Roe v. Wade hinges on high court makeup
The Associated Press
The U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, establishing a woman's right to have an abortion, could be overturned only with the votes of at least five of the nine justices.
The chances of that happening are difficult to assess, notably because neither the new chief justice, John Roberts, nor Samuel Alito — the nominee to fill pro-Roe Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's seat — have said how they might vote. However, anti-abortion groups have hailed Alito's nomination, noting that he has favored more restrictions on abortion rights than either the Supreme Court has allowed or O'Connor has supported.
If Roberts and Alito were to join veteran justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas in opposing Roe, one more vote still would be needed to reverse the decision. Some analysts say that vote could come from Justice Anthony Kennedy, who has supported some significant restrictions on abortion access. But most court watchers believe Kennedy supports the basic premises of Roe — that a woman's right to abortion outweighs a state's right to ban it. In that case, the fifth vote to overturn Roe would come only if one of the Roe supporters — Kennedy, David H. Souter, John Paul Stevens, Ruth Bader Ginsburg or Stephen Breyer — left the court and was replaced by a justice opposing the decision.
The Associated Press
The U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, establishing a woman's right to have an abortion, could be overturned only with the votes of at least five of the nine justices.
The chances of that happening are difficult to assess, notably because neither the new chief justice, John Roberts, nor Samuel Alito — the nominee to fill pro-Roe Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's seat — have said how they might vote. However, anti-abortion groups have hailed Alito's nomination, noting that he has favored more restrictions on abortion rights than either the Supreme Court has allowed or O'Connor has supported.
If Roberts and Alito were to join veteran justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas in opposing Roe, one more vote still would be needed to reverse the decision. Some analysts say that vote could come from Justice Anthony Kennedy, who has supported some significant restrictions on abortion access. But most court watchers believe Kennedy supports the basic premises of Roe — that a woman's right to abortion outweighs a state's right to ban it. In that case, the fifth vote to overturn Roe would come only if one of the Roe supporters — Kennedy, David H. Souter, John Paul Stevens, Ruth Bader Ginsburg or Stephen Breyer — left the court and was replaced by a justice opposing the decision.
posted by Eye Witness at 6:45 PM
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