By J.D. Crowe
“I’ve always believed that a patient’s room is way too small for a woman, her doctor, and the United States government.” – Sen. Raphael Warnock, pro-choice pastor from Georgia
I’m so old I remember when Republicans were all about less government intrusion. Today’s GOP stands for the Government Overreach Party.
The leaked draft Supreme Court opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito confirms what we already knew: The Supreme firestorm we felt a-brewin’ is already here. To paraphrase WaPo columnist Jennifer Rubin, the leak itself is further evidence that the Supreme Court’s right-wing majority is ready to cast aside the restraints of precedent and get on with their supporters’ Christian nationalism agenda.
It’s a right-wing religious power grab going on right before our eyes. Such religious tyranny might be fine and dandy with the Taliban, Alabama and other red-state voters, but polls show as much as 70 percent of Americans favor the preservation of Roe v. Wade.
What does this mean for Alabama?
Alabama’s near-total abortion ban would immediately take effect if the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision is overturned.
Kyle Whitmire writes: In 2019, Alabama Republicans passed “toughest in the nation” restrictions on abortion in the state. Those restrictions are so severe that they do not allow exemptions for victims of rape or incest.
If a 12-year-old girl gets pregnant after being molested by her uncle, Alabama Republican lawmakers would have that child carry that pregnancy to term. If a doctor helped such a girl end such a pregnancy, that doctor would be guilty of a felony carrying a sentence of up to life in prison.
In response to the leak, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) released a statement vowing, “As a pro-choice pastor, I’ve always believed that a patient’s room is way too small for a woman, her doctor, and the United States government. I’ll always fight to protect a woman’s right to choose. That will never change.”
Today’s religious power-grabby GOP is going all in to put a stop to that kinda talk.
