Democrats are complicit in the looming loss of abortion rights


Oral arguments before the Supreme Court on Wednesday strongly indicated that the conservative supermajority is going to strike down Roe vs. Wade. That will open the door to total abortion bans in all conservative states, as well as most swing states sooner or later — as Josh Marshall points out at Talking Points Memo, in states like Wisconsin, Republicans have gerrymandered the local legislature so thoroughly that democracy is functionally abolished there.
Democrats are naturally flipping their lids. The news loosed a million fundraising emails operatically melting down about the threat to abortion access, promising to fight for reproductive rights, and so on.
Oddly, few of them seemed to mention that Democrats could head off the Supreme Court quickly and easily … right now. They currently control the House, the Senate, and the presidency, so they could just pass a law legalizing abortion at the national level. Roe struck down state abortion bans; removing it would not have any effect on something Congress decides to take into its own hands.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It's worth pointing out that the obvious conservative end goal here is gigantically unpopular. If abortion is murder, as right-wing ideologues are constantly saying, then no exception for rape or incest is permissible — and indeed, the recent Texas abortion ban after 6 weeks contains no such exceptions. Banning all abortions without exception polls at 19 percent support.
But the truth is, congressional Democrats aren't going to enshrine protections for abortion access into federal law. Doing so would require getting rid of the Senate filibuster, which Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) do not support. A larger group of Democrats are plainly uncomfortable with a full-throated defense of reproductive rights, even if they are standing on firm public opinion ground.
Until the party can assemble a membership that actually supports doing what the party claims it believes, voting for Democrats will not accomplish anything for abortion rights on a national level.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.
-
Book reviews: 'America, América: A New History of the New World' and 'Sister, Sinner: The Miraculous Life and Mysterious Disappearance of Aimee Semple McPherson'
Feature A historian tells a new story of the Americas and the forgotten story of a pioneering preacher
-
Another messaging app used by the White House is in hot water
The Explainer TeleMessage was seen being used by former National Security Adviser Mike Waltz
-
AI hallucinations are getting worse
In the Spotlight And no one knows why it is happening
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designation
The Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical