Biden, governors huddle to discuss abortion access
Tells Dem leaders ‘all the alternatives’ are being looked at
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden told Democratic governors Friday that he is “looking at all the alternatives” for protecting abortion access following last month’s Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.
One day after returning from international summits in Europe, Biden described the ruling as “tragic” and warned that Republicans could try to enact a nationwide ban on abortion if they retake control of Congress. He urged Democrats to elect at least two more senators so they could create an exception to the filibuster and codify in law the protections that had been provided under Roe v. Wade.
At least two Democratic senators, Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, have blocked efforts to sidestep the filibuster. The party would need unanimous backing from the Senate’s 48 Democrats and two allied independents, plus the tiebreaking vote of Vice
President Kamala Harris, to make that rules change over solid GOP opposition.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul suggested that Biden consider having abortions performed at federal facilities such as Veterans Affairs hospitals or military bases in states that restrict abortions. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said Native American tribes, which have a level of sovereignty over their own lands, could also be valuable partners.
“We’re in the process of looking at all the alternatives,” said Biden, who made no announcements.
Some activists and Democrats have been frustrated by what they consider an overly cautious approach from the administration, especially since the court decision has been expected since a draft leaked nearly two months ago.
Meanwhile, a new poll finds a growing percentage of Americans calling out abortion or women’s rights as priorities for the government.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said after the decision that “reproductive freedom is on the ballot in November.” But with pervasive pessimism and myriad crises facing the nation, it’s not clear whether the ruling will motivate those voters.
Twenty-two percent of U.S. adults name abortion or women’s rights in an open-ended question as one of up to five problems they want the government to work on, according to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. That’s more than doubled since December.
The new poll, which included interviews conducted before and after the high court’s ruling, finds prioritization of the issues grew sharply following the decision.
The Dobbs ruling kicks decision-making on abortion back to states, and in the last week, Republican governors and legislatures have moved to introduce or advance legislation that bans or curtails abortions.
Polling conducted before the decision showed it was unpopular with a majority of Americans, who wanted to see the court leave Roe as is. A majority of Americans support abortion access in general, though many say there should be restrictions. About a third say abortion should be legal in all cases, roughly another third legal in most cases, about a quarter illegal in most cases.
About 1 in 10 say it should be illegal in all cases.
Mentions of abortion specifically are not limited to Americans who support abortion rights; instead, the poll shows abortion is named as a priority by roughly a quarter of adults with hard-line opinions on both sides of the issue — those who think abortion should be legal in all cases and those who think abortion should be illegal in all cases.
Earnestine Smith, a 68-year-old resident of Waukegan, Illinois, said the
Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe represents progress.
“We want abortion abolished and done away with,” she said. “We got to stand up and say no.”
Still, it’s significant that those with the most liberal views on abortion and those with the most conservative views are about equally likely to prioritize the issue; historically, research has shown opponents of abortion have been more likely to consider the issue important to them than those supporting abortion access.
And the new poll finds mentions of women’s rights are almost exclusively by those who think abortion should be legal.
According to the poll, the percentage of women prioritizing abortion or women’s rights was higher in interviews conducted before the ruling than six months ago, 21% vs. 9% in December; it swelled to 37% in the days after. Mentions grew sharply among men, too, but the growth was concentrated in the wake of the ruling, from 6% in interviews conducted before to 21% after.