The Right Wins an Alarming One

Today the Supreme Court pleased the right-wing, anti-abortionists by giving them a victory in what could become one step toward overturning Roe v. Wade altogether. The court's conservative majority ruling bans a controversial abortion procedure of partial-birth abortion. This marks the first time since the 1973 ruling that women had the right to choose that the court has ruled in favor of limiting abortion laws.

The 5-4 decision written by Justice Anthony Kennedy said the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act that Congress passed and President Bush signed into law in 2003 does not violate a woman's constitutional right to an abortion.

The law is constitutional despite not containing an exception that would allow the procedure if needed to preserve a woman's health, Kennedy said. "The law need not give abortion doctors unfettered choice in the course of their medical practice," he wrote in the majority opinion. Doctors who violate the law face up to two years in federal prison.

Of course Bush's reaction was that this is progress toward his administration's "sanctity of life" position. And joining the conservative majority decision were Bush's two new appointees Chief Justice John Roberts and Samuel Alito. No doubt they fell into party line, and this decision has the potential to make huge waves in overturning Roe v. Wade, giving conservatives the ultimate win and women the ultimate loss.

"Today's decision is alarming," Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote in dissent. She said the ruling "refuses to take ... seriously" previous Supreme Court decisions on abortion.

Said Eve Gartner of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America: "This ruling flies in the face of 30 years of Supreme Court precedent and the best interest of women's health and safety. ... This ruling tells women that politicians, not doctors, will make their health care decisions for them." She had argued that point before the justices.

Obama said the decision is a dramatic departure from precedents safeguarding women's health. "I am extremely concerned that this ruling will embolden state legislatures to enact further measures to restrict a woman's right to choose, and that the conservative Supreme Court justices will look for other opportunities to erode Roe v. Wade, which is established federal law and a matter of equal rights for women," he said.

Likewise, Clinton and Edwards also denounced the decision. Guiliani, who has been back and forth on abortion, said he was happy with the decision.