Overturning Roe: Why the surprise?

Anyone who thought that the Ukraine war, rampant inflation, Oscar slaps and the never-ending pandemic wasn’t enough excitement just got their wish. Enter the Supreme Court saga affecting the biggest lightning-rod issue of all: Abortion.

The drama started with a leaked Supreme Court document showing that five justices are poised to overturn the landmark abortion case Roe v. Wade. While Chief Justice John Roberts confirmed the authenticity of the opinion draft, keep in mind that it is still just that — a draft. Call this author a skeptic, but I’ll believe it when I see it, since political 180s are all too common, especially with abortion.

If we’re being honest — and many abortion advocates concede this point, albeit privately — Roe v. Wade was a highly suspect legal decision. A classic legislating-from-the-bench maneuver, the court cited a constitutional right to privacy that didn’t exist, as it appears nowhere in the U.S. Constitution. Legally, the issue should be relegated back to the states so that the will of the people — be it pro- or anti-abortion — prevails over that of unelected justices.

The leak, while certainly not desirable, has been vastly overblown by headline-seekers making it the latest sky-is-falling event. It is not. The integrity of the supremes is not in question, nor does it set such a dangerous precedent that the court will be “cheapened.”

Even more bewildering than the leak response is that the proabortion movement, for some unknown reason, seems to have been caught off-guard. Be it naivete, complacency or aloofness, how that’s possible is anyone’s guess.

You didn’t have to be a political insider to innately understand that Roe v. Wade was in serious jeopardy after President Trump’s three conservative nominees were confirmed, which neutered Chief Justice Roberts as the pivotal swing vote. As discussed, nothing is guaranteed, but anyone on the abortion-rights side with half a brain should have planned for the “worst” — the overturning of Roe — and considered anything less to be an unexpected victory. But given the aghast reaction of many, you’d think it was the first time they had ever contemplated the conservative court acting on Roe. That’s akin to gun-rights advocates waking up surprised that a liberal-dominated court instituted gun bans.

Abortion proponents can protest all they want — at this point, they’ve nothing to lose — but to expect anything other than Roe being overturned is folly.

Once again, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi demonstrated her aloofness by stating that the draft opinion “slapped women in the face” and was “disrespectful of women.” By making such sweeping statements, Ms. Pelosi is forgetting — or simply doesn’t realize — that the pro-life movement is comprised of millions upon millions of women. Taking a position is one thing, but it’s nothing short of pure arrogance to assume that an entire constituency agrees with her — especially on abortion. Truth is, prolife ranks are not all chauvinistic white men, as some critics love to say, but women and men of all colors, creeds, incomes and ethnicities.

Not to be outdone, Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell also put his foot in his mouth, giving the Dems a chance to possibly mitigate expected election losses this November.

Instead of just keeping quiet and letting the Roe v. Wade chips fall where they may, he blurted that, should the GOP win control of Congress, “it’s possible” that Republicans could attempt to enact a national abortion ban. Truly mindboggling that a guy in his position could say something like that.

First, that’s putting the cart before the horse, since no decision has been made. And, a federal ban goes against the conservative philosophy of “power to the people” — that Americans are better served when decisionmaking power occurs at the state — rather than national — level.

While many protesters are civil, more and more are crossing the line. If you want to express your opinion to justices Kavanaugh or Alito, do it outside the Supreme Court building — not at their personal homes where spouses and children reside. Likewise, violence cannot be tolerated, such as the reported arson attack of an antiabortion office in Wisconsin this week, along with the spraypainted threat: “If abortions aren’t safe, then you aren’t either.”

This isn’t a banana republic. Violence, threats and protests based on intimidation cannot, under any circumstances, be tolerated. If we allow mob rule to supersede the rule of law — no matter where we stand on the issues — then abortion will be the least of our worries.