people.”

Sundt, who identified as “trans,” had “no doubt, given the precedent … that we’re going to see some of the same rationale used to roll back other rights,” likely an allusion to Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurring judgment advocating for using the same logic cited in Friday’s ruling to reconsider other cases decided using the same logic that found constitutional rights to contraceptives and same-sex marriage.

Susan Prolman, a self-described “citizen of the world,” decried “a minority” for having “overtaken the judicial branch, particularly the Supreme Court” and making decisions that “do not represent the will of the majority.”

“We are at a terrifying time in American history,” Prolman said, calling the ruling a “war on women.”

Cami Mondeaux/Washington Examiner

Billie Chapman, a social worker from Wyoming, called the ruling “horrifying.”

“Now it’s like 60 years of progress has been hacked by a decision of people who don’t have vaginas,” Chapman said, calling on states to “step up and protect abortion rights and women’s rights.”

Of the six justices who ruled in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade, five are men. The court’s three women split, with Republican-appointed Justice Amy Coney Barrett voting with the majority and Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, both appointed by former President Barack Obama, dissenting.

Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin said it had to turn away patients as Friday’s ruling came down, setting the stage for the state’s 173-year-old abortion ban to again become law.

“When the ruling came down, we had to go out to those individuals who were in our waiting room and say, ‘We’re so sorry, that decision that you made for yourself, for your family, for your future, is no longer your decision to make here in Wisconsin,'” President & CEO of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin Tanya Atkinson said.

Atkinson said some had driven for “hours” to access the services, which are temporarily suspended at Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin.

Per a state law passed in 1849 that went back into effect today, Wisconsin providers are banned from performing abortions except when saving the life of the mother.

Atkinson said that though the clinic is legally unable to provide abortion, it can help with financial assistance in traveling to “a state where abortion remains safe and legal.”

“Planned Parenthood can also be there for people who need an abortion. They can help people navigate to a state where abortion remains safe and legal for people’s health care decisions are respected. And they can be there for people who return home and need aftercare,” Atkinson. “Planned Parenthood Wisconsin can also provide financial assistance to anyone who needs to access a safe and legal abortion.”

Gemunu Amarasinghe/AP

Former President Donald Trump seemed to take credit for Friday’s Supreme Court ruling, in which half of the justices in the majority were his appointees.

“I delivered everything I promised,” he said.

“Today’s decision, which is the biggest WIN for LIFE in a generation, along with the other decisions that have been announced recently, were only made possible because I delivered everything I promised, including nominating and getting three highly respected and strong Constitutionalists confirmed to the United States Supreme Court,” Trump said in a statement. “It was my great honor to do so!”

Trump appointed three Supreme Court justices during his time in office: Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. All three sided with the 6-3 majority opinion on Friday to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The attorney general of Washington, D.C., is vowing to defend access to abortions within the district.

“My office will do everything in our power to fiercely defend and strengthen the right to abortion in the District so that everyone can create their family how and when they choose,” Attorney General Karl Racine said.

Racine noted abortion access is “intertwined” with the district’s “fight for autonomy and statehood” given that it is subject to oversight from the federal government.

“We know our strong abortion laws could change if the federal government seeks to take away this right,” he warned, alluding to the oversight a GOP-controlled Congress could have over left-leaning Washington if the party takes control after the midterm elections.

President Joe Biden said it was a “sad day” for the country following the Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade during remarks at the White House.

“Now with Roe gone, let’s be very clear: The health and life of women of this nation are now at risk,” Biden said.

Biden encouraged all those participating in protests outside the Supreme Court and around the country to keep it “peaceful.”

“I call on everyone, no matter how deeply they care about this decision, to keep all protests peaceful. Peaceful, peaceful, peaceful. No intimidation. Violence is never acceptable. Threats and intimidation are not speech. We must stand against violence in any form,” Biden said.

A pediatrician who is “a little surprised” the decision came “this soon” applauded the justices for granting “a win-win for both sides.”

“As a pediatrician, I definitely understand the importance of it. We support [and] protect the unborn, but I also support the mom, and so I am a sort of – it’s a win-win for both sides to me because at the end of the day, it kind of eliminates unnecessary abortions, but at the same time I’m hoping that we will continue to remember that we at all costs protect our moms,” Delia Morgan from New Orleans told the Washington Examiner.

