The pro-choice movement had good reason to be nervous about the Supreme Court hearing.
After all, this was the same high court that overturned Roe, overturning 50 years of precedent by a 6-3 conservative majority.
Now, two years later, the same court is cracking down on the growing popularity of medical abortion using a pill called mifepristone.
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Who can stop judges if they decide to ban these pills, which are especially important in states where abortion is banned or severely restricted?
A single ruling could tip the court in favor of the pro-life movement, cutting off the lifelines of millions of women.
But it didn’t turn out that way.
Oral arguments Tuesday at the Supreme Court appear to indicate that most justices oppose outlawing abortion pills. (Getty Images)
Audio from Tuesday’s oral argument shows most justices across the ideological spectrum opposed outlawing these pills.
With the exception of anti-Roe leaders Sam Alito and Clarence Thomas, the justices have made it clear they don’t want to get into the fight.
More than 20 years have passed since the FDA approved the use of mifepristone as safe and effective, and it looks like the drug will continue to be widely available.
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When Ketanji Brown Jackson and Neil Gorsuch make the same argument, it’s judicially equivalent to flashing a green light.
Abortion was a difficult topic for the post-Roe Republican Party. Democrats have won numerous special elections with candidates focused on this issue. On Tuesday, one such Democrat flipped a Republican seat in the Alabama House of Representatives.
A box of the drug mifepristone sits on a shelf at the West Alabama Women’s Center on March 16, 2022 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. On Tuesday, March 26, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court will take up a case that could impact women’s health. Her access to mifepristone, one of two types of pills used in the most common type of abortion in the country.
In a Mar-a-Lago interview with Donald Trump, Trump said Republicans who take too hard a stance on abortion, including against rape, incest and maternal life exceptions, are doomed to defeat. He said there is. In supporting his ban on abortion after 16 weeks of pregnancy (later changed to his 15 week limit), he said something that stuck with me. “You have to follow your heart. But you have to be elected.”
Mifepristone is currently used in 60 percent of all abortions in the United States, so the stakes in the Supreme Court case are high.
Skeptical justices expressed concerns about the impact on federal regulations if they changed their minds on a complex topic overseen by the Food and Drug Administration and others.
Anti-abortion demonstrators celebrate in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, Friday, June 24, 2022. The Supreme Court issued a conservative majority decision overturning the court’s landmark abortion case, ending nearly 50 years of constitutional protections for abortion. . (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) (AP)
Jackson said there is a “serious inconsistency” between the anti-abortion doctors’ claims and the lawsuit, which “seeks an order prohibiting any access to these drugs.”
Gorsuch added, “This case appears to be a classic example of what could be a small lawsuit brought to a national legislative level based on FDA regulations and other federal actions.” ” he added.
The advantage of these pills is that patients can order them shipped to their home, even in states with very strict laws.
If SCOTUS upholds the appellate decision, patients would have to obtain the pills directly and would only be able to use them for seven weeks.
Most of the justices appeared united on the basic question of standing, or standing to sue. They pressed both sides whether the plaintiff had such standing.
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If the High Court finds otherwise, it can dismiss the case without having to deal with the more uncomfortable questions.
But that may prove to be only a temporary reprieve. If the next lawsuit is brought by people with clear status, that exit will be closed before the judge.
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As long as there are lawyers and strong moral sentiments on both sides, this type of litigation will drag on and become the legacy of a new, enriching abortion environment.
