Former President Donald Trump on Friday credited divine intervention for the Supreme Court's decision overturning decades of precedent protecting Americans' right to abortion access.
"This brings everything back to the states where it has always belonged," Trump also said. "This is following the Constitution, and giving rights back when they should have been given long ago."
The former president is widely credited with laying the groundwork for the Court's decision overturning abortion rights protections. It was Trump's three appointees to the court — Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett — who formed the backbone of the 5-4 majority that threw out past decisions upholding abortion rights. Kavanaugh and Barrett each replaced former justices — Anthony Kennedy and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, respectively — who had backed abortion rights.
Justices Samuel Alito, who authored Friday's majority opinion, and Clarence Thomas, who wrote a concurrence, were appointed by Presidents George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush, respectively.
The constitutional right to an abortion was in place for almost five decades before it was overturned Friday morning. Following the decision, several states were expected to immediately ban the procedure, with some poised to potentially implement criminal penalties for abortion providers or patients.
On Twitter, former Vice President Mike Pence was among dozens of conservative political figures who celebrated the high court's decision. Pence, a longtime opponent of abortion rights, went further, calling for a nationwide abortion ban.
"Now that Roe v. Wade has been consigned to the ash heap of history... we must not rest and must not relent until the sanctity of life is restored to the center of American law in every state in the land," the former vice president wrote on Twitter.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism
that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness
accounts, the history behind an article.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.