Morgan said she was in Washington on vacation when she heard the news about the Supreme Court ruling.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said Friday he is “deeply disappointed” by the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization striking down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision and that he would support legislation codifying the standard previously set by Roe.

The ruling struck down the court’s prior rulings in both Roe and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which legalized abortion nationwide, and concerned a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks.

Manchin, who considers himself personally anti-abortion but backed the legal standard set by Roe, did not support a sweeping abortion rights bill in the Senate earlier this year on the grounds that it went beyond Roe. The bill failed when it did not garner enough support to clear the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster. Manchin and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) have vocally opposed removing the filibuster.

In his statement, Manchin said, “I am deeply disappointed that the Supreme Court has voted to overturn Roe v. Wade.”

Read more here.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, and Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced their states will provide reproductive access to women across the country in what they call the “West Coast offense” in response to Friday’s ruling.

“Today with the Supreme Court ruling to overturn Roe vs. Wade more than half the states in the United States ban abortion outright or severely restrict access to abortion services. That’s why California, Oregon and Washington are building the West Coast offense to protect patients access to reproductive care,” the three said in a video message.

“We will continue to protect patients from any state who come to our states for abortion care,” they said. “We’re going to protect patient privacy.”

Inslee said that the three West Coast states will be working to expand abortion services and help those in need.

Jacquelyn Martin/AP

Idaho Gov. Brad Little said Friday’s ruling was the “culmination of pro-life efforts to defend the defenseless,” adding the state’s “pro-life” bill will go into effect later this summer.

“We fully acknowledge this monumental moment in our country’s history means we must confront what know will be growing needs for women and families in the months and years ahead. We absolutely must come together like never before to support women and teens facing unexpected or unwanted pregnancies,” Little added.

Idaho passed its trigger law, which will make abortions a felony, in 2020. The law stipulates few exceptions for rape, incest, and saving lives. A victim of rape or incest will be required to provide a police report to the physician preforming the abortion.

The law is set to go into effect in 30 days.

Activists from opposing sides chanted at one another in the aftermath of the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade.

Advocates for widespread access to abortion lead chants of “Not your body, not your choice,” with some hoisting signs reading, “Overturn Roe? Hell no!”

Opponents of the procedure chanted, “Hell no, we don’t need Roe!”

Former President Donald Trump said the Supreme Court’s ruling “will work out for everybody.”

“This is following the Constitution, and giving rights back when they should have been given long ago,” Trump told Fox News. “This brings everything back to the states where it has always belonged.”

Trump appointed three Supreme Court justices during his time in office: Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. All three sided with the majority opinion on Friday to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Volunteers outside of Mississippi’s only abortion clinic, the Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which was named in Friday’s ruling, are holding up signs near the street to let patients know they are still open for business in light of the Supreme Court’s decision.

“This clinic is open,” one sign reads.

Abortion opponents outside the clinic are yelling in the direction of the volunteers, “Roe is overturned.”

One activist outside the Supreme Court on Friday decried the decision as “illegitimate,” arguing people should take to the streets to voice their concerns.

“This decision is illegitimate. If you care about women, about girls, about LGBT people, if you care about justice, if you care about the future, you need to get in the streets,” Sam Goldman, a resident of Philadelphia, told the Washington Examiner. “We must not let this stand.”

Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), who traveled to the Supreme Court following the ruling, blasted the “devastating” and “radical” decision.

“They have reversed 50 years of precedent in which it has been well established that a woman retains the right to make decisions about her own healthcare,” he told the Washington Examiner.

The Rhode Island Democrat warned the court’s “willingness” to “advance their own policy views” is “very dangerous.”

“I think this is part of a longer-term project of the Republican Party to pack the court with extreme-right justices to advance a set of policy agendas which they have been unable to achieve through the political process … [because] they’re deeply unpopular,” he added.

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich signaled that a bill banning abortions after 15 weeks in Arizona similar to Mississippi’s law will go into effect in “approximately” 90 days.

“The Arizona Legislature passed an identical law to the one upheld in Dobbs, which will take effect in approximately 90 days. Additionally, General Brnovich will continue to defend Arizona’s law that protects against discriminatory abortions on the basis of race, sex, or genetic abnormality in Brnovich v. Isaacson,” a statement read.

SB 1164, signed by Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey in March, makes it a crime for a doctor to perform an abortion after 15 weeks but prohibits the prosecution of abortion recipients. Doctors could face felony charges and lose their medical licenses.

