Anti-abortion activist calls Kennedy's retirement an 'answer to prayer'


The president of a conservative political organization is thrilled with Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy's impending retirement, calling it an "answer to prayer."
In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, Bob Vander Plaats of the Iowa-based group The Family Leader said with Kennedy leaving the bench and President Trump having an opportunity to nominate a conservative replacement, "we have a chance to take down Roe v. Wade. This is a historic moment in the pro-life community today."
Trump has already said he will nominate "pro-life judges," and Vander Plaats is hopeful that means another person like Justice Neil Gorsuch, who was sworn in last year. "If Gorsuch is the standard, we'd like to see another Gorsuch on that court," he said.
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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