The political news organization, Politico, is reporting tonight that the U.S. Supreme Court has voted to strike down Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationwide. A draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito and dated February 2022 was leaked to the news outlet.
The draft decision reportedly states that “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start” and “must be overruled.” It further states that “the issue of abortion” should be returned to “the people’s elected representatives.”
The decision of the Court is on the Mississippi case argued in December, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, that would make most abortions after the 15th week of pregnancy illegal in Mississippi.
It is important to note as the Politico article points out that it is not unusual for Supreme Court justices to change their preliminary votes. “Justices can and sometimes do change their votes as draft opinions circulate and major decisions can be subject to multiple drafts and vote-trading, sometimes until just days before a decision is unveiled. The court’s holding will not be final until it is published, likely in the next two months.”
This unprecedented leak of an official Supreme Court document will have massive implications. Conservative pundits are speculating that the leak may have come from liberal insiders in an effort to create public pressure against the Court.
Family Watch will keep you apprised of the situation.