There is an exception for cases when the mother is at risk of death or serious permanent injury but not for instances of rape or incest.

(Graeme Jennings / Washington Examiner)

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote a solo concurring opinion in Friday’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade arguing the court should reconsider rulings that protect same-sex marriage and contraception.

The Republican-appointed justice wrote other cases that fall under previous due process precedents.

“For that reason, in future cases, we should reconsider all of this Court’s substantive due process precedents, including Griswold, Lawrence, and Obergefell,” Thomas wrote, referencing the high court rulings granting legal protections to contraception, same-sex sexual activity, and same-sex marriage, respectively.

President Joe Biden will deliver remarks following the Supreme Court’s ruling on Friday at 12:30 p.m.

(Graeme Jennings / Washington Examiner)

The Supreme Court’s decision overturning the half-century-old ruling in Roe v. Wade that legalized abortions nationwide has the potential to scramble in dramatic ways a 2022 campaign landscape that has favored Republicans.

A majority of justices, each appointed by Republican presidents, joined the opinion authored by Justice Samuel Alito in the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, ruling Mississippi can maintain its law banning abortion after 15 weeks of gestation. The decision gives states the power to determine limits on when a woman can terminate a pregnancy.

The ruling comes just over four months before Election Day, on Nov. 8. House Republicans are within striking distance of winning a majority, needing to net five seats in the 435-member chamber. The race for a Senate majority is touch-and-go. Democrats are trying to expand on the razor-thin majority they hold in the 50-50 chamber due to Vice President Kamala Harris’s tiebreaking vote, while Republicans have pickup opportunities in several states in their bid for control. Thirty-six governor’s offices are on the ballot in November, too.

Read more here.

(Graeme Jennings / Washington Examiner)

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin lauded the Supreme Court’s ruling for “rightfully” returning power to the people, affirming that he is “a pro-life Governor.”

“I’m proud to be a Pro-life Governor and plan to take every action I can to protect life,” Youngkin said. “The truth is, Virginians want fewer abortions, not more abortions. We can build a bipartisan consensus on protecting the life of unborn children.”

Mayor Eric Adams is welcoming abortion seekers to New York City, sharing resources following the Supreme Court’s decision striking down Roe v. Wade.

“To all New Yorkers: you still have access safe, legal abortions here in New York City. To those seeking abortions around the country: you are welcome here,” he tweeted alongside a link that can help locate providers and explain what to expect when getting the procedure.

The Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C. will be ‘fully activated’ to respond to expected protests in the nation’s capital following the Supreme Court ruling through June 28.

“All members should be prepared to work extended tours as necessary,” a statement read. “Effective immediately, each command shall allow no more than 5% of their members to have leave until 2359 hours on Tuesday, June 28.”

Though they applauded the Dobbs decision as it was read, activists who oppose abortion but reside in Democrat-controlled states warned their work was just beginning.

“The battle has just begun,” Emma Craig, who traveled to Washington, D.C. from San Francisco, told the Washington Examiner. “We’re doing the hard work, I’m calling legislators on a weekly basis. It’s an uphill battle for us in California.”

While the 6-3 decision strikes down Roe v. Wade, it does not preclude states from allowing the procedure within their own borders.

Former Vice President Mike Pence applauded the Supreme Court ruling, saying that “Life Won.”

“Now that Roe v. Wade has been consigned to the ash heap of history, a new arena in the cause of life has emerged and it is incumbent on all who cherish the sanctity of life to resolve that we will take the defense of the unborn,” 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 added.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is calling for a special legislative session now that the precedent of Roe v. Wade has been overturned.

“Every abortion always had two victims: the unborn child and the mother. Today’s decision will save unborn lives in South Dakota, but there is more work to do,” Noem said. “We must do what we can to help mothers in crisis know that there are options and resources available for them. Together, we will ensure that abortion is not only illegal in South Dakota – it is unthinkable.”

Noem, a Republican, vowed a speedy state-level response back in May, when a draft leaked opinion first emerged indicating Roe would be overturned.

The dates of the special session will be decided “promptly after discussion with legislative leadership,” according to a press release.

The Senate Judiciary Committee announced in wake of the Supreme Court overturn of Roe v. Wade its plans to hold a hearing next month to discuss the “grim reality” of a “post-Roe America.”

“In light of the Supreme Court’s decision in #Dobbs to overturn Roe v Wade, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing next month to explore the grim reality of a post-Roe America,” the committee wrote.