How the abortion news threatens the Supreme Court’s credibility

堕胎新闻如何威胁最高法院的信誉

Apple News In Conversation

新闻

2022-05-07

30 分钟
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A leaked draft opinion on a Mississippi abortion law suggests that the Supreme Court is ready to overturn Roe v. Wade, a nearly 50-year precedent that protects abortion as a federally guaranteed right. This comes at a time when the Supreme Court is already facing a lot of scrutiny. Apple News In Conversation host Shumita Basu talks with Slate writer and veteran court watcher Dahlia Lithwick about what this leaked opinion means for the future of abortion — and the future of the court itself.
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  • This is in conversation from Apple News.

  • I'm Shemitah Basu.

  • Today, what a leak from the Supreme Court tells us about the future of abortion and the future of the Court itself.

  • It's been one of the most historic weeks ever for the Supreme Court.

  • A leaked draft of a majority opinion in Dobbs vs Jackson, Women's Health Organization shows us that the Court is ready to overturn Roe v.

  • WADE, a nearly 50 year precedent that protected abortion as a federally guaranteed right.

  • This comes at a time when the Supreme Court is facing a lot of scrutiny.

  • Accusations from Democrats that Republicans stole a seat from under them, a series of contentious confirmation hearings from Brett Kavanaugh to Ketanji Brown Jackson, and text messages revealing that Justice Clarence Thomas wife Ginni Thomas press the White House to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

  • Along the way, public trust in the Court has plummeted.

  • There's a growing feeling that this Court is not in sync with the majority of Americans on major issues like abortion.

  • So has the Supreme Court lost its legitimacy?

  • And is there a way back to answer some of these big picture questions?

  • I wanted to talk with Dalia Lithwick.

  • She's a senior editor at Slate who's covered the Supreme Court for more than two decade.

  • First, I asked her about the language in Justice Samuel Alito's draft opinion.

  • He says the legal justification for Roe v.

  • Wade was exceptionally weak.

  • I asked Dalia to explain why.

  • I think the simplest answer to the question is because, of course, the word abortion appears nowhere in the Constitution.

  • And that, you know, you heard some of that from Senator John Cornyn, from Senator Marsha Blackburn at the Ketanji Brown Jackson hearings.