Abortion has returned to the political spotlight as pro- and anti-abortion rights advocates commemorate what would have been the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.
Recommended Stories
The White House and Democrats are marking the occasion before next year’s election cycle, which many predict will be determined, in part, by abortion access. At the same time, anti-abortion activists are demonstrating their movement has not become complacent despite the Supreme Court last summer overturning Roe through Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
BIDEN’S DOCUMENTS SCANDAL CASTS SHADOW OVER PRESIDENCY
Abortion access will be a wedge issue in 2024, with voters breaking in favor of Democrats as they did in last year’s midterm elections, according to Democratic strategist Tracy Sefl.
“But will congressional Republicans read the proverbial room? All signs suggest no,” Sefl told the Washington Examiner, describing abortion access as an economic matter.
Democratic National Committee spokesman Ammar Moussa slammed Republicans for “doubling down on their extreme agenda of taking away Americans’ freedoms.”
“While Republicans advocate for national abortion bans, support laws that could force rape victims to give birth, and trip over themselves to stake out increasingly extreme positions, President [Joe] Biden and Democrats will continue to fight to protect a woman’s right to make her own healthcare decisions,” he said.
Biden, a Catholic who over time became an abortion proponent, has signed two executive orders that underscore the importance of safeguarding abortion and contraception access, particularly in emergency scenarios, in addition to discrimination-free healthcare, the right to travel across state lines for medical treatment, and the physical safety and security of clinics, providers, and patients, as well as privacy and information.
Simultaneously, the White House has been criticized for being ill-prepared for the Dobbs opinion since a draft was leaked last spring. And the Democrats’ preferred policy response, codifying Roe and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, is unrealistic when Republicans control the House and Democrats do not have a supermajority in the Senate. Only last week, House Republicans, with the help of some Democrats, passed Rep. Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) nonbinding measure condemning attacks on anti-abortion organizations and Rep. Ann Wagner’s (R-MO) Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.
“If there’s disappointment in the administration by abortion rights supporters, it may be due to this not feeling like a top, public-facing agenda item every single day,” Sefl added. “I also hope there is a reciprocal learning process between the administration and blue states like Illinois, where I live, as local legislative champions are working in overdrive to do just that.”
Pro- and anti-abortion rights advocates have refocused their efforts on abortion pill access in reaction to the Food and Drug Administration this month permitting mifepristone, one of two medications used in medical abortions, to be dispensed directly to patients with a prescription at pharmacies or via mail order. More than 4 million women have had a medication abortion since the FDA approved the drugs in 2000, the option accounting for roughly 54% of abortions nationwide, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights.
“Twelve states have banned abortion, and this move will not change anything for the people in those states, which is why Congress must pass the Women’s Health Protection Act,” Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the CPR, said.
The White House has denounced state laws that, for instance, “criminalize doctors” and Republican officials who “are openly considering limits on contraception.” Yet although the administration reiterates that more than 26 million women now live in a state that has restricted abortion access and 60-odd “anti-choice” bills have already been introduced for 2023 legislature sessions, aides have deferred questions regarding the prospect of a legal test case challenging lawmakers who prevent abortion pill access after 10 weeks of pregnancy.
“I’d have to refer that question to DOJ to make a decision about enforcement actions,” one staffer said of the Justice Department.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, too, is leading a group of 12 anti-abortion states that contend the FDA should rescind the rule, complementing a lawsuit filed by the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine. Katie Glenn, SBA Pro-Life America’s state policy director, praised the campaigns so women can be screened and receive follow-up care.
“The FDA should reverse its ideological decision and actually follow the science — which points only in the direction of greater oversight of these dangerous drugs,” she said.
The 2024 elections are still almost two years away, but SBA Pro-Life has published small sample size polling data asking, for example, Virginia voters about prohibiting abortions after 15 weeks. Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) is a potential 2024 Republican presidential candidate, and Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), who is expected to announce this week that he will stand for reelection next cycle, needs to win to mitigate Democrats’ exceptionally difficult Senate map.
Biden is anticipated to share a statement and proclamation Friday. The White House’s commemorations, however, are being headlined by Vice President Kamala Harris, who is scheduled to deliver an address Sunday in Florida.
The Department of Health and Human Services has supplemented proceedings by releasing a report Thursday to mark what would have been the 50th anniversary of Roe.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“Our daughters have fewer rights than their mothers and grandmothers, and women seeking care are being put in dangerous situations with heartbreaking results,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said.
