“With this decision, the conservative majority on the Supreme Court has demonstrated its extremism, and how out of touch it is with most of the country”launched Joe Biden on Friday morning. “It makes the United States an outlier among the countries of the developed world” et “leads us on an extreme and dangerous path”he added.
A few hours earlier, the nine “Sages” rendered a decision torpedoing the constitutional right to abortion, guaranteed since 1973 by the famous judgment Roe vs. Wade. “By six votes to three, the most conservative Supreme Court in 80 years has fulfilled the dream of anti-abortion organizations, which have been lobbying for decades in anticipation of this moment”écrit The country.
This social, political and judicial earthquake has pushed Joe Biden, who is reluctant to criticize institutions, to come out of his usual reserve and to deliver a speech “mordant”remark Politico : “The president singled out Justice Clarence Thomas for also laying the groundwork for a re-examination of the right to same-sex marriage, or the right for couples to be in control of their contraceptive choices”.
“Nothing is acquired”
Joe Biden also pointed to the political implications of the decision, which will loom over the midterm elections. “This fall, Roe will be on the ballot”, he warned. public radio NPR is also convinced that “the Supreme Court itself, as well as the issue of abortion, will be the central subject of the elections next fall”.
Pour The Atlantic, “If this decision has a greater meaning than its direct consequences, it is this: no one should take their rights for granted. Predicting with certainty which rights will be revoked and when – if they are – is impossible”but Friday’s shutdown reminds Americans that “rights can fly away”.
In detail, the Court’s judgment does not prohibit abortion. But it withdraws its status as a constitutional right, de facto returning to each State the responsibility of legislating on the subject. Several conservative states already had anti-abortion laws ready to go into effect, and some, like Missouri, immediately took action.
“On Friday morning, women in Missouri officially became second-class citizens”deplores the Saint-Louis Post Dispatch. “With the Supreme Court’s decision to revoke Roe vs. Wade, the law [du Missouri] came into force, prohibiting almost all abortions, even for rape or victims of incest”.
West Coast Alliance
The title takes the opportunity to remind voters of their responsibility – and their power. “Elections have consequences,” he writes. “The elections take place on November 8. Don’t just complain. Don’t just post on social media. Don’t just protest. Vote”.
If half of the American States should prohibit or drastically limit abortion in the coming weeks, other States – generally Democrats – have on the contrary reaffirmed their commitment to defending the right of women to dispose of their bodies. California, Oregon and Washington announced on Friday an alliance to defend the right to abortion.
“It’s a good start”judge the Seattle Times. But it will not be enough to open the doors of clinics in Portland, Seattle or Los Angeles to women from Texas or Oklahoma, it will also “support vulnerable populations who do not have the means to finance” care and expenses related to an abortion procedure, especially if they have to cross the country to do so, underlines the newspaper.
Trump’s Legacy
For anti-abortionists and the conservative press, the Supreme Court ruling is an undeniable victory, as evidenced by a National Review ecstatic: “Ultimately ! It took 49 years and 5 months for the Supreme Court to finally overturn the monstrous injustice it had created in 1973”writes the magazine. “Let us rejoice that this sad episode in the history of our nation is behind us”.
A victory largely attributable to former President Donald Trump, further specifies the Washington Examiner : “In 2016, one of Donald Trump’s promises was to appoint Supreme Court justices capable of revoking Roe vs Wade. Today, his promise has come true”writes the ultra-conservative headline. “Whatever you think of him, anyone opposed to infanticide should thank Donald Trump”.
At the other end of the political spectrum, CNN She also believes that history will remember Trump as the gravedigger of abortion rights in the United States. From now on, “the first paragraph of any history book about Trump will mention the Roe case”predicts the chain.
Asked by Fox Newsthe interested party did not fail to claim a large part of the “victoire” and claimed that the decision “would work for everyone”. For the ex-president, the States have finally “recovered” a prerogative they should never have lost. And for the rest, “It’s God’s will”.