Planned Parenthood does not want the U.S. Supreme Court to return the power to the people.
When the court ruled on Roe v. Wade in 1973, it took away the ability of states to protect unborn babies from abortion. Over the past four decades, voter-elected state legislatures have tried to challenge Roe through laws that limit or ban abortions, but the abortion industry has relied on the courts to strike down those laws.
Now, Planned Parenthood fears that could change if President Donald Trump’s third nominee to the Supreme Court, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, is confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Barbara Ann Luttrell, vice president of external affairs at Planned Parenthood Southeast, said there is a strong possibility that Alabama could ban abortions if Barrett is confirmed, Alabama Political Reporter reports.
“Right now, 17 abortion-related cases are one step from the Supreme Court — including Alabama’s abortion ban,” Luttrell said. “Most of these cases involve incremental restrictions that effectively ban abortion, without the need to overturn Roe. These incremental bans, combined with ‘trigger laws’ designed to immediately ban abortion if Roe were to fall, and with over 20 state legislatures hostile to reproductive health care, means that what little is left of abortion access could be eliminated for an estimated 25 million women of reproductive age with Barrett on the Supreme Court.”
SIGN THE PETITION: Vote to Confirm Supreme Court Nominee Amy Coney Barrett
Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion group in the U.S. predicted that 10 states may ban abortions immediately if Roe v. Wade is overturned: Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee and Utah, according to the report. These states have laws that prohibit abortions but cannot be enforced because of the Supreme Court’s abortion rulings.
An additional 10 to 15 states may either ban or strictly limit abortions if the high court allows them to, according to the abortion group.
Americans support laws that protect unborn babies from abortion In 2019, 12 states passed 25 pro-life laws to ban abortions; and since 2011, states have passed nearly 500 pro-life laws. Voters also approved state constitutional amendments recently in West Virginia, Alabama and Tennessee to protect unborn babies.
Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans want abortions to be strongly limited or illegal. Roe v. Wade, however, does not allow that. The case made the United States one of only seven countries in the world that allows elective abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Roe prohibits states from protecting unborn babies prior to viability, and some states allow abortions for any reason up to birth.
Pro-life advocates hope and abortion activists fear that Barrett’s confirmation could lead to the undoing of Roe. If the U.S. Senate approved her confirmation, she would solidify a strong 6-3 conservative majority on the high court.
Planned Parenthood is a billion-dollar abortion chain that could suffer massively if the Supreme Court allows states to protect unborn babies from abortions once again. In 2019, Planned Parenthood reported 345,672 abortions and $1.6 billion in revenue. Its political arm also spends tens of millions of dollars to elect pro-abortion Democrats to office.
Barrett is a former clerk of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Like Scalia, Barrett has been described as an “originalist” judge. Though her judicial rulings on abortion are few, she did rule in support of two Indiana pro-life laws during her time on the Seventh Circuit.
She also has made several statements about the value of babies in the womb. According to the Law and Crime blog, Barrett signed a public letter in 2015 that emphasized “the value of human life from conception to natural death.” She also said she believes that life begins at conception.
Barrett is a law professor at the University of Notre Dame, a devout Catholic and a wife and mother of seven children.
