President Joe Biden said women have a ‘fundamental’ right to an abortion and called on American voters to ‘elect pro-choice officials this November’ in Tuesday morning statement, hours after a memo leaked that suggests the Supreme Court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade.
He also pledged the White House would be ‘ready when any ruling is issued.’ The Supreme Court confirmed the draft was authentic late on Tuesday morning.
President Joe Biden said women have a ‘fundamental’ right to an abortion and called on American voters to ‘elect pro-choice officials this November’ in Tuesday morning statement, hours after a memo leaked that suggests the Supreme Court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade.
He also pledged the White House would be ‘ready when any ruling is issued.’ The Supreme Court confirmed the draft was authentic late on Tuesday morning.
Biden began his written statement pointing out his White House’s efforts to protect abortion writes, declaring: ‘My administration argued strongly before the Court in defense of Roe v. Wade. We said that Roe is based on “a long line of precedent recognizing ‘the Fourteenth Amendment’s concept of personal liberty’… against government interference with intensely personal decisions.” I believe that a woman’s right to choose is fundamental, Roe has been the law of the land for almost fifty years, and basic fairness and the stability of our law demand that it not be overturned.’
He also repeated past condemnation of Texas state law SB 8, nicknamed the Heartbeat Act, which limits abortions after six weeks — before most women even know they’re pregnant.
‘Second, shortly after the enactment of Texas law SB 8 and other laws restricting women’s reproductive rights, I directed my Gender Policy Council and White House Counsel’s Office to prepare options for an Administration response to the continued attack on abortion and reproductive rights, under a variety of possible outcomes in the cases pending before the Supreme Court. We will be ready when any ruling is issued,’ Biden said.
His last point was a direct appeal to American voters — and perhaps a veiled shot at moderate senators like Joe Manchin, who voted along with Republicans to block Democrats’ last attempt to federalize abortion rights with the Women’s Health Protection Act in March.
‘If the Court does overturn Roe, it will fall on our nation’s elected officials at all levels of government to protect a woman’s right to choose. And it will fall on voters to elect pro-choice officials this November,’ Biden pressed.
‘At the federal level, we will need more pro-choice Senators and a pro-choice majority in the House to adopt legislation that codifies Roe which I will work to pass and sign into law.’
Less than two hours later, Schumer blasted former President Donald Trump and the Republican lawmakers who aided him in getting three conservative justices onto the Supreme Court to form its decisive right-wing majority.
‘This is a dark and disturbing morning for America,’ the New York Democrat began.
‘Under this decision, our children will have less rights than their parents.’
He continued, ‘These conservative justices who are in no way accountable to the American people have lied to the US Senate, ripped up the Constitution, and defiled both precedent and the Supreme Court’s reputation.’
‘The party of Lincoln and Eisenhower has completely devolved into the party of Trump.’
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell returned fire, criticizing Biden, Pelosi and Schumer’s statements as ‘disgraceful.’
‘The disgraceful statements by President Biden, Speaker Pelosi, and Leader Schumer refuse to defend judicial independence and the rule of law and instead play into this toxic spectacle. Real leaders should defend the Court’s independence unconditionally,’ McConnell said.